The Edison Effect

What if Thomas Edison’s greatest discovery wasn’t the light bulb? In this episode of Science LIVE, Dr. Roger Billings explores the Edison Effect and how Edison’s experiments paved the way for electron tubes and modern electronics. Discover why this overlooked breakthrough mattered then—and why it still shapes technology today.

About DrB

Dr. Roger Billings is a visionary innovator whose work has touched the lives of millions of students and transformed the landscape of education. Widely known as “DrB” to the countless kids who benefit from his groundbreaking Acellus learning system, Dr. Billings has dedicated his life to advancing education through technology. As part of DrB’s lifelong commitment to supporting education, Science LIVE was launched as a way to “give back” by mentoring students in conjunction with the Roger Billings Scholarship Program.


Read more about DrB » 
About the Roger Billings Scholarship Program »

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6,419 Comments

  1. Baran

    I liked when Roger Billings put his glasses on and said he could see the students. And seeing the old cell phones was neat too.

    Reply
  2. Enzo

    So cool how much phones have evolved from the early 2000s

    Reply
  3. Ian

    The Telegraph thing was cool.

    Reply
  4. Waylon

    Thomas Edison is really cool!

    Reply
  5. Tressa

    I thought it was very interesting wehn you talked about the invention of a smart phone and how old phones used to be!

    Reply
  6. Malachi

    This might be my favorite one, Amazing live!

    Reply
  7. Sarah

    Loved learning about Thomas Edison and the experiments he did!

    Reply
  8. Linda

    Hi!!!!! Watching from NC!!!! Absolutely love science LIVE!!. Please reply, if you love acellus.

    Reply
  9. Karma

    Science live is awesome.

    Reply
  10. Catalina

    It seems there’s a lot that I didn’t know about Thomas Edison!

    Reply
  11. Charley

    Hi from tennessee! I learned so much from this live

    Reply
  12. Dana

    Thomas Edison was such an interesting person!

    Reply
  13. Jasmine

    I am learning about open and closed circuits right now.
    Power line volts – wow, they carry 1 million volts.

    Reply
  14. Patrick

    I am very interested that the very phone I am using took that much time to invent. It is also very interesting that the NASA telescope was much more advanced than the Hubble Space Telescope. I thought that the Hubble telescope was the only telescope that was sent to space. I’m very excited for the next episode of Science L!VE.

    Reply
  15. Garrett

    I love r-51

    Reply
  16. Grayson

    Thomas Edison is great! learned alot today from science live!

    Reply
  17. Leanna

    I can’t wait to try out the new course, ASL 2. I really like learning from Ms. Donnie.

    Reply
  18. Rosie

    Thomas Edison is one of my favorite inventors that I look up to and I find his inventions very interesting.

    Reply
  19. Kayla

    Hello from North Carolina!!!

    Reply
  20. Anniston

    My favorite time of the week!

    Reply
  21. Giselle

    ASL class sounds fun

    Reply
  22. Mya

    I did not realize Edison made the vacume tube

    Reply
  23. Mackenzie

    This science live was awesome!

    Reply
  24. Grace

    I love how much you can do and learn from science

    Reply
  25. Payton

    Are all of the telescopes in space and connected to a computer to show pictures?

    Reply
  26. Jayse

    The telescope is super cool. I can’t wait to see the images.

    Reply
  27. Derrick

    Edison’s story keeps getting more interesting.

    Reply
  28. Sera

    It was interesting to learn about Edison and his inventions. He was a pioneer of technology, even though some of his inspiration was not entirely genuine. Do you think we will ever have another inventor as great as Edison?

    Reply
  29. Leah

    What if Thomas Edison’s research hadn’t helped with inventions other than the lightbulb, what would we lack today?

    Reply
  30. Caroline

    Happy New Year! Can’t wait for all the great lessons we’re going to learn in 2026!

    Reply
  31. Bridgette

    science lives are the best!!

    Reply
  32. Derek

    R-51 is so funny! Thankful for the information

    Reply
  33. Charlotte

    Dr Billings always gives useful information to learn

    Reply
  34. Camryn

    I love Edison and Happy New Year!

    Reply
  35. Elizabeth

    Hi from NV!! I think these lives are pretty cool

    Reply
  36. Liam

    Thomas Edison was very smart and a great science engineer.

    Reply
  37. Gianina

    This live was really cool!

    Reply
  38. Ryan

    best part of the week!

    Reply
  39. Gavino

    Hello from Texas

    Reply
  40. Miyari

    Science live is the best I love that there’s lives every Wednesday!!!

    Reply
  41. Daniel

    Hello from Mississippi. I love learning with acellus

    Reply
  42. Genesis

    Interesting video – New AI technology that will help us solve certain sickness is exciting, Also, new telescope technology is very interesting and exciting. Excited to see when it launches in 2027.

    Reply
  43. Zaynab

    I love this! It’s so creative! Thank you Dr. Roger Billings.

    Reply
  44. Hannah

    loved this!!!

    Reply
  45. Ivy

    I learned a lot for my first time seeing one of his lectures

    Reply
  46. Debbie

    My first time doing acellus, learned a lot from this science live!

    Reply
  47. Fahd

    Learned a lot by science live!

    Reply
  48. Taylor

    the live was good

    Reply
  49. Angelli

    hiii from tx!! I really engoyed the life from today

    Reply
    • Faith

      Hello from Texas!

      Reply
    • Hannah

      Hi from Texas!

      Reply
  50. Brooklyn

    This is my first time entering the live but I really enjoyed the visuals of the science live. I loved that since I’m a more visual person , we’re able to see what they were explaining. My little siblings actually sat down with me because they were interested as well! Great live!

    Reply
  51. Brook

    Hello from Kentucky! R-51 is really funny! and I enjoyed the video!

    Reply
  52. Ellyan

    Great episode!

    Reply
  53. Maddison

    Thank you so much for this one I loved it!

    Reply
  54. Gabriel

    Hello from Florida!

    Reply
  55. Rio

    I like science because you can learn a lot about it.

    Reply
  56. Surrey.jr

    It was really interesting that Tomas Edison made the vacuum tub

    Reply
  57. Evan

    Thank you for sharing all this great information with us!

    Reply
    • Jackson

      Always learn something new on these. Thank you!

      Reply
  58. Gage

    I love how much I learn on here

    Reply
  59. Jason

    wow interesting

    Reply
  60. Djuan

    I enjoyed learning about the Edison effect.

    Reply
  61. Jasper

    Happy New Years to everyone!! I enjoyed learning more about Thomas Edison, great live!

    Reply
  62. Carmela

    Nice

    Reply
  63. Evan

    really thats awsome

    Reply
  64. Mason

    You know what they say you learn something new every day.

    Reply
  65. Ayva

    I genuinely love Acellus so much. It is so friendly and entertaining.

    Reply
  66. Debora

    Area 51 is my favorite

    Reply
  67. Ariana

    Today was my first video lecture, and it was very interesting to learn about the Edison Effect.

    Reply
  68. Maddox

    Super informative! Thanks for these videos they teach me something new every week.

    Reply
  69. Derrick

    Happy 2025! I hope everyone had a great year!

    Reply
  70. Cyrus

    I once read that Thomas Edison was a homeschool student. It’s awesome to know that some great inventors were also in homeschool programs, and became great contributors to society.

    Reply
  71. Kaius

    this was cool learning about the Edison effect

    Reply
  72. Harley

    hiiii from TX

    Reply
  73. Jo

    Hi Happy New Year from Kansas City, Mo.

    Reply
  74. Maelee

    science is my fav subject

    Reply
  75. Cameron

    This episode on the edison effect was really awesome!! ty DR. B for all of ur inspiring khowledge you share with us.

    Reply
  76. Ellie

    Trying and failing so many times must have been exhausting. It must have been hard to keep going, but it paid off in the end.

    Reply
  77. Ian

    Hope everyone at Acellus had an awesome holiday!

    Reply
  78. Chloe

    Hi from nc

    Reply
  79. Connor

    I think its cool on how far technology has come for us to find new things in space

    Reply
  80. Teddy

    Happy New years hope all of yall’s year is great

    Reply
    • Robert

      happy new year!!!

      Reply
  81. Sidney

    that episode was really good

    Reply
  82. Jaesean

    I wish i was in science live!

    Reply
  83. Marina

    I really like Tobias. His section is my favorite.

    Reply
  84. Aaron

    I love you guys!

    Reply
  85. Vianee

    I love science happy new year to all of you

    Reply
  86. Daesha

    Super informative! Thanks for these videos they teach me something new every week.

    Reply
  87. Marshal

    Happy new years from kentucky!!!

    Reply
  88. Canaan

    Thank you for the daily knowledge Mr. Billings! I appreciate your effort and look forward to your next installment of Science Live.

    Reply
  89. Brianna

    Happy New Years to all Scientists.

    Reply
  90. Celes

    Happy New Years from Mississippi

    Reply
  91. Nicklous

    science is so cool

    Reply
  92. Raven

    Happy 2026!!

    Reply
  93. Lilly

    I loved learning about Thomas Edison.

    Reply
  94. Logan

    HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE ACELLUS!!!!!!!

    Reply
  95. Alizae

    Happy New Years everyone!! I hope that your all having an amazing year so far.

    Reply
  96. Hailey

    The science facts are always interesting to learn about! happy new years.

    Reply
  97. Kendra

    Happy New Year from Mississippi everyone!

    Reply
  98. Liliana

    I am lily I wanted to say i always love your lives

    Reply
  99. Sadie

    Happy New years everyone!!!

    Reply
  100. Lavienna

    Happy New Year!! I love Science Live!

    Reply
  101. Mckenzie

    science is so cool!

    Reply
  102. Autumn

    i love science so much happy new year

    Reply
  103. Brinlee

    Happy New Year!

    Reply
  104. Elena

    What’s the best university to go to?

    Reply
  105. Madalynn

    Do you think we will ever be able to travel across space, what about black holes?

    Reply
  106. Bailey

    Happy new year!!!!!

    Reply
  107. Alden

    Thomas Edison really did change the world!

    Reply
  108. Toni

    NASA’s getting a new space telescope for Christmas🙌🙌

    Reply
  109. William

    Happy 2026 from Ohio.

    Reply
  110. Zane

    much love from TN!

    Reply
  111. Camdyn

    I love Science!

    Reply
  112. Moses

    SCIENCE LIVE!!!!!

    Reply
  113. Emma

    This is so AMAZING!!

    Reply
  114. Nolan

    Learning about space is so cool!

    Reply
  115. Levi

    happy late new years. thank you for always bringing us stuff that we can love. i love your lives!!!

    Reply
  116. Liam

    hello from ohio!

    Reply
  117. Tianna

    Science is truly amazing!

    Reply
  118. David

    this makes me love science!

    Reply
  119. Mya

    I love science live! Happy new year!

    Reply
  120. Serenity

    I am here! Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New years!!

    Reply
  121. Jonathan

    Loved learning about the Edison effect! Happy New Year 2026

    Reply
  122. Athena

    Wow! Edison was ahead of his time

    Reply
  123. Tenley

    Thomas Edison was very smart. I want to be smart like him

    Reply
  124. Adellyn

    Merry Christmas Acellus team!

    Reply
  125. Emma

    Hello from North Carolina !

    Reply
  126. Aleksandr

    Inventions like the cellphone are absolutely incredible. What would we do without science?

    Reply
  127. Remi

    Could you explain the definition of “exoplanet”? The word I heard is pretty unfamiliar, but I’d like to know the definition of exoplanet. Is it a different kind of planet in the solar system?

    Reply
  128. Gabriella

    Cool facts, Happy New Year!

    Reply
  129. Yunnue

    HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!

    Reply
  130. Logan

    Happy New Years ..I really love this show ..can’t wait to see what will be on it this year YAY !!!

    Reply
  131. Vayda

    Happy to be back from holiday! Happy New Year everyone!

    Reply
  132. Ava

    I am so excited science live is back!!!

    Reply
  133. Johnny

    Edison was very smart and talented person

    Reply
  134. Mizuanne

    HAPPY NEW YEARS!!

    Reply
  135. Mackenzie

    The science behind taking pictures of planets is so incredible.

    Reply
  136. Samantha

    That is soooo cool how NASA keeps coming up with better and better technology. I can’t believe how much better they have already made it.

    Reply
  137. Carson

    Happy Holidays! This live was great!

    Reply
  138. Naomi

    Science lives are so amazing!!!

    Reply
  139. Chance

    Loved learning about Thomas Eddison, thanks for another great science live!

    Reply
  140. Kaiya

    Science is my favorite subject!

    Reply
  141. Alexander

    Happy New Year from North Carolina

    Reply
  142. Dana

    Every Science Lives are so fascinating!

    Reply
  143. Jackson

    I love this !!!

    Reply
  144. Jad

    How many inventions did Thomas Edison have?

    Reply
  145. Aaron

    Happy Science live! Ready to learn more science!

    Reply
  146. Allyson

    Love learning!

    Reply
  147. Adria

    I watched this with my brother! Happy New Year!!

    Reply
  148. Mia

    Science lives are the highlight of my day!

    Reply
  149. Rumaysaa

    How do electrons flow through the battery?

    Reply
  150. Milena

    Thank you and Happy New Year!

    Reply
  151. Zoe

    I’ll never understand how scientists things of the things they do. They are truly intelligent.

    Reply
  152. Ngoc

    Happy New Year to Acellus team and everyone!

    Reply
  153. Ava

    I love learning from science live!

    Reply
  154. Bridger

    Such a good episode!

    Reply
  155. Holden

    Glad to finally see an episode all about and honoring Thomas Edison!

    Reply
  156. Khawla

    How could did he measure the current of the light bulb ?

    Reply
  157. Ellie

    Thomas Edison did some awesome things! Loved today’s live!!

    Reply
  158. Charity

    science lives teach so much

    Reply
  159. Theodore

    I like how the Iphone was made

    Reply
  160. Charity

    acellus is the best

    Reply
  161. Jaedyn

    I’m really glad that they were able to make a touch screen because it makes it easier.

    Reply
  162. Ava

    Is the ASL available for everyone and how do you get?

    Reply
  163. Luisa

    The part when he was talking about making the keyboard work was a great example of teamwork

    Reply
  164. Anna

    I want to be a scientist someday. Learning about the Edison Effect was cool.

    Reply
  165. Amelie

    Happy New Year! Also, so cool to hear about what the new telescope may be able to do!

    Reply
  166. Leone

    Science is my favorite!

    Reply
  167. Khloe

    I love science ❤️

    Reply
  168. Ethan

    What % of the universe have the world’s great scientists discovered?

    Reply
  169. Gael

    I liked learning more about Thomas Edison! I didn’t know about the Edison Effect! Very cool!

    Reply
  170. Esalena

    Im starting to love science so much ! Happy new year 🎉

    Reply
  171. Yantsi

    Thomas Edison was such a bright mind!

    Reply
  172. Oliver

    Wow the telescope is a lot bigger than I thought it would be. I like how the telescope actually goes into space and takes pictures.

    Reply
  173. Zaiden

    I love you guys

    Reply
  174. Lorabella

    Love these live classes

    Reply
  175. Lorabella

    Happy New Year and I really enjoyed this week’s live on the Edison Effect.

    Reply

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