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In 1879 Thomas Alva Edison invented the lightbulb... or so you thought.
1879年，托马斯·阿尔瓦·爱迪生发明了灯泡，或者至少你是这么想的。
More likely than not, everything you know about Edison's famous accomplishment is wrong.
很可能，你所知道的关于爱迪生著名成就的一切都是错误的。
The invention of the lightbulb was a process that took nearly a century--and it didn't begin with Edison.
灯泡的发明是一个耗时近一个世纪的过程--而且它并不是从爱迪生开始的。
Inventors had been trying to perfect electric light since before Edison was even born.
甚至在爱迪生出生之前，发明家们就一直在努力完善电灯。
The first semi-successful attempt was made in 1807, when British chemist Humphry Davy used a primitive battery to make an arc of light between two charcoal sticks.
第一次半成功的尝试是在1807年，当时英国化学家汉弗莱·戴维(Humphry Davy)用一块原始电池在两根木炭棒之间擦出了一道光弧。
Davy's light was too bright to be used in the home, but it became the first electric option for streetlights.
但戴维的灯太亮了，不能在家里使用，但它成了首款电动街灯的选择。
Dozens of lightbulb designs followed, by inventors like Warren de la Rue (his platinum filament too expensive), William Staite (his batteries too expensive), and Joseph Swan (his light too inefficient).
紧随其后的是像沃伦·德拉鲁(他的白金灯丝太贵)、威廉·斯泰特(他的电池太贵)和约瑟夫·斯旺(他的灯效率太低)这样的发明家发明的数十种灯泡设计。
Then came Edison.
然后才是爱迪生。
He purchased some of his predecessor's patents, learned from their mistakes.
他买下了以前那些发明家们的一些专利，并从他们的错误中吸取了教训。
And the lightbulb he invented in 1879 still only worked for short periods of time.
而且他在1879年发明的电灯泡还只能工作很短一段时间。
So why does Edison get all the credit?
那么，为什么所有的功劳都归爱迪生了呢？
In 1880 Edison discovered the right material for his lightbulb's filament: carbonized bamboo fiber, which burned longer than any other material yet tested.
1880年，爱迪生发现了制作灯泡灯丝的合适材料：碳化的竹纤维，这种纤维燃烧的时间比目前测试过的任何其他材料都要长。
The bulb still wasn't perfect, but Edison had the reputation and financial backing to see it through as part of an electrical system that could power it.
那款灯泡还不完美，但爱迪生获得了声誉和资金支持，直到它发展成为电力系统的一部分。
In 1882 the first permanent commercial central power system became operative in Lower Manhattan.
1882年，第一个永久性商业中央电力系统在曼哈顿下城开始运行。
Electrically lit hotels, theaters, and storefronts flourished--as did Edison's reputation as the world's greatest inventor.
用电灯照明的旅馆、剧院和店面蓬勃发展，爱迪生作为世界上最伟大的发明家的声誉也尽收囊中。
