On New Year's Eve, 1879, Thomas Edison unveiled his newest invention: the electric light. Reporters came from all over the U.S. to see Edison's Menlo Park lab lit up with his incandescent bulbs.

And this spark eventually lit the way to the modern, electrified world of today. Edison patented the incandescent light bulb 145 years ago, on January 27, 1880. Edison didn't come up with the idea ...

For those unversed, Edison's ingenuity extended beyond the light bulb. He pioneered electric power generation, and laying the foundation for modern electrical systems, too. Additionally ...