Between 1860 and 1900, more than half a million patents were granted by the United States Patent Office. This explosion in invention helped fuel the rise of the United States as an industrial power where a select few men made enormous amounts of money. One man, Thomas Edison, contributed to this inventiveness in the United States, creating a new technology every five months during an intensive five-year work period. Edison applied industrial ideas to invention, employing fifteen workers who manned his factory, which illustrated Edison's vision of invention as a source of profit.

Investigate the source using the zoom and navigational tools in the Flash player and then answer the questions below.

1			Examine this patent. What terms are used in the description of the invention?
2			Why would the light bulb, or electric lamp, prove to be such an important invention?
3			How does this invention fit in with other inventions of the era?
4			In what ways did Edison's vision alter American history? Explain.