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His first daughter was nicknamed "Dot", and his first son "Dash" (see [[Morse Code]]). <ref> [http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/edhtml/edtime.html Edison: Timeline for Inventing Entertainment], Library of Congress </ref>
His first daughter was nicknamed "Dot", and his first son "Dash" (see [[Morse Code]]). <ref> [http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/edhtml/edtime.html Edison: Timeline for Inventing Entertainment], Library of Congress </ref>
===1880s===
===1880s===
In 1879-81 Edison was at the peak of his intellectual powers. He sought solutions to technological problems through scientific investigations, experimented with multiple ways of technical problem solving, calculated costs and pricing, established methods of production, evaluated the character of potential business partners, negotiated contracts and business partnerships one day and raved back to the lab to scrutinize technical details the next. His development of central-station lighting systems for cities was focused the energy of Edison and his closest associates for months on end.
In the early 1880s Edison made the transition from entrepreneurial inventor to mass manufacturer and business entrepreneur. Leaving the laboratory of Menlo Park to demonstrate his electric lighting system in a “real world” context, Edison establish his system in Britain and in Europe. He delegated much of the work to his most trusted assistants and hired talented new associates. Edison steadily improved his business acumen, the court system (where many patent suits were decided), the media, and his judgment of people's character. As always he relied on his intuitive ability to solve technological problems one step at a time.
In the early 1880s Edison made the transition from entrepreneurial inventor to mass manufacturer and business entrepreneur. Leaving the laboratory of Menlo Park to demonstrate his electric lighting system in a “real world” context, Edison establish his system in Britain and in Europe. He delegated much of the work to his most trusted assistants and hired talented new associates. Edison steadily improved his business acumen, the court system (where many patent suits were decided), the media, and his judgment of people's character. As always he relied on his intuitive ability to solve technological problems one step at a time.
===Team members===
===Team members===
==Bibliography==
==Bibliography==
* Israel, Paul. ''Edison: A Life of Invention'' (2000), the standard scholarly biography [http://www.amazon.com/Edison-Life-Invention-Paul-Israel/dp/0471362700/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229892178&sr=8-7 excerpt and text search]
* Israel, Paul. ''Edison: A Life of Invention'' (2000), 552pp; the standard scholarly biography [http://www.amazon.com/Edison-Life-Invention-Paul-Israel/dp/0471362700/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229892178&sr=8-7 excerpt and text search]
* Israel, Paul, and Robert Friedel,. ''Edison's Electric Light'' (1986), scholarly study
* Jones, Francis Arthur. ''Thomas Alva Edison: Sixty Years of an Inventor's Life'' (1908) 362 pages; [http://books.google.com/books?id=6pkNAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA298&dq=intitle:thomas+intitle:edison&lr=&num=30&as_brr=1&as_pt=ALLTYPES full text online]
* Jones, Francis Arthur. ''Thomas Alva Edison: Sixty Years of an Inventor's Life'' (1908) 362 pages; [http://books.google.com/books?id=6pkNAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA298&dq=intitle:thomas+intitle:edison&lr=&num=30&as_brr=1&as_pt=ALLTYPES full text online]
* McFee, Inez Nellie Canfield. ''The Story of Thomas A. Edison'' (1922) 182 pages; popular; [http://books.google.com/books?id=KqMDAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=intitle:thomas+intitle:edison&lr=&num=30&as_brr=1&as_pt=ALLTYPES online edition]
* McFee, Inez Nellie Canfield. ''The Story of Thomas A. Edison'' (1922) 182 pages; popular; [http://books.google.com/books?id=KqMDAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=intitle:thomas+intitle:edison&lr=&num=30&as_brr=1&as_pt=ALLTYPES online edition]
* Stross, Randall E. '' The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Alva Edison Invented the Modern World'' (2007) 376 pages;
* Millard, Andre. ''Edison and the Business of Innovation'' (1990), strong scholarly study
* Stross, Randall E. '' The Wizard of Menlo Park: How Thomas Alva Edison Invented the Modern World'' (2007) 376 pages; a debunking account that says his inventions were exaggerated and that after 1882 Edison was mostly a PR genius
===Primary sources===
===Primary sources===