Light bulbs have come a long way since Thomas Edison invented them back in 1879.

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They're more energy-efficient and longer lasting than the bulbs Edison invented, and they're a lot less fragile.

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But in 1877, Thomas Edison invented a new way to preserve the past.

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In 1874, Edison invented the quadruplex telegraph, which allowed the transmission of two signals in each direction down one wire.

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"Since Edison invented the record player the idea has been you sell the record inside a store, " Matt Mason, vice-president of marketing, told the BBC.

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This is a result of legislation that was passed in 2007, requiring general-purpose bulbs to be at least 25% more efficient than those using standard incandescent technology Edison invented.

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Both Edison and Swan invented the electric light bulb (or rather, a workable one) at about the same time, Swan beating Edison to a patent by a year.

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Edison had just invented.

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Thomas Edison tested more than 6, 000 different materials for just one tiny part of the light bulb that he invented.

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