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99,999 BCE
Natural Light
Often taken for granted, sunlight is extremely vital to our lives. Since the beginning of the Earth, the sun has provided light for about half of the world at once, and is what gives us a perception of time. While this was not engineered by man, it is still considered to be the most important form of light to humans on Earth. (Beginning of the Earth, date not available in timetoast.) http://www.stouchlighting.com/blog/the-historical-evolution-of-lighting -
99,998 BCE
Manmade Light Begins
Once humans gained control of fire, they soaked a towel or rag in a flammable liquid and then wrapped it around a wet stick and ignited flammable end. These torches were used to see while daylight was not available, and was one of the first many advancements along the line of lighting technology. (Date not available in timetoast; 400,000 B.C.) http://www.ies.org/lighting/history/timeline-of-lighting.cfm -
4500 BCE
Oil Lamps
During the Upper Paleolithic age, indented rocks or hollowed out pottery were filled with oil and lit. This invention made fire far more portable, so light was more accessible during nights. (Exact date not given).
https://www.mpm.edu/research-collections/anthropology/anthropology-collections-research/mediterranean-oil-lamps/description-and-history-oil-lamps -
3000 BCE
The Introduction of the Wick
With human civilization beginning to incorporate sophisticated tools and technologies, homes in Egypt began to include better ventilation systems like windows and chimneys. These implementations made it possible to utilize controlled fire in a house, and, about a hundred years into Egyptian civilization, candles of beeswax came into use. (Exact date not given) http://www.ies.org/lighting/history/timeline-of-lighting.cfm and Glencoe World Hitory 2003 -
Gas Lamps
Candles ruled a broad sect of lighting for over 4.5 millennia, but in 1792, the flammability of gas for the practical use of lighting was introduced into the first home, and soon after, became the new mainstream. Gaseous fuels like propane, methane, and coal-gas would heat the lamp to where it gave off light. (Exact date not given)
http://www.stouchlighting.com/blog/the-historical-evolution-of-lighting -
The First Electric Lamp
Heinrich Göbel designed an incandescent lamp by passing an electric current through a carbonized bamboo filament, which was then placed in a glass bulb. This opened a field for the practical use of electricity, and was the beginning of many electric lighting inventions to come. (Exact date not given)
http://www.ies.org/lighting/history/timeline-of-lighting.cfm -
Dependable Light Bulb
In 1879, Thomas Edison, a well known American inventor, was searching for a way to make his bulb last longer. The implementation of the carbonated bamboo filament into his electric bulb gave his light a life of roughly 1200 hours, a 10,000% increase on his previous light that burnt out after 13 hours. This made him the first inventor to create a reliable, therefore, marketable incondescent bulb.
http://www.stouchlighting.com/blog/the-historical-evolution-of-lighting -
Mercury Vapor Lights
Concurrently with the battle between incandescent and fluorescent, mercury vapor lights, invented by Peter Cooper Hewitt, were the first bulbs to be compatible with standard electrical infrastructure and still a highly efficient light. This utilized an electric arc going through vaporized mercury to create light, and the light often appeared to be green. (Exact date not given)
http://www.stouchlighting.com/blog/the-historical-evolution-of-lighting -
Competition to Incandescents: The Fluorescent Bulb
Edison's incandescent bulb almost entirely ruled commercial lighting until the early 20th century, where Daniel McFarlan Moore introduced the fluorescent bulb to commercial use in 1904. This light, called the Moore Lamp, required more energy than Edison's, and nonstandard connectors, but the difference in efficiency made this a real competitor in the world of man made lighting. (Exact date not given)
http://www.stouchlighting.com/blog/the-historical-evolution-of-lighting -
LED: "The Magic One"
The light emitting diode (LED) that we see so often in today's world was originally produced in 1962, by Nick Holonyak. These revolutionary lights are far more energy efficient, and are, therefore, cheaper for the consumer to use. They don't require a glass bulb like all regular bulbs during this time period, and are now used in our everyday lives, with our TVs, computers, and even our smartphone's. (Exact date not given)
http://www.stouchlighting.com/blog/the-historical-evolution-of-lighting
