The telephone, which Alexander Graham Bell is best recognized for creating, transformed communication as we know it. His wife and mother both had hearing loss, thus he had a strong personal interest in sound technology. There is significant debate as to whether Bell invented the telephone, but in 1877 he acquired the sole rights to the invention and established the Bell Telephone Company. When all was said and done, the brilliant scientist had more than 18 patents for his creations and work in communications.
Birthplace
On March 3, 1847, Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. Bell’s mother was a talented pianist despite being deaf, and his father was a professor of voice elocution at the University of Edinburgh.
Young Alexander was an inquisitive child who played the piano and created things at a young age. By the time Bell was in his early twenties, both of his brothers had died of tuberculosis.
Education
Bell first received her education through homeschooling. Although Bell didn’t do well in school, he was always good at solving problems.
Alexander created a tool with revolving paddles and nail brushes when he was just 12 years old to enhance a farmer’s procedure by quickly removing husks from wheat grain. Bell started researching speech mechanics when she was 16 years old.
He continued on to the University of Edinburgh and Royal High School. Bell and his family immigrated to Canada in 1870. He relocated to America the following year.
While living in the country, Bell put into practice the “visible speech” program his father created for deaf kids to learn spoken sounds.
He established the School of Vocal Physiology and Mechanics of Speech in Boston in 1872 to instruct deaf individuals in speaking. The aspiring inventor, who had no formal education, was appointed Professor of Vocal Physiology and Elocution at the Boston University School of Oratory at the age of 26.
Bell first met Mabel Hubbard, a deaf student, while lecturing. The ceremony took place on July 11, 1877. They later had two sons who passed away as infants, making a total of four children.
When Was the Telephone Invented?
Bell began developing the harmonic telegraph, a device that allowed several messages to be sent over a wire concurrently, in 1871. Bell became fascinated with figuring out how to broadcast human voice across wires while working to improve this technology, which was supported by a group of investors.
By 1875, Bell and his business partner Thomas Watson had developed a straightforward receiver that could convert electrical energy into sound.
There is significant disagreement over who should be given credit for the development of the telephone because other scientists, such as Antonio Meucci and Elisha Gray, were working on comparable technologies. Bell reportedly hurried to the patent office to obtain the discovery’s patents as soon as possible.
On March 7, 1876, Bell was given his telephone patent. A few days later, he purportedly said the now-famous words, “Mr. Watson, come here,” during the first-ever phone call to Watson. I need you.
The Bell Telephone Company, currently known as AT&T, was founded by 1877. Bell called Watson for the first time across an entire continent in 1915, traveling from New York to San Francisco.
Did you realize? Alexander Graham Bell insisted against having a telephone in his study because he thought it would keep him from his research.
Legal Headaches
The creator fought a legal battle for about 20 years with other researchers, such as Gray and Meucci, who maintained they had developed telephone prototypes before Alexander Graham Bell received his patent.
The American government attempted to have Bell’s patent revoked in 1887, but the Bell firm prevailed in a Supreme Court decision following a series of decisions. The Bell Company faced almost 550 judicial challenges, but none of them ultimately succeeded.
Inventions and Accomplishments
Over the course of his career, Bell worked on several other projects than the telephone and was awarded patents in other industries. His other famous creations included:
- The metal detector: Bell initially came up with this device to locate a bullet inside of assassinated President James A. Garfield.
- Photophone: The photophone allowed transmission of speech on a beam of light.
- Graphophone: This improved version of the phonograph could record and play back sound.
- Audiometer: This gadget was used to detect hearing problems.
Bell received the French Volta Prize in 1880, and with the money he received, he established the Volta Laboratory in Washington, D.C., an institution dedicated to scientific research.
Bell collaborated with renowned author and activist Helen Keller and developed a number of methods to aid in the teaching of speech to the deaf. He was also involved in the founding of Science magazine and presided over the National Geographic Society from 1896 to 1904.
Quotes by Bell
Although Bell is most famous for his inventions, his words and writings are also recognized today. Several well-known statements ascribed to Bell include:
• “When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.”
• “A man’s own judgment should be the final appeal in all that relates to himself.”
• “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.”
• “Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to focus.”
• “Great discoveries and improvements invariably involve the cooperation of many minds.”
• “The most successful men in the end are those whose success is the result of steady accretion.”
• “The only difference between success and failure is the ability to take action.”
• “You cannot force ideas. Successful ideas are the result of slow growth.”
• “The inventor looks upon the world and is not contented with things as they are. He wants to improve whatever he sees, he wants to benefit the world; he is haunted by an idea. The spirit of invention possesses him, seeking materialization.”
Death and Legacy
Bell passed away in Nova Scotia, Canada, on August 2, 1922, at the age of 75. His death was brought on by complications from diabetes. His wife and two daughters continued to live after him.
Every phone in North America was turned off during Bell’s funeral as a mark of respect.
The eminent scientist is celebrated today for his ground-breaking contributions to sound technology and the advancement of deaf education. His most famous creation, the telephone, fundamentally altered how people communicate with one another.
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