Light is life. Almost all living beings need light to thrive. During the day sunlight, apart from being the crucial element of photosynthesis, keeps us healthy by helping us produce Vitamin D. At night, electric lights take over and free us from living our lives like in the olden days depending on the sunlight or weak candle or lamp light. Not only that, lights are also a part of our social, cultural and religious life. As the days begin their inevitable shortening, it is time to appreciate lights a little more with a look at the history of artificial light. Let there be light!
Candles: Hot, drippy and curiously a favourite of errant ghosts, candles were certainly no LED light. However, this humble wax stick powered generations of human evolution, close to 2000 years, before giving way to newer technologies like the gaslight. Even though newer technologies power through, the joyful candle still holds its ground, being usually the first thing we reach for when we face a power cut.
Gaslight: Powered by burning of natural gas, gas lights appeared in the early 1800s, forever changing the way the world lived. Unfettered by the flickering candles to lead a fuller life, gas lights powered mankind’s march of progress for quite some time.
Edison bulb: The symbol of great ideas and a result of 99 failed experiments, the Edison bulb was the first electric bulb known to mankind. This humble glass bulb forever changed the way people looked at the night forever.
Incandescent bulb: The ubiquitous incandescent bulb is what we think of every time someone mentions a bulb. Unfortunately they use a lot of energy so they are in the process of being phased out, taking away its cheerful yellow glow in to the annals of history.
Fluorescent lights: If the Edison bulb is the symbol of great ideas, the tube light is the symbol of slow apprehension. Fluorescent lights use a low pressure mercury-vapour gas-discharge lamp to provide light. They are still spreading their light around though they have been overtaken by new technologies.
LED light: The latest entrant into the long line of artificial lighting is the LED light. These tiny but solid light bulbs pack quite a punch when it comes to efficiency and long life. They’re also much more durable than an incandescent bulb and are therefore much safer for the environment. Their reduced maintenance costs and cost effectiveness are making them the toast of the town with a wide variety of applications ranging from aviation to residential.
When we look back, it is astonishing to know how a simple glow has so markedly affected human progress. These days we hardly take any notice of the electric light unless there is no electricity at night, what a far cry from our cave dwelling ancestors who huddled around a fire trying to keep the terrors of night away. So the next time it is dark turn on the light and thank it for powering the way ahead.
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