1. The prolific American inventor Thomas Alva Edison was born on February 11, 1847 in a small Ohio town. After which Italian city was his town of birth called? Genoa Florence Venice Milan

2. True or false: As a youth, Thomas had only a few short months of formal schooling and was considered by his parents and teachers to have a severe learning disability. True False

3. At the age of seven, Thomas and his family moved to Port Huron, Michigan. He set up his first laboratory in the basement of his family's house at 10 years of age. At 12 years old, he found his first job working in a position attached to which field? Medicine Utilities Railroad Law

4. Most of his life, Thomas suffered from a certain handicap. From which of the following difficulties did he suffer? Partial blindness Partial deafness Inoperative left arm Lame left leg

5. From 1862 to 1868 Edison worked in the telegraphy industry, where he learned much about mechanical devices. During this time, he also came into contact with a number of important individuals, including the current king of inventors, Alexander Graham Bell himself! Inspired by the atmosphere of innovation he found during these years, and especially in Boston, where he lived during the latter part of this period, he came up with his first invention. What was this first invention, developed in 1868, for which he received his first patent? Vote Recorder Magnetic Ore Separator Automatic Telegraph Fuse Block

6. Thomas' first financial success came a year later. Traveling from Boston to New York, he found himself in dire financial straits. Hoping to strike it rich in the Big Apple, he found odd jobs here and there. It was in Gotham that serendipity first smiled at Edison, when he created which device, his first major moneymaker? Stock Ticker System Electric Meter Pneumatic Stencil Pens Dynamo

7. Edison's first marriage began in 1871, when he decided to hitch up with a laboratory assistant nine years his younger. Who was this lovely girl with whom Thomas became betrothed? Margaret Cummings Mary Stilwell Eliza Jewson Tina Southwick

8. Thomas and his wife soon had three children. What were the fitting nicknames of the first two children, a daughter and a son? Light and Bulb Dot and Dash Belle and Morse Inspiration and Perspiration

9. In 1876, Thomas, with the support of several financiers, including J. P. Morgan, set up a laboratory for inventing purposes in which small New Jersey town? Menlo Park Princeton Hackensack Morristown

10. The following year, 1877, Edison patented his personal favorite invention. What was this remarkable device? Phonograph Electric Fan Electric Pen Fluoroscope

11. Let's jump to 1879 now, and another important Edison invention, the incandescent light bulb. Is it true or false that Edison's light bulb was the very first to be patented? True False

12. The first commercial power system was developed by Thomas Edison in 1882, when he began lighting homes in which of these cities? Boston New York London Paris

13. 1882 was also the year of Edison's only significant scientific discovery. This discovery, that an electric current could be induced to flow between two unconnected wires in a vacuum, is called the Edison _______? (Fill in the blank) Answer: (One word, starts with E)

14. Thomas Edison was involved in the creation of a number of major U.S. companies in various industries. The greatest example of his corporate initiative was the development of the Edison Electric Company in 1889, which eventually merged with another Company and became which major corporate juggernaut of the 20th century? Answer: (Two Words)

15. In the 1890s, after his invention of the motion picture camera and the projector, Edison became involved in movie making. He opened his Black Maria Motion Picture Company in 1893 and set out to make films. What was the name of the 10 minute film released by his company in 1903 that took the film world by storm? The Birth of a Nation The Great Train Robbery The General A Trip to the Moon