A liter of light !

 One of the greatest inventions that lit up the whole world and continues to do so, The Incandescent light bulb. Thanks to one of the greatest inventors of all time, Thomas Alwa Edison, who through his relentless trials and failures, successfully invented the  electric light bulb. From Edison's basic electric bulb to modern day energy efficient CFL's and LED bulbs his great invention has come a long way since.


However great the light bulb has been, there are still millions and millions of people who are left to live in the dark because of their socio-economic backgrounds. When people struggle to meet their basic needs such as food and clothing, shelter seems to come in a distant third and even if it is met, it will be without the luxury of electricity, which means they tend to rely of the natural phenomenon of burning wood or whatever that could be burned for light and cooking.


We always look up to great innovations that become successful commercially viable products. I came across this article from The Hindu. After reading through this, I dug in a little more on the topic to find out that there are thousands of homes that are lit up using this simple technology of using recyclable pet bottles, water and bleach.


In 2002, when brazil went through a phase of power shortages, a humble mechanic- inventor, discovered that filling up a pet bottle with water and bleach, produced enough light equivalent to that of a 50-60 watt electric bulb. His smart innovation has become an instant hit that, from brazil to Kenya to Philippines, several thousand homes have started implementing his wise idea.

Since Edison created a successful electric bulb in the late 1870's, to the pet bottle bulbs in the 2002, people have always found a way to stay away from the dark. And this new innovation is probably one of the best ideas I've come across in recent times. We spend millions and billions dollars trying to understand the universe and create a better living by understanding it. Yet, we tend to complicate the entire scenario as we fail to realize their ill-effects on the long run and come out with corrective measures.


As for the light bulb with water and bleach, this is one of "the" novel and environmentally friendly creation that has started serving human kind well. In fact in the Philippines, a small organization, A liter of light, has been lighting up  several thousand homes last year and hope to light up million more by next year. This got me thinking of my previous post about creativity and happiness, and yes, FDR was right is saying,
" Happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. "