Consider fiction’s legendary sleepyheads. Washington Irvings hero Rip Van Winkle imbibed a charmed drink and woke up 20 years later. He spent the remainder of his days as a makeshift historian, telling willing listeners what life was like 2 decades earlier. And who can forget Sleeping Beauty, who spent 100 years in an ageless, enchanted sleep, only to be awakened by her charming prince?

But if you’ve ever felt like you just don’t get enough sleep, you’re in for some competitive (and powerful) company. While running Great Britain, former Prime Minister, Winston Churchill who slept little, once chided a younger colleague who complained of fatigue, ” I have never been tired in my life.” Margaret Thatcher, another former Prime Minister, reportedly only slept 3 to 4 hours per night. It was said that President John F Kennedy worked in the Oval Office until the wee hours of the morning and then awoke just a few hours later at 7:30 a.m.

Short sleepers in history were at no loss for creativity, either. Inventor Thomas Edison required less than 4 hours sleep per night, often napping on his couch in his workroom only when he felt fatigued. He considered 8 hours of sleep ‘excessive’ and a symptom of weakness. Edison’s competitor, Yugoslavian electrical engineer Nikola Tesla, inventor of the wireless radio, scoffed at Edison’s sleep habits: Tesla reportedly slept only 2 hours each morning.

Fellow inventor and 15th century artist Leonardo da Vinci was said to have worked almost continuously by napping 15 minutes every 4 hours (a mere 1 1/2 hours per day) and not sleeping at all at night. Painter Salvador Dali was rumoured to have napped in a chair while holding a spoon over a tin plate. When he drifted off to sleep and dropped the spoon, the clatter would wake him, and he would feel completely refreshed.

For the majority of us, however we need at least 8 hours of sleep to maintain our energy and to be productive. To sleep is perchance to dream.

Edison’s early history is eventful, as he was the seventh child in his family and much of his learning occurred informally. He was born in Milan, Ohio, in 1847, but he lived most of his childhood in Michigan. Notably, he was especially adept at working with chemistry sets.

While the invention most remembered from Edison is the light bulb, many people don’t realize just how much Edison did. In the United States alone, he had 1,093 patents to his name, and that does not include the patents he registered in Europe.

His contributions well exceeded small appliances. Edison was a chief engineer in the development of mass telecommunication and electrical distribution, both of which are necessary to our daily lives. He also started several power plants.

Despite his enormous intellect, Edison was known to be unfair and aggressive. For example, he offered Nikola Tesla fifty-thousand dollars in exchange for improving his company’s generators. When Tesla completed the task, Edison said he was joking, and then even refused Tesla a small raise.

Another struggle between Edison and Tesla was that of what type of current was better. Edison promoted direct current, and Tesla backed alternating current. In reality, alternating current is more efficient, and Tesla’s knowledge was eventually solidly rewarded.

If anyone is looking for inspiration for determination, look no further than Edison’s work on the light bulb. He had to spent months testing over a thousand filaments to see which one worked best. Interestingly, after making his patent, he found another filament that was much more effective than the one in his patent.

Edison’s legacy lives on today, both through memorials and the company he founded, General Electric. Personally, he believed in peace for all creatures, and was especially fond of nature.

“Thomas, why not give up, your laboratory has burned down. Isn’t that saying something?” There they were again, constantly complaining. Yet he would rebuild and create something new then he kept creating, and in so many ways the world was never the same.

That creative mind was Thomas Alva Edison and he came to be known as “The Wizard of Menlo Park”. This entrepreneur was responsible for such inventions as the phonograph, light bulbs and electric power distribution among other things.

“Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won’t work.” – Thomas A. Edison

Edison was a single father for a time and knew what it was like to provide for his family in difficult times. His first wife, Mary, died thirteen years after they married.

At the end of Edison’s life he held more than 1,000 patents for various inventions and improvements he brought to the world. Some were little remembered while others are part of a well-recited legacy.

This inventor was a consummate entrepreneur. He could see existing products and find ways to make them better. He found better uses for existing products with a few alterations and he steadfastly refused to give up in the face of adversity.

Not all of his contemporaries found Edison to be an appropriate poster child for scientific exploration and success. Nikola Tesla, a contemporary of Edison’s said following the death of the inventor, “I was almost a sorry witness of his doings, knowing that just a little theory and calculation would have saved him 90 per cent of the labor. But he had a veritable contempt for book learning and mathematical knowledge, trusting himself entirely to his inventor’s instinct and practical American sense.” <

What Edison may not have known in education was made up for in dogged determination – something he owned in abundance. Edison did not let that which he did not know affect that which he wanted to accomplish. Edison’s life is an incredible object lesson for those involved in entrepreneurialism today. Never let difficulties deter you from seeking a new solution, never let road blocks stop you from checking new routes and always envision where you want to be so when you get there you will not be surprised.

“I never did a day’s work in my life. It was all fun. ” – Thomas A. Edison

Edison learned what most of us only dare to hope – following a passionate pursuit of life often yields its own rewards. We each have interests that can be reshaped to include the entrepreneurial spirit and potential business success while doing the very things we enjoy most. The passion we hide is often the passion that can provide the greatest boost to our morale and may provide the courage we need to take the nest step.

“If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves.” – Thomas A. Edison

Google search for “greatest inventor” will give you many results (585,000 to be exact!). Do not worry; I shall summarize the top results for you.
1. Nikola tesla.com tells us about Nikola Tesla being the greatest of all times. No doubt, his contribution in electromagnetism is unquestionable. According to me, his contribution IS the most important in this field. The only reason many people do not remember him is because of his American adversary, Thomas Alva Edison and his lack of knowledge in patenting business. But to call him the greatest inventor… isn’t it kind of absurd?
2. Second link has to be Wikipedia; a list of all the inventors which have appeared on the face of this earth. But it has forgotten one very important inventor; keep guessing, I will tell you at the end (Hint: initials of this inventor are M.N.)
3. Third link ; the list has been created by six students and contains the following names in its Hall Of Fame.
Alexander Bell: Invented the telephone; a very important invention that revolutionized telecommunications for good. No doubt he is an inductee in the Hall Of Fame but still, not the best.
George Carver: Invented many uses for peanuts. I am not a great fan of peanuts, so I cannot say anything on it. 
Marie Curie: discovered radium. With all due respect to her, we are talking about inventors, NOT discoverers. Otherwise she really deserved a top spot (Hint: M.N. is female.)
George Eastman: Invented film. For me, film is a means of entertainment, not actually a very important invention when you compare it with airplanes, cars, etc.
Henry Ford: Invented assembly line and car. No doubt, these are very important. But then again, his one invention is single-handedly killing the environment. He is a very important inventor, but not the best.
Benjamin Franklin: Part discoverer, part inventor, he belongs to a separate category, in which people like Leonardo Da Vinci, Isaac Newton belong. This category consists of people who aren’t satisfied with one invention. So, they keep doing things until they are buried in their graves. They are top candidates, but still not the best.
4. Now this answer found in “Answers” is very good. I will quote it for you: 
Q- Who is the greatest inventor of all time?
A-There is no exact greatest inventor of all time, as every great inventor’s contribution is equally important to the society throughout history. But the most probable candidates for the greatest inventor include: Nikola Tesla, Leonardo Da Vinci, Robert Goddard, Alexander Graham Bell (who is the first to patent the telephone), Thomas Edison (for his invention of the improved light bulb), Archimedes and the guy who invented the first modern telescope back in the Renaissance Era, etc.
I noticed something peculiar- many notable inventors are not included. For example, the person who introduced counting and numbers to humanity, the inventor of wheel and clothes…all these are very important inventions. It’s kind of insulting; not insulting our forefathers in this list, even if they are anonymous in the pages of history.
You can keep searching for more articles, each with different views and ideas. So I end by telling the name of the greatest inventor- according to me, which I hope all will agree.
Have you ever wondered about elements and substances which were discovered and are yet to be discovered; who made them? How did it come? How useful is it to us?
Consider the example of oxygen. Discovered in 1772, this gas was then known as “fire gas”. It’s the crucial element for our survival and is therefore a very important element. Carl Scheele discovered it. But who invented it? Well folks, the answer is simple: MOTHER NATURE. She IS the greatest inventor of all times. Mankind’s every single discovery has been her invention. Early Man wanted food, clothes, fire and all other things, which was provided by Mother Nature, not some creepy looking Martian who came in ‘peace’ “V” . Come to think of it, almost every invention of man is indirectly related to an invention of Mother Nature. Everything is being provided in this huge warehouse, you just have to find it. So I think I can safely say that
“Mother Nature is the mother of all inventions “

Science has proven that all matter and materials consisting of atoms are in a constant state of motion. Energy in motion inside all matter down to the subatomic level. All forms of matter are made of tiny atoms called protons, neutrons, and electrons. Everything is vibrating from inanimate objects to animated objects, from all life, people and even certain locations on the Earth.

Auras are a form of electromagnetic vibrational radiation emanating from a person, object, or location. Everything in the known universe seems to vibrate at a precise vibration. It is believed that all thoughts, actions, color, and sound all have a specific vibration frequency. Even the human body immune system is effected by different degrees in vibration. Dr. Wayne Dyer, author of “There’s a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem”, wrote about that everything is energy and vibration. That aura light is connected to our state of health, emotions, and thoughts. He asserted that anyone with practice can send positive energy to themselves , others, and situations to improve the quality of life.

Can the average person see vibrational energy or the aura itself? Psychics like Edgar Cayce seem to be able to see it with the naked eye. Mediums can sense the negative and positive energy around people and places. But the best way to see an aura today is by Kirlian photography. Kirlian photography, named after the Russian electrician Semon Davidovich Kirlian. Semon Kirlian made the discovery in 1939 but this type of electrical photography was well known to physicists and electrical engineers many years before this. Nikola Tesla also created Kirlian-like photographs 75 years before they became famous.

Nikola Tesla (July 10, 1856 –January 7,1943), an American electrical engineer, physicist, and scientist, was a world-renowned inventor in groundbreaking technological discoveries. Tesla knew that high electrical voltage could produce “aura-like photography” before the 1900‘s. Tesla was an underrated genius who understood high frequency technology and high voltage energy. He was an expert at understanding vibration and resonance. Tesla knew that everything ever existed has a frequency and possesses a unique vibratory rate which resonates with the heart of the universe. Tesla invented all types of oscillating machines including the Tesla Personal Oscillator which was to promote health and well-being, but just before his death, Tesla was working on Photographing Thought. Tesla was greatly aware that the power of thought, vibration, and resonance energy were connected, and could be enhance for constructive purposes.

Dr. Deepak Chopra, author of Eastern and Western wisdom, has often spoken of practical and inspiring ways to raise one’s vibrational frequency to a state of love and ecstasy. Letting go of ego and relinquishing the need to control, will create a spiritual awareness of enlightenment full of bliss, love, happiness, and abundance. Meditating and focusing on healing energy opens yourself to others and will benefit everyone.

Vibrational medicine or energy healing is factual on a scientific level. Harmonious flow of energy within the body produces a healthy person and any imbalances creates illness and death. The famous psychic and healer, Edgar Cayce, spoke about seeing auras and understanding their meaning. Two of his books, “Auras: An Essay on the Meaning of Colors“, and “Edgar Cayce on Vibration: Spirit in Motion”, are excellent works on how vibration and auras impact our world.

In conclusion, the study of vibrational energy is an important one because it links our connection to a much higher source. The vibrational creative force in the universe is both true in physics as it is true in the spiritual sense. To regenerate, heal, and reconnect to the true vibration of the universe. To understand other dimensional planes of existence that vibrate at different frequencies, and to fully comprehend the nature of all things in relation to each other.

 We are vibrating energy souls in a vibrating co-creating universe. Our world is not solid but thoughts only solidified. Creation is happening every millisecond and the best possible force we can benefit from is of course the most positive creative force of all: love.

T.S.Garp © Copyright 2009 All Rights Reserved.