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A carbon-filament bulb is a type of incandescent lamp where a thin electrical conductor, the filament, is heated by an electric current until it glows, producing light. Developed independently by Sir Joseph Wilson Swan and Thomas Alva Edison in the late 1870s, these bulbs used a carbon filament enclosed in a vacuum-sealed glass bulb. While inefficient compared to later technologies, the carbon-filament bulb was a significant advancement, replacing hazardous gas lighting and making electric lighting practical for homes and cities by 1900. It was eventually superseded by more efficient tungsten-filament bulbs.123

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  1. filament lamp
  2. lamp
  3. incandescent lamp

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