What is Flashlight?
[[File:SurefireU2JPG.jpg|right|thumb|A flashlight]] [[File:DEGAN Gabin (youth manage).jpg|thumb|upright|Youth selling mobile lamps in [[Benin]]]] A '''flashlight''' (in [[American English]]) or '''torch''' (in [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] countries) is a small, [[portable]] spotlight. Its function is a beam of [[light]] which helps to see. It usually requires [[batteries]]. The light is made by a small [[light bulb]]. In the 20th century, it was usually an [[incandescent bulb]]. Nowadays most use [[LED]]s, which work slightly differently. In 1896, the first [[dry cell]] battery was invented. Unlike previous batteries, it used a paste electrolyte instead of a liquid. This was the first [[battery]] suitable for portable electrical devices, as it did not spill or break easily and worked in any orientation. Sometimes the electricity comes from a small [[generator]] instead of a battery. The torch can also refer to a flammable stick that is lit on fire to provide light and (or) heat. == Origin == Hundreds of years ago, people used [[candle]]s or [[oil lamp]]<nowiki/>s for indoor light. Candles were expensive, and once the candle was gone, you would have to buy or make a new one or be stuck in the dark. When electricity was discovered and the light bulb was invented, David Misell, a British man working in Hubert's New York shop in 1898, came up with the idea of a light bulb that you could take with you, anywhere you wanted to go. Then, the torch was invented. The first flashlight has three D batteries which powered a small incandescent bulb. The bulbs would glow with a simple ON/OFF switch.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=2020-08-31|title=When Were Flashlights Invented?|url=https://hunter.guide/when-were-flashlights-invented/|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-09-10|website=|language=en-US}}</ref> == References == {{reflist}} [[Category:Light sources]]