Life of Incandescent Light Bulbs may Soon Burn Out

Thomas Edison perfected the incandescent light bulb 128 years ago... lighting up a nation and the world ever since. Many would have those bulbs switched off today and replaced with compact fluorescent bulbs that are up to 70 percent more efficient. Environmentalist Mike Tidwell, "…dramatically less money you're spending for electricity -- and you fight global warming. It's pretty simple."

Just five percent of the electricity in a standard bulb is used to light it. The rest is heat. Not so with these fluorescents. They provide the same light without the heat, reducing the demand for electricity from coal-fired power plants that produce carbon dioxide and contribute to global warming.

To reduce its greenhouse gases, Australian officials hope to phase out incandescent light bulb use by 2009. And they have launched an educational campaign to do just that. Legislators in California are debating a similar proposal.

The U.S. Department of Energy says the three to four billion incandescent light bulbs in America's homes and businesses use about 10 percent of all U.S. electricity. Federal officials say switching to compact florescent bulbs could significantly reduce energy demands every year.