DAVID HOUNSHELL OPENS LECTURE SERIES

                 AT EDISON NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE

The Thomas Edison Sesquicentennial Lecture Series begins Friday, May 2, 1997,
with a presentation by David Hounshell, Henry R. Luce Professor of Technology
and Social Change at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh.  Co-sponsored
with the New Jersey Inventor's Congress and Hall of Fame, Hounshell's
presentation begins at 4:30 PM at Edison National Historic Site, West Orange,
New Jersey and is free of charge to the public.  Reservations are not
required.

Hounshell is a recognized authority on the history of technology and the
evolution of American corporate research and development.  He is the author of
several books and articles, including Science & Corporate Strategy: DuPont R&D
1902-1980 (with John K. Smith, Jr.) and From the American System to Mass
Production 1800-1932: The Development of Manufacturing Technology in the United
States.

Hounshell's presentation on May 2 is titled "Back to the Future, Edison,
Industrial Research and Development, and the Future of Innovation."  Immediately
following the lecture, audience members will have the opportunity to tour the
Edison Site.

Future speakers in the lecture series include James Flanagan, Rutgers professor
and recent recipient of the National Medal of Technology, and Donald Kelly,
Chairman of the Management Outreach Program of the U.S. Patent Office.  Flanagan
will speak on September 26, 1997 and Kelly on a date to be announced in
November.

For information about the lecture series, please contact George Tselos, (201)
     736-0550, ext. 37. For updated information on all Edison
     Sesquicentennial activities, please telephone (201) 736-0550, ext. 97.