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Archive: 2013 (46 Posts)

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Featured Advertisement: Electricity!

Posted by: Ellen Terrell

While doing research I got distracted by this wonderful advertisement published in the New York Tribune on October 5, 1920. It was an advertisement from the New York Edison Company touting the benefits of electricity, mostly for efficiency and safety, for businesses. But what really caught my attention was the hand drawn caricatures, for lack …

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Stinky Flowers

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

As the world was on royal baby watch there was another arrival that folks have been waiting for here in D.C. (and perhaps the world as well) – the blooming of the Sumatran (Indonesian) Amorphophallus titanum (titan arum) a.k.a. the corpse flower or stinky plant at the U.S. Botanic Garden (USBG). Like the arrival of …

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What is…Trivia!

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Question: How can you test your knowledge and impress your friends? Answer: Trivia! Everyone loves trivia and Science.gov is asking us to “Test your knowledge of science trivia and take the Science.gov Trivia Challenge.” These trivia challenges are part of a continuation of the celebration of its 10th anniversary. The trivia questions were thought up …

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The U.S. National Flag: A Standard of Design

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Many of us associate July 4th, Independence Day, with barbecues, picnics and fireworks. But it is also the day when we proudly display the National Flag of the United States. We honor this day by flying Old Glory’s stars and stripes, draping our buildings with American Flag bunting, and outfitting our celebrations in red, white …

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Exotic Earths: Exploring Planets Around Other Stars

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Are we alone in the Universe? That’s what we often wonder as we look up at the stars of the night sky. We may become particularly fascinated with this question after reading a great science fiction novel or watching a film that centers on the exploration of other planetary systems (e.g. The Star Trek franchise). …

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Emily Dickinson and the Science of Poetry

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

The following is a guest post written by Caitlin Rizzo, a staffer at the Poetry and Literature Center and a blogger for the Library’s From the Catbird Seat. Caitlin and I decided to swap blogs for the week. She wrote this piece for Inside Adams and I wrote a piece about the first, and only, poem …

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So, what was the closing price?

Posted by: Ellen Terrell

In Business we get a lot of questions about historical stock prices.  While there are a number of subscription databases that do have deep historical coverage of daily stock price data, they often aren’t widely accessible. Since most people who are asking the question often have limited avenues for research, I prefer to direct researchers …

Photographic print. Inflation of the balloon Intrepid to reconnoiter the Battle of Fair Oaks; Lowe, not visible in this image, is standing to the right of the balloon.

The Aeronauts

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

Last week I had the fantastic opportunity to give a gallery talk in the Library’s Civil War in America Exhibit Hall about the role of technology during the U.S. Civil War. There were many technologies or tools in use or being developed at this time, such as the telegraph, ironclad steamships (e.g. Merrimack and Monitor), railroads, …