The following is a guest post by Emmy-Award-winning engineer Mark Schubin. He has been writing about the intersecting histories of opera and media technology since 1972 and currently serves as engineer-in-charge of the Metropolitan Opera’s Media Department. In October 2011, Mark gave a presentation at the Library on the “Fandom of the Opera: How a […]
This week I participated in the Science at Risk: Toward a National Strategy for Preserving Online Science meeting hosted by the National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program (NDIIPP). During this two-day meeting the Library’s recently-retired manuscript specialist Len Bruno took us on a journey through the scientific treasures of the Library’s Manuscript Division. On display were items […]
Today’s post is from science reference librarian Margaret Clifton. She is also the author of Saving Energy: The Fall Back Position, Stars in his Eyes and Sun Spots this Summer. I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night – Sarah Willams (1837-1868)* In February of 2010 I wrote a post for Inside […]
I never gave much thought to the history of mobile homes or manufactured housing. For the most part, I thought these developed in the mid to late 20th century. That was until I ran across the 1861 newspaper advertisement that sparked my curiosity and is featured in this post. As you can see, this is […]
Disregard what you learned from the history books about the first sound movie, first color TV program, first stereo broadcast….because opera did it first! Some of the first synchronized sound movies were of opera arias shown at the Phono-Cinema-Theatre at the 1900 Paris World’s Fair. A sound movie of the complete opera Faust was released […]
Today’s post is by 2011 Junior Fellow Brian Horowitz of Montgomery College in Maryland. Brian is also the author of the Art of War…and of Sandwich Making and Stumbled upon in the Stacks– a brief biography of Brevet Major Alfred Mordecai. In elementary school my favorite lunch consisted of a peanut butter and jelly (PB&J) sandwich in a brown […]
Have you ever seen a Revolvator?It is a portable elevator or tier machine from the early 20th century. The ceilings in the Science and Business reading room are around 35 ft, so when a light bulb needs to be replaced or the ceiling needs to be patched up, the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) breaks […]
Of course what you may not know is that there were actually two board games patented earlier that bear a striking resemblance to the familiar Monopoly board.
In the spirit of the holiday season, we are highlighting another Everyday Mystery relevant to this time of the year: Who invented electric Christmas lights? The short answer is Thomas Alva Edison and Edward H. Johnson. After all, Edison created the first practical light bulb and successfully strung together the first strand of electric lights […]
K-rations, better night vision binoculars, and synthetic rubber are just a few examples of innovations resulted from scientific research during World War II. The story of science during World War II is one of partnerships and prolific research. On June 28, 1941, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8807which established the Office of Scientific Research and […]