It’s kind of hard to imagine what Elektro, the Oldest U.S. Robot looks like until you actually see it. What’s crazy is that it was created sometime during the ’30s… Back in 1939, Elektro was able to walk, talk, raise and lower his arms, turn his head and move his mouth as he spoke. It… Continue reading Elektro
Tag: History
Susan B. Anthony; or, People Are Dumb
I’m not sure if people are stupid, ignorant, lacking in a proper education or some combination of those, but the following example should illustrate my point. At work today I was talking with a co-worker about education (her son is in second grade and learning history) and the name Susan B. Anthony came up. I… Continue reading Susan B. Anthony; or, People Are Dumb
Bend Centennial
Happy birthday to Bend! Today is the 100th anniversary of Bend, Oregon, marking the beginning of the year-long Bend Centennial celebration. Just a quick post while I’m thinking about it; I might have more to say later. Also, check out Bend.com’s article from November.
Oregon Trail Diaries
Here’s a site containing links to the texts of diaries from the Oregon Trail. Interesting stuff; it would be worth collecting it and turning it into a Palm Reader ebook. (If I can find the time.)
Stumps
The previous post got me thinking for some reason about the 2000 year-old tree stumps found just off the Oregon coast, in Neskowin. You haven’t heard about them? Judging by the amount of time searching to find any pointers or references to them, most of the Web hasn’t either. This is from KXL.com’s Coastal Tour… Continue reading Stumps
Lewis and Clark
Today is (exactly) the 200th anniversary of the start of the Lewis and Clark expedition, on May 14, 1804. Did anyone realize this? I almost missed this entirely, but for Reuter’s Oddly Enough RSS feed: “Lewis and Clark’s List: Opium and ‘Portable Soup’” lists some of the provisions they took on their expedition, including opium,… Continue reading Lewis and Clark
Library of Alexandria discovered
This is big: Library of Alexandria discovered. Archaeologists have found what they believe to be the site of the Library of Alexandria, often described as the world’s first major seat of learning. A Polish-Egyptian team has excavated parts of the Bruchion region of the Mediterranean city and discovered what look like lecture halls or… Continue reading Library of Alexandria discovered
Balance
I found this passage from Frontier Doctor to be particularly interesting: When I came to eastern Oregon in 1905, all of the beautiful pine timber was an open park-like forest, without any underbrush, where game could be seen for a long distance. Each summer there were many forest fires, the vast majority of which were… Continue reading Balance
Piri Reis Map
Here’s a link to a good image of the Piri Reis map. For all you mystery-history buffs out there.
Historic house
My drive home from work everyday takes me by an old brick house on Hawthorne Avenue, just out of downtown Bend on the entrance to the parkway. What’s notable about this house is that it’s obviously old—one of those old, pre-War homes that has ivy growing on it and just oozes atmosphere and looks like… Continue reading Historic house