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Museum

Making the Modern World: Stories About the Lives We've Made

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Artifacts
  • Consumer Technology
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Educational
  • Exhibit
  • Images
  • Modern (18th-20th Century)
  • Museum
  • Primary Source
URL: 

http://www.makingthemodernworld.org.uk/

Author: 
The Science Museum
Excerpt: 

Making the Modern World brings you powerful stories about science and invention from the eighteenth century to today. It explains the development and the global spread of modern industrial society and its effects on all our lives. The site expands upon the permanent landmark gallery at the Science Museum, using the Web and dynamic multimedia techniques to go far beyond what a static exhibition can do.

Annotation: 

Making the Modern World is a vast online exhibit from the Science Museum of London that covers science and society in the modern era, from traditional research and inventions and engineering, to social sciences and everyday life. There are many ways to explore the hundreds of images, audio files, and texts of the exhibit that begins with “Enlightenments and Measurement” in 1750 and concludes with the “Age of Ambivalence” in 2000. The largest section of the site is the Stories and Timelines, which is in narrative and chronological form. There are guided tours along the themes of “Technology as Passport,” “Women Making the Modern World,” and “Conflict in the Modern World.” The Daily Life Section has six categories that include personal, leisure, work, health, and control, and the stories of nine contemporary people's interactions with technology, some inventors, others learning how to handle a screwdriver and "DIY- Do It Yourself." The Icons of Invention includes more than 100 objects from science, technology, and medicine, while the Learning Modules cover biology, English, chemistry, geography, history, mathematics, and psychology. Throughout the site are subsections called "rich media scenes" with moving images and sound that provide interaction with catalogued images and quizzes within a particular story. Finally, there are basic and advanced search options to navigate quickly to a particular item or term.

Apple Computer History Weblog

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • apple
  • collection
  • computer
  • Computers/Information Technology
  • Consumer Technology
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Exhibit
  • Museum
  • Primary Source
URL: 

http://apple.computerhistory.org/

Author: 
Computer History Museum
Excerpt: 

The purpose of this site is to collect information to create a first-hand, historical record regarding Apple Computer and Claris Corporation. The information and stories that are collected will be preserved for use by students, scholars, universities, and other non-profit organizations.

Annotation: 

The Computer History Museum began in 1996 to preserve and celebrate computer history, and the Apple Computer History Weblog introduced in August 2003 is one venture to do just this. Overseen by more than 20 former Apple and Claris employees and the Computer History Museum, the historical purpose of the blog is stated in the introduction. A year-by-year timeline of Apple history from 1976-1993 (because it takes a decade to become “history”) is provided, listing company financial and employee numbers, products, marketplace overviews, and executive staff.

Review: 

The Computer History Museum began in 1996 to preserve and celebrate computer history, and the Apple Computer History Weblog introduced in August 2003 is one venture to do just this. Overseen by more than 20 former Apple and Claris employees and the Computer History Museum, the historical purpose of the blog is stated in the introduction. A year-by-year timeline of Apple history from 1976-1993 (because it takes a decade to become “history”) is provided, listing company financial and employee numbers, products, marketplace overviews, and executive staff.

The Apple Computer History Weblog began with a promising start. In the first 8 weeks more than 75 stories were collected, although since then only a few more have been added. The medium of collection and presentation is fitting for the intended contributors, and the stories are a fascinating read even for those outside the Apple and Claris community, although attracting new visitors and contributions will be a continual challenge.

Community members can post a comment to a specific year, to a specific category, or begin a new topic. The community is comfortable and not entirely self-congratulatory. A posting entitled “Who Killed Apple Computer " sparked mention in Wired News, among others, and prompted 16 rather full replies in 6 weeks.

The use of blog technology to create a virtual workspace for an existing community with now far-flung members fits this group very well. Familiarity and interest in computer technology is a given, and the desire to commune with former colleagues is present in many members. Repeat contributors to this site comment on different topics is noteworthy, as is the In Memorium section, dedicated to former colleagues.

Critical opinions make it past the vetting process, although the introduction steers the contributor towards stories about the “cool stuff” and “the passion that made everything you did so great and so much fun.”

The design and navigation is simple, however the division of categories and stories can be confusing, as the category sections contain suggested topics rather than related stories. Despite the request for narratives rather than dialog, members have the ability to comment on individual stories. These messages don’t appear in threaded format, however, so viewing the two linked stories together requires more than one browser window. In addition, the author of a particular story is not viewable on the story page unless it was signed by the contributor. Threading the related stories or removing the comment option to prevent related, but unlinked, messages would improve the site and is needed now that there are a large number of messages.

Joan Fragaszy
Center For History and New Media
August 12, 2004

American Museum of the Moving Image

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Consumer Technology
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Engineering
  • Images
  • Links
  • Museum
  • Video
URL: 

http://www.ammi.org/site/site.php

Author: 
American Museum of the Moving Image
Excerpt: 

The American Museum of the Moving Image is dedicated to educating the public about the art, history, technique, and technology of film, television, and digital media and to examining their impact on culture and society.

It achieves these goals by maintaining the nation's largest permanent collection of moving image artifacts and by offering exhibitions, film screenings, lectures, seminars, and other education programs.

Annotation: 

The American Museum of the Moving Image is dedicated to educating the public about the art, history, technique, and technology of film, television, and digital media, and examines the impact on culture and society. This site includes information about the museum which is located in New York City, as well as information about collections and museum programming. Most notably, the site includes four online exhibits about the influence of new forms of media on elections, electronic games, the technology behind motion pictures, and an exhibit titled "The Interactive Playground."

American Museum of Photography

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Consumer Technology
  • Images
  • Library/Archive
  • Modern (18th-20th Century)
  • Museum
  • Primary Source
URL: 

http://www.photographymuseum.com/

Author: 
American Museum of Photography
Excerpt: 

We bill ourselves as "A Museum Without Walls... For An Art Without Boundaries." Even though we have no walls, we do have "floors," separate areas for different activities. At the bottom of most pages, you'll find a navigation bar that will let you choose our Exhibitions floor, our Main Entrance floor, our Research Center or our Museum Shops. Just click on the place you want to visit. Or click on the Museum's logo and you'll find yourself transported to our Home Page.

Annotation: 

This site exhibits photographs from 1839 to the late 20th century. Thirteen current exhibits offer a 100 to 600-word introductory essay and a wide range of images. "The Face of Slavery" presents ten photographs of African Americans from 1855 to 1905. The work of Southworth and Hawes, a photography team active between 1843 and 1862, is represented by eight daugerrotypes of women. In "Do You Believe?" visitors may consider evidence of ghostly existence offered by over 20 spirit photographs taken between 1875 and 1932. In "Photography as a Fine Art," over a dozen photos show dogs behaving like people from the 1850s to the 1950s. In "At Ease," photographs from around 1850 refute the popular notion that early portraiture was stiff. An exhibit of the trick photography of William H. "Dad" Martin presents photos produced between 1894 and 1912 that show exaggerated ordinary objects. In "Of Bricks and Light," the museum exhibits over 30 architectural photographs in five sections, from "Grand Vistas" to "Details & Glimpses." Business executive and photographer Shotaro Shimomura took pictures of his trip around the world in 1934-35; some of these are exhibited in "An Eye for the World." An interactive exhibit of cartes de visite allows visitors to investigate details. The museum also showcases over 40 of its favorite pieces. The site also provides a 1,700-word explanatory essay on photographic processes and links to more than 25 other resources concerning the history and art of photography. This site cannot be searched by subject, however, which somewhat limits its usefulness for research.

Secrets of the Dark Chamber: The Art of American Daguerrotype

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Consumer Technology
  • Images
  • Modern (18th-20th Century)
  • Museum
URL: 

http://www.smithsonianmag.si.edu/smithsonian/issues95/oct95/contd_1095.html

Author: 
Diane M. Bolz
Excerpt: 

The invention of photography was one of the most significant events of the 19th century, irrevocably changing our perception of reality. "Here is a discovery launched upon the world, that must make a revolution in art," declared the New Yorker shortly before Louis-Jacques-Mande Daguerre's groundbreaking process was announced in Paris on August 19, 1839. This new technique of producing exact likenesses on a sheet of silver-plated copper soon became a sensation in the United States. Studios opened in every major city; itinerant artists traveled the countryside. Noted for their silvery, mirrorlike sheen, daguerreotypes framed the faces of the nation's great men and women, caught the spirit of Westward expansion and chronicled much of mid-19th-century American life.

Annotation: 

testing here

Museum and Institute of Zoology

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Exhibit
  • Life Sciences
  • Modern (18th-20th Century)
  • Museum
  • Secondary Source
URL: 

http://ciuw.warman.net.pl/alf/miz/

Author: 
Polish Academy of Sciences
Excerpt: 

The article presents the history of the Warsaw Zoological Collection, as well as institutions connected with it. The beginning of this collection stretches down to 1819 - the year in which a collection of ca 20.000 specimens of animals, mainly birds, was bought for the Zoological Cabinet of the Royal University of Warsaw. The Cabinet, together with the library, was organized and for 43 years managed by Feliks Pawel Jarocki. The finest period in the history of the Cabinet was in the 3rd quarter of XIX century under Wladyslaw Taczanowski's guidance, when many Polish Zoologists from the country and from abroad enriched it with their own collections. In 1887 a private Zoological Museum was created by the Branicki family with a rich collection of various vertebrates, mainly birds.

Annotation: 

The article presents the history of the Warsaw Zoological Collection, as well as institutions connected with it. The Zoological Collection originated in 1819 when a collection of 20,000 specimens of animals (mainly birds) was bought for the Zoological Cabinet of the Royal University of Warsaw. Though effected by Poland's often tragic history, the collection has continued to grow. The library now comprises over 230,000 volumes and 5,378 archival items. The five articles weave the history of the museum and institute into the history of Poland, explaining the many efforts to save collections against wars and natural disasters.

Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution & Cognition Research

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Exhibit
  • Life Sciences
  • Modern (18th-20th Century)
  • Museum
  • Primary Source
  • Secondary Source
URL: 

http://www.kli.ac.at/

Author: 
Konrad Lorenz Institute
Excerpt: 

The KLI is an advanced research center in theoretical biology. Through its board members, fellows, and activities, the institute maintains strong ties to the University of Vienna.
In its name the institute pays homage to the Nobel laureate Konrad Lorenz, whose work laid the foundation of an evolutionary approach to mind and cognition, and in whose turn-of-the-century family mansion the KLI is located

Romance to Reality: moon & Mars mission plans

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Aviation/Space Exploration
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Exhibit
  • Images
  • Museum
  • Secondary Source
URL: 

http://www.marsinstitute.info/rd/faculty/dportree/rtr/

Author: 
David S. F. Portree
Excerpt: 

My criteria for selecting documents to annotate are admittedly fluid. I give emphasis to studies which emerged as important to later planning, but also include those that help to illustrate the wide range of moon and Mars options. Romance to Reality is meant to be a primer for building the future, not merely a catalog of unrealized dreams. - David S. F. Portree

Annotation: 

Mars and moon exploration and settlement plans from 1950 to the present are annotated in detail on this site. More than 330 documents are divided into 14 subject categories. Categories include Apollo projects, advanced propulsion, cyclers, stations, and Lagrange points, surface suits, vehicles, and activities, surveys of mission scenarios, risk reduction and human factors, high-profile reports, and many others. Author David S. F. Portree is an independent science writer and historian.

Grout Museums Online

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Earth Sciences
  • Exhibit
  • Life Sciences
  • Medicine/Behavioral Science
  • Modern (18th-20th Century)
  • Museum
  • Physical Sciences
  • Primary Source
URL: 

http://www.groutmuseumdistrict.org/

Author: 
Grout Museum
Excerpt: 

What began as Henry W. Grout’s curiosity about the world has grown to become recognized as the region’s cornerstone of history, culture and sciences. Accredited by the American Association of Museums, this resource has grown to four unique properties, the Grout Museum of History & Science, Bluedorn Science Imaginarium, Rensselaer Russell House Museum, and the Snowden House. Explore the future of the district with the Sullivans Veterans Project.

Starry Messenger: The Electronic History of Astronomy

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:22.
  • Contemporary (Post-WWII)
  • Early Modern (15th-18th Century)
  • Exhibit
  • Images
  • Modern (18th-20th Century)
  • Museum
  • Physical Sciences
  • Primary Source
  • University
URL: 

http://www.hps.cam.ac.uk/starry/starrymessenger.html

Author: 
Whipple Museum at Cambridge
Excerpt: 

The Armillary Sphere
A drawing of a demonstrational armillary sphere, from Libros del saber de astronomia del rey D. Alfonso X De Castilla.
Large image (188K).
Very large image (1.6M).
Armillary spheres can be divided into two main categories: the observational armillary, as used by Ptolemy and Tycho Brahe; and the demonstrational instrument. Both types consist of a number of rings (Latin: armillae) which are arranged so as to model the circles of the celestial sphere. Typically, armillary spheres used for observation were larger and possessed fewer rings than those which served as demonstrational instruments; this made them more accurate and easier to use. Often the rings of demonstrational armillaries, like those of the observational spheres, were divided, and some incorporated sights which could be used to orient the instrument appropriately.

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