Author: David J. Kent

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler, scientist, and Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of books on Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, and Abraham Lincoln. His website is www.davidjkent-writer.com.
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CPRC Presentation at Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center

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As this post goes live I’ll be attending the Chesapeake-Potomac Regional Chapter (CPRC) of SETAC at their annual spring meeting. As the immediate Past-President I’m happy to say that Science Traveler is a sponsor of CPRC. The meeting features Emma Lavoie of EPA’s Design for the Environment program as our keynote speaker, as well as a dozen presentations of research by students, professors, and other researchers.

Scientists

Scientist types

And I get the last word. Well, technically not the actual last word because current President Brad Pratt will present a series of awards to students for best platform and poster presentations. But I’ll be the last talk of the day before the awards and the catered reception that follows.

My topic is: Remembering the Big Picture – Communicating Local Science to a Global Audience. I’ll use photos from my recent Argentina trip to highlight the “teaching opportunities” available for reaching out to the public. More on that after I return.

The Public

Public types

This will be an incredibly busy week – books to write, education to outreach, science to travel, and much much more. See you again tomorrow.

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies at Barnes and Noble bookstores, as well as online at B&N.com and Amazon.com.

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Herndon’s Lincoln by William H. Herndon and Jesse W. Weik (Edited by Douglas L. Wilson and Rodney O. Davis)

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Herndon's LincolnThis is an extraordinary book, for several reasons. First, William H. Herndon was Abraham Lincoln’s law partner for sixteen years prior to Lincoln becoming President. Second, because Herndon spent several years after Lincoln’s assassination writing to and interviewing scores of people who knew Lincoln during his life and career up to the presidency. Third, because editors Douglas L. Wilson and Rodney O. Davis have done an extraordinary job digging into Herndon and Weik’s original letters and notes to discern between actual reporting and embellishment. There have been many versions of Herndon’s Lincoln produced in the years since its 1889 release, but Wilson and Davis’ voluminous and informative endnotes make this edition superior.

Herndon has been accused of being too biased in discussing Lincoln’s relationship with his father and with Mary Lincoln, and of seriously embellishing the story of Ann Rutledge. Nevertheless, he tirelessly undertook an effort to document Lincoln’s history through his interviews of those who knew him best. Herndon’s efforts at collecting this information, along with Weik’s effort to get the book written, have provided an invaluable service to everyone who wants to better understand our sixteenth President. Wilson and Davis complete the picture by helping us sift through what is supported, what is embellishment, and what is still a mystery. Herndon’s Informants, another volume edited by Wilson and Davis, is a must-have corollary to Herndon’s Lincoln as it contains the full text of each letter and interview conducted by Herndon. I highly recommend both.

I should note this edition of Herndon’s Lincoln was the book we read this year in our Lincoln Group of DC book club.

LGDC book discussion group

We started reading the book in September 2013 and will have our last monthly meeting in early May 2014, at which time we’ll also discuss the book we’ll read this coming year. [Check out the website for more information on how to join us.] The insights arising from the varying views offered by other book club members were as invaluable as the Wilson and Davis notes. The discussion helped bring the book to life.

David J. Kent is an avid Lincolnophile and the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies at Barnes and Noble bookstores, as well as online at B&N.com and Amazon.com.

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Tesla, Travel, and Lincoln – Current and Upcoming Events

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Here on Science Traveler I cover three main topics – Nikola Tesla, Abraham Lincoln, and Science Traveling. It’s been a busy few months so far this year, and the rest of the year is shaping up to be even busier. Here are some quick updates on what to expect.

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

I’ve recently become the Coordinator for Outreach and Education for the Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia. In that role next week I’ll meet with key people from the infamous Ford’s Theater to evaluate any common goals and activities. I’ll also be working with the Lincoln Group President and Board to develop a program to better integrate with other Lincoln groups, scholars, and the public.

I expect to make great strides on my own Abraham Lincoln book this year, as well as a new Lincoln book project I’ll talk more about later. Meanwhile, the Lincoln Group book club is wrapping up our discussion of Herndon’s Lincoln and will decide shortly on what book we’ll tackle next.

I also had the privilege of joining Lincoln Group member and National Archives researcher Rodney Ross for a Civil War event at the exclusive Cosmos Club in Washington DC. The coordinator of that event even asked me to be a speaker on my book topic next year. That makes four or five requests for speaking engagements already being lined up for when the book comes out.

Nikola Tesla

Nikola TeslaTesla world has been equally busy. I continue to work on the Tesla and Renewable Energy ebook I expect to release in June. The ebook format will keep the cost low and allow reaching out to the large number of people who haven’t yet discovered the great inventor. Meanwhile, the second printing of my Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity book is scheduled to be in Barnes and Noble book stores in time for Tesla’s birthday in July.

I’ll be giving a presentation on Nikola Tesla at the Ipswich Museum on July 7th, and expect to be part of the Tesla Days events in Philadelphia on July 9th. I also expect to be doing presentations and book signings in July and August once the second printing is in the stores. I’m eager to include a west coast trip on the schedule.

One exciting project is the development of a curriculum to teach about Nikola Tesla in schools. The Tesla Science Foundation has been working with Ashley Redfearn Neswick at the Tacony Academy Charter School, and there is potential for using my Tesla book as part of that curriculum.

Science Traveling

James JoyceI’ve been documenting on these pages some of the highlights of my February 2014 trip to Patagonia, Argentina. I’ll have more on other trips I’ve taken in the past as well. But the next few months could get very busy with new science travel.

I’m planning a trip out to Chicago/Springfield sometime in May or June. The main purpose is to visit and do some research at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, but I’ll take advantage of the trip to also see the exhibits (including Tesla) from the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, as well as check out other Lincoln sites. In November I’m expecting to go to the Lincoln Forum in Gettysburg, PA.

July will be a trip home to New England to visit family, as well as a possible Tesla book tour to the west coast. The end of August should find me in the fjords of Norway, plus trains through Sweden and Denmark. The fall, in addition to Gettysburg, may take me to Vancouver and, hopefully, India. By Christmas I’ll be ready to curl up under the Yule log.

One more thing I initially forgot to mention: I’ll be giving a presentation on Monday, April 28th at the CPRC 2014 Annual Meeting. My topic is “Remembering the Big Picture: Communicating Local Science to a Global Audience.”

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies at Barnes and Noble bookstores, as well as online at B&N.com and Amazon.com.

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Nikola Tesla: A Man Ahead of His Time

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Nikola Tesla once stated that he had “always been ahead of my time.” He was certainly that. His invention of the rotating magnetic field and a complete alternating current system of dynamos, transformers, and motors became the basis for today’s electrical grid. His wireless telegraphy became the radio. His remote controlled boat – first demonstrated in 1898 – presaged the modern age from wireless communication to drones.

And now an article ahead of its time. Science Panorama has published my article “Nikola Tesla: The Man Ahead of His Time.” In just one day, the article was shared hundreds of times on Facebook and reached thousands of readers. All of whom now should be inspired to read more about one of the most important men of invention, and yet one of the least known or understood. Click on the photo below and scroll down to read the article:

Nikola Tesla Man Ahead of His Time

Source: sciencepanorama.com

While the man was ahead of his time, the article is perhaps behind its time given that I actually wrote it last summer. The original intent was for it to appear as the cover article for a magazine put out by Science Panorama called WIRE, an acronym for Where Ideas Reach Everyone. Publication was delayed and eventually Science Panorama decided to cease publishing a hard copy magazine in order to focus on a better way to help them achieve their core mission. That mission is “making science simpler and helping everyone learn it in an easier way.” Given my own interests in science communication, I’m all for making science easier for the public to understand.

Science Panorama is doing just that with its website and Facebook page. I look forward to providing future contributions that make science fun again.

On a related note, I’ll be presenting at the upcoming CPRC-SETAC conference on April 28th. My topic is “Remembering the Big Picture: Communicating Local Science to a Global Audience.” I’ll have more following the meeting.

David J. Kent is an avid traveler and the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies exclusively at Barnes and Noble bookstores.

Follow me by subscribing by email on the home page.  And feel free to “Like” my Facebook author’s page and connect on LinkedIn.  Share with your friends using the buttons below.

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A Little Bit of the Civil War in New York

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The New York Historical Society has some new guards. Or maybe they are old guards?

Of course, they were there to protect the President, Abraham Lincoln.

Okay, and maybe chat with some kids.

Frederick Douglass was there too.

Just a little teaser from the road, thanks to modern technology.

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Join CPRC at our 2014 Annual Spring Meeting – April 27-28

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CPRC logoThe following is a cross-posting from the Chesapeake-Potomac Regional Chapter of SETAC. Get more information here.

2014 CPRC Annual Spring Meeting

The CPRC-SETAC Annual Spring Meeting will be held Monday April 28th, 2014 at the Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center in Grasonville, MD

 Registration

Registration is $65 for non-members (includes 2014 CPRC-SETAC membership), $50 for professional members and $25 for students.  The fee includes the optional “Day On The Bay” Sunday April 27th to take advantage of all that CBEC and Chesapeake Bay have to offer.  The fee also includes all of the catered food and drink (breakfast, breaks, lunch and happy hour!) during the meeting day on Monday April 28th.

To register, please fill out the 2014 Meeting Registration Form  and email to treasurer.cprc.setac@gmail.com.  Payments can be submitted via PayPal (no PayPal account is required) by following this link.

 Day On The Bay!

On April 27th, we will have a lot of fun helping the environment! CPRC along with MatrixNeworld, CBEC, and Restore the Earth Foundation organized a Coastal Wetland Restoration project where volunteers will plant nearly 600 plants over a 2,000 square foot area to restore a coastal wetland and help prevent further shoreline erosion. See attached flyer for more details.  Please take a look at the attached flyer for more details and RSVP sending an email to vice.president.cprc.setac@gmail.com.

Area hotels (pdf with map)

Best Western Kent Narrows Inn in Gasonville, MD has agreed to hold a block of rooms at the rate of $79/night for Sunday April 27th and Monday April 28th.  To get the block rate, call (410-827-6767) and tell them you are with CPRC.  They are holding only 11 rooms and the rooms will be released for general booking on March 27th.  Please contact vice.president.cprc.setac@gmail.com with any issues or difficulties.

Area restaurants (pdf with map)

 Carpooling 

Please email cprc.setac@gmail.com with 1) your name, 2) phone number, 3) address, and 4) route taken to meeting or if you need a ride.  We’ll hook you up!

Contact

If you have any questions about the meeting, feel free to contact CPRC-SETAC at cprc.setac@gmail.com.

This website, Science Traveler, is a proud sponsor of CPRC and SETAC. I’ll also be presenting at the CPRC meeting – my topic: Remembering the Big Picture – Communicating Local Science to a Global Audience. [With scenes from Argentina as my backdrop]

Come join us for a day on the bay. Make that two days on the bay!

David J. Kent is an avid traveler and the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies exclusively at Barnes and Noble bookstores.

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Robert E Lee Surrenders to Ulysses S Grant – April 9, 1865

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On April 9th 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee officially surrendered his army to Union General Ulysses S. Grant. So began the end of the Civil War. They met at the house of Wilmer McLean in a village called Appomattox Court House. The trials of four years of war etched the faces of both Generals as their weary troops struggled between thankfulness that the war was ending and patriotism for the causes they felt were still attainable.

Appomattox Court House

In the days before the surrender, Grant and Lee had exchanged a series of messages through the front lines. Both men were cautious, avoiding commitments that they could not keep. Not surprisingly, Lee was hesitant to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia to the Union forces. But he was a realist. After the defeat at Petersburg, Lee had on April 2nd warned Confederate President Jefferson Davis that Richmond could no longer be protected. As Davis and the Confederate government fled southward, Lee knew that his armies could no longer hold off the inevitable. The South would fall in defeat.

Robert E Lee Surrenders to Ulysses S Grant

The terms of the surrender were simple. All Confederate forces were to be disbanded and allowed to return to their homes, “not to be disturbed by the United States authorities so long as they observe their paroles.” While “arms, artillery, and public property” were to be confiscated, officers were allowed to keep their side-arms (swords and pistols), private horses and baggage.

As General Lee mounted his horse to ride away from the McLean house, “General Grant now stepped down from the porch, and, moving toward him, saluted him by raising his hat. He was followed in this act of courtesy by all our officers present; Lee raised his hat respectfully, and rode off to break the sad news to the brave fellows whom he had so long commanded.”

The war would rapidly come to an end. But just as rapidly, President Abraham Lincoln would be assassinated. While the fighting was over, the struggle for freedom and equality would go on for decades, even a century, beyond this fateful day.

David J. Kent is an avid Lincolnophile and the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies exclusively at Barnes and Noble bookstores.

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Book Review – Lincoln’s Other White House by Elizabeth Smith Brownstein

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Lincolns Other White HouseAbraham Lincoln lived in the White House from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. Or did he? In fact, he spent most of the summer months of 1862 through 1864 – about a quarter of his presidency – living in the Soldier’s Home. Author Elizabeth Smith Brownstein gives us a fascinating, as well as delightful, look at Lincoln’s Other White House.

The book unfolds in two parts. The first part groups three chapters into a sort of preamble as Lincoln’s “long journey to the Soldier’s Home.” Here we find the history of the airy cottage originally belonging to the Riggs banking family but now transformed into a home for aging veterans. We also get a sense for why Lincoln was eager to escape to the home, both from the pressures of constant office seekers and from the diseases and smells permeating the capitol during the steamy summer months.

The second part is split into 15 chapters exploring a variety of issues and people Lincoln dealt with as the war raged outside his doors. Not all of the action takes place at the Soldier’s Home, but the home life is delicately interwoven throughout the stories. Brownstein brings us into the complexities of the Lincoln marriage, his interactions with various cabinet members and Generals, and the importance of his time at the Soldier’s Home during the development of the Emancipation Proclamation.

Along with discussions of Lincoln’s views on freedom and his interest in the tools of war are more unique insights. We see some of the poems on slavery that rose from the pens of such icons as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Herman Melville, John Greenleaf Whittier, and Walt Whitman. An occasional poet himself, no doubt Lincoln appreciated their ways with words. We also get a sense of Lincoln’s favorite storytellers, including the inimitable characters Petroleum V. Nasby, Artemus Ward, and Orpheus C. Kerr (a play on “office seeker”).

Brownstein’s writing is crisp and light. She covers a lot of territory as she hops in and out of key events and interrelationships during Lincoln’s time at the Soldier’s Home. I found it to be a delightful book indeed, and I highly recommend it to readers.

[Note: I read this book after Elizabeth Brownstein noticed that I had reviewed Matthew Pinsker’s book on the soldier’s home. I recommend both books as they provide different perspectives on Lincoln and the importance of his time there.]

David J. Kent is an avid Lincolnophile and the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies exclusively at Barnes and Noble bookstores.

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If You Liked Nikola Tesla Off-Broadway, You’ll Love Jackie and Marilyn

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Jackie and MarilynLast year at this time I had the privilege of meeting with the Director, Writer, and Cast of the Off-Broadway play, TESLA, about Nikola Tesla, the topic of my book, Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. The play was fantastic, playing to sold-out audiences for its entire run. Tesla Director, Sanja Bestic, and Writer, Sheri Graubert, have teamed up again for a new play that will open in New York on April 18th. You won’t want to miss Jackie and Marilyn.

Jackie and Marilyn

We all know the story of John F. Kennedy, his beautiful yet stoic wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, and the fabulous movie starlet, Marilyn Monroe. Or do we? The award winning Bestic and award winning Graubert bring to the Lion Theatre a new story of one of the most famous love triangles of all time, in the way it may have happened. The tragic ending to a charismatic president revealed hidden romances with two women who “represent the divided female psyche, lost love, beauty, fashion, quintessential style, the changes of marriage and relationships and more.” Jackie and Marilyn, the play, “is a fictional imagining of what might have gone on behind closed doors,” and is sure to bring out the most entertaining qualities of both Jackie Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe.

The leads are played by Aaron Mathias (JFK), Lorraine Farris (Jackie), and Lella Satie (Marilyn), all accomplished actors with stellar credits in television, film, and stage. Opening night of Jackie and Marilyn is April 18th, and will run at the Lion Theatre on Theatre Row through May 3rd. Tickets are on sale now through Telecharge and the Lion Theatre box office.

Sanja Bestic and Sheri Graubert

Sanja Bestic and Sheri Graubert

Based on their amazing production of Tesla last year, I expect another smashing success from Sanja and Sheri with Jackie and Marilyn. I highly encourage everyone to check out the details on Facebook and make plans to come to New York City for the show.

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity. You can order a signed copy directly from me, download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com, and find hard copies exclusively at Barnes and Noble bookstores.

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Nikola Tesla and Niagara Falls

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Niagara Falls. For decades it has been a favored place honeymooners, sightseers, and anyone interested in the immense beauty of nature. It was even the inspiration for a Three Stooges skit. And it’s where Nikola Tesla became famous.

Tesla at Niagara Falls

In his autobiography, Tesla reminisces about the first time he heard of Niagara Falls. It was in the Normal School during his youth. Here “there were a few mechanical models which interested me and turned my attention to water turbines.” After hearing a description of the great Niagara Falls, Tesla “pictured in my imagination a big wheel run by the Falls.” He proclaimed to his uncle that one day he would “go to America and carry out this scheme.”

Niagara Falls

Tesla now had that opportunity. After their successful collaboration at the Chicago World’s Fair, George Westinghouse set his sights on using the Tesla system to harness Niagara Falls for electricity generation. Up to this point the only use of the falls had been to build small canals to provide hydropower for mills and a tannery. But many saw the opportunity of channeling the awesome power of the falls to generate electricity. A former Edison board member, Edward Dean Adams, was picked to lead the newly formed Cataract Construction Company and determine the best way to obtain and then distribute electricity from the falls. Despite Thomas Edison’s assertions that he could transmit electricity as far as Buffalo, direct current systems were limited to running the machinery of local mills and lighting up some of the local village streets. The limitations of direct current were far too restrictive for any significant distribution.

Tesla’s alternating current system was just the answer the Cataract Construction Company was looking for, although they did not know that in the beginning. Adams first headed off to Europe where others were working to exploit alternating current for lighting and power generation. Eventually the Cataract Construction Company offered a contest of sorts, with cash prizes totaling $20,000 for the best plan for harnessing the falls. With more than a few parties claiming the rights to various parts of the alternating current system, there was backstabbing and counter claims and more than a little industrial theft of ideas. But in the end it was Tesla’s patents that won the day. The Westinghouse Company was chosen to provide the powerhouse and alternating current system, while the General Electric Company was awarded construction of the transmission lines.

Courtesy of NMAH Smithsonian Institution

Westinghouse, relying on a dozen Tesla patents, completed the powerhouse in 1895. Its enormous polyphase generator could produce an unprecedented 15,000 horsepower. Within the next year General Electric completed the transmission and distribution system and sufficient electricity to power industries “through the Falls and Buffalo areas.” Westinghouse went on to add another seven generating units, raising the power output to 50,000 horsepower. Tesla’s patented alternating current system was to change the lives of all Americans as the Niagara project showed investors that alternating current could transmit power over long distances.

Nikola Tesla went on to win the “war of the currents” against Thomas Edison, in large part because of his success with Westinghouse in Chicago and Niagara Falls. He dreamed of harnessing the power of nature to provide inexpensive, sustainable, electricity to everyone. How much power? Check out these two very brief videos, first from above, then down in the mist.

Tesla was on his way. He even got two statues, not just one, for his accomplishments at Niagara. And then disaster struck. More on that later.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for thirty-five years, is an avid science traveler, and an independent Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (now in its 5th printing) and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His book on Thomas Edison is due in Barnes and Noble stores in spring 2016.

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