Category: Travel

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Jellyfish at the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas – New Orleans

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Audubon Aquarium of the AmericasMany years ago, in my marine biologist days, I studied jellyfish at the National Marine Fisheries Service laboratory in Oxford, Maryland. I’ve been fascinated with them ever since. I recall the first time seeing them in a large aquarium – in Monterey, California – and have watched as more and more aquariums have installed jellyfish setups themselves.

Jellyfish (yes, I know technically they should be called Sea Jellies since they are not fish, but old habits die hard) are not easy to keep in aquariums. They have very little control over where they go other than to backstroke up or down or side to side. Mainly they just go where the current goes. In aquariums that usually means straight into the filter. Nothing like a mushy, globular, nematocyst-laden carbon filter to gum up your tank.

So it took some engineering, some of which I developed myself in those good old days, to figure out how to keep jellyfish happy. And that makes me happy.

The aquarium also had the usual complement of sharks, skates, rays, and fish of all kinds. Not a bad aquarium at all, and one I’ll talk more about in the future. Check out the other aquariums I’ve visited all over the world.

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His next book, Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, is scheduled for release in summer 2017.

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Science Traveling – 2016 in Preview

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I’m going to Machu Picchu in 2016. Of course, I said I was going to Machu Picchu in 2015 and had to punt on it to this year. But this year I’m really going. I hope. Like last year, my plans could easily change, but here is what I’m planning for 2016.

Wind SurfThe only trip actually booked so far is a sailing cruise of the Caribbean in late January/early February. We’ll meet four Saints (Maarten, Kitts, Barthelemy, and Lucia), plus Barbuda, Guadaloupe, and Dominica. All while sailing point to point on a 535-foot sailboat.

Beyond that we’re looking at two other overseas trips – one to the aforementioned Machu Picchu in May, the other to China (and hopefully one other country) in October. If it all works out I’ll get to add at least six new countries to my visited list (last year I added only 3, though I was in 6 outside the U.S.).

I’ll also have my annual trip to New England to visit my parents, plus perhaps a second trip for my high school reunion. I’ve never attended a reunion before but this year I just might. It’s not until August so we’ll see when it gets closer.

Lincoln TombSpringfield, Illinois may see me twice this year. I have a scheduled trip there in September with the Lincoln Group of DC, in which we’ll pursue Lincoln’s memory through New Salem, Springfield, and points surrounding. I’m also anticipating a purely research trip, probably in March, to visit with the staffs of the Papers of Abraham Lincoln and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. Lincoln is also the focus of a November trip to Gettysburg.

Closer to home, I will likely have a book launch party in August to celebrate the release of my newest book Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World.

Those are the more-or-less planned trips. Others may include Orlando for the SETAC meeting in November, Charlottesville for the CPRC meeting in April, Mt. Rushmore (still trying to squeeze this in at some point), and Newport News, VA (home of the Monitor ironclad).

I’ll be writing many science traveling articles during 2016 so check back regularly.

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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Science Traveler – Wrapping Up the Wrap Ups of 2015

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This morning I realized my watch was set for 1 hour behind the actual time. It took me a while to realize what had happened,* but it was a reflection on the amazingly busy/productive/exhausting/exhilarating year it has been. It’s time to wrap up the wrap ups.

David J. Kent drinking mateHere on Science Traveler I’ve recapped a year in the writer’s life. Two books written, a few articles for magazines and newsletters, and a ton of blog posts. I also summarized a year in science traveling that included everything from some major capitals of Europe to some alligator-infested National Parks to a prison on an island (no, not Alcatraz, the other one). I also cataloged my 2015 acquisitions of Abraham Lincoln books.

Near Cueva de las ManosOn Hot White Snow I summarized all the books I read in 2015 – all 96 of them…and I recapped what I can confidently say was a very good year.

On The Dake Page I reviewed the year in climate change, a year in which 2015 blew past 2014 as the hottest year in global temperatures on record. I also laid out the four things you need to know about the recent Paris climate agreement.

Science smartphoneThere was a lot more, so click on the blog names above and scroll down to see other articles of interest.

So what does 2016 hold for us all? Check back later for plans and predictions (and big changes to this website)!

Finally, thank you all for participating in this adventure with me. I appreciate your support, your loyalty, and your interest. I’m looking forward to providing more content in 2016 to give each and every one of you a reason to keep coming back.

Happy New Year!

*About the watch thing: I had set the watch back an hour for my trip to New Orleans, which is in the Central Time Zone. I never reset it. Since I work at home (when I’m not on the road), I generally don’t wear the watch at all, relying mostly on the clocks on my computer and smart phone. Only this morning as I sat in Panera did I notice the time was off. 🙂

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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The Year in Science Traveling – 2015

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Science TravelerSomehow I managed not to travel anywhere in February, June, and August. But for the other nine months I had at least one out-of-town trip. It was a very good year in Science Traveling. I’ve finished traveling for the year so it’s time for a quick recap.

January: Everglades, Key West, and the Dry Tortugas. Besides seeing the prison cells that held the Lincoln assassination conspirators I discovered that Ernest Hemingway was a crazy cat lady. I also discovered the Holocaust Memorial in Miami Beach.

March: A relatively local trip to the eastern shore of Maryland in which I unexpectedly came upon skeleton road at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge. I also checked in to the marine biology lab I once worked in, plus a wine tasting in St. Michaels.

April: Another semi-local trip for the annual CPRC scientific conference, this one a full-day affair at the Robinson Nature Center in Columbia, MD.

May: I started May in New England on a writer’s retreat in my old home town. I ended May in Scandinavia on a tour of Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, and Bergen (with stops on the fjords). I even came across a few surprises.

July: The 4th of July brought me back to my home town for the holiday, then a road trip up to Quebec City and Montreal. On the way back the route took us on a quest for used book stores in western Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. One of the highlights was Montmorency Falls.

September: A busy fall began with a trip to New York City, where I got up close with the Statue of Liberty, saw the top of the world from the Empire State Building, the bottom of the world in the new World Trade Center Memorial and Museum, and some aircraft carriers/submarines/space shuttles.

October: Ah, Paris in the spring, er, the fall. For once the weather cooperated and the Eiffel Tower was amazing. In two short days we squeezed in a lot of venues, including Musee d’Orsay and the Pompidou Centre, then took the train through the Chunnel to London. Unfortunately I spent most of my time in the latter city hopping around on one foot.

November: The morning after returning from London I was on a plane to Salt Lake City for the annual SETAC meeting, where I picked up the award for Outstanding Regional Chapter Member. Ten days after my return I was in Gettysburg for the annual Lincoln Forum conference. And then my parents visited me for 10 days. November was a very busy month.

December: December seems low-key given that the sole trip was a long weekend to New Orleans. Okay, technically that isn’t the last trip of the year as we likely will drive up to Amish country in Pennsylvania for the Christmas weekend, but that will actually feel like a nice break from a year of science traveling.

And it was, in fact, science traveling. Every trip had some connection to a book I’m researching or a future book in the plans. It’s amazing how much science (and Lincoln and Tesla and Edison) there is when you look for it. The July 4th trip, for example, included stops in two of Thomas Edison’s most iconic laboratories, and New Orleans has a plaque at Thomas Edison Place. Lincoln was everywhere (including New Orleans).

When I wasn’t science traveling I was writing a book, two books in fact. Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World is finished and will be in Barnes and Noble bookstores in 2016. I also published an e-book available on Amazon: Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. If that wasn’t enough to keep me busy I also have read 94 books this year (with two weeks to go), chaired a scientific committee, attended various local Abraham Lincoln dinners, lectures, and symposiums, and served as a Vice President in the Lincoln Group of DC.

Next year should be even busier!

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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Rolling on the River in the City of New Orleans

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Steamboat NatchezYes, the allusions in the title are intentional. Creedence Clearwater Revival (aka, CCR) wrote a song called Proud Mary, though many know it by its famous refrain “rolling on the river” (and the remixed version by Tina Turner). It refers to a riverboat plying the Mississippi River. The City of New Orleans is a song by Steve Goodman made famous by Arlo Guthrie. It refers to the name of a train that traveled between Chicago and New Orleans. Both came to mind as I watched this:

The Natchez is the last authentic steamboat on the Mississippi River. Abraham Lincoln would have ridden a similar boat on his way back upriver following his second flatboat trip to New Orleans. I recently had the privilege of doing some research on the boat for my upcoming Lincoln book. It is the only boat left on the river that uses steam as its sole means of forward and reverse propulsion. Today the steam is produced by burning diesel fuel; in the past it would have been wood-, and then coal-, fired.

The two steam engines drive the pistons, which turn the rear paddle wheel, a 25-foot in diameter, white oak and steel behemoth weighing 26 tons.The boat itself is 265 feet long and weighs 1,384 tons. The pilot on the bridge uses a telegraph for communication to the chief engineer in the engine room. As the pilot turns the knob to the position he wants, it turns the corresponding dial in the engine room and sounds a bell. When the engineer moves his knob to the corresponding position it stops the bell, thus indicating to the pilot that the engineer received the signal. It’s a fascinating process to watch.

Amazingly, the boat draws only five to seven feet, which allows it to get up into the very shallow waters of the Mississippi.

Abraham Lincoln would have been happy that an authentic steamboat still travels the lower Mississippi, though he also would be happy that “internal improvements” have progressed so much further.

David J. Kent is the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, now available. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

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From New York to New Orleans

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In the last two months I’ve been on the road – and in the air – a lot. I started out with a week in New York City, squeezed in some local time researching Abraham Lincoln at the National Archives, then zoomed off to Paris, then London, then Salt Lake City without a break. About 10 days to recover and then off to Gettysburg. Now a few breaths before my parents arrive tomorrow for 10 days of Thanksgiving festivities.

The weather in New York City was generally dreary. Every day was overcast and cold. Rain threatened at all times, and sometimes it carried out that threat. The sun came out on the first day there for about an hour, and that hour was while we were at the Statue of Liberty! Perhaps it was an omen, especially given the frightful events of Paris.

Statue of Liberty

As a Marine Corps V-22 Osprey (a VTOL aircraft reminiscent of one designed by NikolaDSC04468 Tesla) circled the boat, we stopped at Ellis Island on the way back, just long enough to remind us that immigration is the fabric of our nation. From there we visited One World Trade Center, called “Freedom Tower” by many. Sitting on the site of the World Trade Towers that fell September 11, 2001, the new building overlooks two reverse pools surrounded by the names of those lost. A museum brings you down into the nightmare that was that day, and also the heroism. It’s a must visit.

One World Trade Center

We also visited John Lennon’s Imagine circle at Strawberry Fields, the American Museum of Natural History, the Lincoln statue outside the New York Historical Society, checked out Nikola Tesla Corner at Bryant Park and the New York Public Library, took in the view from the top of the Empire State Building, wandered the deck of the aircraft carrier Intrepid, saw the Space Shuttle up-close-and-personal, and squeezed through a submarine. Oh, and walked several miles of Manhattan – the lower, the mid-town, and the park (and west side).

Phew. No wonder we were beat by the end of the week. And that was just the beginning.

Edison Place New OrleansAfter hosting the Thanksgiving visit the only trip left on the calendar this year is a 4-day weekend in New Orleans. I’ve never been there. After lobbying SETAC for ten years to hold a meeting there they finally scheduled one – for the time that I was working in Brussels and my company refused to allow me to come back for it. I’m looking forward to it, especially now that I know there is a plaque highlighting Thomas Edison in the French Quarter.

BTW, because of my time in Brussels and having just been in Paris I spent a good amount of anxious time trying to see if my friends and colleagues were safe when I heard about the Paris attacks. The focus on Brussels as a source of the terrorists raised the anxiety level even more. As far as I’ve been able to determine everyone I know is safe. This is a frustrating topic and I haven’t decided if it’s something on which I want to speak on further, but needless to say it’s difficult, especially after also being recently in New York City and living not far from the Pentagon. Perhaps more on this at another time; or perhaps not.

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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Seeing SETAC in Salt Lake City

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I’ve been a member of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) for nearly 30 years. Most of those years I’ve attended the annual meeting held in various cities of North America. This past week we were in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Mormon Church, Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City is the center of the Mormon Church, aka, the Church of Latter Day Saints. The temple was a block or so away from the convention center filled with over SETAC members. This year the organizers put up a poster showing all the previous SETAC meeting locations and asked conference participants to put sticky stars on the year they first attended.

SETAC, Salt Lake City

The photo above was taken on Tuesday so doesn’t show all of the stars that were later added (the conference ended Thursday evening), but it does suffice to point out a couple of interesting conclusions.

The first SETAC conference was in 1980 and yet there are still many of the original members still attending the meeting each year. In conversations I had with several people, however, it was clear that we are losing some of our older members and that we need to capture their memories. This was a topic of discussion in our Senior Resource Group meeting, which consists of many of the folks that have been coming to meetings for a very long time. As this year progresses we’ll address this need further.

Also evident is the huge number of first time attendees here in Salt Lake City, and that is a very good thing. It means that we are attracting new members (in particular, new master’s and PhD students). Many of the events at SETAC are geared toward student growth, including assigned mentors, career guidance, and travel awards to help pay for costs of attendance.

SETAC, Salt Lake City, Award

I received my own award at the opening ceremony. Actually, I received two. The first I knew about: Outstanding Regional Chapter Member Award, which reflects all the work I’ve done for the Chesapeake-Potomac Regional Chapter. SETAC presents about 10 awards each year in an organization with about 7000 members worldwide. The fact that they kept flashing the award winners on flat screens around the convention hall was both a sense of pride and a bit unnerving. I also received a second award, a Presidential Citation for Exemplary Service, which SETAC-North America’s President presented on Monday as I chaired a committee meeting.

As with all such conferences, there were plenty of scientific sessions to attend, including those on emerging issues like microplastics and climate change impacts on environmental toxicology. I ran into many old friends, and even a former employee of mine. He was a technician in the aquatic toxicology I ran long ago; now he’s a university professor with his own entourage of students.

One other chance meeting may also prove fruitful. While traveling the hallways between sessions I ran into a science writer I had met a few years earlier. We caught up as best we could in the few minutes we had, but hit on the idea of a possible book collaboration focused on communicating science to the public. We’ll be following up on that idea shortly.

Until then, it’s back home to recalibrate, rejuvenate, and reconsider a previously anticipated December trip. To paraphrase New England Patriot’s Head Coach Bill Belichick, its “On to the Next Science Traveling!”

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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Science Traveling – Traveling Science

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Continuing on my science traveling tour. After Paris I was in London for a week.

Arrived home one night and next morning flew to Salt Lake City where the view from the plane was gorgeous.

First night here and my name and picture were blazoned on two huge screens as I picked up an award. [Actually, it turns out I won a second recognition I hadn’t known about before.]

A few days here, then back home to recover and catch up.

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Limping in London (from Hot White Snow)

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London from the EyeActually, limping would be an improvement right now, as I’m essentially stuck in my hotel room unable to walk without pain. Welcome to London.

It’s not my first travel injury. I once cracked some ribs in Paris and toured the next two days on painkillers and short breaths. I passed out from heat exhaustion and dehydration at Chichen Itza pyramid in Mexico, which got me a free ambulance ride and mini-hospital care. I shredded the bottom of my foot on coral in the Greek Islands. On a previous trip to London I walked into a plate glass door at a restaurant, smashing (but luckily not breaking) my nose. While I sat inside downing sugar packets with my head between my knees trying to maintain consciousness, the restaurant filled our dinner order at no charge (perhaps fearing a law suit).

The foot problem I’m having right now is likely related to the inflamed toe I had a few years ago on Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Probably should get that checked. For now, it’s a regime of ice pack and rest.

Notwithstanding this desvio (detour) from my planned itinerary, the week shouldn’t be a total loss. I’ve come to London a few times before an thus seen many of the sites; I’ll likely return to pick up on the ones I thought I missed. The down time gives me a chance to catch up on some reading and, more importantly, some writing. And that is always a good thing.

[The above is a cross-post from Hot White Snow]

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His next book is on Abraham Lincoln, due out in 2017.

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A Closer Look at the Eiffel Tower

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While I enjoyed an all-too-short stay in Paris this past weekend, this was the view from the street outside my hotel.

So I decided to get a closer look…

A nearly full moon was being cooperative…to a point.

The next night the same moon was posing with the Big Ben (and the clock tower that everyone assumes is Big Ben). I’ll have that photo and much more after I sort through photos.