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Abraham Lincoln and the Technology of War

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Organized by the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee, this exhibition explores how cutting-edge Civil War technological innovations captured Lincoln's fascination and impacted the conduct of the war.The American Civil War was a crossroads between the old style of warfare and modern warfare. This modern warfare (if one can call the wholesale taking of lives “modern”) is explored in an exhibit in the Ford’s Theatre Center for Education and Leadership called “Abraham Lincoln and the Technology of War.” The exhibit runs through July 6, 2014, so make your plans soon.

In a nutshell, the old way of fighting had mainly been a function of how many men could be thrown together for close-quarters combat. Men lined up to fire single shot muskets at fairly short ranges, then engaged in hand-to-hand (or bayonet-to-bayonet) fighting. Thousands would die on the battlefield; thousands more would die of infection and disease. The Civil War saw plenty of this old way of fighting. But it also saw plenty of new technology being put into play.

To get to the exhibit you enter through the Petersen House, then take an elevator up to the fourth floor of the adjacent Center and work your way down. Start by gazing at the tower of Abraham Lincoln books.

Lincoln book tower

On the second floor you’ll find the technology of war exhibit, organized by the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee. Lincoln was fascinated by technology and both used and helped encourage its development during the war. He was the first president to use the telegraph for rapid communication.

Telegraph

Lincoln had long been a proponent of internal improvements, including railroads. And the difference in railroad infrastructure between the North and the South was both dramatic and crucial to the war’s outcome. More on that in the future.

RailroadsThe advancements in railroads, manned balloons, and cannons moved warfare into the modern age. The evolution of basic weaponry – away from single-shot muskets and toward repeating rifles and pistols – increased both the distance and lethality of offense.

Rifles

I’ll have much more on this topic in the coming months as I continue my exploration of Abraham Lincoln’s interest in science and technology. To get a taste of the current exhibit at Ford’s Theatre, check out this short video about the collection:

David J. Kent is an avid Lincolnophile and is writing a book on Abraham Lincoln’s interests in technology. He is also the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity, and a signed copy can be ordered directly from me. The second printing will be available in Barnes and Noble bookstores soon, or you can download the ebook at barnesandnoble.com.

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The Oatmeal, Elon Musk, and Nikola Tesla – The Rise of Wardenclyffe

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David J. KentThe Oatmeal has done it again! The popular online comic series, created by Matthew Inman, is helping to finish the job of building Nikola Tesla’s Wardenclyffe into a world class museum and science center. His audacity managed to raise over $1.3 million in 2012 for the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe to buy the property. And now in an even more audacious move he has asked Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk to pony up the $8 million still needed to turn convert the property into a usable venue.

This is Elon Musk’s reply:

Wow. This is exciting news for people like Jane Alcorn at the Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, Nikola Lonchar at the Tesla Science Foundation, and myriad other Tesla fans around the world that contributed to saving Nikola Tesla’s Wardenclyffe from demise. Even the publisher of my book, Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity, is happy (especially since the second printing will be in Barnes and Noble stores in July).

Now you’ll notice that Elon Musk didn’t actually commit to funding the entire $8 million needed (though that would be nice if he did…hint, hint). Details of how this moves forward are obviously yet to be defined. But it’s an amazing first step.

So how did this come about? The Oatmeal did it. I’ve discussed previously how Matthew Inman at the Oatmeal spearheaded a crowdfunding campaign that enabled purchase of the Wardenclyffe property. I had the pleasure of meeting Inman last year at the Tesla Memorial Conference held at the New Yorker Hotel.

Inman took the next step this week in a two-part spread on The Oatmeal. Part 1 talked about “What it’s like to own a Tesla Model S.” It’s turns out it’s pretty cool (in a magical space car kind of way). Part 2 gets to the nitty gritty (which is an idiom from childhood whose actual meaning still escapes me). Part 2 is called “Man vs Motor” and talks about all the super cool stuff Elon Musk is into. Okay, the envy factor is at a high level here as you read about Musk’s various endeavors beyond Tesla Motors, like SpaceX and James Bond’s super-duper Lotus Esprit submarine car. I guess when you invent PayPal, then sell it to eBay for $1.5 billion (that’s billion with a capital “B”), you have some spare change for innovation.

The Oatmeal asked Elon Musk to fund the entire $8 million needed. Talk about audacity.

In any case, The Oatmeal two-parter went up this week, and Elon Musk quickly responded with the tweet above. Happy dances all around.

It’s not that easy, of course. Much more has to be done, including filling in whatever balance is necessary to get the museum built. But right now it looks like the dream of turning Nikola Tesla’s last laboratory into a reality is actually going to happen.

Thank you Matthew Inman (The Oatmeal), Elon Musk, and all the people who have worked so hard to bring Nikola Tesla’s legacy to the modern world. I’m happy to have played a small role in that process.

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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Book Review – The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln by C.A. Tripp

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The Intimate World of Abraham LincolnThe premise of the book is that Abraham Lincoln was a homosexual, or at least a bisexual. The problem with this premise is that it is purely conjecture and the author does not support it at all. Basically, he just made it up.

C.A. Tripp was a sex researcher and colleague of Alfred Kinsey, and author of The Homosexual Matrix. This background so stilted his research methods and how he drew his conclusions that the book is simply a preconceived contention in search of support. Unfortunately for Tripp, he provides none. Tripp passed away two weeks after supposedly completing the manuscript for the book. In an introduction, the Mary Todd Lincoln biographer Jean Baker apologetically notes that if Tripp had lived he most certainly would have had to edit the book more extensively and that at least one more chapter would likely have been added. In reality, another chapter would not have made any difference. The book is so weak that the publishers provided three “reactions and comments” from outside reviewers in an Afterword. The book also includes three appendices that supposedly support the author’s contention, though these materials actually do not provide any additional support whatsoever.

The only “evidence” that Tripp provides for Lincoln’s presumed homosexual tendencies is the well known fact that Lincoln shared beds with men during his lifetime. But this standard is so low that the majority of men during that era would be classified as having homosexual tendencies, as it was commonplace to share sleeping arrangements in the cramped quarters of the time. This is especially true for those, like Lincoln, who were quite poor early in their lives and who traveled extensively on the legal circuit with other lawyers and judges. Tripp offers no evidence at all of any sexual relationship with anyone. He merely presumes it and bases the entire book on this unsupported assumption. Of all the writings by Lincoln, his presumed inamoratos, friends, colleagues, and family, none suggests any sexual relationship at all with any man. In fact, all suggestions by Lincoln’s contemporaries of normal sleeping arrangements are rebuffed by Tripp as somehow, these people who knew him best, simply being oblivious to the obvious signs. The problem is that these signs are apparently obvious only to a homosexual sex researcher of the late 20th century incapable of viewing events from the perspective of the first half of the 1800s. His only other “evidence” is the fact that Lincoln told some ribald jokes; something again that ignores the fact that Lincoln was constantly telling stories, most of which were not, in fact, sexually oriented at all. Nor does telling jokes make anyone gay.

It should be noted that most of the book actually is taken up questioning his relationships with the various women Lincoln courted. Somehow all of these heterosexual relationships, and the fact that he sired four children with Mary Todd (who he spends an entire chapter decimating), merely show that he was secretly harboring homosexual tendencies. In the end, the book provides no evidence whatsoever of such tendencies, and in fact, provides substantial evidence to the contrary. Clearly the book was written based on the predisposition of the author and cannot be considered a credible examination of Lincoln’s life.

More book reviews can be seen by clicking here and scrolling down.

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 it’s Tuesday, This Must be Belgium

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In 1969 there was a movie by this title (“If it’s Tuesday, This Must be Belgium“) starring Suzanne Pleshette. It was a comedy about Americans experiencing Europe for the first time. Not long ago I had a chance to live out the idea behind the movie – the company I worked for at the time traded me from Washington DC to their office in Brussels (presumably for a scientist to be named later). I lived in Brussels for three years.

During that time I traveled as much as I could squeeze in between a heavy work load and limited finances. While in retrospect I wish I had traveled even more, I treasure every second of the time spent hopping from one country to the next.

Flower carpet in Grand Place

In future posts I’ll talk more about specific places I visited. And, of course, I’ll also be talking about some of the cool science experienced on these travels. My base of Brussels was well positioned as a starting point. Most of Europe is within two or three hours by plane and the train system in Europe is tremendous, so it’s very easy to get around. Over my three years I took train trips, driving trips, flying trips, and even an occasional boat (though no long boat trips).

Brussels is not only the capital of Belgium, it’s the capital of the European Union. The former is reflected in its “old town” central square called Grand Place (pronounced with a French accent, n’est-ce pas?), while the latter is reflected in the tall steel and glass buildings more familiar to modern cities. The site of the 1958 World’s Fair, Brussels proudly shows off one of its most famous attractions – the Atomium, whose nine spheres form the shape of an iron crystal (see, I told you there would be science).

Atomium, Brussels

 

Bizarrely, Brussels’ other most famous attraction is the Mannekin Pis, which everyone rushes to see, then wonders what all the hubbub is about. I’ll talk about that later, as well as have much more on Brussels and my European adventures in future posts. Meanwhile, I’m planning my next European adventure (along with a few south of the equator). Back soon.

David J. Kent has been a scientist for over thirty years, is an avid science traveler, and an independent Abraham Lincoln historian. He is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and the e-book Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time. He is currently writing a book on Thomas Edison.

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Abraham Lincoln Book Club of Washington DC

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The Abraham Lincoln Group of the District of Columbia has a book club. And this past weekend we finished reading Herndon’s Lincoln, the book that we’ve been discussing for the last nine months. In my earlier review I noted that this particular edition of the book was greatly enhanced by the incredible editorial annotation by Douglas L. Wilson and Rodney O. Davis. Even more invaluable was the input from the book members themselves.

I should emphasize that our Lincoln Group book club includes several historians, archivists, researchers, and all-around Abraham Lincoln scholars. We also had people who had little previous knowledge of Lincoln. Each of us brought our own preconceptions, backgrounds, and opinions, which when informed further by the personal insights of Herndon and others who knew Lincoln, made for lively and sometimes surprising discussions. Arising from the three-quarter-year analysis was a much deeper understanding of both the book and Abraham Lincoln. I think everyone in the group would agree that it was a worthwhile and special experience.

LGDC book discussion group

This last session was special in another sense as well. Because of a last minute scheduling conflict we were not able to use the room that has been our home base for the last nine months. Normally we meet on the 5th floor of the Ford’s Theatre Center for Education and Leadership, across the street from the famous site of Lincoln’s assassination and next to the Petersen House, where Lincoln died.

Our backup plan was Ford’s Theatre itself, or more accurately, the conference room on the top floor of Ford’s Theatre. Bypassing the lines queued up for the matinee of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, we found the entrance to an elegant conference room tucked into the rafters of the theater. Here is the view from the top as the audience filed in for the performance.

Ford's Theatre from the rafters

George Healey’s famous painting of Abraham Lincoln loomed over our group as we discussed the final chapters. Imagine sitting in a room discussing the motivations of the man gazing in thoughtful contemplation over your left shoulder. No, we weren’t intimidated. Much.

LGDC book club

Abe did photobomb the apparently requisite selfie at such grandiose events. Left to right are John Elliff, Richard Margolies (our esteemed discussion leader), Abe, Me, and Rodney Ross.

Selfie

While a bit of Lincolnesque melancholy was felt with the ending of this past year’s discussion, a new birth of excitement was in the air because we had chosen the next book for discussion – The Inner World of Abraham Lincoln by noted Lincoln scholar, Michael Burlingame. Even more exciting is that, thanks to Rod Ross, Michael Burlingame has agreed to speak to our discussion group on November 1st. Check out the LGDC site for more details as they emerge.

For those in the Washington DC area with an interest in Abraham Lincoln, please consider our Lincoln Group book club. You don’t have to be a Lincoln expert to join; you just have to read the book. It doesn’t get much easier than that. And the rewards?

Priceless!

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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TeslaMania Festival and Exposition Coming!

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Signing books 1-11-14Tesla is popping up all over. And that’s a good thing. Nikola Tesla was one of the most important inventors to the modern world, and yet also one of the least known. That’s been changing over the last few years, which has been reflected in the wonderful reception of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and other books. And now there is TeslaMania!

The brainchild of Tesla Magazine founder Nenad Stankovic, TeslaMania is planned as a four day weekend festival running from July 10th (Tesla’s birthday) to July 13th. Most of the events will take place in picturesque Toronto, with the final day featuring a guided tour to nearby Niagara Falls. The Falls play an important role in Tesla’s contributions to society, so events include visits to the two Telsa memorial statues and the Sir Adam Beck power plant, plus a Tesla Motors Car Rally, an Outdoor Picnic and a lot more Tesla Festivities.

TeslaMania

Events in Toronto include a beach festival, parties at selected nightclubs, music by Tesla (the rock band), and the premier of The Healing Field, a new film highlighting Tesla’s inventions in electrotherapy. Also not to be missed are book presentations and signings planned for the Conspiracy Culture book store.

Plans are still being made so there is time to sponsor events. Registration is scheduled to open on May 1st, so check out the TeslaMania website and the corresponding Facebook page for more details.

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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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.

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