HERE COME THE SUN QUEEN

M.I.T. engineers scoffed but Maria Telkes knew that when you need heat and energy, the sun works wonders.

DREAMERSThe AtticJanuary 19, 2023Maria Telkes, The Sun Queen, Dover Solar House, Solar energy, M.I.T., Solar electricity, Solar panels, Passive solar, Women in engineering, Women in STEM Comments

THAR SHE DOESN'T BLOW -- YET

Ahoy, mates, all hands on deck for the Moby Dick Marathon! Bring sleeping bag and chowdah!

American Places, BOOK-ISHBruce WatsonJanuary 12, 2023Moby Dick, Herman Melville, Moby Dick Marathon, New Bedford, New Bedford Massachusetts Comments

THE LITTLE GIZMO THAT BRINGS YOU THE WORLD

Small, cheap, ubiquitous, the transistor — invented 75 years ago — birthed the Modern World.

WONDERSThe AtticJanuary 5, 2023Transistors, Bell Labs, Transistor radios, technology Comments

THE GAME OF THEIR LIVES

1950 World Cup — America’s amateurs take on the British “Kings of Football.” Do you believe in miracles?

HEROESThe AtticDecember 9, 2022The Game of their Lives, World Cup, Soccer, Football Comments

GRANDMA MOSES AND THE ART OF AGING

At 78, “Grandma” Moses took up painting. At 100, she was an American icon.

ART-ISHThe AtticDecember 1, 2022Grandma Moses, American art, American folk art, Senior citizens, Seniors Comments

BRIDGING AMERICA'S GREAT DIVIDE

Divided America? Second Civil War? Braver Angels (and other groups) are building bridges.

BATTLING THE B.S.The AtticNovember 24, 2022Braver Angels, Bridge groups, divided america, partisan politics, Red-Blue Comments

JUST THE FACTS, MA'AM

“Facts” are flying fast and footloose, but America’s fact-checkers are standing up for Truth.

BATTLING THE B.S.The AtticNovember 17, 2022Fact checkers, Snopes.com, Factcheck.org, Politifact, fake news, bullshit, truth Comments

THE GOOD FIGHT AGAINST BAD THINKING

Believers shout “True!” Cynics cry “B.S.!” But the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry says, “prove it.”

BATTLING THE B.S.The AtticNovember 10, 2022Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, Skeptical Inquirer, Committee for Inquiry, Carl Sagan, Skepticism, Hoaxes, Conspiracies, Bullshit, Debunking, Skepticism Movement Comments

SAVED BY THE POISON SQUAD

Americans ate anything on the table — formaldehyde, borax, chalk — until a crusading chemist went to work.

BATTLING THE B.S.The AtticNovember 3, 2022Harvey Wiley, The Poison Squad, Pure Food and Drug, FDA, Food and Drug Administration Comments

WHERE THE FUTURE STUDIED

During dark times, an upstart college dared to open the doors to the future — of art, dance, poetry, music. . .

DREAMERSThe AtticOctober 20, 2022Black Mountain College, Rauschenberg, John Cage, American higher education, North Carolina, Asheville, NC Comments

ALICE IN AUTOLAND

Automobiles were for men, men, men. Then Alice Ramsey and friends set out coast-to-coast — in 1909.

HEROESThe AtticOctober 13, 2022Alice Huylar Ramsey, Early automobiles, Maxwell automobiles, Automotive history Comments

COMEBACK ON THE CUYAHOGA

From burning river to free flowing waters, the Cuyahoga River has come back. “It’s a miracle.”

WONDERS, COMEBACKSThe AtticOctober 11, 2022Cuyahoga River, Cleveland, Americans rivers, Environmental Movement, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Comments

MOTHER JONES AND THE CHILDREN'S CRUSADE

Two million children toiled 12-hour days. Having lost her own children, Mother Jones wanted the nation to know.

REBELSBruce WatsonOctober 6, 2022Mother Jones, Mary Harris "Mother" Jones, Child labor, American labor, "Mother" Jones, Progressive era Comment

CITRUS COOL

An orange was an orange was. . . So California growers turned their labels into art.

ART-ISHThe AtticSeptember 29, 2022Oranges, Orange industry, orange crate art, orange county, southern california, Southern California history Comments

JACKIE SAVES GRAND CENTRAL

The old station was a tomb, slated for demolition. Then the former First Lady stepped up.

DREAMERSThe AtticSeptember 21, 2022Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jackie Kennedy, Grand Central Station, Historic preservation, Jackie O Comments

THE ATTIC READS: NOT TOO LATE

Think it’s too late to do anything about global warming? Think again.

BOOK-ISH, HEROESThe AtticSeptember 21, 2022Rebecca Solnit, Global warming, Not too Late, Optimism, Environmental Movement, Environmental movement, Greenhouse gases, Global activism Comment

KINDER, COOLER, SMARTER

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