Category Archives: History
The Atlantic Magazine – November 2024 Preview
The Moment of Truth
The reelection of Donald Trump would mark the end of George Washington’s vision for the presidency—and the United States.By Tom Nichols
The Trump Believability Gap
Voters detest the things that Trump wants to do. But they just don’t believe he’ll follow through.By David A. Graham
Why Politicians Lie
And how to get them to stopBy Bill Adair
Israel and Hamas Are Kidding Themselves
Reviews: How Motown Music Upheld Civil Rights
BBC (September 30, 2024): Paid In Full: The Battle for Black Music documents the extent of the historic injustice suffered by the music industry’s Black artists, including the disparity of profits received by them, despite having created the records that have driven the fabric and culture of popular music – from jazz and rock and roll to soul and rap.
Features interviews with Black titans of the music industry Cadence Weapon, Chaka Khan, George Clinton, Monie Love, Nile Rodgers, Gloria Gaynor, Ice T, Master P, and Smokey Robinson.
#PaidInFull #BlackMusic #musicindustry #music #exploitation #BlackHistory #civilrightsmovement #motown
Travel & History: ‘Journey To The Heart Of Egypt’
Witness how these grand traditions continue to resonate in modern Egypt, where ancient rituals blend seamlessly with contemporary faith, as the living pay tribute to the deceased with heartfelt prayers, vibrant processions, and the promise of a celestial afterlife.
Photography: How Kodak Invented The ‘Snapshot’
Vox (September 20, 2024): In 1888, Eastman Kodak patented roll film, and the company’s business model of selling film, and then processing and printing the photos taken on that film for their consumers, made photography available to the masses for the first time.
Before the Kodak No. 1 box camera debuted, photography was a complicated process involving chemistry and expertise on big, bulky equipment. When Kodak introduced the Brownie and sold it for a dollar in 1900, photography went fully mainstream. The company dominated the film sales and development market during the 20th century and successfully marketed its automatic cameras as crucial to capturing fleeting moments — at home and on vacation.
But digital camera sales began to outpace film camera sales in the early 2000s, and Kodak failed to keep up. They filed for bankruptcy in 2012 but do still exist and sell film, albeit to a much smaller market.
Science: What Is It That Makes Humans Unique?
Some animals see, hear or smell better than humans. Others can find their way in the dark much better than we can. Some can fly. All animals communicate, some have excellent memories and others build complex structures and have highly-developed social skills. So what sets humans apart? Why have humans evolved such highly developed cognitive abilities in comparison to animals?
The documentary sheds light on this major question of human evolution — one of the mysteries that has long puzzled the world of science. What is it that makes humans so fundamentally different from other animal species? And will our extraordinary abilities ultimately lead us to self-destruction?
Preview: Military History Magazine – Oct/Nov 2024
MILITARY HISTORY MAGAZINE (September 12, 2024): The latest issue features ‘Napoleon At War’ – The Rise of a Military Colossus…
Napoleon: Rise of a military colossus
In our special two-part feature in this issue, Graham Goodlad explores, first, the part played by Napoleon’s generalship in his progress from unknown artillery officer to ruler of France. Then we analyses in depth two battles he fought in his…
Napoleon by numbers
Infographics: Calum Henderson
Lodi and Arcola: making the myth
Graham Goodlad analyses the clashes that made Napoleon’s name as a soldier of genius.
Hidden figures
The use of ‘native levies’ has long been a feature of foreign wars – but their employment and their sacrifice reached a peak during the British colonial era. Stephen Roberts…
Thunder in the East: Armoured warfare in South-East Asia and the Pacific, 1937-1945
From Burma to Iwo Jima, armoured fighting vehicles played a key role in some of World War II’s most challenging environments. Our military technology expert David Porter takes notes.
Culture: The American Scholar – Autumn 2024
THE AMERICAN SCHOLAR (September 10, 2024): The latest issue features ‘Queen of the Night’ – Behold the wonders of a Carolina moonflower…
Moondance
Experience the marvel that is night-blooming tobacco By Leigh Ann Henion
In western North Carolina, the mountain growing season is short, and autumn is already tossing yellow-and-red confetti against my windshield as I drive the back roads to my friend Amy’s homestead. Curve after curve, I find locust trees that are a few shades lighter than they were last week. Buckeyes also seem well on their way to change. It is now hard to tell the difference between orange leaves falling and monarch butterfly wings rising. The signs of summer and fall, all intertwining.
Thoreau’s Pencils
How might a newly discovered connection to slavery change our understanding of an abolitionist hero and his writing?
By Augustine Sedgewick
Look Out!
Why did it take so long to protect spectators of America’s favorite pastime?
By Debra Spark
Teach the Conflicts
It’s natural—and right—to foster disagreement in the classroom
By Mark Edmundson
Arts/Politics: The Atlantic Magazine – October 2024
Hypocrisy, Spinelessness, and the Triumph of Donald Trump
He said Republican politicians would be easy to break. He was right.
Trump Promises a ‘Bloody Story’
His latest comments about mass deportation are a revelation about how he feels—and a troubling reminder of the sources of his appeal.
Finding Philanthropy’s Forgotten Founder
Julius Rosenwald understood that charity is not just about giving, but about fixing the inequalities that make giving necessary.
Music: Selmer Saxophones History & Craftsmanship
John Coltrane, one of the most influential jazz musicians of all time, used Selmer saxophones in his performances. He recorded his magnum opus, “A Love Supreme,” on a Mark VI. One of his Mark VI tenor saxophones is on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
Musicians are willing to pay for a Selmer for a variety of reasons: the familiar sound, the history behind the brand, the craftsmanship and attention to detail, and the playability.
Boomers Daily 