Pat Oliphant on health care legislation as Obama's Waterloo, March 23, 2010 - Washington Post
How’s that “make health care Obama’s Waterloo” working out for you, Sen. Demint?
Didn’t expect Obama to be Wellington at Waterloo, eh?
See Steve Benson’s take, below the fold.
33 Comments | 
Cartoons, Health care, History, Political cartoons, Politics, Santayana's ghost | Tagged: Cartoons, Health Care Reform, History, Pat Oliphant, Political cartoons, Politics, Santayana's ghost, Steve Benson, Waterloo | 
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Posted by Ed Darrell
Fitting and appropriate.
U.S. Postal Service stamp commemorating Longfellow and the poem about Paul Revere's Ride, from 2007 - image from Bowdoin College: The stamp by artist Kazuhiko Sano features an older Longfellow based on a photograph taken around 1876. The background pictures evoke Paul Revere’s Ride with a glimpse of the steeple of the Old North Church, where “a second lamp in the belfry burns” to indicate the arrival of the British by sea.
Longfellow’s poem about the ride of Boston patriot Paul Revere turns 150 years old this month — and April is, as it is every year, National Poetry Month. April 18 is the date for the ride given in the poem.
Better, there is a blog devoted to the 150th anniversary of the poem. It’s covering the poem and activities to commemorate the anniversary.
Oh! We’ve already missed this morning’s reenactment along the road — better hustle down there for this afternoon’s activities:
Saturday, April 178:30amBattle Road ReenactmentWhenSat, April 17, 8:30am – 5:30pmWhereMinute Man National Historical Park, Concord and Lincoln (map)DescriptionMinute Man National Historical Park, in partnership with hundreds of Colonial and British reenactors, celebrates the opening battle of the American Revolution with a day full of exciting living history activities. At Hartwell Tavern in Lincoln, from 9:30 to 5:30, you will have the chance to talk with reenactors and park rangers, see a historic home and tavern that stood witness to the events of April, 19, 1775, and enjoy a variety of 18th-century activities including demonstrations of musket drill, artillery, crafts, and games. At 8:30 am, the Commemoration of the North Bridge Fight in Concord shatters the peace of the countryside with the sounds of marching men and musketry. British and Colonial Reenactors, Park Rangers and Volunteers bring the fateful morning of April 19, 1775, to life in this stirring commemoration of “the shot heard round the world.” Parking for North Bridge events is on Monument Street; the NPS staff will direct you. At 12:30 pm, the Bloody Angle Tactical Demonstration features hundreds of British and Colonial Reenactors encamped at the Hartwell Tavern and Captain William Smith house in Lincoln. They will stage a running tactical weapons demonstration along a half-mile of the original Battle Road. Hartwell Tavern is located on Rt 2A in Lincoln; NPS staff will direct you to parking.1:00pmLongfellow and “Paul Revere’s Ride”1:00pmPatriot Fife and DrumWhenSat, April 17, 1pm – 3pmWherePaul Revere House, 19 North Square, Boston (map)DescriptionEnjoy a lively concert of music that accompanied colonists as they marched, danced, wooed their beloveds, and waged war. David Vose and Jim Snarski provide fascinating insight into each selection they perform. Free with museum admission: adults $3.50, seniors and college students $3.00, children ages 5-17 $1.00. Members and North End residents admitted free at all times.
Was the poem historically accurate? No, and here’s the reason why.
Is the poem worth using in your classroom?
Of course it is. Why else would I tell you?
Here, see my earlier post about the poem. And this one about the “shot heard ’round the world.”
3 Comments | America's founding, History, History and art, Poetry | Tagged: April 18 1775, History, History Commemoration, Longfellow, Paul Revere, Poetry | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
April would be a great month to study the Civil War, what with all the Civil War anniversaries of high import.
April 14 is the anniversary of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. April 9 is the anniversary of Lee’s Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse, and April 12 is the anniversary of the attack on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor.
But of course, we studied the Civil War in our U.S. history classes last fall, in the first six weeks, as a review of what the students were supposed to get in 8th grade.
In your classroom, how do you deal with anniversaries when they are out of the current course of study? How have you seen it done well?
The Surrender, by Keith Rocco – image from National Park Service, via Pillar to Post
Notes:
Help others remember history:
Below the fold, the identities of the soldiers in Rocco’s painting above.
Leave a Comment » | 1861-1865, Abraham Lincoln, Civil War, Education, History | Tagged: Civil War, Classroom Schedules, Curriculum, Education, History, Lesson plans, Lincoln's Assassination | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
The frequently quotable Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., circa 1930. Edited photograph from the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. Original photo by Harris & Ewing. LC-USZ62-47817. Copyright expired.
I like paying taxes. With them I buy civilization.
Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., attributed. (see Felix Frankfurter, Mr. Justice Holmes and the Supreme Court, Harvard University Press, 1961, page 71.)
Did Holmes say that?
The quote was all over the internet in early October 2008 (and later), after New York Times op-ed writer Tom Friedman noted it in his column criticizing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin for her assertion that paying taxes is not patriotic.
I found reference to the quote in a book about eminent economists, through Google Scholar:
Eminent Economists: Their Life Philosophies
By Michael Szenberg
Published by Cambridge University Press, 1993
320 pages
On page 201, Szenberg refers Holmes’s view of “taxation as the price of liberty.” In a footnote, he points to Justice Frankfurter’s book. The quote is dolled up a little. According to Szenberg’s footnote:
More precisely, he rebuked a secretary’s query of “Don’t you hate to pay taxes?” with “No, young fellow, I like paying taxes, with them I buy civilization.”
Frankfurter is a reliable source. It’s likely Holmes said something very close to the words Friedman used.
This is mostly an encore post.
Urge others to give a dime and give a damn for civilization:
8 Comments | Famous quotes, Good Quotes, Government, History, Quotes, Taxes | Tagged: Civilization, Famous quotes, Government, History, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., Quotes, Taxes | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
April 13 should be a holiday, don’t you think? Religious Freedom Day, or Public Education Day, or Self-evident Truths Day — something to honor Thomas Jefferson.
Catherine Sherman wonderfully explains why we should celebrate Jefferson’s birthday. Go see.
2 Comments | Freedom - Political, Freedom of the Press, History, Thomas Jefferson | Tagged: Declaration of Independence, founders, History, Thomas Jefferson | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Sometimes progress is so strong that we forget to note the milestones.
I’m remembering Christa McAuliffe today.
Tomorrow, April 14, Mission Specialists Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger is scheduled to talk with students at Eastern Guilford High School in North Carolina, and all of the 71,000 students in Eastern Guilford School District.
Caption from NASA: STS-131 Mission Specialist Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, attired in a training version of her shuttle launch and entry suit, poses for a photo prior to the start of an ingress/egress training session in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA's Johnson Space Center. Photo Credit: NASA
Metcalf-Lindenburger is one of three teachers selected in 2004 as astronauts. NASA is committed to help education out. After the Challenger disaster, and the death of “teacher in space” Christa McAuliffe, NASA finally determined to make teachers into astronauts rather than fly “civilians.”
Bittersweet, but there it is.
Stephanie Schierholz
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-4997
stephanie.schierholz@nasa.govJenna Maddix
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-244-0185
jenna.c.maddix@nasa.govHaley Miller
Guilford Public Schools, Guilford, N.C.
336-370-3200
millerh3@gcsnc.comApril 12, 2010MEDIA ADVISORY : M10-048
Orbiting Space Shuttle Astronauts — Including Former Teacher — Call North Carolina Students
WASHINGTON — Astronauts orbiting 220 miles above Earth will speak with students in Gibsonville, N.C., on Wednesday, April 14. The call with the students and space shuttle Commander Alan Poindexter and Mission Specialists Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson and Clay Anderson will take place at 1:06 p.m. EDT at Eastern Guilford High School in Gibsonville.
Eastern Guilford High School is hosting students from Eastern Guilford Middle School, Gibsonville Elementary, McLeansville Elementary, Rankin Elementary and Sedalia Elementary for the downlink. The school also will broadcast the event to the entire Guilford County Schools district, which serves more than 71,000 students.
The astronauts launched Monday, April 5, aboard space shuttle Discovery from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During the 13-day mission to the International Space Station, the crew will deliver science experiments and supplies; take three spacewalks to switch out a gyroscope on the station’s truss, or backbone; install a spare ammonia storage tank and return a used one; and retrieve a Japanese experiment from the station’s exterior.
Metcalf-Lindenburger is one of three teachers selected to fly as shuttle mission specialists in the 2004 Educator Astronaut Class. She operates the shuttle’s robotic arm. Without robotics, major accomplishments like building the station, repairing satellites in space and exploring other worlds would not be possible.
Students have been preparing for the downlink by conducting NASA engineering design challenges and implementing agency robotics resources and activities into K-12 classrooms. A science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, club was organized to increase participation and interest, particularly by female students.
The school’s guidance department also is collaborating with local universities to help students investigate and explore STEM opportunities beyond graduation. During follow up in-district workshops in April and May, a NASA Aerospace Education Services Program specialist will demonstrate how to access and use NASA resources in K-12 curricula.
Eastern Guilford High School employee Michael Woods, a former Aerospace Education Services Project specialist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., and the agency’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., is leading the downlink effort. In December 2009, NASA awarded Guilford County Schools a two-year grant of nearly $1 million to help middle and high school teachers develop science lessons using the space agency’s content.
The event is part of a series with educational organizations in the U.S. and abroad to improve teaching and learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The in-orbit call is part of Teaching From Space, a NASA project that uses the unique environment of human spaceflight to promote learning opportunities and build partnerships with the kindergarten through 12th grade education community.
NASA Television will air video of the astronauts during the downlink. For NASA TV downlink, schedule and streaming video information, visit:
Even Bob Park will pipe down for a day for this (though he’s right, you know).
2 Comments | Education, History, Science, Social Studies, Space exploration, Teachers, Teaching, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Tagged: Christa McAuliffe, Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, Eastern Guilford High School, Education, Gibsonville North Carolina, Lesson plans, NASA, Science, Space exploration, Space Shuttle, Teacher in Space, Technology | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Here’s another opportunity to put real, cutting edge technology in your classroom. In fact, your kids could probably invent all sorts of new uses for it.
Have you even heard of this stuff? Can you use it, live, with the equipment you’ve got?
Blaise Aguera y Arcas of MicroSoft demonstrated augmented-reality maps using the power of Bing maps, Flickr, Worldwide Telescope, Video overlays and Photosynth, to an appreciative and wowed audience at TEDS:
My prediction: One more advance in computer technology that classrooms will not see in a timely or useful manner.
But have you figured out how to use this stuff in your geography, history, economics or government classes? Please tell us about it in comments. Give examples and links, please.
1 Comment | Classroom technology, Economics, Education, Geography - Economic, Geography - Physical, Geography - Political, geology, History, Science, Social Studies, Teaching, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Tagged: Blaise Aguera y Arcas, Classroom technology, Economics, Education, geography, Government, History, Lesson plans, Photosynth, Technology, TEDS | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
It’s not exactly family safe, so I’ll link. For a college class, I’d ask students to determine if the piece is accurate, and if not, what really happened.
What would it have looked like had World War II been fought with Facebook postings?
2 Comments | 1941-1945, History, Technology, World War II | Tagged: Facebook, History, Student projects, World War II | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Pulitzer Prize-winner Tom Toles in the Washington Post, March 19, 2010
It’s pretty embarrassing when the State Board of Education’s actions leave Texas open to jokes about whether Texans remember the Alamo. Remembering the Alamo is as much a Texas monument or icon as anything else — maybe moreso.
Tom Toles demonstrates why Texas should be embarrassed by the Texas State Board of Education’s work on social studies standards.
1 Comment | Cartoons, Education, Education assessment, History, Political cartoons, Politics, State school boards, TAKS, TEKS, Texas | Tagged: Cartoons, Education, History, Political cartoons, Politics, Social Studies, state board of education, Texas, Tom Toles | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Clay Bennett in the Chattanooga Times Free Press:
Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times-Free Press, March 16, 2010
Bennett remains one of my favorite cartoonists today. His work is incisive, intelligent, and persuasive to the side of reason and light almost all of the time. Why hasn’t he won a Pulitzer yet?
Bennett is generally a powerful supporter of U.S. education; see the two other recent cartoons, below the fold.
3 Comments | Cartoons, Economics, Education, Education reform, History, Political cartoons, Social Studies, State school boards, Texas | Tagged: Chattanooga Times-Free Press, Clay Bennett, Economics, Education, History, Social Studies, state board of education, Texas | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Nick Anderson in Houston Chronicle, April 2, 2010
1 Comment | Education, Education quality, History, Rampant stupidity, Social Studies, State school boards, Texas, Thomas Jefferson | Tagged: Education, education standards, Rampant stupidity, Social Studies, state board of education, Texas, Thomas Jefferson | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Heartland Institute, a right-wing political “think tank,” is sponsoring another conference of crank science about and crank scientists on global warming, May 16 to 18 in Chicago.
“Another?” Yeah, this is the fourth one.
The first one featured pure crankery, often, from Christopher Monckton and Steven Milloy, two people who have made careers out of pissing in the soup of science. The second conference pretended warming isn’t happening (the title of the conference was). The theme of the third conference is “Reconsidering the Science and the Economics,” but you’d have to be complete fool to think the Heartland Institute would allow a reconsideration of their misplaced sniping at science and bizarre claims that we cannot afford a healthy planet (we can’t afford an unhealthy planet!).
Monckton and Milloy, you recall, are two of the people promoting the shameful and erroneous attacks on Rachel Carson. Monckton stepped up the insanity, blaming Jackie Kennedy for malaria in Africa.
Milloy’s been left out of this one, but most of the grand cranks of climate science denial will be there — Soon, McIntyre, Monckton, and our friend Anthony Watts, who thinks talk of sunshine in policy issues is “hate speech” (Watts does not appear to be familiar with the ethics rules of journalism and political reporting.) Former Sen. George Allen will be there to lend his expertise on energy issues, as director of the Houston-based Institute for Energy Research. Fred Singer and Ian Plimer are scheduled. It’s a dense program.
Watts’s topic will be “Is the U.S. Surface Temperature Record Reliable?” It should be a remarkable presentation.
If the surface temperature record isn’t reliable, what’s he doing using it every day in his weather forecasts? If it is reliable, what’s he doing attacking scientists for using it, and where does he propose to get better, more reliable data?
You can rely on this: There will be lots of press releases, but precious little science that has gone through any peer review process to provide reliability.
In fact, now would be a great time to brush up on Jeremy Bernstein’s methods for telling crank science from genius, and Bob Parks’s “Seven Warning Signs of Bogus Science.”
I’d love to have the concession to sell the “Bogus Science Bingo” cards at the meeting.
Chicago in May can be delightful. Cooler days do not get so cool. Spring flowers still erupt. Warmer days will invite outdoor dining downtown and at Chicago’s great neighborhood restaurants.
But these guys will stay indoors and carp about science, about imagined conspiracies to keep their words of wisdom out of publication. Most of them will have some corporate or PAC group paying their way, but a few people will pay to see this parade of voodoo science. They will be had by all.
Leave a Comment » | Bogus history, Climate change, climate_change, Green Politics, History, Hoaxes, Politics, Voodoo science | Tagged: Climate change, Global warming, Hoaxes, Voodoo science | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Cartoon by Mario Piperni on the Texas State Board of Education, on any number of subjects
Have never seen this guy’s work before. Does he publish in a newspaper that is lucky to have him?
1 Comment | Cartoons, History, Political cartoons, Social Studies, State school boards, Texas, Texas history | Tagged: Cartoons, History, Political cartoons, Social Studies, Texas, Texas State Board of Education | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
RMS Titanic sailing from Southampton, England, April 10, 1912 - Wikipedia/public domain
On April 10, 1912, RMS Titanic sailed from England, heading to New York on her maiden voyage.
More:
Leave a Comment » | Disasters, History, History museums | Tagged: Disasters, History, Icebergs, Museums, RMS Titanic | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Every year at this time . . .
In a discussion of the Cold War, the Space Race, and the Race to the Moon, we get to a photo about Apollo 11’s landing on the Moon.
Like clockwork, a hand goes up: “Mr. Darrell, wasn’t that landing a hoax? They didn’t really go to the Moon then, did they?”
There are a lot of ways to know that Apollo 11 landed on the Moon. Among other things, students could talk to people alive at the time who have the slightest bit of technological savvy: With lots of other people, I tracked part of the trip with my 6-inch reflecting telescope. Ham radio operators listened in on the radio broadcasts. And so on.
But I really like this chunk of evidence: How about a photograph of the landing site?
Holy cow! You can see the tracksof Neil Armstrong’s footprints to the lip of Little West crater (see arrow below).
Tranquility Base, shot from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC), showing the traces left by Apollo 11's landing on the Moon. It really happened. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University
According to the LROC website:
The astronaut path to the TV camera is visible, and you may even be able to see the camera stand (arrow). You can identify two parts of the Early Apollo Science Experiments Package (EASEP) – the Lunar Ranging Retro Reflector (LRRR) and the Passive Seismic Experiment (PSE). Neil Armstrong’s tracks to Little West crater (33 m diameter) are also discernable (unlabeled arrow). His quick jaunt provided scientists with their first view into a lunar crater.
Check out this video made from the photos, “High Noon at Tranquility Base”:
Fox News? What’s your story now?
More:
Tip of the old scrub brush to Collect Space forum, and the Carnival of Space #147 at Weird Sciences. Thanks to ScienceBlips for telling us about Carnival of Space.
10 Comments | Accuracy, History, Hoaxes, How do we know what we know, Moon, NASA, Space exploration, Space Race | Tagged: Accuracy, Apollo 11, History, Hoaxes, Moon, Moon Landing, Moon Landing Hoax, NASA, Space Race | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
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Ed Darrell on Texas's Colorado River
Come on in, the water's fine. Come often: Cleanliness is next to godliness.
Millard Fillmore's Bathtub 