Michael Kramer

The WRight Story: the True Story of the Wright Brothers' Contribution to Early Aviation by Joe Bullmer Bullmer delves into what the Wright Brothers did as well as did not do and goes a long way into his thoughts as to the whys and why nots. This is a complete book and one with bonuses. Some of them are: A history of the aviation pioneers prior to the Wrights with the exception of Richard Pearse An explanation of ground effect — it's about reduction of drag and not flying on a cushion of air A thorough chapter on low speed flight — the Wrights and others were handling physics problems we do not have to contend with today as aircraft do not have their entire flight within ground effect and travel much faster than early aviators who flew at what today are taxi speeds. Low speed aerodynamics are much more than flying slowly. The Wrights were very competent in their studies and led the way in propeller science more so that aeronautics A history of aeronautical engineers through the Golden Age of aviation This book explains how the Wrights were the first to fly in coordinated flight and then proceeded to lose their technical lead while advancing their business interests in trying to obtain a monopoly. They tried to sell to foreign military markets before approaching the U.S. Army. They developed a legal patent and lawsuit strategy that held America back in aviation development as European powers advanced. A decade after their famous first flight the USA had less than a handful of obsolete aircraft and the World's major powers had hundreds of state-of-the-art aircraft. The Wrights in court did what no foreign power had done — all but stymie aircraft manufacturing and development. Glenn Curtiss, of course, was an exception. And Grover Loening left the Wrights as a chief engineer due to the open hatred the brothers had toward Curtiss. Loening and three others went on to found Grumman. Bullmer does a good job defending the Wright Brothers. Bullmer also points out another salient point that should be noted and often is not—the Wright Brothers began an industry and that is perhaps their greatest legacy. Those that believe the Wrights were responsible for man's first powered flight, and aircraft designs of today harken back to the Wright Flyer, will not like this book if they are religious adherents to that belief, the same tenet I was taught in high school and have read in many books. Even they should read this book so that they can be aware of all the facts that may be brought before them in debates. This book is a good read, informative and written by an engineer who should know the aeronautical perspective of things.

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When universities/museums are trying to determine if they have “sacred objects” or not. Per NAGPRA 43 CFR 10.1(a)(3) “deference to Native American traditional knowledge of lineal descendants and Indian Tribes is required." Therefore, the definition of a “sacred object” also defers to Native American traditional knowledge. Museums do not need to determine on their own or make clear what a “sacred object” is, Tribal Representatives do. For all “cultural items”. Tribes are the experts on their own culture. #MaLakota

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What does "consolidation" even mean (or look like)? Sometimes paintings come to conservators with "picky" or lifting painting (we also use words like cupping, blind cleavage, active flaking, etc.). In these instances we have to weigh many things...what is the nature of the varnish on the surface of the picture? What is the composition of the underlying paint/ground materials? Is the painting on a solid or flexible support? We will then typically apply consolidants with a fine brush or a syringe (sometimes even a nebulizer) to the affected area and then bring gentle pressure and heat to the surface to carefully set down the paint (often after using local humidification). The excess consolidant is then removed and then the painting is re-varnished, cleaned, or whatever the client/museum/conservator deems necessary at that point. Below is a detail showing what it often looks like after conservators immediately apply consolidant (before the paint is set down and removed).

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The urban rescue techniques perfected by the U.S. Coast Guard during Hurricane Katrina were largely characterized by rapid improvisation and decentralized command to address the unprecedented scale of flooding. Faced with debris-filled city streets and countless survivors trapped in attics and on rooftops, standard Search and Rescue (SAR) tactics proved inadequate. Aircrews quickly adapted, relying on helicopter hoists from buildings and developing new procedures, such as flying with an extra airman to manage survivors inside the aircraft. Simultaneously, boat crews, using shallow-draft "johnboats" and later lighter inflatable vessels, navigated submerged neighborhoods, marking visited houses, and often having to wade through polluted water to push their boats through shallow areas. Furthermore, rescuers started carrying axes and saws—often purchased locally—to cut through roofs and attic spaces to free trapped residents, a crucial tool adaptation for the new urban rescue environment. These innovative, on-the-the-fly techniques ultimately enabled the Coast Guard to rescue over 33,500 people, making it one of the largest air-sea SAR operations in U.S. history.

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Some statistics about women in museums worth reflecting on today...⬇️ ‣ Women make up 60% of museum staff in larger US art museums (Mellon Foundation / Ithaka S+R, 2018) ‣ In 2019 the field was projected to reach 70% female within a decade - the 2022-23 data suggests it migth already be there (GEMM, 2019; Museums Moving Forward, 2022-23) ‣ 79% of education roles are held by women (Mellon Foundation / Ithaka S+R, 2018) ‣ And yet women are more likely than men to be in entry-level positions (13% vs 9%), while men are more likely to be in manager positions (31% vs 26%) (Museums Moving Forward, 2022-23) ‣ Women in museums tend to achieve higher average education levels than men and are still paid less: museum employees earn on average 20% less than US workers overall (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023) ‣ The gender pay gap compounds that further - for Black women in the sector, the gap is 39%; for Latina women, 47% (GEMM, 2019) There seems to be a pretty consistent picture being painted here: museums are numerically dominated by women, most visibly in education and engagement roles, yet that dominance doesn't translate into seniority, pay, or recognition. Women arrive with higher qualifications, cluster at entry level, and earn less in a sector that already pays poorly. What might this be telling us? What do you notice in your context? I'd love to hear what it looks like where you are. Note: the data above is US-based as comprehensive international research in this area is quite limited. Additionally, most available research uses binary gender categories, and the full picture of gender in the museum workforce is more complex than these statistics can capture. Full references in the comments.

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