Buming Around in the Footsteps of Caesar and Alexander

I spent most of today walking the streets of Alexandria. There is no better way to get to know a city than to walk around for a day and get lost in the process. In some ways, I find Alexandria really depressing. This is a city where almost every building is 100 years old and …

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Travel to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska

Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Glacier Bay National Park is a beautiful U.S. National Park located near Juneau, Alaska. With about 547,000 visitors per year (as of 2017), it’s the second most visited national park in Alaska, slightly behind Denali. The vast majority of visitors to the park arrive on cruise ships, which sail up the Inside Passage of the …

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The Item Which Revolutionized My Travels

I like to travel and I like to read. These two things shouldn’t be in conflict. In fact, they usually complement each other quite nicely. However, I discovered just a few months into my travels back in 2007 that I had a big problem….several problems Books are heavy. If you have ever had to move …

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Getting Rid of the Penny

Getting Rid of the Penny

Transcript The US one-cent coin has been a part of American currency since the country started issuing money in 1793. As inflation has continued to creep up, the cost of making a one-cent coin is now more than it is worth.  Unsurprisingly, people have been starting to question if we should continue using the penny.  …

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The House of David

The House of David

Transcript What do you get when you take one part religious cult and one part Harlem Globetrotters and one part Troy Polamalu’s hair and put them all together?  You wind up with the House of David Baseball Team. One of the most popular baseball barnstorming acts of the early 20th Century. Learn more about the …

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Moving from Nikon to Sony: One Year Later

The Decision Early in 2016, I made the decision to switch from Nikon, which I had been shooting with for 9 years, to Sony. It wasn’t an easy decision. When you buy into a camera system, it isn’t just a matter of getting all your lenses and gear to be compatible. You become accustomed to …

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The Great Crash at Crush

The Great Crash at Crush

Transcript In 1896, the United States was experiencing what we now call a recession. The Panic of 1896 had made life tough on everyone, and many of the companies in the highly competitive railroad business were looking for new ways to make money.  One man, William George Crush, came up with a smashing idea.  His …

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The History of Mathematical Symbols

The History of Mathematical Symbols

Transcript One of the simplest mathematical statements possible is 2+2=4. While the concept is very easy to understand, when you write it down you have to use mathematical symbols which are, historically speaking, a relatively recent invention.  At one point, mathematicians were doing reasonably complicated work without the benefit of symbols at all. Something which …

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The Plan Dog Memorandum: How The US Planned for WWII Before It Was In It

The Plan Dog Memorandum: How The US Planned for WWII Before It Was In It

Podcast Transcript In 1940, much of the world was at war, but the United States wasn’t. A strong isolationist sentiment kept the US on the sidelines while Germany and Japan ran roughshod over their neighbors.  While the US wasn’t in the war, many people in the US military knew that it was only a matter …

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