History Schmistory: January 31. Stick to the Plan.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
1930: 3m begins marketing “Scotch” tape. Introduces the world to Scotty McTape.
Funny Story: Scotch tape got its name from an angry customer, who complained that 3M was manufacturing its masking tape too cheaply, and told company engineer Richard Drew to, “take this tape back to your stingy Scotch bosses and tell them to put more adhesive on it.”
Culture Buzz: Shadows of their former selves…
Monday, January 30, 2012
These aren’t your mamma’s shadow puppets! Unless your mamma is a Javanese puppet master. The incredibly detailed puppets of Wayang Kulit, the ancient Indonesian brand of shadow theater, continue to enchant audiences to this day, bringing to life the magical stories of Hindu-Javanese folklore on a simple backlit cotton screen. Kulit means skin, and refers to the buffalo leather construction of the puppets that are painstakingly chiseled with very fine tools and supported with carefully shaped buffalo horn handles and control rods.
Got a sheet, a bright light and a buffalo? Then, by all means, TRY THIS AT HOME!
-Maybe use construction paper though 
Are You For Real?
Sunday, January 29, 2012
And you thought snowflakes under a microscope looked awesome. -Try SAND! Artist/Scientist Dr. Gary Greenberg shows us the beauty of the unseen world with his microscopic photos of grains of sand from around the world. Amazing!
Video Schmistory: January 29.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
What do Kansas, Mercedes Benz, Edgar Allan Poe and mad King George III all have in common? January 29th, silly!
History Schmistory: January 28. “Dear Horace, I just had a happy accident.”
Saturday, January 28, 2012
1754: The first use of the word “serendipity” in the English language is noted in a letter from Horace Walpole to Horace Mann. A letter between Horaces! Walpole said he formed it from the Persian fairy tale The Three Princes of Serendip, whose heroes “were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of”. Mann convinced Walpole to truncate the fledgling term from the original; “Serendipity-doo-dah.”
History Schmistory: January 27. “Isn’t the world awesome! Let’s start a club!”
Friday, January 27, 2012
1888: The National Geographic Society is founded in Washington, D.C. by a collective of 33 explorers and scientists. Their mission: “To increase and diffuse geographic knowledge while promoting the conservation of the world’s cultural, historical, and natural resources.” Later the group added, “and yellow rectangles!”
History Schmistory: January 26. Did you sea that?
Thursday, January 26, 2012
1911: Glenn H. Curtiss flies the first successful American seaplane, executing a flawless landing, a feat that remains much more difficult than it looks.
Culture Buzz: “Lotus pray…”
Monday, January 23, 2012
To say the lotus flower is an important symbol in India would really be an understatement. The potent and resilient plant, which has no trouble thriving in the muddiest of swamps without breaking a sweat, or even getting dirty, has become the supreme icon of beauty, strength, longevity and fertility in Indian culture. In Hinduism, the lotus is also a symbol of divinity that seems to turn up everywhere, even growing from Vishnu’s belly-button! In fact, they believe the spirit of the Lotus itself exists within every human being. That’s a lot of lotuses… Loti?
Anyhoo, it is only fitting that there is a temple in New Delhi bearing semblance to a giant lotus flower preparing to bloom. Pretty sweet.
Also looks a bit like a citrus juicer.
…
GO THERE! “Can I get this in large print?”
Saturday, January 21, 2012
This ain’t no Photoshop! That’s right, the south wall of the Kansas City Public Library displays 22 GIANT mylar book spines up to 25 feet tall. As of yet, none are available for checkout.
History Schmistory: January 21. Off with his head!
Saturday, January 21, 2012
1793: After being found guilty of treason by the French Convention, Louis XVI of France is executed by guillotine. A perfect excuse to roll out our Bastille video! Viva la France!
