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A Geek's Tour Of North America?
PlanetThoughtful writes "Later this year I'm taking advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to backpack around the U.S. and Canada (Sept 2003 to whenever I have to come home again). Being a lifelong Australian geek (think of Steve Irwin and then stop, because I'm nothing like that and neither is anyone else, Steve Irwin included) I'm desperately curious: what would make it to the travel itinerary of Slashdot's all-time geek-tour of North America? Think electronics, architecture, astronomy, enlightenment! Think gadgets, bookstores, software, comics, The Library Of Congress, The Smithsonian, Wanting To See Really Amazing Things! Think travelling on a budget, then forget about that if it's a 'You Must See This Before You Die' sort of suggestion. And then stop thinking about these things, and actually tell me!"
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In Portland, you need to visit Powell's Bookstore. It is huge (a couple of city blocks in downtown) and has all kinds of cheap used books to read on your travels. Portland is also generally a cool place to visit, and if you're in the Northwest anyway it would be a good time.
Two definitely geeky things to check out in New Mexico.
The Very Large Array - Gigantic Radio Astronomy installation
The Trinity Test Site. Only open a few times a year, your chance to see where the first atomic bomb was tested.
'ARRGH! Pirate Designers of the Internet, we be!'
It's one of the most technologically packed areas in the USA. The whole park's monitored and run very efficiently. It's also a whole lot of fun. But last time I went, I was more interested in how much effort goes into making sure that paying customers are set up for the best time that is possible in a family-friendly environment. (Bring your own drugs, sadly they don't supply EVERYTHING!) The Disney Corporation owns such a vast amount of land that you're on their property before you even realize that you've entered Disney World.
Also, check out Downtown Disney, they have an excellent arcade there, where you pay ~$15 and you can play until it closes. Plus you can design and ride this cool virtual rollercoaster that rivals the real coasters there, if you make a point of making a very extreme virtual coaster. The guys manning the area can give you some pointers. Make sure you hit Epcot and MGM, you can speed through the Magic Kingdom (too much little kid stuff).
The Deifenbunker!
http://www.diefenbunker.ca/
See the only Cold War, atomic bomb proof, command centre completely open to the public.
By far the coolest thing I've ever seen!
I'd put it number one on the geek tour! A key part of NORAD... mainframes and all....
___Abuse of power comes as no surprise___
The NRAO in Greenbank, WV is an interesting visit if you're in the area. (I'm thinking about the Hiking part, and there is some great hiking in that area).
It has several HUGE antennas for radio astronomy, and they give the tour in an old 1950s diesel bus. Modern cars can only come within a certain distance, as they have too many electronics, and mess up the observations.
Very cool, although short, tour.
Boston, Massachusetts and its environs are filled with incredibly geeky things. Boston is the home of the Free Software Foundation, Ximian, and OSDN. Just across the river, Cambridge is the home of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, undeniably a geek Mecca. Next door to MIT is Harvard University (as the MIT t-shirts say, "Harvard: Because not everybody can get in to MIT"). Plus we've got the Big Dig, which despite its infamy for budget overruns, corruption, and defacement of the city landscape, is also home to some incredibly geeky marvels of engineering! And of course, many other geeks of note live and work in and around Boston.
I'd recommend Palomar Observatory. Not only is it one of the nicer observatories in the country, it's in beautiful southern California.
I can second this one. I used to actually live on Palomar Mountain near the scope. Parties for mountain residents were held at the observatory rec center. When we'd get snowed in on the mountain we'd go door to door checking on everyone. The astronomers and such were the nicest bunch of folks. They were always offering a 'real' tour of the scope but I always put it off. Once I moved I wished I had. Lurk around at night and act interested, they might give you a tour.
The view from some of the turnouts on the road up are also amazing. The same view I had off my back deck. I could see from San Clemente down to Tijuana. With binoculars you could pick out individual buildings in downtown San Diego 50 miles away.
I'm not kidding about being the BMG: there are camps that'll airbrush you blue, or any other color you want. There are percussive sculpture for you to play. You can animate yourself with el-wire (what they used for that animated desert). You can dance under strobelights.
But beyond that you can be the "Blue Women with Flamethrowers" group. You can be "the entirely blue Tiki bar towed by a lobster" group. Like another poster said, Burning Man is whatever you want it to be. Sure, you can be boring and do the drugs and drunk thing, but I think this is less common that others have said- you'd miss out on so much.
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g Ma nAtHome
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