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Popular Science Frees Its 137-Year Archives
DesScorp writes "Popular Science magazine has scanned every issue they've ever produced, and posted the archives at their website, at no charge. 'We've partnered with Google to offer our entire 137-year archive for free browsing. Each issue appears just as it did at its original time of publication, complete with period advertisements. It's an amazing resource that beautifully encapsulates our ongoing fascination with the future, and science and technology's incredible potential to improve our lives. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.'" First search: the history of the flying car.
I've taken a look and while it's very nice they put the issues online It'd be nice if you could download them. I haven't found an obvious way to do it. I guess that's the way the google displayed books work
I remember reading through all the bound volumes of Life Magazine in-between classes as an undergrad. That gave me a better sense of 20th century American history than anything I ever read in grade school. It would be wonderful for Time-Life to do the same as Popular Science.
"I believe in Karma. That means I can do bad things to people all day long and I assume they deserve it." : Dogbert
Maybe it was Popular Mechanics in which you remember the roll-your-own sub. I've mixed up memories that I thought were ironclad from several decades ago.
Table-ized A.I.
This should be tagged as sudden outbreak of common sense. The entire point of organized science is to let anyone read, comment and improve upon various theories and publications in science.
Unless of course you have an alternative scientific theory. Then it won't matter that it's based on evidence, that it doesn't need to postulate exotic new forms of matter that have never been directly observed or studied in a laboratory, or that it makes successful predictions months/years in advance where mainstream theorists scratch their heads. Those scientific merits won't matter because you'll be denied funding, denied access to shared resources like large and/or space-based telescopes, and you'll experience scientific censorship in the form of the refusal to publish your papers. Y'know, because the mainstream theorists have no faith in their own ability to point out any errors/flaws in alternative scientific theories or their methodology.
See: electric universe. As in, try actually studying it and coming to your own conclusions rather than be impressed with the personalities who scoff at it. It's a bit hard to argue with predictions that were made well in advance and later came true.
Not much market? Hell, if you want to see what popular culture is like in certain times, magazines like this one is a treasure! Check out the magazines of the 30s (depression era), 40s (war era), 50s (cold war introduction)... you just have to read between the lines and you see a wealth of information. The ads alone are a rich source of the mindset of the time.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
I only buy books and music from authors who publish for free online.
Maybe I should extend the same policy towards zines?
How much do you pay for that free stuff?
rewriting history since 2109
That is a sign of the times. We had just ended the war with Germany and Italy. The atomic bombings were meant to end the war with Japan--the nation that launched the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor and brought the United States into the war. An estimated 60 million people died because of World War II. Two-thirds of those 60 million were civilians. Japan was responsible for the Nanking Massacre which did not endear them any sympathy.
Entire cities were firebombed during the war. The Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs were less destructive than many firebombings that had occurred in the preceding years. The effects of radiation were not yet well-known to the general public. More powerful nuclear weapons had not yet been developed and the ramifications of nuclear war had not yet set in.
I also doubt it was the weapon they looked forward to, so much as the ability to use nuclear energy.
Oh how things have changed. The first issue from May 1872 has 128 pages of closely packed text and only a few scattered illustrations. I wonder if all magazines were like that in 1872 -- I get the impression that Playboy magazine wouldn't have been much fun back then.