A page out of tech history
Amazing!! I am not easily brought to tears. I’m not quite sure why this story did, but I’ll hazard a guess. It’s hard for me to wrap my mind around numbers like Mach 3.5 (~2700mph!) even with modern technology, and I’m a physicist with a bit of an inkling about what these numbers mean. Yet this plane was flying missions as early as 1966 (the year my wife was born and about the time that “color television” became popular)!
The technology and craftsmanship that gave birth to this plane came from a man (Kelly Johnson) who was forged in the fires of the generation known as the “Greatest Generation”. The men and women from this time who were contemporaries of my grandparents were amazing individuals. Their grit and ingenuity has yet to be matched by any generation recorded–either before or since. They weren’t perfect, but they never claimed to be even thought their technological, military, and social accomplishments are quite heady. So take a moment to read this page out of history and reflect on how we can find that same fire inside of us that they had.
–Steve
Muahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!! Ok, now that I have that out... I can get to work. For as long as I can remember, I have been making things. This habit used to be called "Inventing" but has lately been repurposed by the Maker community with the term "Maker". While there are some subtle differences between Inventing and Making, I have discovered my passion for both by inspiring a new generation of Makers. In this quest to spark creative thinking and problem solving through practical and exciting projects, I draw on my background in biomedical research, high energy fiber laser development, and 15 years of building laboratory devices. As an experimental physicist with a PhD from Case Western Reserve University, I have seen research and development from many angles and am now bringing that experience to middle school and high school students who want to make everything from catapults to cybernetic augmentations. Through the medium of Making and Inventing, students are transformed from passive observers of education to active learners. This powerful shift fosters deep insights, creative expression, collaborative thinking and a host of other skills that are difficult to learn in traditional settings. Along with my wife Debby, an accomplished constructivist educator, I am on a quest to transform education and am looking for like-minded collaborators to bring hands-on learning to future generations.
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