A map of the stars by John Flamsteed, 1776

Spider in the Telescope: The Mechanization of Astronomy

John Flamsteed’s vision of an astronomer's skill set clashed with existing ideas about observing, paving the way for a new mindset based on mechanical objectivity.

In the Stereoscope, Another World

Developed in the nineteenth century, the stereoscope gave people a new way of seeing themselves and the world around them.
Hydraulics: six different kinds of waterwheel, used for lifting weights. Engraving c.1861

The Scientists, the Engineers, and the Water Wheel

In the eighteenth century, a mathematician, an astronomer, and an engineer each tried to apply their expertise to increasing the efficiency of water wheels.
Advertisement for Carrier Room Air Conditioning, circa 1947.

Staying Cool: Helpful Hints From History

Take a look back at how others have survived—and thought about—the high heat of summer.
A young woman stands in the glow of a multicolored Juke box in the late 1960's.

Juke in the Box

The jukebox turned listening to music into a performative act. With a single coin, listeners could share their musical taste with everyone in the place.
Bell Telephone, 1922

A Prehistory of Zoom

Concerns about privacy and pressures regarding the physical appearance of women and their homes contributed to the failure of AT&T’s 1960s Picturephone.
Picture of Kerria lacca from the book, Indian Insect Life: a Manual of the Insects of the Plains by Harold Maxwell-Lefroy

As You Lakh It

How did an oleoresin produced by insects in Asia become a standard part of European furniture manufacture and conservation?
The interior view of the North Pneumatic Tube Station of the Merchandise Building of the Sears Roebuck and Company Mail Order Plant, Chicago, IL

Something Old, Something Pneu

Pneumatic tubes offered a leap forward in business and communications, in the office and across the city.
A row of British women sitting under hairdryers in a Paris salon

A Short History of Hairdryers

The beauty parlor became a place of sociability for women in the twentieth century, partly aided by modern technology of hair drying.
Ice cutters

On the Rocks

Ice harvesters once made a living from frozen lakes and ponds, and the international ice industry was a booming business. Then refrigeration came along.