Watch the pieces come together as they are sent up from Earth. This is the International Space Station (ISS) Assembly diagram, piece by piece. Thanks to Richard Belt for this diagram. I had no idea the Space Station had grown to this size.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Firefox Users, Check Your Plug-ins
Mozilla is now offering Firefox users a simple way to tell whether the browser's various plug-ins are up-to-date with the latest security patches.
Plug-ins are components installed by third-party software that power videos, animation and games in the browser, among other things. Outdated plug-ins can give malware an easy way into your computer, so it's important to make sure your browser has the latest, most secure versions. Even if you are normally vigilant about updating third-party software, occasionally a software update will fail to automatically patch its accompanying plug-in.
Click on Plugin Check - it scan Firefox and tell you if any of the plug-ins you have needs patching.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
OOPS! Data on 103,000 Students Misplaced
A flash drive containing the personal information of more than 103,000 former adult education students in Virginia was misplaced last month, state education officials reported Wednesday. For details click on Student Data Misplaced
Friday, October 2, 2009
Texas Civil War Museum
The Texas Civil War Museum located in a suburb west of Fort Worth maintains the most comprehensive collection of civil war artifacts west of the Mississippi River. While TCWM is best known for its military collections, it also holds significant collections of domestic objects and decorative flags, personal furniture and artifacts, and postwar Victorian attire. Object collections total approximately 4,000 items.
"It is well that war is so terrible, else men would learn to love it too much." - GEN Robert E. Lee
Although a majority of Texas citizens and politicians supported secession, a significant minority of about 25% favored remaining in the Union. Governor Sam Houston was probably the best known "Unionist" in Texas. Although he strongly believed in the doctrine of states rights, he thought secession was a "rash action," and certain to lead to a conflict sure to favor – in the long run – the industrial and populated North. He predicted: "Let me tell you what is coming. After the sacrifice of countless millions of treasure and hundreds of thousands of lives you may win Southern independence, but I doubt it. The North is determined to preserve this Union. They are not a fiery impulsive people as we are...but once they begin to move in a given direction, they move with the steady momentum of a mighty avalanche, and what I fear is that they will overwhelm the South with ignoble defeat." Houston refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy, and was deposed from office.
Approximately 90,000 Texans served in the Confederate Army and about 2,000 in the Union Army. Texas provided 23 Infantry Units, 43 Cavalry Units and 19 Artillery Units, as well as specialized units including a Battalion of Sharpshooters and Mounted Mountain Guards. Among the most famous units were Terry's Texas Rangers (a group of frontier cavalrymen, many of whom later became peacekeepers in the Old West), Walker's Greyhounds and Hood's Texas Brigade. Texans were involved in every major battle of the war in every state. Known as the "shock troops" of the Army of Northern Virginia, Hood's Texas Brigade were "always favorites" of General Lee and, on more than one occasion praised their fighting qualities, remarking that none had brought greater honor to their native state than "my Texans." Hood's men suffered severe casualties in a number of fights, most notably at the Battle of Antietam and at Little Round Top in the Battle of Gettysburg. Texas supplied large numbers of men, cattle and horses for the Confederate forces until mid-1863, when the Union captured of the Mississippi River.
Although Texas did not experience many significant battles, the Union mounted several attempts to capture towns and ports in the south and gulf coast regions of Texas. With ports to the east under blockade or captured, Texas and western Louisiana ports were a critical link to the outside world for the Confederacy. A few cities fell to Union troops temporarily during the war, including Port Lavaca, Indianola and Brownsville. Federal attempts to seize control of Laredo, Corpus Christi and Sabine Pass failed. By the end of the war no territory was in Union hands. The last battle of the civil war was fought at Palmito Ranch May 13, 1865 on the Rio Grande River in south Texas. The Confederates won, only to have to surrender to the Union after realizing the war had ended a month earlier with the surrender at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia.
The pictures above are not representative of the uniforms worn by the average Confederate soldier, especially early in the war. Early in the war, Confederate soldiers received their uniforms - if and when they had uniforms - from a variety of sources. There were many differences, depending on unit, location, time, and other variables. Some companies had uniforms made up by the ladies at home, some units were issued militia uniforms by their states, and some commands had uniforms made up by local tailors. Lots of Confederates went to war in plain old civilian clothes and just parts of uniforms.
Presentation Sword of General U. S. Grant – picture credit TCWM
The .44 caliber Henry repeating rifle, created in 1860 the year before the Civil War, used the first complete self-contained metallic cartridge. The Henry rifle held 15 shots, which the average soldier could shoot in 10-12 seconds. Compare that to the 15-30 seconds it took the average soldier to reload his single shot muzzle loader rifle and you see why the Henry was a devastating weapon when it was used in battles. It was described by one Confederate as "that tarnation Yankee rifle they load on Sunday and shoot all week." The Union army had an estimated 6000 Henry Rifles, most of which were personally bought by soldiers. The Henry rifles could not be used in larger quantities because the Army could not produce metal cartridges at the rate they would have been consumed or transport the extra weight of all the ammunition the soldiers would have used. The Henry rifle was the direct ancestor of the Winchester rifles that would be used after the Civil War, particularly in the American Indian Wars.
As a countermeasure to the Union's blockades, the Confederate States developed the first naval mines. The mine above was called a "Confederate Torpedo" but it was actually what is now called a contact mine. When a ship contacted a mine it would explode and sink the hapless ship. The mines were promising and sank at least forty Union ships. The success with the naval mines led to the development of torpedoes and land mines as well as other similar explosive devices. A wide variety of fixed, moored, and drifting mines were deployed and used with effect at locations along the Atlantic coast, the Gulf coast, and along rivers, including those in the Mississippi basin. These cost effective weapons caused delays in Union operations, resulted in involved countermine operations, and caused fear and apprehension in crews.
The CSS Hunley was the first submarine (bottom of photo above) to attack a warship successfully. In 1864, the Hunley rammed the Union's corvette Housatonic (top ship in photo above) in Charleston Harbor, successfully setting a torpedo into the ship's hull. This was the method used to deploy torpedoes until the self-propelled torpedo was developed a few years later. The torpedo is shown in the photo underneath the Hunley to the right. The Housatonic sank. Something went wrong on the Hunley, and it also sank shortly after the Housatonic, taking its crew of nine to a watery grave.
At least 618,000 Americans died in the Civil War, more than the nation has lost in all its other wars, from the Revolution through the current date. The Union armies had from 2,500,000 to 2,750,000 men. The Confederate strength, known less accurately because of missing records, was from 750,000 to 1,250,000 men. It is estimated that 94,000 Confederate soldiers died in battle and 164,000 died of disease. Approximately 110,070 Union soldiers died in battle and 250,152 died of disease.
The following photos of clothing are from the Judy Richey Victorian Dress Collection. This private collection is an expansive look at original women's and children's clothing from the Victorian Era. With over 200 Victorian dresses and accessories, the museum exhibits up to 50 at a time on a rotating basis.
Since Texas did not suffer lengthy occupation during the war, reconstruction was not as harsh as in other states. Many people from the east hung a shingle from their home with the letters GTT (Gone to Texas) painted on it and started a new life here.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Fort Worth Sundance Square
Located in the heart of downtown Fort Worth, historic Sundance Square is a 20-block commercial, residential, entertainment and retail district where people work, live, shop and dine. Most buildings around Sundance Square have preserved their early 20th-century facades. Sundance Square's beautiful landscaping, red-brick streets and turn-of-the-century buildings make it a pedestrian's delight. Named after the famed Sundance Kid, who used the Fort Worth area as a hideout, Sundance Square has been hailed as a monumental achievement in urban redevelopment.
The Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall complex is the crown jewel of a city which boasts the nation's third largest cultural district. It is also an important symbol of one of the most successful downtown revitalization efforts in the country. Built entirely with private funds, Bass Performance Hall is permanent home to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Texas Ballet Theater, Fort Worth Opera, and the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and Cliburn Concerts. It also hosts special productions of Casa Mañana Musicals, and presents Performing Arts Fort Worth's "Hall Series", a popular array of eclectic entertainment.
The Land Title Building located at Commerce and Fourth Street, is one of the oldest buildings in Fort Worth. This brick, sandstone and cast iron building was built in 1889 and is decorated with an owl, sandstone and stained glass windows. The current tenant, The Flying Saucer Beer Emporium, retained much of the original architectural flavor of the building during renovation.
The Sanger Building was originally built to house Sanger Bros. Inc., the first department store west of the Mississippi River to feature "manufactured weather" (air conditioning). The new $1 million-plus department store opened on June 25, 1929. Bad timing. The Depression was not kind to Sanger's, and within a few years after its opening, the store had closed. Throughout its history, the building has been named the Color Tile Building, Meacham's Department Store, and Sanger Bros. Department Store. The Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau Modern and the Milan Gallery are currently located on the ground floor and the basement is home to The Circle Theater. The top five floors feature 59 loft apartments that tie into the adjacent Fakes Building. 
The City National Bank Building was built in the early 1870's for the John S. Andrews Loan, Land & Livestock Company. In the 1880's it became Fort Worth's first bank, City National Bank, which was forced to liquidate ten years later during the 1890's Depression. Two restaurants - Billy Miner's Saloon and Cabo Grande – currently occupy this building.
The Knights of Pythias Castle Hall was constructed in 1881 as the first Pythian Temple erected in the world and the only one with a cornerstone laid by Justus H. Rathbone, founder of the order. The building is now home to Haltom's Jewelers and the 8.0 Restaurant & Bar.
The Domino Building, next to the Sid Richardson Museum, is an exact replica of "Buck's Domino Parlor," a popular gaming house. It was a favorite hangout of such famous personalities as Butch Cassidy, The Sundance Kid and Luke Short, who was the king-pin of honest high stakes gambling in Fort Worth. The original building was built in 1885 and reconstructed in 1981.
Sid Richardson was a Texas oilman, cattleman and philanthropist known for his association with the city of Fort Worth. The Sid Richardson Museum has one of the finest and most focused collections of Western art in America. The museum features paintings of the Old West by Frederic Remington, Charles M. Russell and other artists. Since opening in 1982, the museum has been one of Sundance Square's top attractions, drawing more than 50,000 visitors a year from all over the world. Don't miss this museum if you visit Fort Worth.
You have to look closely under the Woolworth Building sign to find the Scat Jazz Lounge sign. This popular cabaret/jazz club is located in the underground/basement of the historic Woolworth Building. Entertainment is traditional jazz and features locals to national touring acts.
"150 Years of Fort Worth" traces Fort Worth's development, from its beginning as a frontier outpost, through its rowdy youth as a cattle town, to present day. The exhibit was originally opened in 1984 as part of the Texas Sesquicentennial Celebration. Some of its features include a scale model of the original Fort Worth established in 1849, a display case containing the uniform and writing desk of Maj. Gen. William Jenkins Worth, a display of some of the accomplishments of Amon Carter, a display of the prehistoric Clovis people and other western displays and models. It only takes a few minutes to go through this small museum – don't miss it if you're in Fort Worth.
One of the displays states the following about Amon Carter: "During the first half of the Twentieth Century, the man who gave events in Fort Worth a helping hand was Amon Giles Carter. President and publisher of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Amon made his city the mythical capital of West Texas and pushed, pulled and prodded Fort Worth toward a future he saw clearly. At his death, wrote Amon's biographer Jerry Flemmons, 'fully half of Fort Worth's population worked for companies he had lured to the city.'"
The Jett Building c. 1902 above closely resembles Frank Lloyd Wright's Larkin Building in Buffalo, New York. "The Chisholm Trail" is a trompe l'oeil mural created by Richard Haas that spans the building's southern facade, and commemorates the Fort Worth segment of the Chisholm Trail cattle drives of 1867-1875. The mural attracts many tourists into Downtown Fort Worth. The Jett Building was once home of the Northern Texas Traction Co. which operated the Interurban Railway with service to Dallas and Cleburne.
95.9 The Ranch and Country Legends FM radio station and Jamba Juice are the primary tenants of the Jett Building.
The attractive high-rise building on the left in the previous photo is The Tower. It was originally built in 1974 and named the Fort Worth National Bank Tower. It is 454 feet tall and 37 stories with a sloping base, making it the city's 4th tallest building. It was heavily damaged in the March 28, 2000 tornado. A local developer purchased the building and converted the building into condominium apartments with retail tenants on the first floor. The upper two floors feature four "Super Penthouses". Current retail tenants are: Potbelly Sandwich Works, Texas Capital Bank, Qdoba Mexican Grill, Cantina Laredo, and The Vault.
The red high-rise building on the right in the previous photo is the Sundance West Building built in 1991. It is a mixed use structure that was the first apartment building built in Downtown Fort Worth during its renaissance. It wraps around the Reata Restaurant. The 12 story building contains 59 apartments with four distinct facades that give the impression that there are four separate buildings facing different streets. The apartments begin on the sixth floor. On the ground floor of the building are shops and restaurants including Pizzeria Uno, Etta's Place Bed and Breakfast, Washington Mutual, Charles Schwab, and Daddy Jack's Lobster & Chowder House. Norris Conference Centers uses floors two through five as a multi-use conference center.
Reata at Sundance Square in the previous photo is a new building built behind the original facades of two 1880's buildings surrounded by the Sundance West Building. The four story restaurant has nearly 20,000 square feet that includes several private dining rooms and a rooftop grotto bar and dining patio. The Reata moved to Sundance Square after the 2000 tornado destroyed their original home on the 35th floor of the Bank One Tower. The Reata restaurant has a menu that contains everything from steaks to Creole and Southern dishes. The rooftop offers excellent views of Sundance Square. The Marble Slab Creamery and Four Day Weekend Theater are also located in this building.
The Burk Burnett Building in the previous photo was Fort Worth's first true skyscraper. The 12-story building is on the National Historic Register. It was built in 1914 for banker Earl Baldridge to house the State National Bank. One year later in 1915 it was sold to legendary cattleman, Samuel Burk Burnett, whose 6666 Ranches are famous in Texas history for cattle, oil, scientific breeding and thoroughbred bred horses. Worthington National Bank is now located in the Burk Burnett Building.
The Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall complex is the crown jewel of a city which boasts the nation's third largest cultural district. It is also an important symbol of one of the most successful downtown revitalization efforts in the country. Built entirely with private funds, Bass Performance Hall is permanent home to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Texas Ballet Theater, Fort Worth Opera, and the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and Cliburn Concerts. It also hosts special productions of Casa Mañana Musicals, and presents Performing Arts Fort Worth's "Hall Series", a popular array of eclectic entertainment.
The Land Title Building located at Commerce and Fourth Street, is one of the oldest buildings in Fort Worth. This brick, sandstone and cast iron building was built in 1889 and is decorated with an owl, sandstone and stained glass windows. The current tenant, The Flying Saucer Beer Emporium, retained much of the original architectural flavor of the building during renovation.
The Sanger Building was originally built to house Sanger Bros. Inc., the first department store west of the Mississippi River to feature "manufactured weather" (air conditioning). The new $1 million-plus department store opened on June 25, 1929. Bad timing. The Depression was not kind to Sanger's, and within a few years after its opening, the store had closed. Throughout its history, the building has been named the Color Tile Building, Meacham's Department Store, and Sanger Bros. Department Store. The Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau Modern and the Milan Gallery are currently located on the ground floor and the basement is home to The Circle Theater. The top five floors feature 59 loft apartments that tie into the adjacent Fakes Building. 
The City National Bank Building was built in the early 1870's for the John S. Andrews Loan, Land & Livestock Company. In the 1880's it became Fort Worth's first bank, City National Bank, which was forced to liquidate ten years later during the 1890's Depression. Two restaurants - Billy Miner's Saloon and Cabo Grande – currently occupy this building.
The Knights of Pythias Castle Hall was constructed in 1881 as the first Pythian Temple erected in the world and the only one with a cornerstone laid by Justus H. Rathbone, founder of the order. The building is now home to Haltom's Jewelers and the 8.0 Restaurant & Bar.
The Domino Building, next to the Sid Richardson Museum, is an exact replica of "Buck's Domino Parlor," a popular gaming house. It was a favorite hangout of such famous personalities as Butch Cassidy, The Sundance Kid and Luke Short, who was the king-pin of honest high stakes gambling in Fort Worth. The original building was built in 1885 and reconstructed in 1981.
Sid Richardson was a Texas oilman, cattleman and philanthropist known for his association with the city of Fort Worth. The Sid Richardson Museum has one of the finest and most focused collections of Western art in America. The museum features paintings of the Old West by Frederic Remington, Charles M. Russell and other artists. Since opening in 1982, the museum has been one of Sundance Square's top attractions, drawing more than 50,000 visitors a year from all over the world. Don't miss this museum if you visit Fort Worth.
You have to look closely under the Woolworth Building sign to find the Scat Jazz Lounge sign. This popular cabaret/jazz club is located in the underground/basement of the historic Woolworth Building. Entertainment is traditional jazz and features locals to national touring acts.
Scat Jazz Lounge was named in the February 2009 issue of Downbeat magazine as one of "the Best 100 Jazz Clubs in the World!"
This mixed-use facility was constructed in 1996. Each tenant of the building has a separate facade, although a retro Art Deco style is present throughout the building. Located in the structure are the AMC Palace 9 Theater which features stadium seating, Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Barnes & Noble Cafe, and Ferre Ristorante e Bar. City Streets, a multi-themed night club, with its unique entrance depicting a skyline, is open in the basement. One of the interesting features of the building is the red brick & turret corner portion that houses the Barnes & Noble Cafe. This corner is reminiscent of the Land Title Block across the street and the Knights of Pythias Castle Hall. The last picture is the back of the Barnes & Noble bookstore.
I will be doing two more Fort Worth posts. One to cover some final comments and interesting places I missed. The other will cover the Texas Civil War Museum.
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