21 January 2007

Day at the Museum

Wow...busy day for me. Decided to hit the Museum of Natural History and Science today. Similar images were posted in one of my first posts: ARTbuquerque; however, I uh...uhm...well see its like this...ok ok...they were out of focus...there I said it. hahaha...

Anyhow...just a few snapshots of the day. Enjoy.


As you approach the entrance your eye catches this image in the window.


One million years B.C. give or take a millennium.



The main reason for going to the museum today was to see a new exhibit called START UP: ALBUQUERQUE AND THE PERSONAL COMPUTER REVOLUTION.
Here is some trivia info for you, did you know Bill Gates [yeah that Bill Gates] and Paul Allen, founders of MICROSOFT started their company in Albuquerque?? They were here four years before moving to Seattle to be close to their families.

The museum exhibit follows the history and evolution of the personal/micro computers. If you happen to be coming to town I highly recommend it.

Here I am waiting to be digitized.


I've been digitized. Beam me up Scotty. Scotty?? SCOTTY??? HEEEEEEELP! i'M CAUGHT IN THE MATTER/ANTI-MATTER TRANSFER DEVICE!!! JANE!! STOP THIS CRAZY THIIIIIING!!!


On board the starship Enterprise?? No, this is the first video game SPACEWAR -- designed simply to sell the computer. The designers had no knowledge of things to come. Written in April of 1962 by Steve Russell, Peter Samson, Dan Edwards and J Graetz, the two player game consisted of two small spaceships flying around shooting at each other trying to avoid gravitational pull of the central star.


The grandaddy of all computers: UNIVAC [UNIVersal Automatic Computer] was the first commercial computer made in the US and delivered in 1951 to the US Census Bureau.


When I was 17 I worked for Sandia National Laboratories. The computers back then [yeah..I'm dating myself ] were huge, filled a room and still used reel to reel mag tapes. I remember the secretaries using punch computer cards. We used these things called 'floppy discs'.

The Altair 8800. The first commercially successful personal computer.


Does not compute does not compute. I remember the first time I ever saw a 'mouse'. I was at a friends in the oh...mid 80's and he was showing me the computer and said "pick up the mouse" at the time I had no idea what a 'mouse' was. I picked it up...upside down. My friend rolled his eyes and said 'not like that'. The rest is history.


Hey mac users...remember these??? HAHAHA

hahahahaha...too funny.




There was this GREAT framed piece of art made with hundreds of vacuum tubes. The perfect gift for a computer geek.








After this nostalgic tour I can't help but think of one thing...I'VE BECOME MY DAAAAAAAD!!! AAAAAAAHHHH!! hahahahahah.

The Albuquerque Museum of Natural History and Science
1801 Mountain Rd NW
Open daily 9am to 5pm
And its only $7 bucks!!! dig it.

www.NMnaturalhistory.org

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mick,
I am new to your blog and I live in New Mexico. In the last few days I have learned of a great restaurant for Rice Pudding and Stuffed Sopapillas, a great history exhibit I have not seen, and a some pretty great pictures of the Hispanic Culture Center. What next? the anticipation is killing me!

Thanks for the blog, it is great!!!

Carlos

MICK said...

Maybe next time you'll have to come on the adventure mister!

Mick

Anonymous said...

That would be great! I would not mind exploring the city one bit. I am sure there is still lots to see and explore!

Carlos