Silk Industry in Lyon

Out of the two sites we visited in Lyon, my favorite was the silk factory. I was fascinated by the technique, detail, and patience these workers put into each piece of tapestry they would make. Watching the tour guide actually stitch several centimeters was my favorite part of the tour. If you didnt memorize the color pattern correctly or you put the wrong color through it took extra time to fix your mistakes.

Silk Industry

I really enjoyed the silk industry museum and workshop.  I knew that silk was expensive, but I never realized that there was so much work and effort put into making the silk fabric and designs.  It was interesting and crazy that it takes 8 hours to make a 35cm piece of designed fabric, and 3 days to make that fabric 1 meter.  This is a lot of work and effort, but thanks to the technology behind the loom, it made it simpler for weavers to accomplish their work.

The Wonderful World of Film

In Lyon, we went to the Lumière Institute. The institute showed almost all of the films that the brothers had shown. This films were captivating to watch. It was a shock to see what people thought was entertaining in that day and age. This pictures are so much different than what we watch today. There is no action, no drama, no sound. These videos were just people going about their everyday life.

Lumiere museum

Much of the tour of the Lumiere museum covered what we had already learned in the assigned reading, but it was exciting to see the original projectors and other instruments. I really loved the blue plate photographs because of how their colors blended in with one another to give an almost paint-like quality. Today we have to use filters to achieve that effect, but I don't think any filter I've seen compares to the original blue plate quality.

Silk Factory

On our day trip to Lyon, we visited an old silk factory. Despite the fact it was as many degrees in Celsius, as I would have liked it to have been in Fahrenheit, I really enjoyed the visit. The guide first brought us to the production room with the loom. I was excited to see them in person since I had read about them for my paper. They were larger and more intricate than I thought! I was very impressed by the amount of skill and focus it takes to so even a strand of a silk product.

I wonder who built the original loom, why they decided to use that model, and how much it costs. It does not seem as though the average joe could afford to be in this business. Overall, very neat process!

Silk Factory

On our day trip to Lyon we toured a silk factory. Our tour guide shared some interesting facts about how silk is made. The fact that intrigued me the mist was it takes 8 hours to make only 35cm of silk. For one meter of this silk it would cost $2000. The part of the silk tour that I enjoyed the most though was when our tour guide demonstrated the technique of making silk. From watching this demonstration I learned how much precise you have to be to make sure that the colors match the template.

Lumiere

The Lumiere museum was a good example of how the crowning achievement of some individuals overshadow their other accomplishments. The Lumiere brothers had many more inventions and patents then just their cinematographe that cross multiple fields of use. The invention of the blue photo plate allowed for instant photography and helped bring back their family business from the brink of bankruptcy. Other inventions included a non-stick bandage (tulle gras), a prosthetic arm, and a paper diaphragm for record players. The achievements of the brothers also included the invention of the chromagraph, the first form of color photographic plates.

Silk

During the trip to Lyon we toured the silk district.  What was interesting to learn was what silk came from.  I always knew that the silk was produced by the silk work in the past but I had no idea that it is still what is used to produce silk.  I learned about how their were factories in Asia and Brazil that have mechanicalized the process of getting the silk from the worm.  Another thing that I found interesting was that it takes four cacoons worth if silk to get one thread of silk when woven together.

The Discovery of Silk

I thought that both sites we visited in Lyon, France were very interesting.  I did particularly like learning how silk was discovered.  Before going to the Madison des Canuts, I never would have guessed that a princess discovered how to make a strand of silk fiber, after a silk worm cocoon fell into her tea cup. This was a fun story to listen to and even more exciting to learn that the process of making silk fibers was kept secret, until spies were sent in to steal the secret.  What made the story so entertaining was that the spies were monks.  Overall, the silk workshop was very interesting and one of my favorite stops on the trip.

Beginning of film

At the Lumiere house, I was really excited to see the way film started and it what ways was it filmed. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that they had interactive screens there that allowed me to watch some of the early movies. Getting the chance to see the films up close, gave me a better understanding of what made the audiences so excited to see these short movies. As I watched them, I found myself mesmerized by the blocking and stories to them. I can't even begin to imagine what it would've been like for someone like me during that time. Film was new and different which is why everyone packed into theatres to see them. It was a great expierence for me to see how film first began.

"Acting" Unaware

At the Lumiere Brothers Museum, I learned that in some of their first films, the brothers didn't hire professional actors to play roles. Instead, they asked local factory workers to be in the movie. They were told to ignore the camera for their "role." This example shows how having hands-on experience with a topic can help ensure trust in experts. If the listener has a bit of knowledge about a topic previously, the expert's findings, reports, and opinions can more easily be trusted.

Silk factory

We visited the silk factory and it was a neat experience. I knew that silk was made out of silk worm, but I did not know what they looked like. The bug is very creepy. I thought it was very interesting that they got the silk from the caccoons of the bug and that they killed the bugs while they were in the caccoons before they can take the silk from the caccoon. I also really liked watching here do the hand threading on making the fabric and how they work the machines. Lastly, I think it is neat they could improve the machine to an electric loom so they can make items for ships and computers. The technology has really improved, but even though the workers had long hours I think it would still be neat to say that would made something by hand.

Silk Production

Today we traveled to Lyon and we toured Tour of Maison des Canuts which produces silk and the part of the tour that intrigued me the most was how long it took to make and how expensive silk actually is. It takes about 8 hours to make only a 35cm square and about 3 days to produce a meter. The price of the meter long product was around $2000. The price can also depend on the color and if it was made with felt or not. In addition to the felt, when they made it, they made tiny loops with the material and then had to cut each loop with a blade. Weaving is very time consuming and I can now understand why it is incredibly expensive. 

A Brutal Fight

Both Hook and Huygens  wanted to claim that they made the first balance spring watch. The problem was only one of them could have that priveledge. The balance spring watch would be used by fishermen  to tell time out at see. Huygens  claimed the invention was his but Hook thoroughly upset, declared to the Royal Society. After a while, the Royal Society declared Huygens the sole owner but that was not okay with Hook. Hook went to the King and declared the invention and offered a sample of the watch itself. In the end Hook may have won the fight but he ended up stealing one of Huygens ideas.

A People's History of Science

I really enjoyed reading A People's History of Science by Clifford Conner because it went through how they navigated the sea,  the problem that was encountered with longitude, and finally the magnetic compass. I thought it was interesting to learn that sailor's determined their speed by spitting in the water. Athough this method didn't use any technology I still think it was an efficient way to determine the speed at which the sailors were traveling. I also enjoyed reading how mermaids were proven to be a myth.

Sailors and Astronomy

I never knew or even thought about before Copernicus, Ptolemy, and even Aristotle astronomy was shaped by mariners; although it does makes sense because they were never stationary so they had the best views of the night sky, and they were able to identify and changes. It was also interesting to read that historians had trouble discovering this due to the mariners ever writing anything down. Everything was learned by word of mouth or actual hands on experience in those sailing situations.

Sea of Blood

Navigating and charting the seas took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. Although it was a lot of other people's blood that was spilt. When Vasco de Gama sailed to India he came upon a ship full of Muslims, de Gama stole all the goods on boards and burnt the ship and all the people on it. Not only did he commit this act, but in an act of intimidation he would capture fishermen, cut them into pieces, and send the pieces to the local rulers. These acts were sponsored by the state! Now de Gama was not the only one to spill blood, even Magellan did as well. Magellan was used to using his artillery to frighten natives into submission. Although when he tried this at Mactan, the natives fought back. Magellan was hacked to pieces, instead of the natives.

Planes, Trains, and Boats..... Oh My

The technical museum in Berlin housed a wide variety of exhibits; textiles, computers, jewelry making. Although my favorite exhibits were the trains, planes, and boats. It was really interesting to see how the trains progressed along with the city. It was also interesting to see one of the train cars that took holocaust victims to the camps. It really tied in with our trip to Auschwitz. The planes were cool to see the different models and prototypes that were created. There was the plane that was only made of wings. It was also cool to see some of the planes that had crashed or been shot down. My favorite part of the museum was the boats. There was a boat that I was able to climb aboard and look in the kitchen and under the deck. There was also mini replicas of a lot of ships that I found cool. Some of these replicas were made from jade or ivory.

Navigation

Navigation had been a special subject throughout history.  Many new technologies and ideas were created to make navigation easier.  However first what needs to be mentioned is the myth that is prominent about early navigation.  That myth is that the earth was flat.  However Renassance people knew that the earth was found and that myth was created to discredit people and make them look foolish.  The biggest discover was the magnetic piles that allowed for people to tell what direction they are facing.  This discovery and other numerous ones made navigation easier and safer.

Sailing

In the reading "A People's History of Science" it was really interesting to learn about sailors and how they used their knowledge of ocean currents to navigate the water. For me, I think it's really interesting to read about people and actually applying it to real world actions. This shows how science can be applied in the real world, which is pretty interesting. When it comes to science and math, it seems like people always feel that these two subjects aren't important and can't have an impact on anything in "real" life. I was glad that this article gave a fantastic example of it being applied.