At a time when a ‘computer’ was a job title, most numerical calculations during the 1930s and 1940s were made by men and women using slide rules. At Harvard, the Mark I was developed in 1944, and the Colossus at Bletchley Park was developed beginning in 1943. These programmable computers were preceded by the Z1, designed and created by Konrad Zuse in 1938 at his parents’ apartment in Berlin.
The Z1 had limited programability, reading instructions from perforations on 35mm film. Its mechanical components limited the Z1’s accuracy. The Z1 and its blueprints were destroyed by bombing raids in January 1944.
Konrad Zuse, born in 1910 in Berlin and raised in East Prussia, attended Berlin Technical University and graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering in 1935. He worked on his computer in isolation from other computing researchers because of the growing economic and political isolation of Germany. In 1939 he was inducted into the Germany Army, and given the resources and charge to build a better computer. The Z2 was completed in 1940 and took up two rooms of Zuse’s parents flat. It used telephone relays to extend its computing power. The German Research Institute for Aviation gave him funding to start a company, and Zuse moved to an office. There he built the Z3 using even more computer relays. This machine more was more flexibly programmable and had memory.
The German government denied funding for Zuse’s computing project, deeming it to have little immediate utility. Bombing raids destroyed the Z2 and Z3, and led Zuse to pack up the almost finished Z4 in February 1945 and ship it to Gottingen. Work to complete the Z4 was halted until 1949. During this hiatus Zuse developed a programming language he called Plankalkül (plain calculus). He had found programming in machine language very difficult, and so wrote the first high-level computing language.
Zuse died of heart failure in 1995. Two years later the Z4 was shown to be Turing-complete.
Posted by Rob Wallace, STEM Education Coordinator at The National WWII Museum.
Home Front Friday is a regular series that highlights the can do spirit on the Home Front during World War II and illustrates how that spirit is still alive today!
To keep the past alive, and to add some different foods to weekly meals and flavor to our posts, there will be a few Home Front “Foodie” Fridays in which we share our experiences cooking a WWII ration meal from The Victory Binding of the American Woman’s Cook Book: Wartime Edition. This cookbook was published during the war with substitutes and economically friendly recipes for wartime meals and holds over 400 pages of different recipes. There is also a section at the end of the book dedicated to a weekly layout of how a family of five could be fed on $15 a week.
Front page of the Victory cookbook.
Since food was highly valued during WWII, a lot of different ingredients were rationed. The first of these foods was sugar. Its rationing began in the spring of 1942, and many recipes had to change. Whether in the home or at a restaurant, whomever prepared the meals needed to find a way to replace ingredients like sugar with a substitute that tasted just as good if not better. In the case of sugar, items like honey, maple syrup or corn syrup were used. If honey was used in place of sugar, the recipe would call for half the amount of honey as it would sugar as well as a quarter less amount of water.
WWII ration propaganda poster. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.
By rationing these goods at home, the troops overseas were able to receive items like sugar, flour, and coffee as seen in the photo below. Elaborate foods were not supported during the war, so people stuck to simple dishes. The following recipe for Honey Rice is categorized as a dessert in The Victory Binding of the American Woman’s Cook Book: Wartime Edition. Simple to make, easy on the budget, and delicious for the taste buds, honey rice is just one example of the types of desserts people were eating on the Home Front during the war.
Flour, sugar, coffee, rice, cookies, and canned goods are distributed after ration breakdown at Hunter Liggett Military Base on 24 March 1944.
Recipe in The Victory Binding of the American Woman’s Cook Book: Wartime Edition.
Ingredients:
1 cup of uncooked rice
Pinch of salt
3/4 cup of honey
1/2 cup of raisins
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 cup of chopped nuts
Cinnamon (whatever amount suits your taste buds)
Step 1: Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Step 2: Cook the rice in boiling salted water until soft. Drain the rice.
Step 3: Heat the honey in a heavy pan until it’s not as dense.
Step 4: Add the honey and raisins to the cooked rice. Stir and let these cook for 5 minutes.
Step 5: Pour the mixture into a buttered, shallow baking dish and dot it with butter. Bake in over until the rice is golden brown.
Step 6: Remove from oven and stir in the lemon juice and vanilla.
Step 7: Top it with cinnamon and chopped nuts.
This recipe will serve about 8 people. It is a dessert plate, but I paired it with some sauteed chicken, and it was the perfect balance of sweet and savory.
Posted by Camille Weber, Education Intern and Lauren Handley, Assistant Director of Education for Public Programs at The National WWII Museum.
In 1943 James Wright, a Scottish-born engineer working for General Electric mixed silicon lubricant with boric acid. It was too sticky to be the artificial rubber he wanted, but when he dropped it it bounced. It was interesting enough for a patent application. Engineers with Dow Corning filed a very similar patent slightly later.
The product of the patent was developed into a toy, called Silly Putty, in 1949. Today about 6 million eggs of Silly Putty a year are sold by Crayola, who purchased the rights to sell Silly Putty in 1977. Silly Putty is a non-newtonian fluid–this means that it has characteristics unusual for a liquid or a solid. If left in a shape it will eventually flow to a flat shape like a liquid. However it bounces, and when struck strongly and sharply will shatter.
Because it is made of silicon lubricant, if your Silly Putty gets stuck on a pourous surface (like hair or fabric) you can dissolve it with WD-40 or alcohol.
At home you can make a substance with very similar properties. You’ll need Borax (which you can find at the grocery store next to the bleach) and white glue. White glue is a polymer (polyvinyl acetate, or PVA) like silicon lubricant. The Borax affects the glue like the boric acid Wright used changed the silicon. Here’s a recipe we use in our Real World Science curriculum:
1/2 cup white glue
3/4 cup water
1 tsp borax
Dissolve the borax in the water, and then mix it with the glue. Put the resulting polymer into a ziploc bag and knead it until it forms a nice stretchy mass. Pour remaining liquid down the drain.
Posted by Rob Wallace, STEM Education Coordinator at The National WWII Museum.
Home Front Friday is a regular series that highlights the can do spirit on the Home Front during World War II and illustrates how that spirit is still alive today!
Knitting during World War II: During World War II, civilians on the Home Front knitted scarves, hats, gloves, and socks for soldiers on the front. Everyone was encouraged to “Knit Your Bit” and donate warm knitted items to their local Red Cross stations. These knitted items helped keep American soldiers warm during the freezing European winters as well as reminded them of their home sweet home.
In 1943, the American Red Cross listed these instructions explaining how to knit a Muffler. Courtesy of the National Endownment for the Humanities.
Knit Your Bit: The WWII knitting program has inspired the creation of the Museum’s Knit Your Bit program. In the past 10 years, the Museum has collected over 50,000 scarves to donate to veterans. If you would like to knit a scarf for a veteran or create a scarf in gender neutral colors and send it in to the National WWII Museum in New Orleans or to one of our community partners around the country follow this link.
DIY Knitting Needles: Do you want to knit a scarf, but don’t have the needles? Are you looking for a creative way to engage your kids in knitting?
You should try making your own needles because its simple, inexpensive, and a great hands on learning lesson for you or your kids.
Supplies:
2 dowel rods (each about a foot long)
1 pencil sharpener
A package of oven bake clay
Sandpaper
Step 1: Sharpen one end of each of your dowel rods using the pencil sharpener. They should be as sharp as a pencil when you are done with this step.
Step 2: Sand your dowel rods. Use the sand paper to make the dowel rods as smooth as possible so that you won’t get any splinters in your hands or in your yarn while knitting. Make sure to sand the pointed end so that it is rounded rather than sharp.
Step 3: Make the other end of the needle. Roll your clay into two balls. Push those balls onto the non-sharpened ends of your dowel rods. Mold the clay into whatever shape you desire but maintain a right angle between the dowel rod and the beginning of your clay. This will keep the yarn from falling of the needles.
Step 4: Bake the needles. Set the oven for the temperature on your clay package. Allow it to fully pre-heat. Stick the needles on a baking sheet with foil underneath. Bake the needles for no more than 10 minutes. Watch the needles the entire time and be ready to pull them out the moment the wood begins to change color to avoid burning the wood.
Step 5: Cool needles and re-sand if necessary.
Step 6: Start knitting!
WWII propaganda calling on people to knit.
Posted by Sara Scott, Public Programs Intern and Lauren Handley, Assistant Director of Education for Public Programs at The National WWII Museum.
Last week 28 teachers of 5th through 8th grade science came from all over the country to learn about teaching science in the context of history. From California to Maine, South Carolina to Utah, schools big and small, urban and rural, they represent the amazing folks who are teaching the next generation of problem-solvers and innovators. We discussed how WWII is a great context to teach the role of science in society, and the ways new ideas replace old ones when the old ones don’t work. We did hands-on activities in our classroom at the museum and at the University of New Orleans, we visited galleries at the museum and the lagoons of City Park. We framed the curriculum with the best practices of science teaching, and we had a great time!
This is the second cohort of the Real World Science Summer Teachers Seminar, funded by the Northrop Grumman Foundation. Teachers and their students will collect data on weather conditions today and 75 years ago once the school year begins, and this year’s cohort, like the last, will stay connected as a community of practice to get better at their profession.
Applications for the third cohort will open in early January 2017. You can learn more about the activities of Real World Science classrooms on the project website
At UNO teachers made nanoparticles of gold and iron.
At UNO teachers made nanoparticles of gold and iron.
At UNO teachers made nanoparticles of gold and iron.
At UNO teachers made nanoparticles of gold and iron.
At UNO teachers made ice cream with the help of liquid nitrogen.
At UNO teachers made ice cream with the help of liquid nitrogen.
A diverse group of 28 teachers of upper elementary and middle school science formed tne 2016 Real World Science Cohort.
At City Park teachers examined water quality in the lagoons.
One of the things teachers did at the museum was to examine WWII artifacts.
Home Front Friday is a regular series that highlights the can do spirit on the Home Front during World War II and illustrates how that spirit is still alive today!
There seems to be a holiday for everything these days. Along with federal holidays, there are those that observe friendships or different foods and have your timeline blowing up with shoutouts and hashtags. July is a month supposedly dedicated to the celebration of hot dogs. This traditionally German dish has a history of bringing friends, family, and diplomats together, while its homeland, unfortunately, has a history of causing disruption and a world war rather than unification.
The National Hot Dog Summit of 1939 took place from June 8 through June 12 and King George VI of Great Britain became the first monarch from our previous motherland to step foot in the United States. President Roosevelt aimed to change the American feelings from anti-British to acceptance, and that he did. The Hot Dog Summit, also known as the British royal visit, welcomed King George VI and his wife, Elizabeth, to Washington, D.C. for two days before they made their way up to Hyde Park, New York for an escape from the hustle and bustle of the politically active city life of the nation’s capital. A picnic was held at the Roosevelt’s home in Hyde Park and none other than hot dogs were served. They also offered fancier items, but hot dogs were all the rage. The image of the King and Queen eating a hot dog really stuck out to the American public because they were seen more as regular people rather than pretentious rulers.
America was able to stay neutral for some time after this conference while supporting Great Britain both diplomatically and financially as they declared war against Germany in September of the same year. If you’re interested in learning more about the National Hot Dog Summit, catch up on some more information here.
Photo courtesy of FDR Library’s Digital Collection.
Photo courtesy of The New York Times.
The hot dog has its origin from the Frankfurter of Germany that was brought to the U.S. by German immigrants. It is unusual that two Allied countries found their common ground and relationship over a food from the country that they would both fight against. Two years later, in 1941, when the U.S. joined the war, the government started to encourage civilians to eat skinless hot dogs or Frankfurters because they were a no waste food due to their lack of casing. Both the National Hot Dog Summit and the encouragement to eat hot dogs were quite frankly ironic during WWII because on the Home Front, a German item unified people, but in Europe, some German items divided.
via LIFE magazine
Since July is reaching an end, you should enjoy the last couple days of your month with a hot dog in hand to honor the role the food played on the American Home Front, or to just embrace its pure deliciousness.
Let’s be frank, you’re probably wondering how to spice up your dog with toppings because the classic ketchup, mustard, and relish combination just isn’t cutting it anymore, so here are a few savory options:
Last week, 23 high school and college students from across the country traveled to New Orleans to take part in The National WWII Museum’s Student Leadership Academy, a rigorous educational travel program exploring lessons of leadership and the theme of what WWII history and events mean today.
For one week, these 23 students enjoyed special behind-the-scenes access to Museum exhibits, artifacts, vehicles, and archives. Student Leadership Academy participants also engaged with veterans, both from World War II and the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, who spoke humbly about the enduring qualities of what makes a strong leader and how some of those qualities never change. While in New Orleans, the Student Leadership Academy visited Chalmette Battlefield — the site of the pivotal 1815 Battle of New Orleans — as well as Bollinger Shipyards, connecting modern-day ship construction to the entrepreneurial leadership and legacy of the Higgins Industries boats so central to the Museum’s identity. In addition to completing pre-tour reading assignments to better prepare themselves for their experience, each student also viewed selections from the Museum’s Digital Collection of images and veterans’ oral histories
All throughout the Student Leadership Academy program, however, students continually engaged in structured Leadership Lesson Debates, revisiting the lessons of World War II and relating them to their own lives and the world around them. These debates ranged from what should be the future US role as it relates to global security in a now all-volunteer military to the dangers of succumbing to fear and prejudice as seen in the wake of Executive Order 9066 and the ensuing internment of hundreds of thousands of innocent Japanese Americans. More than anything, the Student Leadership Academy program hopes to arm its 2016 class as well as all of tomorrow’s leaders with the lessons and examples of American leadership in the war that changed the world.
For the past eleven days, 32 high school and college students from across the United States have traveled with The National WWII Museum, first to New Orleans and then to Normandy, France, as participants within the Museum’s 2016 Normandy Academy Student Travel program.
Beginning their journey first at The National WWII Museum, Normandy Academy students toured the Museum’s exhibits, spoke with WWII veterans and enjoyed behind-the-scene access within the Museum’s artifact vault and inside some of the Museum’s vehicles. Departing New Orleans, the Normandy Academy students traveled first to Paris then onward to the ancient town of Bayeux in the heart of Normandy and within striking distance of dozens of D-Day battle-sites. For the next seven days, the students, along with Museum educators and professors, toured such famous sites as Pegasus Bridge, the mulberry harbors at Arromanches, Ste-Mere-Eglise, Pointe-Du-Hoc, Brecourt Manor, both Utah and Omaha Beaches before concluding with a solemn visit to the American Cemetery at Colleville-Sur-Mer where each student was given a white rose to leave behind at the grave of an American soldier or serviceman who did not make it back home. To better prepare them for what they would encounter along the way, each Normandy Academy student completed pre-tour reading assignments and, at each site, engaged in discussions and debates relating to the actions that occurred there with Museum educators and professors. While it is hoped that all 32 students went away with a better understanding of WWII history, it is clear that all participants within the 2016 Normandy Academy program left France with a deeper appreciation for the courage, teamwork and sacrifice shown by the members of the Greatest Generation.
Home Front Friday is a regular series that highlights the can do spirit on the Home Front during World War II and illustrates how that spirit is still alive today!
We live in a day and age where merely one cup of coffee will not suffice to give you the caffeine boost you need for your workday. This addiction is not a new trend, though. Our fellow Americans were craving a second cup of jo’ long before the era of World War II, as well as during. Coffee was, and is, not simply a drink, but rather a way of life. It brings people together, today, at cafes to catch up with old friends, make new friends, or finish a great book. During early WWII up until April 1942, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt held a popular radio show called, “Over Our Cups of Coffee.” She discussed current events with the American public through the radio, with the goal in mind to share the discussion over a cup of coffee, as is implied by the name of the show. It was only a matter of time before this popular drink was soon added to the list of items that needed to be rationed.
War ration book that holds stamps to buy coffee.
Coffee stamps, as well as stamps for other rationed items.
On November 29, 1942, the rationing of coffee commenced and people quickly learned how to creatively extend the life of their grounded beans. Coffee experienced cuts because a majority of ships needed to be used by the Navy, and merchant ships traveling from the South American and Latin American countries that grew coffee beans were in too much danger of attack by German U-boats that patrolled the open waters. Also, soldiers fighting in the European and Pacific Theaters relied on coffee for boosts of energy during their long days and nights. To learn more about the time span of coffee rationing, check out this article.
Lee Harris of the American Red Cross offers coffee to Private Joe Bergles in Loiano, Italy on 2 January 1945.
Description of the above photo from the collections of The National WWII Museum.
Newspaper articles were published as well as write ups in LIFE magazine to give ideas to people of how they can get more drink out of their bean. One of the suggestions made was to add chicory to their supply of coffee for the week. The hot commodity added to New Orleans coffees today was used by Americans on the Home Front to create a larger blend and to add a hint of flavor.
This ad from the Pan-American Coffee Bureau informs people that the cuts on coffee are due to shipping problems. It goes on to remind people that coffee is too good to waste.
Little to our surprise, coffee rationing was not so popular, so when President Roosevelt removed it as one of the first items to come off of the ration list in July 1943, coffee consumption found itself at a new high a year later. Distance does truly make the heart grow fonder, and in this case, the heart was in dire need of fulfilling its coffee craving.
When you are met with extra coffee in your pot on your way out the door to go to work, what can you do with it besides dumping it down the drain? There’s always the option of a to-go cup, but think of all the ways you can salvage the perfectly usable drink just as our Home Front citizens had to during a period of constantly working to save, reuse, and recycle.
Here are a few ideas to expand your coffee horizons:
Coffee Ice Cubes: pour the coffee into a tray and let it freeze. Add them to your iced coffee in the morning or enjoy a popsicle.
Store it in a pitcher and put it in the refrigerator to have a cup of iced coffee the next morning or later that day for an early evening pick me up.
Coffee Brownies: next time you make this chocolate-y dessert, use your left over coffee instead of milk for a distinct mocha taste.
Stain white paper for an antique look.
“Coffee” acid loving plants are real. These include Holly, Azaleas, and Japanese iris, just to name a few.
Hot Chocolate with coffee instead of milk: sweet and savory in a single warm cup.
If you add coffee to your pot roast, it makes the broth richer.
Posted by Camille Weber, Education Intern and Lauren Handley, Assistant Director of Education for Public Programs at The National WWII Museum.
US Marines evacuate a wounded comrade from the front lines on Iwo Jima. (National Archives and Records Administration, 80-G-412493.)
American servicemembers on Guadalcanal. (From the Collection of The National WWII Museum, 2002.069.144.)
The first draft of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's address to Congress following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. (Franklin D. Roosevelt Library.)
We will premier the first volume in this series, The War in the Pacific, during our July 11–15Summer Teacher Institute, and you can stream select Institute sessions LIVE. All you need to do is register here.
In addition to primary source-based lesson plans, The War in the Pacific includes topical overview essays, reference materials, and two introductory essays and a video from leading Pacific war historian Richard B. Frank. You’ll also find accompanying videos, artifacts, and oral histories from the Museum’s galleries at the curriculum’s online home: www.ww2classroom.org.
To complement this first volume of From the Collection to the Classroom, forthcoming volumes will be The War in Europe, The Home Front, and The Legacy of the War.
Finally, this month’s Calling All Teachers e-newsletter shines the spotlight on the US decision to use atomic bombs during World War II and the Museum’s new curricular resources that allow students to explore the persistent controversy over the use of nuclear weapons.
