Generations of Technology

I can clearly remember Gramma's careful and close attention to the television one evening in 1969. It was the night that human beings landed on, and walked on the surface of the moon.

At the time, as a self-absorbed 16 year old, I really thought she was overdoing it a bit. I knew that people had never set foot on anything non-Earthly before, but I didn't have her perspective to understand how truly momentous that experience was.

Gramma was born on April 2, 1900. (She used to joke about how close she came to being an April Fool's Baby!) She taught herself to fix any problem that came up with her Model T. She could mechanic it just fine. When Gramma was teaching school in the 1920s, she rode a horse to school. From there to walking on the moon – No wonder Gramma was fittingly transfixed as she saw Neil Armstrong step off the stairway of the Eagle and onto the surface of the moon. No wonder.

When Gramma taught school she wrote on a blackboard that was made of a thin sheet of stone material known “slate,” using chalk, another organic, stone material. If she wanted to make copies, it had to be done by hand. For that reason, copies were rare. In the later years of her teaching career in the 1950-70s, carbon paper (See “Forward.”) was available for making copies. Blackboards and chalk were better quality.

Overhead Projector

In 1970, when I was a junior in high school, mathematical calculators appeared at Miller High School. They were very controversial. The most common objection was that they would destroy the student's ability to do mathematical calculations without a calculator. I was so poor at math I thought calculators were godsends. Calculators were still controversial when I was in college following high school.

We had overhead projectors that my Algebra I and Geometry teachers used, and film strips that my weird biology teacher used. (Terry used to call him “Dyno Don.” I think his last name was Hendrickson.)

Mimeograph Machine

When I was a teacher in the late 1970s-early 80s, copying technology had improved. We had mimeograph machines! Mimeos, as they were called, were similar to printing presses, in that I cranked out copies based on an original that I made using a typewriter. Mimeos used a liquid ink, and could really be messy. It was always clear that a teacher had been making copies, based on her purplish ink-stained fingers.

The history of computers is easy to follow on many online resources. The first one I used was in 1980 when I taught at Henry High School in Henry, SD. It was big, clunky, glacially slow, and really not very useful. I learned how to play Oregon Trail on it, and assigned that as a task for my American History class.

In 1990 I managed a domestic violence shelter in Rapid City, SD. DOS was past, and operating systems like Windows were debuting. I had to figure out how to create spread sheets and data bases reflecting shelter use, client numbers, referrals, donations, etc. I did figure it out, a bit at a time, following the tutorial. I loved it, and became hooked on computers.

3 on the Tree
Note the skinny steering column,
and the red lever with a white tip.
That is the transmission lever,
for shifting. 

The first cars I remember were built in the 1950s. The most common transmission was “3-on-the-tree.” That is, three forward speeds and reverse, with the shift lever mounted on the steering column. Clutch pedals all differed in the amount of pressure needed to engage or disengage the clutch. It was another thing to get just right, or the car jerked and the gears ground. That grinding sound was sure to elicit teasing guffaws from observers. It was a rite of driving passage, to master proper clutch operation.

There was a key to turn, then a button on the floor that the driver pressed with his foot to turn the starter and start the car. While doing that, the driver also used the gas pedal to give the car the right amount of gas to start. The engines could be notoriously persnickity. What worked for one car, might not work for the next, so there was much fluttering of toes on pedals to get it just right.

Flooding occurred when the driver “pumped the gas” too much. That refers to pressing up and down repeatedly on the gas pedal, another trick that one needed to master to start the car, especially in cold weather. If overdone, the bowl of the carburetor became full of gas and the car wouldn't start. It wasn't hard to tell when that happened because the smell of gas filled the interior of the car. The cure was waiting. After enough gasoline evaporated, the driver gave the car another try.

The light switch was on the dash, and the dimmer switch was a button on the floor that the driver stepped on with her left foot. I remember many times stomping around on the floor of the car, trying to find that switch, while the oncoming car flashed its lights in annoyance.

Nothing was mounted on the two levers attached to the steering column. The shift lever was on the right, and the turn signal on the left. Everything else was operated via buttons, switches and knobs on the dash.

Seat belts weren't available on nearly any car until the 1960s. In 1965, Congress mandated that seatbelt be available on all cars. The first car we had that came with seatbelts was the 1963 Galaxie.

If cars didn't come with an engine or hose heater, Dad installed them. The heater plugged into an electrical outlet, and warmed up the engine itself.  It was either fitted into the engine block, or a hose that brought water from the radiator to the engine. In the winter cars had electrical heater cords hanging out by the grille. If you didn't have a heater, your car wouldn't start in the winter.

Egg Beater

When I was quite small, we used an egg beater to mix food by hand. There were few electric appliances of any kind. Coffee was made in a n electric percolator, though Mom and Dad didn't drink that much coffee. The toaster was also electric. Nothing was non-stick. Cast iron was the most common material for pots and pans. Electric sewing machines were new too. A woman had to know her machine. Tangles, bobbin problems, and broken needles were common.

Electric Clothing Iron

Irons for clothing were just switching from a solid, cast iron tool heated on top of the stove, to electric irons. Those early electric irons were notoriously unpredictable and likely to damage clothing.

Wringer Washer

We had a wringer-washer with two tubs. They were attached, with the wringer between them. The first tub was for cleaning. There was water, soap, and clothing. An agitator swished the clothing around. After a period of time, the washing was done, and the next step was rinsing.  Mom took an item of clothing out of the wash, and pushed it into the wringer to get the water out. The wringer squeezed the clothing tightly, and the soapy water ran into the washing tub. 

Wringer Mechanism

The clothing fell into the rinse tub, filled with clear water, for the next step. After the clothing had been rinsed in that water, which, of course, became somewhat soapy, Mom sent it through the wringer again, to land in a basket. It was carried out to the clothes line and hung up. The water was not changed for every load, too much water used that way.

My generation has moved from paper, pencils and pens, to small hand-held computers which double as telephones and cameras. Tablet computers, ever-faster phones, self-publishing, (Like this.), instant communication, real-time everything, cameras everywhere, habitable planets light-years away. It is great, exciting, a thrill-a-minute. I can't wait for the next advance, probably just around the corner.

Perspective, as I learned from Gramma, is a good thing. An awareness of the technology of the ones who came before us teaches us greater appreciation of all they accomplished. We are able to feel humilty, knowing that even more will come after us. That is good. That is as it should be.

As always, technology is a tool. We decide how we will use it. I trust you of the 21^st century to use it well.