Papers and recordings relating to a conference held at the National Museum of History and Technology (now called the National Museum of American History) on October 23, 1978. The Conference was a joint effort by the Smithsonian, the Washington, D.C. chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery, the Washington, D.C. chapter of the Data Processing Management Association, and the Washington, D.C.chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The collection includes: a program signed by participants; photographs taken at the conference; planning documents such as invitations to speakers to participate and responses to them, proposed guest lists, proposed agendas, press releases, minutes of the planning committee for the Conference; documents relating to budgeting for the conference; and audiocassette and reel-to-reel tapes of the conference.
Scope and Contents:
This collection is currently unprocessed.
Arrangement:
1 series
Biographical / Historical:
The concept for this conference was developed by Sol Rosenthal and Bill LaPlante, both considered pioneers in the field of computing. The conference was planned to honor the upcoming 20th anniversary of the Washington chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery in 1979. An additional impetus was the awareness that many of the original members of the chapter were at advanced ages, and the fear that early computer history would become lost if not recorded. A committee was formed with Rosenthal and Smithsonian Curator Uta Merzbach as chairs, a program was developed, and speakers and participants invited. The conference, held on October 23, 1978 was considered very successful as participants provided a wealth of historical detail. Notable participants include Grace Murray Hopper, former NASA astronaut Michael Collins, and Jacob Rabinow, among others.
Provenance:
Immediate source of acquisition unknown.
Restrictions:
Collection open for research on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Technical information on contact lenses, including manuals, brochures, etc. from Solex Laboratories, and articles from professional journals and other publications. Numerous photographs, including a set of color prints, illustrate techniques of fitting, inserting, and removing contact lens. Medical problems, legal cases involving patent infringement and other aspects of contact lenses are described. Includes an interesting thumb-flip "Movette" movie book demonstrating insertion of contact lenses, and a cassette tape recording.
Biographical / Historical:
Tuohy, a partner at Solex Laboratories, developed the corneal contact lens in the 1940s, which quickly supplanted the scleral lens.
Related Materials:
The Tuohy Corneal Lens Collection in the Division of Medicine and Science contains objects, such as contact lens samples, received as part of the same gift.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Anita Tuohy Wolver.
Restrictions:
Researchers must use researcher copy of audio tape (not yet available).
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Papers and photographs related to the immigration experience of Cuban refugee Martinez: a story from the Washington Post, March 12, 1984; a 45-minute cassette recording of an interview (in Spanish) by Richard E. Ahlborn with Martinez; a transcription in Spanish of the interview; six photographs of the hut taken by a zoo photographer; a covering memorandum from Ahlborn; a copy of Martinez's earnings from the sale of cans; and a diagram of his hut. Ahlborn, a curator in the Division of Community Life, was assisted by Juana Martin, a social worker.
Biographical / Historical:
The story of Emiliano Martinez, a Cuban refugee, was publicized as an example of the ingenuity and survival skills of recent immigrants to this nation. Martinez fled Cuba in one of the freedom flotillas of 1980. After a year in a refugee camp at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas, he arrived in Washington, D.C. in April 1981. He shared apartments with other Cuban refugees until October 1982. Using his carpentry skills, he constructed a hut on undeveloped land at the National Zoo, where he lived from December 1982 until March 1984. He then moved into a boarding house in the Adams-Morgan neighborhood. He made his livelihood by selling aluminum cans to a Safeway grocery store for an average of sixty-five dollars a month.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Emilio Martinez.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
