Geek Travel Guide
Copyright © 2001-2008 Serious Cybernetics
Original 2001 research by Andrew Pam <xanni@sericyb.com.au>
and Katherine Phelps <muse@glasswings.com.au> for Rosanne Bersten,
editor of e)mag.
This guide is based on places we've either visited ourselves or had
recommended to us that we think may be of interest to other geeks.
Last updated 21 June 2008
Please email corrections and suggestions to Andrew Pam
All countries and states are listed in alphabetical order.
Index
- Stonehenge Aotearoa
- Stonehenge Aotearoa is not a replica of the ruin on Salisbury Plain
in England. It is a complete and working structure designed and built
for its precise location in the Wairarapa. It is however, similar in
size to the original Stonehenge.
- Museum of Victoria
- Includes CSIRAC (the only first-generation computer still in existence) and
Bell's experimental telephone equipment.
- National Wool Museum
- Features a working 1910 Axminster Jacquard carpet loom!
- Parkes Observatory
- Siding Spring Observatory
- Ars Electronica Center, Linz
- Sundial Park Genk
- Site of the first Digital Sundial
- The Atomium
- Designed by the engineer André Waterkeyn for the 1958 International
Exhibition of Brussels, the Atomium is a structure that is half way
between sculpture and architecture, symbolising a crystal molecule of
metal by the scale of its atoms, magnified 165 billion times.
- The Mundaneum (in French)
- The Mundaneum was created in 1910 out of the initiative of two
Belgian lawyers. Paul Otlet and Henri La Fontaine aimed to gather
together all the world's knowledge and classify it according to a
system they developed called the Universal Decimal Classification.
Otlet regarded the project as the centerpiece of a new 'world city' - a
centrepiece which eventually became an archive with more than 12 million
index cards and documents. Some consider it a forerunner of the internet
(or, perhaps more appropriately, of Wikipedia) and Otlet himself had
dreams that one day, somehow, all the information he collected could be
accessed by people from the comfort of their own homes.
- The Canada Science and Technology Museum
- The Ontario Science Center
- From Mary Shaw <mary.shaw@cs.cmu.edu>: They have a Jacquard
loom, which I had the good fortune to see in operation one day.
Curious thing -- it's the textile people that feel ownership for this,
not the computer people.
- La Villette (Cité de sciences et de l'industrie), Paris
- From Gordon Peterson <gep2@terabites.com>: The Museum of Science
and Technology (including the La Geode Omnimax dome, where they also
host Omnimax film festivals)... this place is simply a joy...
- The Eiffel Tower
- Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie (ZKM), Karlsruhe
- In english, the Centre for Art and Media Technology
- AUTO & TECHNIK MUSEUM Sinsheim
TECHNIK MUSEUM Speyer
- Twin transport and technology museums in nearby cities, both with IMAX
- the Speyer museum is the only one I know with both flat and
dome format IMAX cinemas and it also hosts IMAX film festivals!!
- Zeppelin-NT, Freidrichshafen
- Zeppelin rides!
- Technology Museum of Thessaloniki
- The National Science, Planning and Technology Museum, Haifa
- The Institute and Museum
of the History of Science, Florence
- The (Leaning) Tower of Pisa
- Akihabara Electric Town, Tokyo
- Here's a Photo essay on shopping at Akihabara.
- NTT InterCommunication Center (ICC), Shinjuku Tokyo
- Tokyo Wan Aqua-Line
- If you like massive engineering projects, visit this
combination bridge,
artificial island and tunnel right across Tokyo Bay
- The IBM Computer Museum (in Japanese)
- Sanyo Solar Ark, Anpachi, Gifu Prefecture
- TEPCO Electric Museum, Tokyo (in Japanese)
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
Old calculators, surveying equipment, astronomy equipment,
microscopes and more. Because students use the items as
subjects of their papers, some items have excellent interpretive text.
- Earth Simulator, Yokohama
- The fastest supercomputer in the world.
- The University of Amsterdam Computer Museum
- Teylers Museum in Haarlem
- From Mary Shaw <mary.shaw@cs.cmu.edu>: It's not only a science
museum, but it captures perfectly the walnut-and-brass atmosphere that
I associate with the elegant scientific instruments of the early 20th
century.
- Rune's PC-Museum.com
- Bolo's Computer Museum (in French)
- European Organization for Nuclear Research
- Birthplace of the Web, suggested by Jean Armour Polly <mom@netmom.com>
- Musée de l'horlogerie et de l'émaillerie, Geneva (in French)
- From Gordon Peterson <gep2@terabites.com>: An incredibly cool watch and clock museum...
- Science Museum South Kensington, London
- Includes the Babbage
Analytical Engine and Difference Engines #1 and 2! You can also
visit the museum's small
objects store in West London and the large objects store at the
Science Museum
Wroughton in Wiltshire
- Bletchley Park
(Alan Turing and the cracking of the Enigma cipher)
- The National Maritime Museum, Greenwich (first modern clocks & watches)
- The Cambridge Museum of Technology, Cambridge
- The Museum Of Science & Industry In Manchester
- From Andrew Sherman <andrew.sherman@sun.com>: Home of the
world's first stored-program computer.
- The Museum of Submarine Telegraphy at Porthcurno
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
Has old telegraph equipment and people who know how to use it.
Also, old radios, information about cable-laying and more.
- Whipple Museum of the History of Science, Cambridge
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
Old calculators, surveying equipment, astronomy equipment,
microscopes and more. Because students use the items as
subjects of their papers, some items have excellent interpretive text.
- Enginuity
- From Guy King <guy.king@zetnet.co.uk>: A rather good if small
local science exhibition and hands on centre - great for kids.
- Moon Trees
- From Evelyn Mitchell <efm@tummy.com>: Trees grown from seeds that
orbited the Moon 34 times on Apollo 14.
- Pima Air and Space Museum, Tucson Arizona
- Incorporating:
- Titan Missile Museum, Sahuarita Arizona
- The Exploratorium, San Francisco California
- The Tech Museum of Innovation, San Jose California
- The Computer Museum of America in San Diego California
- The University of California, Davis Computer Museum in Davis California
- Sightseeing for Geeks (mostly in the San Francisco Bay Area California)
- Nerd Tour of Silicon Valley California
- Historical artifacts from the Computer Museum are now at Moffett Field California
- The NASA Ames Exploration Center at Moffett Field California
- The Intel Museum in Santa Clara California
- Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Menlo Park California
- Machine Project, Los Angeles California
- The Hewlett-Packard Garage, Palo Alto California
- Laserium, Van Nuys California
- National Institute of Science and Technology, Boulder
- From Evelyn Mitchell <efm@tummy.com>: Home of the atomic clock.
- Atlas Missile Silo, Weld County
- Contributed by Evelyn Mitchell <efm@tummy.com>.
- Behind-the-scenes Disney tours, Orlando Florida
- Some tours include information about the animatronics and
the computer system that runs the park. Similar tours
may also be available at the other Disney theme parks.
- Scitrek, Atlanta Georgia
- Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
- Iowa State University
- From Don Kresch <dkresch@wi.rr.com>: Birthplace of the
Atanasoff-Berry Computer, the first digital computer according to the
US Supreme Court.
- Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center
- From Branden J. Moore <bmoore@forkit.org>: There are MANY
historic space artefacts and even an SR-71. Their collection rivals the
Smithsonian's. This is where they did the restoration of the Liberty
Bell-7 Mercury capsule.
- The Marr Sound Archives
- The Marr Sound Archives, a unit of the Special Collections
Department, holds nearly 250,000 sound recordings in formats that include
LPs, 78s, 45s, cylinders, transcription discs, instantaneous cut discs and
open-reel tapes. The Marr Sound Archives is also a leader in the field of
audio preservation and digitization. The Marr's sound preservation studio
preserves modern as well as obsolete audio formats, and its digitizing
and RealAudio capabilities allow it to provide world-wide access to
sound recorded on almost any analog or digital source. Also includes
The Raymond Scott
Collection.
- The National Cryptologic Museum (of the NSA!) in Ft. Meade, Maryland
- The Massachussetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
This place is a geek paradise.
In addition to wandering the halls, you can see:
- MIT Museum
- Some technology, some fusion of technology with art.
- Tech Model Railroad Club
- A model railroad controlled by old telephone switches.
- Harvard University
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
Has [part of] the Harvard Mark I, a huge old computer.
- The French Cable Station Museum at Orleans, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
- The Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul
- From Adam Engelhart <abe@engelbot.com>: Features such
attractions as a musical staircase, a nifty computer-controlled
sculpture in the foyer, a laser theater, and a convertible IMAX/Omnimax
theater. Highly recommended.
- Soudan Mine High Energy Physics Lab
- From Eric <eric@mongoosedog.com>: In the rare event that a
geek visits northern Minnesota, this is a great stop.
- The American Computer Museum (Compuseum) in Bozemann, Montana
- Strategic Air & Space Muesum
- From Evelyn Mitchell <efm@tummy.com>: Between Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska just off I-80
- The Pinball Hall of Fame
- Trinity Site
- From Evelyn Mitchell <efm@tummy.com>: Open two days a year.
- The Very Large Array
- Contributed by Evelyn Mitchell <efm@tummy.com>.
- Los Alamos National Laboratory
- Contributed by Evelyn Mitchell <efm@tummy.com>.
- Telephone Pioneer Museum of New Mexico, Albuquerque
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
A huge collection of old telephones. Switchboards, exchanges.
Photos of cable-laying, and the story of perhaps the bravest
telephone switchboard operator ever.
- National Atomic Museum, Albuquerque
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
Enough information about nuclear weapons to destroy your mind 16 times over.
- New Mexico Museum of Space History, Alamogordo
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
A pretty good space museum with rockets, historical displays,
and electronic control systems.
- Mansfield Memorial Museum
- The home of Elektro, the Oldest U.S. Robot.
- The Franklin Institute Science Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Ken's Computer Museum in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania
- Oak Ridge National Lab/American Museum of Science and Energy, Oak Ridge
- From Larry Hosken <web+comment@lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us>:
Visit the American Museum of Science and Energy and sign up for a tour
of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. During WW2, this lab made radioactive
materials for the Manhattan Project. There's an old reactor to see.
Also, the tour will show you some of the new, not-so-deadly things
they're working on now.
- The University of Virginia Computer Museum in Charlottesville, Virginia
- Pacific Science Center & Space Needle, Seattle Washington
- IMAX *and* a Laserium! The one at the California Academy
of Arts and Sciences in Golden Gate Park San Francisco has
closed, unfortunately, so this one is worth visiting instead.
- Experience Music Project, Seattle Washington
- This is what happens when you get funding from Microsoft - visitors to
the museum are lumbered with a poorly designed (and surprisingly heavy)
portable computer that scans barcodes on the exhibits and has software
bugs - complete with a mandatory training course and a fully staffed
helpdesk to handle visitor problems and complaints! Amazing but true.
- Boeing Factory Tours, Everett Washington
- The Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC
- The Jefferson Computer Museum in Jefferson, Wisconsin
- The Retrocomputing Museum
- Mind Machine Museum
- The Obsolete Computer Museum
- The Virtual Museum of Computing
- The Home Computer Museum in Germany
- The International Home Computer Museum
- The Museum of HP Calculators