
At the start of 2019 we go the opportunity to go to California--without ever leaving my time zone, Maryland, or my school! We were in my Maryland classroom & Mountain View California's Computer History Museum simultaneously via the Beam Telepresence Robot. It was a crazy feeling of déjà vu as I got the opportunity to revisit a place I had visited this summer! To have my robot footprints in the same place my actual feet had once stood!




To see more in action, visit this article from our school archives (including a video) of our experience.

Lastly, here are creative curiosities and questions my 7-9 year olds posed after visiting the online exhibit (prior to our virtual visit). While the list was long and we didn't get all the answers to these during our one-hour tour, we did get a great opportunity to interact with our docent and see some pretty remarkable artifacts. Not to mention, it really made history come alive!

-How can they have over 1000 computer "things"
[=artifacts] in a museum?
-How did they figure out how technology works?
-How big was the first computer?
-How many computers have there been?
-Who invented the first computer?
-How do you make a computer?
-How do you make computers?
-How long has the museum been open?
-Do they have olden day virtual reality goggles there?
-I wonder about the differences between then and now computers.
-Will we get to see old phones and old headphones?
-Who had the idea of a computer and how did they get it?

-Who created the Internet?
-How long has technology been a thing?
-How is a punch card a part of computer history?
-How do pocket calculators work?
-What were the earliest computer games?
-How are computer games on TV's?
-Why was the web invented last?
-Are they trying to make flying computers?
-How many video games have there ever been?
-Do they have museums like this all around the world?
-Why are mini computers called that when they are big? (They were smaller than the mainframes, but clearly
bigger than personal computers!)
-How did they build the computer that
"broke the code" during WWII?
-Why were old computers so big?
-What did earlier [mobile] phones look like?
-How do you program a computer?
-How does a self driving car work?
-Who invented the self driving cars?
-Has the self-driving car ever gotten into
an accident?
-With the self-driving car, do you type
in the destination to get it where it needs to go?
Images from either our side or the CA side of our Virtual Field trip, screenshots included!
bigger than personal computers!)

"broke the code" during WWII?
-Why were old computers so big?
-What did earlier [mobile] phones look like?
-How do you program a computer?
-How does a self driving car work?
-Who invented the self driving cars?
-Has the self-driving car ever gotten into
an accident?
-With the self-driving car, do you type
in the destination to get it where it needs to go?
Images from either our side or the CA side of our Virtual Field trip, screenshots included!