summary for HIS class

Ali Alsahaf

Instructor: Ann Febus

HST 1200

October 22, 2014

The Industrial Revolution: The Wright Brothers History

Who is Langley? Who is Curtiss? Samuel Langley was an American physicist, astronomer and the bolometer investor. In addition, he is regarded as the aviation industry pioneer. Langley established a flying lab in which he carried out various experiments reading the construction of the airplane. He was born in 1834 and passed on in 1906. Langley schooled at Boston Latin School and the English High School of Boston. He worked as a n assistance at the Harvard College Observatory. He was a highly educated researcher whose passion for mechanics led to the development of the Langley machine. Langley utilized various aspects of aerodynamics to develop the machine. He was however unsuccessful in various attempts to fly the machine (White, Pickering and Chanute 27). Glen Curtiss was an American born in 1878. He passed on in 1930 after establishing a great career in the motor cycle industry. Curtiss is also recognized among the pioneers of the aviation industry in United States. In addition, he was the founder of the American aircraft industry. Curtiss specialized in construction and use of bicycles and motorcycles. His experience in the manufacture of motor cycles enabled his to manufacture various airship engines in 1904. Curtiss was contracted by Langley to build the aerodrome’s engine. Curtiss also designed various aircrafts such as the June Bug, Aerodrome 3 and AEA’s aircraft. He was also the test pilot for June Bug between 1908 and 1910 (Trimble 27).

What is the Langley machine? Why does Katherine refer to the Langley machine as "so-called"? The Langley machine is the Aerodrome developed by Langley with support from the war department of the United States. The first attempts to fly the machine failed due to various mechanical issues cited by Langley. Langley developed various models of the machine. Each of the models performed better than the previous one and these progresses attracted the attention of the federal government. Langley’s projects were highly funded by the government in an attempt to enhance their success in the war. The Langley machine was driven by steam and launched using a catapult. The most successful Aerodrome was placed in the museum for historical purposes. However, Curtis sneaked the machine out of the museum in 1914. The Aerodrome is among the first human carrying machine to flying for a long distance in 19th century (Auriti 16). The efforts by Langley to incorporate the Wright brothers’ ideas in developing an effective aerodrome were limited by reluctance from the brothers. Katherine refers to the Langley machine as the ‘so –called’ because of the modifications made on it by Curtiss in an attempt to identify Langley as the pioneer of the aviation industry. Curtiss made various variations on the design of the original Aerodrome by Langley in order to enhance it flying capabilities. However, the redesigned aerodrome failed to fly successfully as the scientists had predicted. Katherine in the later refers to the remodeled Langley machine (Harwood and Fogel 37).

What were the motives of the "Curtiss people"? The Curtiss people comprised of various engineers and researchers operating at the Curtis lab. Their action of modifying the Aerodrome was mainly to ensure that Langley is recognized as the pioneer of the aircraft. They argued that, the efforts of Langley in development of the Aerodrome prompted other individuals such as the Wright brothers to explore the industry. In addition, the Curtiss group aimed at obtaining patent for inventing the first flying machine. They wanted their efforts to be recognized by authorities by displaying the functionality of the aerodrome. However, the Curtis group failed to obtain patents for production of aircrafts and recognition of Langley as the pioneer of aircraft in United States. The Wright brothers due to efficiency and a complete functionality of their plane won the patent case. The Curtis group on the other hand successfully led to recognition of Langley among the pioneers of aircraft industry in the World (Harwood and Fogel 26).

How did the press help the Curtiss team? What was it that they did not investigate properly? The press helped the Curtiss team in various ways. First, the event of flying the modified aerodrome was carried out in the presence of various press members. The Curtiss group invited inexperienced press personnel to view the launch of the aerodrome. The press personnel involved in the exercise lacked prior experience in various aircraft experiments done by Langley previously. In addition, they were not familiar with the original, which enhanced their conviction level. The press personnel printed information on various newspapers and newlines pushing for the recognition of Langley as the inventor of the plane. In addition, they discredited the Wright brothers’ inventions as an imitation of Langley’s design. The press did not investigate the previous Aerodrome experiments by Langley, which limited their knowledge of the modified Aerodrome. In addition, the press did not investigate the design of the original Aerodrome design and compare with the modified model. In addition, the press failed to investigate the differences in the Wright brother’ machine design and that of the Aerodrome (Trimble 11).

What are your impressions of Katherine Wright - a woman in 1915? Katherine Wright is a role model to her younger brothers. She persists in the fight for the patent and warns Curtiss and his team on the effects of their negligence. During that period, the society was highly discriminative against women but Katherine overcame such hurdles to fight for her brothers’ rights. Katherine is courageous which enables her to confront individuals who are ranked highly in the government. She is also straightforward in her critics. Katherine points out various government officials fighting against her brothers efforts to patent their discoveries (Tobin 26).

References

Auriti, Lorenzo Paul Joseph. Aeroelastic Analysis Of The Langley Aerodrome. Ottawa: National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1999. Print.

Harwood, Craig S, and Gary Fogel. Quest For Flight. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2012. Print.

Tobin, James. To Conquer The Air. New York: Free Press, 2003. Print.

Trimble, William F. Hero Of The Air. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 2010. Print.

White, Andrew Dickson, Edward C Pickering, and Octave Chanute. Samuel Pierpont Langley, Secretary Of The Smithsonian Institution, 1887-1906. Washington: Smithsonian Institution, 1907. Print.