Plug In

 

I'm on my first road trip with an EV. And I'm having flashbacks.

I was born in 1960 so I have seen many 'firsts'. I remember getting a Color TV when that was a big deal. I remember having one of the first radio controlled garage doors when living in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. That was magic. My dad loved new stuff, we called them 'gadgets' back then.

In 1960, one in five American households didn’t have a car. 2025: There were 20.5 million EV cars sold, world-wide. 

Think about all the TV antennas on the rooftops across the USA. We had channels 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13 when I was growing up. And then came Cable TV. And then Satellite TV. And then the Internet. 

The only constant in life is change. 

I learned to drive during the 'Gas Crisis' in the 70s. I watched as President Carter spoke to the nation on TV, as he made the National Speed Limit 55 across the USA. I felt so cheated! Just in time for me get my driver's license, we had gas rationing. I also remember when President Carter placed Solar Panels on the White house. 

And I remember when President Reagan promptly took them down. 

When I drove to and from PURDUE from my home in New Jersey in the 70s gas was around $0.85 a gallon. There was talk that gas might cost more than $1 per gallon one day soon. Many said that would never happen. There were many 'muscle cars' on campus, no one really cared about MPG back then. During my days at PURDUE we had Americans being held hostage in Iran. Now in 2026 our cars and trucks are being held hostage. We really don't seem to learn, do we?

I can charge my EV at home, during off peak hours. It takes around 5 to 7 hours to get a full charge from home. From the road, it takes 10 to 20 minutes to top off to 80% of a charge, which can get me 250 to 350 miles. The app in the car (and in my phone) will find a charger for road trips. My son has an EV so when we visit him in Connecticut I charge up in his driveway. 

Solar (and wind) technology has changed a lot since the 70s. I wonder where we would be as a country if we kept the solar panels on the White House. If we made the alternative energy industry cool. If we changed from 'muscle cars' to electric. The 'gas crisis of the 70s should have been a lesson for all of us, right? 

We were warned. Big money wanted to keep the game the same. And climate change was a hoax, right?

I remember making that college drive from New Jersey to Indiana, and looking at all the land. The open spaces. Farmland, and cornfields. Farms, farms, farms as far as the eye can see. Why not Wind Farms and Solar Farms? 

Dozens of countries operate electrified or battery-electric (EV) trains, with widespread adoption across Europe, Asia, and expanding rapidly in Australia and the Americas. The majority utilize traditional electrified overhead wires or third rails, while others are pioneering battery-electric or hydrogen-powered train technologies for cleaner transit.

Leading countries utilizing electrified (EV) and battery-electric trains include:

Switzerland: Operates a 100% electrified national railway network, featuring heavily utilized electric passenger and freight trains.

The Netherlands: The first country to run its entire national railway on 100% wind-powered electricity.

Japan: Operates one of the world's most extensive electrified networks (roughly 75% electrified), famous for its high-speed electric Shinkansen bullet trains.

India: Aiming for full network electrification, with nearly 90% of its rail routes electrified using heavy electric locomotives for both freight and passenger travel.

China: Boasts the world's largest high-speed rail network and one of the largest overall electrified networks in the world.

Spain: Leads Europe in high-speed rail and is pioneering zero-emission electric and hydrogen-powered high-speed trains.

Australia: Expanding commercial battery-electric freight locomotives, using massive onboard battery banks and regenerative braking to haul heavy mining loads without overhead lines.

My grandchildren will never know a world without EV trains, cars, trucks. Probably EV ships and aircraft, too. Fossil fuels will be like having thousands of horses in the city, pulling wagons and buggies. 

That must have really been something, manure as far as the eye can see on city streets. Here's to hoping that we have sunny (and windy) times ahead. Like the rest of the civilized world. 

Democratizing Education

 

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Thomas Edison invented the first phonograph in 1877, creating the first machine capable of both recording and reproducing sound. He announced the invention on August 12, 1877, and produced the first audio recording, "Mary Had a Little Lamb," using tinfoil wrapped around a rotating cylinder at his Menlo Park, NJ laboratory ( around 15 miles from my home ).

Key details about the 1877 invention

• The Process: Edison's initial phonograph used a stylus to indent sound vibrations onto a tinfoil sheet wrapped around a cylinder.
• Initial Purpose: It was designed to record telephone messages and dictation.
• Inspiration: The invention was born out of his work on telegraphy and an improved telephone transmitter.
• Patent: Although the device was demonstrated in 1877, the patent was filed on December 24, 1877, and issued in early 1878.

And so: Thomas Edison invented the phonograph in 1877 to record and reproduce sound, initially intending it as a business machine to record telephone messages and dictation. While working on telegraph transmitters, Edison discovered a way to emboss sound vibrations onto tin foil, creating the first machine capable of playing back recorded audio. 

Did Thomas Edison invent distance learning?

No, Thomas Edison did not invent distance learning.

Distance learning (also called distance education or correspondence education) refers to structured learning where students and instructors are separated by time and/or distance, often using mail, media, or technology for delivery and feedback. Its origins predate Edison by decades or even centuries.

Key Historical Timeline

• 1728: One of the earliest recorded examples was in Boston, where Caleb Phillips advertised shorthand lessons via mailed correspondence in the Boston Gazette.
• 1840s: Sir Isaac Pitman in Britain is widely credited with the first modern correspondence course. He taught shorthand by mailing transcribed texts on postcards and receiving student work back for correction. This was enabled by cheap, uniform postage (the Penny Post). It included two-way feedback and scaled successfully.
• 1858: The University of London began offering distance learning degrees through its External Programme, making higher education accessible worldwide.

Later developments included U.S. correspondence programs in the late 1800s, radio/TV-based education in the 20th century, and eventually online learning.

The New Jersey Edison Connection

Edison (1847–1931) was largely homeschooled by his mother after a brief, unsuccessful time in formal school (his teacher reportedly called him "addled"). He was a voracious self-learner through reading and experimentation, which some stories romanticize as early "learning at home."

He did engage with educational technology later in life. In 1913, he predicted that motion pictures would transform schools within a decade, saying something like "Our school system will be completely changed." He produced educational films, but this was about using media in (or alongside) education, not inventing remote/distance learning itself.

In short, Edison was a brilliant inventor and self-taught individual whose mother facilitated his early education at home, and he later championed visual media for teaching but distance learning as a concept and practice existed long before him. 

The "founding father" of modern correspondence/distance education is typically Pitman.

Key Broadcasting Milestones

• 1895–1897: Guglielmo Marconi conducted the first successful wireless transmissions (Morse code/dot-dash signals), including the first over open water in 1897. These were not audio broadcasts but point-to-point communication.
• December 24, 1906 (Christmas Eve): Reginald Fessenden (a Canadian inventor) made what is widely regarded as the first radio broadcast of audio - human voice and music. From Brant Rock, Massachusetts, he transmitted violin playing (O Holy Night), a Bible passage, and possibly a phonograph record. Ships at sea (as far as Virginia) picked it up. This is often cited as the birth of voice and music broadcasting. { around 120 years ago }

1919–1920: The start of regular/scheduled broadcasting.

• November 6, 1919: Hanso Idzerda's PCGG station in The Hague, Netherlands, began regular entertainment broadcasts.
• August 20, 1920: 8MK (later WWJ) in Detroit broadcast regularly.
• November 2, 1920: KDKA in Pittsburgh (Westinghouse) broadcast the U.S. presidential election results (Harding vs. Cox). This is frequently called the first commercial radio broadcast or the start of the broadcasting era in the U.S.

2026: The Distance Learning Association via Global Satellite High Speed Internet delivers K-20 Education to every location in the word. And Telemedicine. And Ecommerce. And of course, entertainment. 

Ever watch a TED.com talk? How about a Netflix documentary? Or have you ever attended a class (or a meeting) via Zoom? 

Yeah, I love my job. We are all living, learning, working, playing, teaching, training, coaching, mentoring in the GLOBAL Cloud COMMUNITY. 

Yours and mine.