1950s

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WATER TOWER HOUSE Sleeps 16 + Donner Lake- monthly ok (Truckee) $350 5bd

This unique 1950s three-story converted water tower has views of pristine Donner Lake from every level. Each floor is round with cozy knotty pine ceilings and wood walls and beams. The entertaining floor is centered around a great room that includes a living area with comfortable couch and chairs poised around a wood burning Franklin stove and big screen TV/CD and DVD player. The open kitchen is large enough for three busy cooks and is far from rustic. There is a stove, dishwasher, microwave, refrigerator. Tall stools are at the bar so guests can talk to you while you cook. There is a full size pool table for the sharks in the family and decks front and back of this level for bar-b-ques and an open fire pit for bonfires and sÂ’mores. Above the living room is a loft that sleeps four. The next level down has three bedrooms, two full baths, and a laundry room. There is also a deck on this level with a large all season hot tub. The third level has its own living room, kitchenette, two bedrooms and a full bath. Three to five car parking, depending on season. The house is located on a quiet street that skirts the south side of the lake and is conveniently located one mile from the historic city of Truckee, established in 1893. From this warm and charming house on Donner Lake you will find an outdoor environment in which to explore and have great adventures, and the place to come back to for relaxing comfort with your companions. tags : ski, donner lake, lake tahoe, large house, For more information and pictures go to http://www.spindlerrentals.com"

The World's Greatest Aviation Innovations

It seems all news is bad news when it comes to aviation these days, and it's too bad because it overshadows just how wonderful it is that we can fly. Think about it -- 100 years ago, few could imagine it. Today we take it for granted. It's an amazing accomplishment, and too often people lose sight of that. Aviation.com has compiled a list of the greatest innovations of aviation that have taken us ever further and faster in the 100 years since the Wright Brothers took wing. It includes things like the monoplane, transatlantic flight, the steam catapault and human-powered aircraft. We looked at their list, tweaked it a bit and came up with our top 12 because 10 wasn't enough. 1. Cabin pressurization -- The average passenger doesn't think about cabin pressurization until their yellow safety masks fall from the ceiling, but the reality is that if the technology hadn't been developed during WWII, we wouldn't be able to fly much above 10,000 feet. 2. Black Box -- Morbid but essential, the black box was invented in the mid-1950s, and not only helps investigators learn why a plane crashed, but how that information can be applied to other aircraft to prevent a repeat. 3. The Concorde -- It never delivered on its commercial promise, and it was an environmental bad boy, but who can deny that breaking the sound barrier aboard a commercial aircraft is cool. And have you ever seen a more beautiful plane? 4. Radar -- Sure, the airlines are dying to replace it with GPS technology, but for decades it's been radar that helps air traffic controllers locate and track planes up to 200 miles away. Would our modern air traffic infrastructure exist without it? Probably not. 5. The jumbo jet -- Whether you think they're graceful or ungainly, you can't deny that jumbo jets have changed the face of commercial aviation. The economies of scale provided by a 400-seat airliner meant airlines could offer cheap tickets that made it possible for the masses to fly. 6. The hub and spoke system -- People hate, hate, hate having to make stopovers at jam packed airports controlled by a single airline. Yeah, they're expensive to fly into and delay prone, but hub airports are a big part of the reason that you have 20 flights a day to choose from when flying between most large American cities. 7.The Very Light Jet (VLJ) -- It's been a tough road for the VLJ, with manufacturers suffering production problems and customers going out of business, but that doesn't diminish the allure of a 37 foot, 3,500 pound plane designed to carry four to six passengers on short hops that would otherwise require a car ride. 8. Winglets -- Here's another one that most of us don't think about. The small upward-pointing extensions at the tips of aircraft wings reduce drag, improve climb performance, increase range, and make flight more fuel efficient. With oil at over $100 a barrel, no wonder most airlines have added winglets across their fleets. 9. The flying wing -- Yves Rossy keeps breaking records and defying expectations with his 8-foot-diameter, carbon composite flying wing. Last week he made a successful 13 minute, 125 mph trip across the English Channel. 10. Stealth aircraft -- What's cooler than a plane that can outsmart radar? Because the surfaces of a stealth are designed to absorb radio waves or reflect them away from the receiver, stealth planes can sneak in and sneak out undetected. Too bad they're so expensive: The 21 plane B-2 program cost over $45 billion. 11. Jetway -- Another one most of us don't think about is the long covered walkway the connects our departure gate with our plane. It means we don't have to wait outside on the tarmac in sleet and rain, or contend with the shriek of jet engines. The A380 is served by three jet bridges, one of them leading directly to the first class lounge.  12. Deicing -- Ice buildup is the cause of many fatal aircraft accidents, which is why applying monopropylene de-icing fluid to wings pre-flight has become standard operating procedure. Without it, air traffic would ground to a halt every time things got a little stormy. That's it. That's our top 12. Use the Reddit Widget below to tell us what we got wrong, what you'd add and why you think it's important. Photo by Flickr user adpowers Tell us what you consider the most important aviation innovations ... Show suggestions that are: hot | new | top-rated or submit your own suggestion   Submit a suggestion While you can submit as many suggestions as you want, you can only submit one every 30 minutes. No HTML allowed. Back to top

'Livin' Large' in a Car That Isn't

In an attempt to convince college students that it's really cool to drop 13 large on a domestic-branded subcompact hatchback, Chevy has relaunched its "Livin' Large" campaign with a "College Cab" that films students inside a Chevy Aveo5 during a three- to four-minute ride. It's the third year of "Livin' Large," and this year GM's got a better product and a new strategy. Sure, the  '09 Aveo5 is a rebadged Daewoo making an Edsel face, but at least it gets decent crash test ratings, has better fuel economy than its predecessor and is one of the cheapest cars on the market. Chevy hopes to spread that message through viral marketing, encouraging students who were filmed in the Aveo5 to share their videos with friends in a competition to win a new car. We're afraid it doesn't bode well for the campaign that Chevy's amateur brand ambassadors are dumb enough to get into a car with a video camera on the dash and a total stranger behind the wheel.In a 2007 press release, Chevy likened the original "Livin' Large" campaign to the 1950s fad of cramming college kids into a Volkswagen, a craze that isn't likely to attract the claustrophobic. Of course, last year's participants had to live in their cars. GM marketers must have realized that challenge would hit a little too close to home (so to speak) in our new economic reality, so they've set up a free cab service instead. Chevy says the viral marketing is the "latest way to market to America's most coveted consumer," so only students whose parents have a credit score of 790 or above are allowed in the cab. A cursory glance at the videos feels kinda creepy. In the decidedly unpopular "Freshmen Silence," a grainy video shows two young-looking guys being peppered with questions by an unseen interviewer. It feels kind of like a cross between Kids Say the Darndest Things and the witness interrogation portion of the Michael Jackson trial. Still, it's not nearly as uncomfortable as the rap breakdown about feminine hygiene products. We bet that Joe Biden is rooting for Charles S. from San Diego, a regular guy who bombed a midterm and who just wants to save gas on his commute to school. The College Cab is headed to four more schools, so students at the University of Houston, the University of South Florida, the University of Washington and the University of Oregon still have a chance to make a ridiculous video that will keep them from ever getting a job. Photo and videos courtesy Chevy

WATER TOWER HOUSE Sleeps 16 + Donner Lake- monthly rental ok (Truckee) $350 5bd

This unique 1950s three-story converted water tower has views of pristine Donner Lake from every level. Each floor is round with cozy knotty pine ceilings and wood walls and beams. The entertaining floor is centered around a great room that includes a living area with comfortable couch and chairs poised around a wood burning Franklin stove and big screen TV/CD and DVD player. The open kitchen is large enough for three busy cooks and is far from rustic. There is a stove, dishwasher, microwave, refrigerator. Tall stools are at the bar so guests can talk to you while you cook. There is a full size pool table for the sharks in the family and decks front and back of this level for bar-b-ques and an open fire pit for bonfires and sÂ’mores. Above the living room is a loft that sleeps four. The next level down has three bedrooms, two full baths, and a laundry room. There is also a deck on this level with a large all season hot tub. The third level has its own living room, kitchenette, two bedrooms and a full bath. Three to five car parking, depending on season. The house is located on a quiet street that skirts the south side of the lake and is conveniently located one mile from the historic city of Truckee, established in 1893. From this warm and charming house on Donner Lake you will find an outdoor environment in which to explore and have great adventures, and the place to come back to for relaxing comfort with your companions. For more information and pictures go to http://www.spindlerrentals.com"

UK secret doubts at Ghana freedom

UK cabinet paper from 1950s - revealed for the first time - document deep pessimism over Ghana's independence.

10 Highways That Should Be Razed Now

America is built around the automobile. Big cities may have decent transit systems, but most of us spend a lot of time slogging through traffic on a highway. Say what you will, but the National Highway System is a crucial part of our transportation infrastructure. Trouble is, it wasn't built with city dwellers in mind. Hulking expressways and overpasses too often bisect our cities, dividing neighborhoods, blocking access to waterfronts and promoting blight. Many were built decades ago, and as they fall into disrepair, some activists say they should be razed entirely. Replacing them with neighborhood-friendly boulevards would, they say, foster revitalization, restore communities and save taxpayers billions in construction costs. "There's a whole generation of elevated highways in cities that are at the end of their design life," says John Norquist, head of the Congress for the New Urbanism. "Instead of rebuilding them at enormous expense, cities have an opportunity to undo what proved to be major urban-planning blunder." It's a novel idea that's worked in cities like San Francisco, Portland and Milwaukee. Norquist has a list of other cities that oughtta fire up the wrecking ball and take down a highway."Freeways Without Futures" outlines 10 urban highways that have long since outlived their usefulness. It was compiled by the Congress for the New Urbanism and the Center for Neighborhood Technology, and it focuses on those areas with the best chance of removing a freeway and replacing it with a boulevard. "The Federal Highway Fund just received a short-term bailout," Norquist says. "The money that does exist can be invested much more efficiently in surface streets and transit." This is not an abstract idea for Norquist. He was mayor of Milwaukee when the city replaced the Park East Freeway with McKinley Boulevard six years ago. CNU says averaged assessed land values in the area climbed 180 percent between 2001 and 2006. San Francisco saw similar gains after razing the Embarcadero and Central freeways. "Fifty years ago, when there was flight from cities, industrialized waterfronts seemed like a convenient place to run freeways," Norquist says. "The result for the neighborhoods has been blight. Cities like San Francisco that have removed freeways and reclaimed waterfronts have turned them into magnets for people and investment." CNU says the following cities could enjoy similar benefits if they'd raze these 10 highways: Alaskan Way Viaduct, Seattle, WA ? (pictured) Built in 1953, this north-south route along Seattle's Elliot Bay stands between the city and an open Seattle waterfront. Sheridan Expressway, Bronx, NY ? Known as I-895 and built in 1963, it was designed to connect the Bruckner Expressway with the New England Thruway in the Bronx, but local opposition limited it to a one-mile road that mars the Bronx River waterfront. Skyway and Route 5, Buffalo, NY ?  Built in 1953, this 1.4-mile long, 110-foot tall bridge begins at the Inner Harbor downtown, crosses the Buffalo River and touches down as Route 5 in the Outer Harbor. It blocks access to the waterfront, and there is no pedestrian access between downtown and the Outer Harbor. Route 34 - New Haven, CT ? This highway begins at the junction of Interstates 95 and 91 and extends on columns into downtown New Haven for 1.1 miles, but plans to extend the road another 10 miles were never realized. Six hundred families were displaced to make room for this project, which was built in 1959. Claiborne Expressway, New Orleans, LA ? In the 1950s, this highway rolled over one of New Orleans' thriving African-American communities. With construction of the more direct I-610 in the 1970s, calls for the removal of the Claiborne have been increasing. Interstate 81, Syracuse NY ? When Interstate 81 was finished in the late 1950s it destroyed an African-American community, and today is an eyesore that does little to promote growth in downtown Syracuse. Interstate 64, Louisville, KY ? This six-lane highway separates downtown Louisville from its waterfront. In 2003, the Federal Highway Administration proposed a $4.1 billion expansion of I-64, which has been loudly opposed by area activists. Route 29, Trenton, NJ ? This four-lane road runs along the Delaware River and has a higher-than-average rate of collisions. Its removal would pave the way for a mixed-use waterfront development. Gardiner Expressway, Toronto, ON ? Finished in 1966, this eight-lane highway separates downtown Toronto from its waterfront and costs $10 million a year to maintain. 11th Street Bridges and the Southeast Freeway, Washington, D.C. ? The Southeast Freeway is a 1.39-mile stretch of freeway running through Washington, D.C., built in the late 1960s. It connects Interstate 395 to Interstate 295 at the 11th Street Bridges and was prevented from continuing west due to local opposition at the time. That's the list. What's yours? Use the Reddit widget below to tell us which highways you would tear down, why you'd raze it and what you'd put in its place. Photo: Slightlynorth/Flickr Tell us what freeway you'd take down and why, and vote for those you agree with. Show suggestions that are: hot | new | top-rated or submit your own suggestion   Submit a suggestion While you can submit as many suggestions as you want, you can only submit one every 30 minutes. No HTML allowed. Back to top