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50th anniversary of the pacemaker: Rare interview with Medtronic founder Earl Bakken on KARE 11. " At the age of eight, Earl Bakken, a self-described nerd, became fascinated with anything electronic after seeing the movie 'Frankenstein.'" Rick Kupchella, KARE 11 News New Exhibit in the Great Hall
Fairy, Goddess, Wizard, Genie? Imagining Electricity, part of the Bakken’s new Electrifying Minnesota exhibit, is now open in the Great Hall. For those trying to ‘sell’ electricity as a safe, progressive commodity at the end of the 19th century, the public’s doubts and worries about this new form of energy were a challenge. Publicity was designed to put a face on electricity, to give it a friendly and familiar human form. Fairy, Goddess, Wizard, Genie? features some of the late 19th and early 20th century images used to bring electricity down to earth and into the home.
See how everyday life has been shaped by electrification through artifacts, photos, first-hand accounts, early advertisements and film from the 1880s through the 1950s. The exhibit recounts the history of electricity since one of the nation's first hydroelectric power plants whirred into action 125 years ago at St. Anthony Falls. It demonstrates electromagnetic induction, how the process utilizes natural resources to generate electricity and how the use of those resources impacts the environment. You'll learn how you can take responsibility for our electrical future by joining The Bakken team and taking the Minnesota Energy Challenge. Electrifying Minnesota is sponsored by: The Bakken Museum Minnesota Energy Challenge Team
The Minnesota Energy Challenge encourages simple, small, money-saving steps to promote efficient electricity and energy use. The purpose is to reduce global warming pollution.
People can also sign up at a computer kiosk in our new exhibit Electrifying Minnesota as seen here. If you check the current Team Standings, we are the top business team! And you can join our team too. Sign up today. We look forward to your particaption in this important global matter. Shirley Ann Jackson's talk on Converging Opportunities: The “Quiet Crisis” and Energy Security was recorded by Twin Cities Public Television. We are happy to now have it available on the web. Just click on the play button below.
Our new Educators' Guide is now available on the web - Click Here. Electrifying Experiences in Science for Elementary, Middle and High School Students.
Our new Spring Guide is now available on the web - Click Here.
Students make video about The Bakken Bakken Artifacts Now Accessible Online The database is located at http://thebakken.org/artifacts/database/ and is organized by The Bakken’s accessioning categories. A person interested in plate electrostatic generators, for instance, would first click on "Electrostatics". Under "frictional generators", click "plate". The result will be a list of the plate electrostatic generators in the collection. Clicking the hyperlinks will then lead you to an image and description of the generator in question. The instrument collection focuses on the history of electricity and magnetism in the life sciences. It includes electrostatic generators, magneto-electric generators, induction coils, physiological instruments, recording devices, and accessories. There are hundreds of pacemakers and defibrillators, and dozens of magnetic devices. A partial online catalogue of The Bakken’s extensive book collection has been available for a number of years at http://www.thebakken.org/library/library.htm#BooksAndManuscripts. Plans are being made for an online public access catalog of the entire collection.
Join our E-News List Explore the mysteries of science, the excitement of discovery and the passion of invention at The Bakken Museum. Through this e-mail service, keep up-to-date on Exhibit Openings - Youth Programs - Family Science Saturdays - Special Offers & Events - and Much More! |
| The Bakken A Library and Museum of Electricity in Life 3537 Zenith Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55416-4623, USA Join our E-Mail List Contact Us Tele: 612-926-3878 Fax: 612-927-7265 |
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Museum Hours:
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New "Electrifying Minnesota" Exhibit
The
Bakken Library and Museum announces the availability of a new online database
of its outstanding collection of artifacts relating to the history of
electricity and magnetism and their uses in medicine and the life sciences.
Records for approximately 90% of The Bakken’s unique collection
of roughly 2,000 artifacts have been entered into the database along with
images of almost every item. The information provided typically includes
description, remarks, and an image, as well as materials, date, size and
weight, and a list of accessories. 
