Technology: The Franklin Institute Online

The Franklin Institute, founded in 1824 by a group of Philadelphians to train artisans and mechanics in the fundamentals of science, has since transformed itself into a science museum and research institute. It awards the annual Franklin Institute and Bower Awards. The site contains info on current and upcoming exhibits, which include substantial sections devoted to the mechanics and workings of trains, environmental science, and human physiology. Also: the Inquiry Attic, where visitors can read brief profiles of scientific instruments in the collection, such as early X-ray machines, a tabulating machine used to conduct the United States Census in the 19th century, and the Wright Brothers, featuring silent film footage of the Bergdoll 1911 Model B Flyer in flight and pics of the bros. engineering objects. Plus Braindrops, small tidbits of scientific information updated daily. <http://sln.fi.edu/>