Born in Germany, Otto Bettmann at the age of 32 lost his job selling rare books when Hitler came to power. He ran from Germany to New York, USA with only 2 boxes of belongings and 5 dollars in his pocket. In particular, in those two boxes are the rolls of film and the number of photos Bettmann collected while earning a PhD in art history at the University of Leipzig. By the end of the 20th century, Bettmann had grown into one of the world’s finest private photo collections. By the time Bettmann arrived in New York, LIFE, Look and Time magazines were in their infancy but were rapidly gaining popularity. Bettmann became their source of photos, with rental fees ranging from $50 to $3,000. During her career, whenever and wherever possible, Bettmann was there to photograph events. Over time, Bettmann has amassed a huge stock of photographs, by purchasing the rights of other paparazzi. Bettmann is also known for being rigorous and discerning when it comes to choosing photos. He typically turns down most of the 100,000 images his employees put on their desks every year. After the acquisition of UPI’s photo archive, his collection grew to 11 million, but some estimate it could be as large as 19 million. Bettmann’s archive is now housed in an underground cave system that used to be a limestone quarry. In 1998, the Boston-based “Iron Mountain” company renovated and leased it as a storage facility with customers such as data centers, television networks, etc. In addition to special security, the “Iron Mountain” facility features a fire department, restaurant, water treatment plant, and 150-acre underground lake. Nearly 2,500 people work in the cave daily, like a small city. The Bettmann Photo Collection has the same conditions of preservation as the Smithsonian or the National Archives; but this is a commercial organization that provides photographs for newspapers, magazines, books, television and academic research activities for a fee. Negatives are carefully inspected and maintained in a approximately 1,000-square-foot facility, equipped with Verilux lamps to provide vitamin D to staff. This photo archive is cross-categorized and indexed into 50 groups, 5,000 subject categories, and thousands of subcategories. “What Bettmann has created is a visual history of the world categorized by subject,” the New York Times said. One of the iconic images of America in the Bettmann Archive is a photograph of President Harry S. Truman gleefully holding up the incorrect headline on the front page of the Chicago Daily Tribune misinforming his defeat before Thomas E. Dewey in the 1948 Presidential election. The haunting image of President Abraham Lincoln towering over his Confederate generals at Antietam is one of many Civil War photographs in Bettmann’s photo collection. The Bettmann Collection contains some of the most recognizable photographs of the 20th century: Group of construction workers atop the 70-story Rockefeller Center building in Manhattan Or the legendary photo of Marilyn Monroe taken in September 1954 in the movie 20th Century Fox This Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph depicts a Vietnamese mother with her children wading across a river, fleeing US bombing on September 7, 1965. This photo shows that Americans clearly understand what really happened during the Vietnam War Picture of the tragedy that occurred with the Hindenburg airship in 1937. It exploded upon landing at Lakehurst Airport, New Jersey, after a transatlantic flight, killing 36 passengers. Bill Gates bought the Bettmann collection in 1995. In 2016, billionaire Bill Gates sold the digital rights to valuable photos that were in danger of deteriorating over time. Most of the Bettmann Repository currently does not post photos online but is issued in hard copy. Bob Ahern, Director of Archives Photography at Getty Images, estimates that to date, only 1% of the entire collection has been released to the public.

The ultra-thin house is located at 44 Hull Street, North End Boston. The house is located between two buildings on a historic neighborhood, facing Copp’s Hill cemetery and overlooking the Old North Church. At just 10.4 feet (3.16m), Skinny House is dubbed the “narrowest house in Boston,” according to The Boston Globe. Outside the house read “The Skinny House (Spite House) Est.” 1862 “. In addition to its unique size, Skinny House also makes tourists curious thanks to the story that many people consider to be funny behind. According to locals the house was built in 1862, after a confrontation between two brothers. The owner of this land has two sons. One enlisted during the Civil War, the other lived in Boston. When the father died, the older brother, living right next to his father, took up most of the inheritance land and built a spacious house. The younger brother fought back to find that he had nothing but a small piece of land that did not have enough room to build a decent house. However, the soldier decided to “tit for tat”, still built the house on a small piece of land but built a very high wall to block the view and sunlight of his house. Since then, the house has passed through many owners. It was last sold for $ 900,000 in 2017. The first floor is for the kitchen and dining area, the second floor is for the living room and bathroom, the third and fourth floors are the bedrooms. The only entrance is located on the side of the house, the house is narrower to about 2.82 m to the back, with the narrowest part of only 1.82 m. The total area of ​​the rooms is 1,166 square feet (about 108m2). The house is a familiar place with locals, but not all tourists know it. So the house with the nickname “Boston’s thinnest” is considered a very potential tourist destination.

The ultra-thin house is located at 44 Hull Street, North End Boston. The house is located between two buildings on a historic neighborhood, facing Copp’s Hill cemetery and overlooking the Old North Church. At just 10.4 feet (3.16m), Skinny House is dubbed “the narrowest house in Boston”. The Boston Globe . The only sign that will help visitors recognize it is a small sign outside the house that says “The Skinny House (Spite House) Est. 1862”. In addition to its unique size, Skinny House also makes tourists curious thanks to the story that many people consider to be funny behind. According to locals the house was built in 1862, after a confrontation between two brothers. The owner of this land has two sons. One enlisted during the Civil War, the other lived in Boston. When the father died, the older brother, living right next to his father, took up most of the inherited land and built a spacious house. The younger brother fought back to find that he had nothing but a small piece of land that did not have enough room to build a decent house. However, the soldier decided to “tit for tat”, still built the house on a small piece of land but built a very high wall to block the view and sunlight of his house. Since then, the house has passed through many owners. It was last sold for $ 900,000 in 2017. The first floor is for the kitchen and dining area, the second floor is for the living room and bathroom, the third and fourth floors are the bedrooms. The only entrance is located on the side of the house, the house is narrower to about 2.82 m to the back, with the narrowest part of only 1.82 m. The total area of ​​the rooms is 1,166 square feet (about 108m2). The house is a familiar place with locals, but not all tourists know it. So the house with the nickname “Boston’s thinnest” is considered a very potential tourist destination. Minh Hoa (th)

Cheeky theft All 16,000 paintings, sculptures and ceramics in the Gardner Museum were collected by a woman named Isabella Stewart Gardner. After inheriting a huge fortune from her millionaire father in 1891, she and her husband Jack Gardner – also a millionaire – began to visit Europe, and buy Roman sculptures and vases. antique, paintings by painter Rembrandt. After realizing her collection was very valuable, she built a museum named after her in the hope that it would contribute to “educating and entertaining the public forever”. Empty picture frames at the Gardner Museum Isabella passed away in 1924, and due to the couple’s only child, who accidentally died at a young age, she confiscated the entire museum. However, without the financial patronage of the female millionaire, the Gardner Museum quickly declined. On the evening of March 18, 1993, two police robbers tricked two young night guards, 23-year-old Rick Abath and 25-year-old Randy Hestand, to open the door to the museum on the grounds of investigating a case. Puppet takes place inside. The two security guards had no doubt that March 18 was St. Patrick’s Day, which was an “occasion” for the people of Boston to party and fight. The two thieves quickly restrained Rick and Randy, disabled security cameras and removed the precious paintings from the frame. The two thieves left at 2:45 am, and two security guards were bound and gagged with tape until the other guards arrived at 8:15 a.m. Two thieves took away the most valuable artworks on display at the museum: Rembrandt’s only seascape painting “Storm on the Sea of ​​Galilee”, “Ladies and Gentlemen in Black” as well. by Rembrandt, one of more than 10 paintings surviving to this day by the most talented Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer “The Concert”. In addition, they also stole a self-portrait of the painter Rembrandt, 5 draft drawings by French Impressionist Edgar Degas, a painting by the painter Edouard Manet and when they could not remove the Yellow flag. When Napoleon came down, they took away an antique Chinese bronze jar. Painting “Storm on the Sea of ​​Galilee” painted by painter Rambrandt – the most valuable item of what was stolen When she donated the museum to the city of Boston, Isabella made it clear her condition in her will, presumably to protect her brainchild from merchants, that no one was allowed to sell or donate. Contribute works of art, do not add any new works, and do not rearrange collections, and if these terms are breached, everything, including land. The Gardner Museum built … will be renamed to Harvard University. These strict provisions inadvertently created a major obstacle for the museum’s management: they could not hang other paintings to replace stolen ones, so they had to hang empty frames – like one. how to remind all of the lost treasures. Years passed, and these frames became the most popular “works” here. For Anthony Amore, director of security at the Gardner Museum and chief investigator of the theft, the fact that visitors were more concerned with empty frames than the remaining works made him concerned that Theft will overshadow the real value of the stolen treasures. “The paintings are artifacts of hundreds of years ago, to demonstrate a past that is not preserved in photographs. With just one ticket, one can see Rembrandt’s brush strokes, and now Now, we don’t maintain museums for money, but because we want to end the tragedy of the missing paintings. ” Theories were put forward for three decades Mr. Anthony investigated the case as detailed and comprehensive as possible, because he believed that if he answered every tip-off email and followed every trace he received, no matter how far away they sounded, he would be. Surely he will find something. Mr. Amore is still working with FBI agent Geoff Kelly, who is in charge of investigating the Gardner burglary. Gardner museum’s security director, Mr. Anthony Amore Mr. Geoff is the latest FBI agent in a series of agents assigned to investigate the case since 1981. Over the past three decades, the FBI has conducted a series of underground investigation campaigns from Miami, USA to Japan. The village is far away, and every time they leave empty-handed. Mr. Witman, a retired FBI agent, believes that the Corsician gang’s line in France that he infiltrated under the guise of an antiques “trigger” in 2006 actually owns the paintings. stolen in 1981. However, since many years have passed, he is not sure if they still keep those treasures. Responding to this clue, Mr. Anthony said that the paintings were not in France. Currently, the FBI has come up with a theory that Anthony is quite confident, that is the artwork stolen by two low-level minions in a criminal organization in Boston. The FBI once believed that Carmello Merlino was holding them because during a 1998 eavesdropping, agents overheard Merlino blabbering that he knew where the spoils were. However, later, when arrested for armed robbery and interrogated by the FBI, he was unable to indicate where the Gardner museum property was hidden. Merlino was sentenced to 47 years in prison, and died in 2005. The FBI and Anthony tracked down two tycoons in Maine, USA in 2003 and almost found the stolen stuff. In 2013, the FBI announced that they knew the identities of both thieves, and that both had passed away. As of now, the paintings may be in New England, USA. Portrait sketch of two perpetrators Geoff maintains his theory: Boston tycoon Whitey Bulger donated the paintings to the Interim Irish Republican Army (IRA) – a paramilitary organization aimed at ending British rule in the North. Ireland, and the IRA have indeed been involved in a number of antiques smuggling. After Bulger was arrested and the museum’s assets have yet to be found, Geoff argued that the two thieves did not follow the IRA’s orders but were still associated with the organization because they committed the crime on St. Patrick’s Day – one Important holidays for the people of Ireland. In addition, it is true that the IRA stole works of art, but they only stole domestic museums, such as the Russborough Museum in Ireland – which has been stolen by the IRA four times in a row. Mr. Anthony also pointed out that there are many works of Rembrandt in Europe, so the IRA does not have to fly to America to cause the crime. Mr. Geoff’s hypothesis was supported by inspector Charles Hill – a member of the committee that had found the picture “Scream” in 1994 – supported. Mr. Charles asserted that gangster Martin Foley, owner of the notorious debt collection company Viper, which has a close relationship with the Rossborough Museum’s painting thief, has “led the way” to two perpetrators selling the items. Gardner Museum items, that’s why Martin knows where the paintings are. Currently, Martin Foley is being sued by the Irish Property Criminal Bureau for owing $ 830,000 in taxes and Charles convinced him that he would be rewarded with $ 10 million, more than enough to pay, if he would declare it all. However, Charles thinks Martin is afraid of being prosecuted by both the FBI and Ireland for possession of fraud. There is another theory about the people behind the theft, which is that two security guards staged the crime. Dutch historian Arthur Brand, who has been dubbed the real-life Indiana Jones, opposes this argument and believes two security guards were not involved in the case. Attempts to solve the case in 2021 The Gardner Museum is currently closed due to the epidemic, but Mr. Anthony still goes to work every day, communicating with all the informants about the case. Over the years, many witnesses have passed away, but Anthony patiently added new findings and reread the tens of thousands of pages of evidence the FBI had provided. This man believes the answer must lie somewhere. Former lawyer Martin Leppo, although he did not search for the paintings, was still unable to stop pursuing the case, partly because so many people contacted him every day. Of course, Mr. Martin also encountered many imposters. For example, in 2019, a woman demanded to meet him and insisted her father was involved in the case, and she knew where the paintings were. But when Mr. Martin asked to see the paintings, she disappeared. “A few days ago someone called me to invite me to Saudi Arabia because he had a clue where the stolen items were, and I told him if he could find it, call me back,” he said. .

Xinzhiyuan Report

Source: verge

Edit: yaxin

【Xin Zhiyuan Guide】Boston Dynamics Robot Dog gets another new skill. Recently, a YouTube blogger, Michael Reeves, used his technical expertise to tune the robot dog Spot to “pee” like a real dog.

Some time ago, a woman in Florida, the United States, “walked her dog” on the beach aroused onlookers.

Because what she is holding with the “rope” in her hand is actually a Boston-powered robot dog!

Now, the robot dog Spot has also learned to “pee”, this is the real dog…

And this peeing dog was “trained” by a YouTube blogger, Michael Reeves, using his technical expertise and talented mind.

Next time you go to “walk the dog”, you must bring it, the scene is very windy! “Reminder: Be careful of getting tickets when you urinate anywhere”

Dancing, skipping rope, cleaning the house, watering flowers, going to Tesla and other factories to “move bricks”, and now Spot has learned to “pee” again.

It can be said that Spot Robot Dog got a new skill.

But the location where the outlet pipe is installed is too “evil-interesting.”

Robot Dog Spot: I am not a real person, but you are a real dog!

The robot dog Spot “urines” beer into the glass and currently has more than 7 million views on YouTube.

Let’s take a video and feel it as a whole~

The original idea of ​​blogger Michael Reeves was to make Spot the robot dog a good helper who can help people pour beer.

In the video, Michael kindly invites a friend to drink beer, but friends who see this scene should feel crazy.

“Dried this cup” really needs to overcome a great psychological barrier!

Netizens are curious, “How does it taste?”

At present, the accuracy rate of the robot dog under the supervision of Michael in pouring beer into the glass is only 35%.

Although it has not yet reached the level of “precise delivery”, this idea has already aroused enthusiastic comments from netizens.

Let the robot dog “pee” into the cup, how did Michael manage it successfully?

Training for 6 months, named “Pissbot 9000”

Michael said, “Training Spot requires some smart programming, and it took 6 months to complete.”

First, an important device is needed, a camera that can recognize where the cup is.

Since BD’s high-quality cameras cost nearly $30,000, Michael decided to use an off-the-shelf home surveillance camera, a wireless receiver and AV adapter.

Michael programmed the robot dog to find the brightest pixels recorded by the camera to identify the white interior of the red cup.

To avoid the camera’s confusion between the white ground and the white interior of the cup, Michael used the inverse square law in physics to change the point of light and project light into the surrounding environment.

The inverse square law is defined as: in any physical law, the distribution or intensity of a certain physical quantity will decrease in inverse proportion to the square of the distance from the source.

The modification that Michael had to make was not simply putting a small bucket on Spot’s back and then reprogramming.

He also designed a nozzle gimbal to aim the cup more precisely.

This device uses a servomechanism and a solenoid driven by the Raspberry-Pi “vision system” to ensure that the robot does not miss the cup.

The results of it? 35% accuracy rate.

As demonstrated in the video, “urine” sometimes spills out and messes up the floor.

By the way, this trained robot dog is no longer called Spot, and Michael named it “Pissbot 9000”.

Open source SDK, do it yourself DIY

In June 2020, Boston Dynamics opened the Robot Dog Spot to the public for public sale for $75,000.

It can walk at 3 miles per hour, climb terrain, avoid obstacles, see 360-degree images, and perform some programmed tasks.

In addition, it can also map the environment, sense and avoid obstacles, climb stairs and open doors. It can perform dangerous tasks in a variety of uninhabitable environments, such as nuclear power plants, offshore oil fields and construction sites.

In order to cooperate with the sales of this robot dog product, Boston Dynamics also open sourced Spot’s Python scripting language SDK.

You can directly control Spot with Python. Boston has open sourced Spot’s SDK, which means that after you buy Spot, you can use your own DIY functions. It is not a dream to have your own dedicated robot dog.

Just in February, a spoof organization in the United States tied a Tipman 98 paintball gun to the body of the Boston Dynamics Internet celebrity robot dog Spot, and let it wander in the gallery.

Naturally, this incident aroused heated discussions among netizens.

Boston Dynamics publicly condemned the violent, harmful, and threatening behavior for this.

Michael Reeves’s own DIY robot dog allows us to see the unknown side of Spot.

It is definitely a master who can tune a robot dog so well!

Reference materials:

https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2021/4/12/22379501/boston-dynamics-spot-pee-beer-michael-reeves

https://hothardware.com/news/boston-dynamics-spot-robot-dog-beer-delivery-pee-blast#.YHRmHyWR13Q.twitter

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