Randy McDonald ([info]rfmcdpei) wrote,
@ 2009-07-03 11:13:00
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Entry tags:photos, toronto, university of toronto

[PHOTO] U of T Admissions and Awards Office, 315 Bloor Street West

The building that is now the University of Toronto's Admissions and Awards Office (315 Bloor Street West was, as described by Plaque 80 in Wayne Cook's list, once a cutting-edge centre for climate research.

The British Army began regular meteorological and magnetic observations on this campus in 1840, stimulating colonial society's fascination with science. After the Province of Canada took over the program in 1853, it built a new observatory, which became the headquarters of the Meteorological Service of Canada. Superintendent G.T. Kingston set up a system of stations, many telegraphically linked, which enabled the Service to issue both storm warnings and daily forecasts by 1876. Opened in 1909, this building was the Service's headquarters until its centenary in 1971.



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Not to focus on one small aspect of your post, but...
[info]absinthe_dot_ca
2009-07-03 04:54 pm UTC (link)
...stimulating colonial society's fascination with science...

I think one of the societal tragedies of the 20th century is how we moved away from that fascination with science. We somehow managed to move science from something that anybody could do, to something that could only be done by white-coated acolytes in sterile temples. I think we need a "Take back science!" movement -- we have that to a certain extent in the Maker movement (named for Make magazine), but many of those are more "tinkerers" than scientists.

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