Feeling cranky about air travel? Get a grip.
Not on the arm of your passenger seat--on fact, history, and the amazing achievement of human flight. Though there werecertainly others who were fiddling with flying machines--most particularly, Alberto Santos-Dumont, a Brazilian who is widely celebrated in his local country as being the daddy of aviation--the Wright Siblings are sometimes regarded as first to get humans off the ground.
The interesting thing about the Wright brothers is they were not the idealistic dreamers you may expect them to be. They were major, studious, and striving to figure things out. They were mechanically-inclined brothers who owned a cycle shop, and they could not forget the transient but exciting flight of a cheap toy plane they'd received as kids. Like geeks everywhere, they dug in, immersing themselves in their research. By following their hunch and testing the heck out of it, they found the main component that enabled them to make that first flying hunk of wood, fabric and wire capable of carrying a person and--key point here--landing without crashing.
The Wright bros had the same access to records of attempted and failed attempts at flight as all other wannabe fliers of the time. Sure, it was their dogged endurance that led them to success, but there had been something else that actually helped them nail it.
Rather than concentrating on the force wanted to lift the contraption, or the engine needed to power it, they zeroed in on the idea of control. An Address peel and stick labels for all your buddies and relatives before you go. Cook a dish from one when you have mates over to see your video and footage. D Digital cameras save the day ; their little and you never run out of film. G Give generous tips, particularly in poor states, you will be so glad you did. N Note the local workmen and buy something authentic. P Postcards will rescue you when your photography fails. Q Questions help you to get the most out of all you see and experience. Read tons of books about your destination.
After a period of flying high, Santos-Dumont suffered from unwell health and committed suicide in 1932.
Next time you are toiling thru security, fighting to put your bag in the overhead compartment, or grousing about the leg room, pause a second to think on the sheer size of human flight.
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