Know Velocity

I want you to think about the pyramids for a second. Not pyramids in general, and not pyramid schemes (although I understand why your mind might have gone there right away – we’ve certainly heard enough about those in the news lately). No, I want you to think about the actual pyramids. You know, King Tut, Cleopatra, Indiana Jones. Have you ever stopped to think about how truly remarkable they are? I mean, they’ve been such a part of our world for so long, we kind of take them for granted. We don’t really notice them anymore. But can you imagine what it would have been like to see them being put up? Granted, the conditions were brutal and the labor was backbreaking, but still. It would have been awesome to watch. And it doesn’t stop there.

Imagine, for a moment, what it would have been like to watch the Brooklyn Bridge being built. If you’ve ever driven across it, you know that it’s a massive bridge. Huge. It’s one of the largest suspension bridges in the United States. And it was put together in the late 1800s. The 1800s! How did they do it? This was long before modern construction equipment. No cranes. No bulldozers. Just old fashioned manual labor. No wonder it took over 13 years to construct. Along those same lines, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco is quite a wonder as well. While it had the advantage of being built during the 20th century, it still was a massive project to complete. And it’s not like the people putting it together to simply look up construction leasing in San Francisco to pick up the equipment they needed. No, like the Brooklyn Bridge, the Golden Gate was assembled the “old school” way.

Look, I’m a modern guy, okay? I like my computer, I like my television set, I like my video games. But when I think of all that was accomplished before I even got here, man, I can’t help but feel a little small.

Filed at 5:16 am under History + More
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