1 00:00:01,320 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:14,440 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio, Hello and Happy Friday. I'm Holly Frye and 3 00:00:14,520 --> 00:00:15,280 Speaker 1: I'm Tracy V. 4 00:00:15,400 --> 00:00:15,840 Speaker 2: Wilson. 5 00:00:16,239 --> 00:00:19,720 Speaker 1: We talked about the early concepts of the metric system. 6 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:24,120 Speaker 1: This week we did I this is one of those 7 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:26,560 Speaker 1: subjects that when I read it, I'm going to confess 8 00:00:27,320 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: I feel like the stupidest, stupidest stupid tone because my 9 00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:32,879 Speaker 1: brain would never go, you know, what we should do? 10 00:00:34,159 --> 00:00:36,720 Speaker 1: We should measure the earth and then slice up part 11 00:00:36,720 --> 00:00:38,640 Speaker 1: of it and make that how we measure everything. Like, 12 00:00:38,720 --> 00:00:43,680 Speaker 1: I just can't, I cannot fathom being in that headspace. Right. 13 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:47,440 Speaker 1: For a long time, I had on my episode shortlist 14 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:55,040 Speaker 1: something about the kilogram, including like the physical object that's 15 00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:59,080 Speaker 1: sort of the embodiments of the measurement of oh, right, kilogram, 16 00:00:59,640 --> 00:01:03,800 Speaker 1: and I just couldn't ever find an approach to it 17 00:01:03,840 --> 00:01:07,880 Speaker 1: that made it an episode right. We were also talking 18 00:01:08,160 --> 00:01:12,679 Speaker 1: in this episode about uh. 19 00:01:14,680 --> 00:01:15,800 Speaker 2: Yeah, So. 20 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:19,479 Speaker 1: When I was in college, I went to a liberal 21 00:01:19,600 --> 00:01:25,360 Speaker 1: arts university, and people who were majoring in like math 22 00:01:25,720 --> 00:01:29,240 Speaker 1: or one of the hard sciences, or maybe a social 23 00:01:29,280 --> 00:01:32,000 Speaker 1: science that involved a lot of statistics like they had, 24 00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:36,000 Speaker 1: they would take math classes that met their general education 25 00:01:36,160 --> 00:01:41,400 Speaker 1: requirements that were things like calculus and statistics and whatever. 26 00:01:41,959 --> 00:01:47,000 Speaker 1: But then those of us who were studying literature or 27 00:01:48,120 --> 00:01:54,320 Speaker 1: or like another language or something else, who like did 28 00:01:54,360 --> 00:01:56,720 Speaker 1: not have a need in their curriculum for that kind 29 00:01:56,760 --> 00:02:00,000 Speaker 1: of math, and also maybe like me, have always strugg 30 00:02:01,160 --> 00:02:05,360 Speaker 1: with math, we gravitated towards this class that was called 31 00:02:05,440 --> 00:02:09,480 Speaker 1: the Nature of Mathematics, which was a really interesting class 32 00:02:09,480 --> 00:02:12,360 Speaker 1: that included about a lot of stuff about things like 33 00:02:12,560 --> 00:02:17,400 Speaker 1: ancient number systems, and like a lot of what we 34 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:21,560 Speaker 1: do is in a base ten number system, like we 35 00:02:21,639 --> 00:02:23,560 Speaker 1: count one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, 36 00:02:23,720 --> 00:02:27,400 Speaker 1: eleven that starts the next set, right, So base ten 37 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:31,359 Speaker 1: number systems pretty easy to wrap your head around. 38 00:02:32,360 --> 00:02:35,520 Speaker 2: Base sixty kind of. 39 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:39,600 Speaker 1: Easy because that's how we measure time, with there being 40 00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:42,639 Speaker 1: sixty minutes in an hour. But then there was there 41 00:02:42,639 --> 00:02:44,640 Speaker 1: were some that we talked about. There were in like 42 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: base twelve and just and it hurt my mind to 43 00:02:50,400 --> 00:02:53,360 Speaker 1: try to think about it, like it was so interesting. 44 00:02:54,080 --> 00:02:58,360 Speaker 1: I would just be trying to count in whatever whatever 45 00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 1: non ten unit. Those horror, right, and it doesn't hurt 46 00:03:03,600 --> 00:03:05,960 Speaker 1: my bright. And so when we were when we were 47 00:03:05,960 --> 00:03:09,080 Speaker 1: talking about that in this episode, I was like, that 48 00:03:09,240 --> 00:03:14,760 Speaker 1: reminds me of the nature of mathematics. Yeah, I mean, listen, 49 00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:19,040 Speaker 1: I'm not going to use this opportunity to once again 50 00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:21,120 Speaker 1: say I think we should be on metric time. 51 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:21,799 Speaker 2: But I do. 52 00:03:24,080 --> 00:03:27,080 Speaker 1: But because I mean, if you think about it, like, oh, no, 53 00:03:27,400 --> 00:03:33,919 Speaker 1: that's fine, we'll do will do all of these measure 54 00:03:33,919 --> 00:03:39,000 Speaker 1: physical measurements on a base ten system, but then base 55 00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: sixty with twelve and twelve as your day parts, Like 56 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:49,000 Speaker 1: it's just messy anyway, I too took a class like that, 57 00:03:50,400 --> 00:03:54,440 Speaker 1: but it became apparent that I was just enough in 58 00:03:54,600 --> 00:03:59,400 Speaker 1: between those two spaces of like I just want broad 59 00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:04,640 Speaker 1: stroke history information and I can't. I mean, to this day, 60 00:04:04,720 --> 00:04:09,720 Speaker 1: like no on the calculus. I have a very good 61 00:04:09,720 --> 00:04:12,360 Speaker 1: friend that I grew up with who was like, her 62 00:04:12,800 --> 00:04:15,200 Speaker 1: advanced degree is in mathematics, and she was as like, no, 63 00:04:15,360 --> 00:04:19,000 Speaker 1: math is you know, it's a graspable and I'm like, girl, no, 64 00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:24,320 Speaker 1: But there was one day that is a formative kind 65 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:26,920 Speaker 1: of painful memory, not painful. Painful is not the right one, 66 00:04:26,960 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: but I still like get the cringe, the stress cringe 67 00:04:29,760 --> 00:04:32,480 Speaker 1: when it happens where I was like, there was a 68 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:39,600 Speaker 1: formula that our teacher had introduced and it included an 69 00:04:39,640 --> 00:04:44,479 Speaker 1: element that was negative for no reason that was explained, 70 00:04:44,520 --> 00:04:46,920 Speaker 1: and I kept begging him to explain why that was 71 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:49,440 Speaker 1: the case, and everyone in the class was just like, 72 00:04:49,520 --> 00:04:51,200 Speaker 1: just shut up and accept it. And I'm like, I 73 00:04:51,240 --> 00:04:54,760 Speaker 1: don't understand this concept. There's a random negative in the 74 00:04:54,800 --> 00:04:58,560 Speaker 1: mix here. It's really I cannot move past this, and 75 00:04:58,640 --> 00:05:01,000 Speaker 1: I just became the scourge of class and I did 76 00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:03,640 Speaker 1: not want to be, but I also did not understand 77 00:05:03,640 --> 00:05:04,600 Speaker 1: what the heck was going on. 78 00:05:04,920 --> 00:05:07,160 Speaker 2: Yeah, so I was. 79 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:10,200 Speaker 1: I was like, please just explain it to me, and 80 00:05:10,240 --> 00:05:12,160 Speaker 1: he didn't. He didn't really want to. He was like, 81 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:15,040 Speaker 1: I can't. That's more advanced math. And I'm like, okay, 82 00:05:15,040 --> 00:05:17,760 Speaker 1: but try right. He's like, that's my this class. Like 83 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:19,920 Speaker 1: I'm not even shading the teacher on this one. It 84 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:23,200 Speaker 1: just was like I was there was no space for me. 85 00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:29,960 Speaker 1: I couldn't do the higher maths and I couldn't just 86 00:05:30,120 --> 00:05:32,600 Speaker 1: accept the things they were telling us in the more 87 00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:37,960 Speaker 1: theoretical maths, and so it was stressy. I will say 88 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:41,479 Speaker 1: that anytime I've talked about my lifelong struggles with arithmetic 89 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:43,680 Speaker 1: on the show, we get an email from somebody that 90 00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:48,240 Speaker 1: tells me I'm reinforcing sexist stereotypes about women being bad 91 00:05:48,279 --> 00:05:50,159 Speaker 1: at math, and I just want to say, I'm not 92 00:05:50,240 --> 00:05:53,599 Speaker 1: making this up. I have literally struggled with arithmetic since 93 00:05:53,640 --> 00:05:55,799 Speaker 1: I was a child. I still count on my fingers 94 00:05:55,839 --> 00:05:58,159 Speaker 1: and I'm forty eight years old. So please don't send 95 00:05:58,240 --> 00:06:01,080 Speaker 1: me emails telling me I'm a sex stereotype. This is 96 00:06:01,120 --> 00:06:05,800 Speaker 1: my actual human experience here. I'll counter this, okay, with 97 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:08,760 Speaker 1: the example of my beloved who I love very very much, 98 00:06:08,800 --> 00:06:13,040 Speaker 1: but like he wants to stay away from math at 99 00:06:13,080 --> 00:06:14,680 Speaker 1: almost every expense. 100 00:06:15,480 --> 00:06:16,080 Speaker 2: Like there's a. 101 00:06:16,160 --> 00:06:19,120 Speaker 1: Thing we have gotten to this point where like there 102 00:06:19,240 --> 00:06:21,279 Speaker 1: is a joke in our house where like I've tried 103 00:06:21,279 --> 00:06:25,320 Speaker 1: to explain like how our property tax is calculated and whatever, 104 00:06:25,839 --> 00:06:27,880 Speaker 1: and like we have just told our friends. If you ever, 105 00:06:28,160 --> 00:06:30,480 Speaker 1: like need to keep a secret from Brian and want 106 00:06:30,560 --> 00:06:32,720 Speaker 1: him to leave the room, just say the phrase millagery. 107 00:06:32,880 --> 00:06:36,080 Speaker 2: He will run away. He will run away. I don't 108 00:06:36,160 --> 00:06:38,599 Speaker 2: understand that either. I just pay the bill. 109 00:06:38,640 --> 00:06:42,720 Speaker 1: It's like, whatever is very smart, just as you are 110 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:46,640 Speaker 1: very smart. But some people struggle with math, and that's fine. 111 00:06:46,839 --> 00:06:50,599 Speaker 1: It's fine to admit everybody has strengths and weaknesses. You 112 00:06:50,680 --> 00:06:56,680 Speaker 1: just got to have a smart math friend. It's like, yeah, yeah, 113 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:00,720 Speaker 1: I mentioned to you before we started recording, Uh huh, 114 00:07:01,160 --> 00:07:05,960 Speaker 1: that while I was researching, I came across a handful 115 00:07:06,200 --> 00:07:14,640 Speaker 1: of pretty impassioned discussions about the metric system, because I 116 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:20,320 Speaker 1: hadn't really thought about it from this perspective before. You know, 117 00:07:20,400 --> 00:07:22,400 Speaker 1: we in the US, as we said in the episode, 118 00:07:22,480 --> 00:07:26,520 Speaker 1: have not made it our official system, so it's kind 119 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:29,040 Speaker 1: of expected that we're all over the map. But then 120 00:07:29,080 --> 00:07:30,560 Speaker 1: this goes back to the thing I said at the 121 00:07:30,600 --> 00:07:35,680 Speaker 1: top of the show about Britain still having some things 122 00:07:35,720 --> 00:07:40,840 Speaker 1: that are not metric, and I was reading this one 123 00:07:40,880 --> 00:07:42,760 Speaker 1: of the many discussions of it were there are a 124 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:44,440 Speaker 1: lot of people who are like, we either need to 125 00:07:44,480 --> 00:07:46,840 Speaker 1: get metric or we need to not, but we need 126 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:49,720 Speaker 1: to get Metric, like we can't stop it. And they 127 00:07:49,800 --> 00:07:52,440 Speaker 1: mentioned that like there was, you know, the effort, the 128 00:07:52,520 --> 00:07:56,320 Speaker 1: decision made that the UK would switch over to Metric, 129 00:07:57,480 --> 00:08:02,560 Speaker 1: and then I can't find the exact quote, but one 130 00:08:02,600 --> 00:08:05,960 Speaker 1: writer basically said, we got halfway there and then we 131 00:08:06,080 --> 00:08:08,560 Speaker 1: just got stuck and never moved again. And so there 132 00:08:08,560 --> 00:08:11,120 Speaker 1: are a lot of things that are in metric, But 133 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:12,840 Speaker 1: then there are a lot of things that are still 134 00:08:12,920 --> 00:08:16,920 Speaker 1: using the old imperial and that is more confusing when 135 00:08:16,920 --> 00:08:20,200 Speaker 1: we say we are a metric country. And some of 136 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:25,680 Speaker 1: these are very impassion and like really really highly critical 137 00:08:25,760 --> 00:08:30,480 Speaker 1: of various government entities for not pushing this harder. But 138 00:08:30,560 --> 00:08:33,880 Speaker 1: I also found some pretty impassioned ones written here in 139 00:08:33,920 --> 00:08:35,960 Speaker 1: the US where people are like, we really need to 140 00:08:36,040 --> 00:08:38,520 Speaker 1: like make it official, like yes, there are people using it, 141 00:08:38,559 --> 00:08:42,440 Speaker 1: particularly in like science communities, engineering, et cetera. But like 142 00:08:43,480 --> 00:08:46,559 Speaker 1: I remember, I don't know if you had this happen 143 00:08:46,559 --> 00:08:49,800 Speaker 1: when you were a kid in the seventies, there was 144 00:08:49,840 --> 00:08:53,840 Speaker 1: a moment, yeah, where it was like we are switching 145 00:08:53,960 --> 00:08:57,640 Speaker 1: to metric. We're going to start teaching kids metric. And 146 00:08:57,679 --> 00:08:59,480 Speaker 1: I remember, and I was quite small. 147 00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:00,000 Speaker 2: I was prob. 148 00:09:01,360 --> 00:09:03,920 Speaker 1: Like second or third grade. I was little, and I 149 00:09:04,040 --> 00:09:06,400 Speaker 1: remember us kids being like, this is very hard and 150 00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:10,120 Speaker 1: confusing because it is a different, completely different system. And 151 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:12,200 Speaker 1: then suddenly it went away and we never had to 152 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:16,920 Speaker 1: try to learn it again. And it does seem like 153 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:19,120 Speaker 1: there was this push of like, if we teach the 154 00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:22,680 Speaker 1: next generation the metric system, they'll get it, they'll be 155 00:09:22,960 --> 00:09:27,120 Speaker 1: kilogrammers forever. And then we were like ouch hard, and 156 00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:30,360 Speaker 1: they just gave up instantly, and I don't know what 157 00:09:30,480 --> 00:09:34,640 Speaker 1: happened there. I don't know if I remember learning it 158 00:09:34,679 --> 00:09:37,120 Speaker 1: in the context of like we were potentially going to 159 00:09:37,120 --> 00:09:40,760 Speaker 1: start using only the metric system, but I definitely did 160 00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:45,400 Speaker 1: learn the metric system in school, and then like middle 161 00:09:45,440 --> 00:09:50,079 Speaker 1: and high school science classes, like all the science measurements 162 00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:56,280 Speaker 1: were in metric measurements, so it was like I've always 163 00:09:56,320 --> 00:09:59,240 Speaker 1: been using both in different contexts. 164 00:09:59,320 --> 00:09:59,800 Speaker 2: Yeah. 165 00:10:00,040 --> 00:10:02,760 Speaker 1: Yeah, I don't know if the US will ever get 166 00:10:02,760 --> 00:10:04,800 Speaker 1: it's act fully together in this way or not. 167 00:10:05,360 --> 00:10:05,920 Speaker 2: Yeah, I don't know. 168 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:08,960 Speaker 1: Listen, I'm all for a giant sea change. I'm one 169 00:10:08,960 --> 00:10:11,959 Speaker 1: of those people that loves change. You want some Swatch 170 00:10:12,080 --> 00:10:15,559 Speaker 1: Internet time, I want Swatch Internet time. But I also 171 00:10:15,760 --> 00:10:18,920 Speaker 1: just like, I like the fresh start of a big change. 172 00:10:19,000 --> 00:10:20,880 Speaker 1: I would love it if there were a week where 173 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:24,000 Speaker 1: we were like, don't anybody measure anything this week, and 174 00:10:24,040 --> 00:10:26,600 Speaker 1: then the next week we're gonna just switch over completely. 175 00:10:26,800 --> 00:10:29,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, that sounds amazing to me. Yeah. 176 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:32,480 Speaker 1: I know that's not realistic or practical in any way, 177 00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:36,280 Speaker 1: but I do think like you kind of got to 178 00:10:36,360 --> 00:10:38,000 Speaker 1: rip the band aid off. It's gonna have to be 179 00:10:38,080 --> 00:10:41,480 Speaker 1: like that. This whole like slow ramp is why Britain 180 00:10:41,640 --> 00:10:45,520 Speaker 1: is like stuck in this weird situation where they're trying 181 00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:49,160 Speaker 1: to slowly. I was about to say inch forward, because 182 00:10:49,320 --> 00:10:54,000 Speaker 1: that's I mean, when you think about that, right, that's 183 00:10:54,080 --> 00:10:58,920 Speaker 1: messed up. A foot is twelve inches? What mm hmm, 184 00:10:59,320 --> 00:11:04,120 Speaker 1: that's random. I mean, as you had said, like learning 185 00:11:04,160 --> 00:11:06,560 Speaker 1: about a base twelve system. I feel like I'm a 186 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:08,959 Speaker 1: little better at a base twelve system than the average 187 00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:15,040 Speaker 1: person because of what sewing, Because it's like you calculate 188 00:11:15,080 --> 00:11:18,520 Speaker 1: everything by a yard r it's like twelve twenty four 189 00:11:18,559 --> 00:11:22,360 Speaker 1: to thirty six going forward, Like that's how your brain 190 00:11:22,440 --> 00:11:25,120 Speaker 1: has to do it anyway, when you're measuring out fabric 191 00:11:25,200 --> 00:11:28,760 Speaker 1: sometimes if you're doing big pieces. So I think I 192 00:11:28,800 --> 00:11:32,080 Speaker 1: could survive in that world a little. But we shouldn't 193 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:32,439 Speaker 1: have to. 194 00:11:38,720 --> 00:11:39,000 Speaker 2: Listen. 195 00:11:39,040 --> 00:11:41,880 Speaker 1: If you want to do creative stuff, math is your friends. 196 00:11:42,120 --> 00:11:44,960 Speaker 1: That's probably why I feel like I need to understand 197 00:11:44,960 --> 00:11:48,320 Speaker 1: math more than the average person who says no, I'm 198 00:11:48,360 --> 00:11:51,199 Speaker 1: more on the arts and language side because I've needed 199 00:11:51,240 --> 00:11:57,160 Speaker 1: it for designing things and like executing patterns and figuring 200 00:11:57,240 --> 00:11:59,360 Speaker 1: out the circumference of a circle to make a skirt, 201 00:11:59,480 --> 00:12:02,240 Speaker 1: and like these things are important well, and I could 202 00:12:02,280 --> 00:12:07,120 Speaker 1: do stuff like the equation parts of algebra. Yeah, but 203 00:12:07,200 --> 00:12:10,840 Speaker 1: I would mess up the arithmetic involved. Yeah, yeah, there 204 00:12:10,840 --> 00:12:13,600 Speaker 1: are some of those. I will say, doo Lingo has 205 00:12:13,720 --> 00:12:15,679 Speaker 1: just added a math component. 206 00:12:15,760 --> 00:12:16,200 Speaker 2: I saw that. 207 00:12:16,280 --> 00:12:18,280 Speaker 1: I haven't looked at it at all. I have and 208 00:12:18,320 --> 00:12:20,400 Speaker 1: it starts out I mean, I'm in the like, Hi, 209 00:12:20,440 --> 00:12:22,720 Speaker 1: I'm an adult learner, like just brushing at my skills, 210 00:12:22,720 --> 00:12:25,280 Speaker 1: and it does start out pretty basic. But what it 211 00:12:25,320 --> 00:12:28,920 Speaker 1: does that I think is really smart is that it's 212 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:32,240 Speaker 1: not like just doing flashcards of multiplication tables or whatever. 213 00:12:32,679 --> 00:12:35,960 Speaker 1: It's also using visuals so that you think about math 214 00:12:36,040 --> 00:12:38,680 Speaker 1: in a different way. M hmmm, which I think is 215 00:12:39,040 --> 00:12:41,280 Speaker 1: really valuable. Like right now, I'm still kind of buzzing 216 00:12:41,320 --> 00:12:43,320 Speaker 1: through it, going oh, these are baby equations, but like, 217 00:12:43,400 --> 00:12:45,199 Speaker 1: at the same time, there are moments when I go, oh, 218 00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:48,000 Speaker 1: that's what that looks like like in a physical space, 219 00:12:48,160 --> 00:12:50,080 Speaker 1: and that's kind of cool. So I'm hoping it will 220 00:12:50,120 --> 00:12:54,200 Speaker 1: make my math skills better. I also know children are 221 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:57,600 Speaker 1: taught arithmetic in a very different way now, yeah than 222 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:01,319 Speaker 1: we were. Yes, And I will say this, I am 223 00:13:01,360 --> 00:13:04,960 Speaker 1: not a parent, but I do sometimes find myself getting 224 00:13:05,679 --> 00:13:10,079 Speaker 1: I don't know what the word is, dismayed. With parents 225 00:13:10,120 --> 00:13:12,800 Speaker 1: when they just want to complain about their kids new math, 226 00:13:13,080 --> 00:13:16,559 Speaker 1: because then when I talk to people who are much 227 00:13:16,600 --> 00:13:20,440 Speaker 1: younger who grew up learning it that way, often they 228 00:13:20,520 --> 00:13:25,080 Speaker 1: have so much more of a flexible, conceptual understanding of 229 00:13:25,120 --> 00:13:28,560 Speaker 1: math than we got from just memorizing. And I'm like, 230 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:32,360 Speaker 1: there is some benefit here, right, at least to some people, 231 00:13:33,360 --> 00:13:35,319 Speaker 1: Like I know, it's hard to help your kid with 232 00:13:36,559 --> 00:13:38,600 Speaker 1: homework when it's not the way you learned it. I 233 00:13:38,720 --> 00:13:44,120 Speaker 1: fully grasp the frustration of that, but it doesn't mean 234 00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:47,360 Speaker 1: the old way was superior. And the other thing we 235 00:13:47,440 --> 00:13:51,720 Speaker 1: have to consider is, like all people have different learning styles. 236 00:13:51,720 --> 00:13:54,320 Speaker 1: We've talked about that recently as well. For some people, 237 00:13:54,360 --> 00:13:56,040 Speaker 1: this new way is going to be a lot easier 238 00:13:56,080 --> 00:14:01,560 Speaker 1: than the stress of memorizing a multiplication tape that was 239 00:14:01,640 --> 00:14:04,520 Speaker 1: very stressful for me as a kid, Like I remember 240 00:14:04,559 --> 00:14:06,320 Speaker 1: we had to go up to the teacher's desk and 241 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:08,720 Speaker 1: she would quiz you through your thing before you could 242 00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:11,720 Speaker 1: pass on to the next one, and like it was 243 00:14:12,160 --> 00:14:13,760 Speaker 1: just you and the teacher, but you were in the 244 00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:16,400 Speaker 1: class and so if you messed up, everybody knew and 245 00:14:16,440 --> 00:14:18,840 Speaker 1: then they would be like, you're stupid about the number twelve. 246 00:14:18,960 --> 00:14:23,440 Speaker 1: That whole thing was very stressful that I'm having flashbacks 247 00:14:23,520 --> 00:14:28,720 Speaker 1: to flash cards. Yeah, flash cards are uh it could 248 00:14:28,800 --> 00:14:40,800 Speaker 1: be traumatizing in there, I might We talked about Sarah 249 00:14:40,800 --> 00:14:45,160 Speaker 1: Bradley Fulton the Daughters of Liberty this week. I love 250 00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:48,520 Speaker 1: all these stories about her, even though we can't corroborate 251 00:14:48,680 --> 00:14:53,280 Speaker 1: a lot of them. I had various little notes, okay, 252 00:14:53,280 --> 00:14:55,560 Speaker 1: that I wrote down. Some of them are just things 253 00:14:55,600 --> 00:14:57,080 Speaker 1: that I did not have a good place to put 254 00:14:57,080 --> 00:14:58,760 Speaker 1: in the episode, and some of them were just random 255 00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:03,400 Speaker 1: things that ocurred to me. I read a lot of 256 00:15:03,840 --> 00:15:08,800 Speaker 1: mentions of people's spinning bees that were happening during the 257 00:15:09,200 --> 00:15:12,080 Speaker 1: run up to the Revolutionary War, during all of the 258 00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:16,400 Speaker 1: protests over a British taxation of the colonies, and this 259 00:15:16,560 --> 00:15:18,640 Speaker 1: was one that I loved, but I was like, this 260 00:15:18,680 --> 00:15:22,800 Speaker 1: feels redundant, it does not actually add anything to the episode. 261 00:15:22,840 --> 00:15:26,160 Speaker 1: And I put it over here and says this is 262 00:15:26,200 --> 00:15:30,000 Speaker 1: from the New York Journal from May thirtieth, seventeen sixty eight. Quote, 263 00:15:30,040 --> 00:15:34,200 Speaker 1: what a glorious example Newport has set us rouse. Oh, 264 00:15:34,200 --> 00:15:37,840 Speaker 1: my countrymen, we are well informed that one married lady 265 00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:41,480 Speaker 1: and her daughter of about sixteen have spun full sixty 266 00:15:41,600 --> 00:15:45,520 Speaker 1: yards of good fine linen cloth nearly a yard wide 267 00:15:45,600 --> 00:15:48,640 Speaker 1: since the first of March. Besides taking care of a 268 00:15:48,720 --> 00:15:52,680 Speaker 1: large family, the linen manufacturer is promoted and carried on 269 00:15:53,120 --> 00:15:57,400 Speaker 1: with so much spirit and aciduity among all ranks, that 270 00:15:57,480 --> 00:16:00,600 Speaker 1: we are assured there is scarcely enough flow to be 271 00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:04,600 Speaker 1: had in town to supply the continued consumption of that article. 272 00:16:07,080 --> 00:16:10,960 Speaker 1: The rouse oh my countrymen particularly got me. 273 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:16,320 Speaker 2: There were a couple. 274 00:16:16,040 --> 00:16:19,560 Speaker 1: Of details that I found in the book that was 275 00:16:19,760 --> 00:16:24,120 Speaker 1: written by her great great great great granddaughter, which is 276 00:16:24,200 --> 00:16:27,360 Speaker 1: called a Woman Fearing Nothing, the story of Sarah Bradley Fulton, 277 00:16:27,440 --> 00:16:32,120 Speaker 1: a Revolutionary War heroin I went to the Medford Public 278 00:16:32,200 --> 00:16:37,440 Speaker 1: Library in person to read that because there are three 279 00:16:37,520 --> 00:16:41,280 Speaker 1: copies of it in libraries in my area, two in 280 00:16:41,520 --> 00:16:46,440 Speaker 1: Medford and one in Revere. And one of the details 281 00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:51,120 Speaker 1: was that the first house that Sarah Bradley Fulton and 282 00:16:51,160 --> 00:16:53,280 Speaker 1: her husband lived in in Medford might have been one 283 00:16:53,320 --> 00:16:57,200 Speaker 1: that they rented from Isaac Royle, Oh Wild, which yeah, 284 00:16:57,440 --> 00:17:00,600 Speaker 1: was kind of a fascinating little detail. It would make 285 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:03,160 Speaker 1: sense because the royals were super rich and owned a 286 00:17:03,160 --> 00:17:06,880 Speaker 1: bunch of property in Bedford. Uh, it might have been 287 00:17:06,880 --> 00:17:10,040 Speaker 1: harder to find a house not owned by right right. 288 00:17:10,200 --> 00:17:12,800 Speaker 1: They did eventually by buy a house of their own, 289 00:17:12,920 --> 00:17:14,320 Speaker 1: but they were I think they were. 290 00:17:14,359 --> 00:17:16,040 Speaker 2: They seem to have been renting one when they first 291 00:17:16,040 --> 00:17:16,440 Speaker 2: moved there. 292 00:17:17,400 --> 00:17:20,240 Speaker 1: And the other is there a couple of different accounts 293 00:17:20,359 --> 00:17:24,960 Speaker 1: of a later visit from Lafayette, like Lafayette made another 294 00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:30,080 Speaker 1: trip and was in Medford and she went to go 295 00:17:30,160 --> 00:17:34,920 Speaker 1: see him, and in one account he was at dinner 296 00:17:35,680 --> 00:17:38,520 Speaker 1: and she was waiting a long time, and she finally 297 00:17:38,840 --> 00:17:41,159 Speaker 1: just got tired of waiting and just went into the 298 00:17:41,200 --> 00:17:44,400 Speaker 1: dining room and kind of berated him. And the other 299 00:17:44,480 --> 00:17:49,240 Speaker 1: account was like more uh not not did not quite 300 00:17:49,320 --> 00:17:52,280 Speaker 1: make it sound, as you know, rude as that did. 301 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:56,800 Speaker 1: But I had trouble kind of puzzling that out, and 302 00:17:56,840 --> 00:17:58,720 Speaker 1: I was like, I don't need to find a place 303 00:17:58,760 --> 00:18:03,639 Speaker 1: to wedge this until here. I will confess to you, 304 00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:08,439 Speaker 1: in what might be sacrilegious to many people, that every 305 00:18:08,480 --> 00:18:13,040 Speaker 1: time I hear about Lafayette, all I can think of 306 00:18:14,040 --> 00:18:19,440 Speaker 1: are the dogs from Aristocrats. Okay, what's your named? Lafayette 307 00:18:19,440 --> 00:18:22,119 Speaker 1: and Napoleon, And they're funny, funny hound dogs. 308 00:18:22,520 --> 00:18:26,480 Speaker 2: Lafayette, Are you awake? It's just like the best. Yeah. 309 00:18:27,040 --> 00:18:32,000 Speaker 1: I fixated on two things in this episode, one being 310 00:18:33,680 --> 00:18:40,560 Speaker 1: the mysterious vessels that were used to serve George, Washington 311 00:18:40,560 --> 00:18:44,840 Speaker 1: and Lafayette. How those seem to be different? Yeah, and 312 00:18:44,880 --> 00:18:47,960 Speaker 1: I in my head, of course, I've already like put 313 00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:52,400 Speaker 1: together a hilarious comedy of like I don't know where 314 00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:53,119 Speaker 1: that punch ful is. 315 00:18:53,160 --> 00:18:54,000 Speaker 2: Just give them this one. 316 00:18:54,520 --> 00:18:59,760 Speaker 1: But the other thing is that I now kind of 317 00:18:59,800 --> 00:19:02,760 Speaker 1: want to make a very rum forward drink called potation. 318 00:19:03,400 --> 00:19:05,359 Speaker 2: Yeah, the word potation. I loved that. 319 00:19:07,280 --> 00:19:11,000 Speaker 1: I also I went down just a little path forgotten 320 00:19:11,119 --> 00:19:15,080 Speaker 1: is not the right word, but like the the prevalence 321 00:19:15,080 --> 00:19:18,800 Speaker 1: of rum in the colonial economy, just like it was 322 00:19:18,840 --> 00:19:20,800 Speaker 1: not at the top of my mind as I was okay, 323 00:19:21,640 --> 00:19:24,480 Speaker 1: and so it just mentioned the far famed product of 324 00:19:24,520 --> 00:19:28,320 Speaker 1: that town, and I was like, far frame, wonder what 325 00:19:28,359 --> 00:19:29,840 Speaker 1: was the far famed product? 326 00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:32,960 Speaker 2: Was it apples? I don't know why apples? Was like what? 327 00:19:33,640 --> 00:19:35,600 Speaker 1: And then I was like, oh no, no, it was 328 00:19:35,680 --> 00:19:38,840 Speaker 1: Medford rum. It was definitely rum. I have a question 329 00:19:38,920 --> 00:19:41,640 Speaker 1: for you, okay, because you live in that area ish 330 00:19:41,960 --> 00:19:44,159 Speaker 1: uh huh does Medford still have a lot of like 331 00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:45,359 Speaker 1: rum distilleries? 332 00:19:45,480 --> 00:19:47,680 Speaker 2: Are there? Uh? 333 00:19:48,240 --> 00:19:52,400 Speaker 1: I don't know about Medford specifically, but there are distilleries 334 00:19:52,440 --> 00:19:55,159 Speaker 1: in this area, and there are distilleries that make and 335 00:19:55,200 --> 00:19:58,600 Speaker 1: market something that they mark it as like Medford rum interest, 336 00:19:59,119 --> 00:20:01,919 Speaker 1: but I don't know off hand at they are distilleries 337 00:20:01,960 --> 00:20:09,480 Speaker 1: that are physically located in Medford. So when we talk 338 00:20:09,760 --> 00:20:18,800 Speaker 1: about like researching queer history, it often involves a lot 339 00:20:18,840 --> 00:20:22,119 Speaker 1: of reading between the lines. And what I'm about to 340 00:20:22,160 --> 00:20:26,200 Speaker 1: say is not that it is me making something up, okay, 341 00:20:26,320 --> 00:20:30,639 Speaker 1: based on no evidence, Okay, like no concrete evidence. Really 342 00:20:30,800 --> 00:20:36,000 Speaker 1: Tracy's historical fanfic, Tracey, This is absolutely Tracy's historical fanfic. 343 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:39,840 Speaker 1: One hundred percent. We have Eliza M. Gill and we 344 00:20:39,920 --> 00:20:40,560 Speaker 1: have Helen T. 345 00:20:40,720 --> 00:20:41,120 Speaker 2: Wilde. 346 00:20:41,119 --> 00:20:43,440 Speaker 1: They both knew each other, they both never got married, 347 00:20:43,480 --> 00:20:46,680 Speaker 1: they both never had any children. One of them lived 348 00:20:46,720 --> 00:20:50,120 Speaker 1: in her family's home in Medford for like six decades 349 00:20:50,200 --> 00:20:53,520 Speaker 1: until moving to Waltham for reasons I don't know, and 350 00:20:53,640 --> 00:20:56,920 Speaker 1: the other lived in her father's house for a long 351 00:20:56,960 --> 00:20:58,399 Speaker 1: time and then lived with a brother. 352 00:20:59,400 --> 00:21:00,960 Speaker 2: There are a a jillion. 353 00:21:00,680 --> 00:21:05,000 Speaker 1: Reasons that these this could be these two women's life story, 354 00:21:05,400 --> 00:21:09,280 Speaker 1: But I one hundred percent just wrote a mental romance 355 00:21:09,400 --> 00:21:13,400 Speaker 1: of these two women, like these two women school teachers 356 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:17,239 Speaker 1: and then City of Medford employees, also local historians and 357 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:20,639 Speaker 1: founders of the local DAR. I just made a whole 358 00:21:20,720 --> 00:21:24,920 Speaker 1: love story about them. And if you know, if anyone 359 00:21:25,040 --> 00:21:28,399 Speaker 1: is descended from members of that, you know other members 360 00:21:28,480 --> 00:21:31,119 Speaker 1: of their family and is like angry about Like, I 361 00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:33,320 Speaker 1: just I made up a whole little love story in 362 00:21:33,359 --> 00:21:48,280 Speaker 1: my head. They had a significant age gap, right, they 363 00:21:48,320 --> 00:21:50,439 Speaker 1: did have a significant I mean not that that's like 364 00:21:50,520 --> 00:21:54,000 Speaker 1: a determiner. Yeah, I'm just trying to like I'm trying. 365 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:55,960 Speaker 1: I'm trying to come along in your fanfic and like, 366 00:21:56,320 --> 00:21:58,720 Speaker 1: you know, make the picture in my head. In my head, 367 00:21:58,800 --> 00:22:01,280 Speaker 1: the fanfic that plays out is that they both had 368 00:22:01,320 --> 00:22:01,880 Speaker 1: a crush. 369 00:22:01,680 --> 00:22:07,800 Speaker 2: On John Fulton. Okay, that could also be true. 370 00:22:08,240 --> 00:22:10,640 Speaker 1: It's just the imagery of the arm in arm with 371 00:22:10,720 --> 00:22:15,159 Speaker 1: some analyst. I'm like, oh, they like a gentleman color. 372 00:22:15,200 --> 00:22:18,480 Speaker 1: They're southern in my fanfic. Also apparently they're Blanche Tublah 373 00:22:19,400 --> 00:22:22,439 Speaker 1: or they're Blanche Jevro rather or Blanche Tubla. 374 00:22:22,720 --> 00:22:25,679 Speaker 2: But yeah, I had I love it. I love it. 375 00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:30,400 Speaker 2: You have a rich rich the whole thing. 376 00:22:31,760 --> 00:22:33,840 Speaker 1: You know, we have no letters, no journals, know anything 377 00:22:33,880 --> 00:22:35,359 Speaker 1: like that that I know of from either of them. Again, 378 00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:39,199 Speaker 1: this is I don't really encourage making things up to 379 00:22:39,320 --> 00:22:42,520 Speaker 1: that level about people from history, but I'm just I 380 00:22:42,600 --> 00:22:46,240 Speaker 1: had a little, let let's make a love story moment. Also, 381 00:22:47,359 --> 00:22:49,840 Speaker 1: I did not end up putting this in in the 382 00:22:49,840 --> 00:22:52,040 Speaker 1: episode because I wound up just feeling antler. There are 383 00:22:52,080 --> 00:22:55,840 Speaker 1: some people who I think have misread. 384 00:22:56,560 --> 00:22:57,840 Speaker 2: The the Helen T. 385 00:22:58,119 --> 00:23:03,399 Speaker 1: Wild account as saying that the place where people prepared 386 00:23:03,480 --> 00:23:09,600 Speaker 1: for the Boston tea party was not her brother's house 387 00:23:09,640 --> 00:23:15,720 Speaker 1: in Boston, it was their house in Medford. And this, 388 00:23:16,160 --> 00:23:18,560 Speaker 1: like the first couple of things that I read made 389 00:23:18,600 --> 00:23:22,600 Speaker 1: it sound like it was at her family home in Medford, 390 00:23:23,840 --> 00:23:27,399 Speaker 1: and I was like, this does not fully make sense 391 00:23:27,440 --> 00:23:31,880 Speaker 1: to me, because like there was a lot of traffic 392 00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:34,679 Speaker 1: between Medford and Boston, but like still it was a 393 00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:38,000 Speaker 1: way to get from and I was like this that 394 00:23:38,119 --> 00:23:40,840 Speaker 1: just like the timeline wasn't really like were they at 395 00:23:40,840 --> 00:23:44,000 Speaker 1: a meeting and did they come back to the Medford 396 00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:47,840 Speaker 1: and then they went together or did they did they 397 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:51,119 Speaker 1: go to the meeting in their quote Indian dress, like 398 00:23:51,119 --> 00:23:53,800 Speaker 1: it just it was not really adding up for me. 399 00:23:54,920 --> 00:23:58,800 Speaker 1: And running parallel to that, there is a transit project 400 00:23:59,040 --> 00:24:02,399 Speaker 1: in Boston called the Green Line Extension, and the Green 401 00:24:02,440 --> 00:24:06,160 Speaker 1: Line Extension is a line of the Tea that runs 402 00:24:06,160 --> 00:24:09,040 Speaker 1: out to Medford that was in development for a bajillion years. 403 00:24:09,520 --> 00:24:12,320 Speaker 1: Nobody thought that it was actually I'm maybe not nobody. 404 00:24:12,359 --> 00:24:14,520 Speaker 1: A lot of people thought the Green Line Extension is 405 00:24:14,560 --> 00:24:17,800 Speaker 1: never happening, and then the Green Line Extension did happen. 406 00:24:17,920 --> 00:24:18,600 Speaker 2: It got built. 407 00:24:18,680 --> 00:24:22,119 Speaker 1: It was built so badly that a bunch of the 408 00:24:22,200 --> 00:24:25,400 Speaker 1: rail is too close together now and has to be redone. 409 00:24:25,560 --> 00:24:28,120 Speaker 1: And so as I was like thinking through these things 410 00:24:28,200 --> 00:24:30,879 Speaker 1: that were like and people were, you know, they were 411 00:24:30,880 --> 00:24:32,880 Speaker 1: getting ready for the Boston Tea party at their house 412 00:24:32,880 --> 00:24:37,000 Speaker 1: in Medford, I was like, there's like a green Line 413 00:24:37,000 --> 00:24:42,359 Speaker 1: extension joke that's coming out of this like the process 414 00:24:42,440 --> 00:24:45,000 Speaker 1: of getting back and forth between Medford and Boston for 415 00:24:45,040 --> 00:24:46,600 Speaker 1: the sake of the Boston Tea Party. And then I 416 00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:49,520 Speaker 1: eventually was like, oh, I think people are misunderstanding this 417 00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:54,800 Speaker 1: passage in this article that was written, you know, in 418 00:24:54,840 --> 00:24:57,560 Speaker 1: the eighteen whatever, so it's use of language is a 419 00:24:57,600 --> 00:25:00,480 Speaker 1: little slightly different than today. I like that. You're was like, 420 00:25:00,520 --> 00:25:03,080 Speaker 1: good luck with that, Yeah, good luck with getting on 421 00:25:03,080 --> 00:25:06,000 Speaker 1: the green line. I will walk for miles to avoid 422 00:25:06,000 --> 00:25:08,760 Speaker 1: getting on the green Line. It is my least favorite 423 00:25:08,840 --> 00:25:17,320 Speaker 1: line of the MBTA Reil network. Uh. When I went 424 00:25:17,440 --> 00:25:21,760 Speaker 1: to when I went to the Medford Public Library to 425 00:25:21,800 --> 00:25:23,560 Speaker 1: read that book, I did not get on the green line. 426 00:25:24,960 --> 00:25:30,960 Speaker 1: In fact, I walked there from Summerville. Uh. Anyway, anyway, 427 00:25:31,280 --> 00:25:34,480 Speaker 1: I enjoyed researching this episode. I'm not planning to go 428 00:25:34,600 --> 00:25:39,200 Speaker 1: on any to any of these commemorations. No, No, it's 429 00:25:39,320 --> 00:25:42,040 Speaker 1: just it is exactly at the window that if I 430 00:25:42,119 --> 00:25:45,119 Speaker 1: were exposed to some illness there, I would carry it 431 00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:47,560 Speaker 1: directly to my very high risk mother. 432 00:25:47,800 --> 00:25:50,240 Speaker 2: So yeah, don't do that. Not worth it. Now. 433 00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:55,520 Speaker 1: I am in the avoid unnecessary crowds phase right when 434 00:25:55,520 --> 00:25:59,679 Speaker 1: that is happening. Yeah. So yeah, because I don't want to. 435 00:25:59,720 --> 00:26:02,600 Speaker 1: I don't want to bring the flu or COVID or 436 00:26:02,640 --> 00:26:05,199 Speaker 1: any of the other things that are circulating to my 437 00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:11,080 Speaker 1: mom for Christmas. So anyway, happy Friday. If you're going 438 00:26:11,119 --> 00:26:13,440 Speaker 1: to this stuff down at the Harbor this weekend, man, 439 00:26:13,480 --> 00:26:18,359 Speaker 1: I hope it's great. I hope nobody re enacting is 440 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:21,439 Speaker 1: in quote Indian dress. We should not be doing that 441 00:26:22,440 --> 00:26:27,600 Speaker 1: fingers crossed cross. I know that's I know there's a 442 00:26:27,800 --> 00:26:30,879 Speaker 1: historical precedent, but we're living now in the year twenty 443 00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:33,240 Speaker 1: twenty three, We don't have to make that choice again. 444 00:26:35,119 --> 00:26:37,200 Speaker 1: You can send us a note if you'd like, or 445 00:26:37,240 --> 00:26:40,520 Speaker 1: a history podcast atiheartradio dot com, and we'll be back 446 00:26:40,640 --> 00:26:44,800 Speaker 1: with Saturday Classic on Belinda Sutton tomorrow, something brand new 447 00:26:44,920 --> 00:26:52,280 Speaker 1: on Monday. Stuff you Missed in History Class is a 448 00:26:52,280 --> 00:26:56,680 Speaker 1: production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the 449 00:26:56,720 --> 00:27:00,239 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 450 00:27:00,240 --> 00:27:00,959 Speaker 1: favorite shows.