A Man Amplifier video that I recently uploaded to Youtube and Facebook illustrates the importance of placing photos and videos in the proper context. I tagged the video with dates, names, and locations. Yet, this information was clearly insufficient to understand what was happening in the video.
The comment I received was “”Mark what is the purpose of this video, what is a Man Amplifier? Does it have medical applications, or ???? *U* Kathleen” This comment is direct and to the point.
The video was part of old movies I recently had transfered from 8 mm to DVD (see Recommendations). It shows a project that my father worked on in the early 1960s when he was at Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory. This system was designed to allow an average person to lift up to a thousand pounds and was a precursor to many robotic systems that have since been developed. The primary application was for the military. Similar machines are seen in various movies, including Avatar and Transformers.
Without more information, we frequently do not understand the significance of photos and videos. Historical details and specific information provide the context to understand names, dates, and places.
This information is part of journaling and is the reason that time spent journaling is time well spent. Journaling is what gives Creative Memories StoryBooks and traditional albums the significance they have and is what makes today’s memories meaningful.
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