The World's Largest Model Railway System is "Miniatur Wunderland" in Hamburg, Germany.

Frederik and Gerrit Braun, brothers, set out to build the largest model railway system in the world. They established the "Miniatur Wunderland" in 2000. 

Take a look at what 20 years of non-stop design and construction work accomplished in the videos below.

Official Miniatur Wunderland Video. [04:54]

Miniatur Wunderland World’s Largest Model Railway. [04:07]

Miniatur Wunderland Hamburg, May 2020. [1:30:20]

This video takes you to all the theme worlds.

THEME WORLDS:

AUSTRIA

• Santa Fu - The Austrian prison is home to the Wunderland’s most evil villains.
• Schauertal Bridge
• St. Wendelberg - A Train Track Complex Matrix 
• Ski Lifts

CENTRAL GERMANY

• Arminius Monument - The monument was constructed between 1838 and 1875 to commemorate the Cherusci War Chief Arminius (Hermann, in German) and his victory over Rome at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD.
• Bungee Jumper
• FUN FAIR [Amusement Park]
• I.C.E. High-Speed Train - The maximum speed reaches 175mph.
• Open Air Theater - Complex wheelwork, made of leverages, winches, and small engines, creates the most harmonious movement of tiny men and women on stage.
• UFO - Reports of an Unidentified Flying Object in Central Germany. The UFO, obviously navigated by aliens beings, is said to hover over a field of sunflowers every now and then. 

HAMBURG

• Davidwache - Police Station.
• Elbphilharmonie - Concert Hall.
• Köhlbrand Bridge
• St. Michael's Church
• Speicherstadt; largest warehouse district in the world.
• Transrapid Maglev Train
• Volksparkstadion - Football {Soccer} Stadium

ITALY

• Colosseum
• Mount Vesuvius
• Pompeii
• St. Peter's Basilica

KNUFFINGEN

• Castle on Fire
• Fire Department
• Red Light District
• Speed Trap

KNUFFINGEN AIRPORT

• Terminals - 45 different aircraft, from A380 to Cessna
• Catapult
• Neuschwanstein Castle
• Ship Hoist
• Arrival Schedules - Knuffingen Airport
• Departure Schedules - Knuffingen Airport

MONACO

• The last inaugurated section of Venice

SCANDINAVIA

• Egeskov Castle
• Real Water Basin
• Ship Control System
• Snow Landscape
• The Storebælt Bridge

SOUTH AMERICA

SWITZERLAND

• Biogas Plant
• Cement Plant
• Chocolate Factory
• DJ Bobo Open Air 
• Montebello
• The Hammetschwand Lift
• The Matterhorn

UNITED STATES

• Area 51
• Christmas Village
• Grand Canyon
• La Vegas
• Mount Rushmore
• USA-Hamburg Tunnel

VENICE

• Carnival
• Doge's Palace
• Procuratie
• St. Mark's Basilica

Google Maps 'Streetview' of the World's Largest Model Railway System. 

Don't miss this unique look at the Miniatur Wunderland.

Compiled by Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Where did you say Route 66 started?

Prior to Route 66, the trail was known as "The Pontiac Trail" from 1914-1926. US 66 was established on November 11, 1926.

The original eastern terminus was at the intersection of Jackson Boulevard and Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago in 1926. 

In 1937, the start was moved half a mile east because of the reclaimed land that is now Grant Park. So after 1937, the starting point of RT 66 was the intersection of Jackson and Lake Shore Drive (US Route 41).

To confuse matters further, in 1955 Jackson became one way eastbound. So Adams Street, one block north, became the westbound route 66. Adams Street begins at the entrance to the Art Institute of Chicago. Today you can see a sign marking the start.

It remained there until the eastern terminus of Interstate 55 was completed at Lake Shore Drive, then that became the end of Route 66 until I-55 completely replaced Route 66 in Illinois, until Route 66 was decommissioned. 

Historic Route 66, and all its realignments, are well marked in Illinois.

Compiled by Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Did the Ford Model T Really Come in Black Only?

"YOU CAN HAVE ANY COLOR AS LONG AS IT'S BLACK." — HENRY FORD

Henry Ford (1863-1947) documented that he made the "any color so long as it is black" comment during a meeting in 1909. This famous quote by Henry Ford led to many people believing that the Ford Model T was available only in black. This is, however, wrong. 

The first production Model T was built on August 12, 1908 ($850 retail - $24,500 today) and left the factory on September 27, 1908, at the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant in Detroit, Michigan. Also known as "Tin Lizzie," the Ford Model T was the first affordable mass-production car.

Or, to be precise, the first affordable horseless carriage. Henry Ford aimed to make a car "large enough for the family but small enough for the individual to run and care for." Price was also kept low so that anyone who made a decent living could afford one.

This 1908 Ford Model T Touring (Tin Lizzy) is the earliest restored (in its original color) Model T known to exist, bearing serial number 90. One of the first 800 Model Ts made is a so-called "two lever car," meaning it has two levers on the left floorboard, two pedals on the floor, and two levers (for spark and throttle) in the steering column. Cars built after unit 800 were reconfigured with Flivver's famous three-pedal/one-lever layout. It sold at auction for $121,000 in 2015.

On December 1, 1913, Henry Ford installed the first moving assembly line to mass production of an entire automobile. His innovation reduced the time it took to build a car from more than 12 hours to 2½ hours.

Henry Ford with the Ford Model T.

So what about the notion that Ford Model T cars came only in black?

During the early stages of the Model T production, the car was available in almost any color except black. In fact, the very first model came in red. Later models of the Ford Model T came with various colors such as green, bright red, dark blue, maroon, brown, grey, and, of course, black. 

But from 1914 to 1925, the Model T came only in black. There are many theories as to why Henry Ford chose only black back then. Ford Model T models were painted using a technique called japanning (known today as baked enamel). The coating was used for decorative items in the 1800s. Japanning gave a piano black finish and was also proved to be durable and rugged. Black was the only pigment it worked in.

Another theory is that black color dried faster than any color, which helped boost production. Also, in 1914, Henry Ford introduced assembly line car manufacturing, something every vehicle manufacturer follows today. Assembly line production was really efficient for Ford, and black paint was cheaper than color. Black could also be easily applied by almost anyone as it didn't require much detailing and precision like other paint colors. 

This period also saw high demand for the Ford Model T, and Ford Motor Company had to meet the increased demand with enough supply. The variety of colors vanished temporarily because of the need for assembly speed. Using only Black paint meant more Model T cars rolled off the assembly line, and Ford's cost per car dropped. Most buyers weren't complaining either because the Model T looked really good in black. 

But in the late 1920s, competitors of the Model T were offered in different colors. Eventually, Ford was forced to produce the Model T in colors other than black to maintain sales.

The production of the Ford Model T ended on May 25, 1927 ($300 retail - $4,500 today), an 82% reduction from the original 1909 retail cost due to assembly-line production. In almost 18 years, 15 million cars were produced. 

The fifteen millionth milestone Ford Model T was green in color.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

The History of Pillsbury's Space Food Sticks beginning in the early 1960s.

Space Food Sticks are snacks created for the Pillsbury Company in the late 1960s by the company's chief food technologist, Howard Bauman. Bauman was instrumental later in establishing the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points regulations used for food safety.

Bauman and his team were instrumental in creating the first solid food consumed by a NASA astronaut: small food cubes eaten by Scott Carpenter on board Aurora-7 in 1962. (John Glenn had consumed the fruit-flavored drink Tang in space three months earlier aboard the Friendship 7.) Space food cubes were followed by other space-friendly foods created by Pillsbury's food engineers, such as non-crumbly cake, relish that could be served in slices, and meat that needed no refrigeration.

In 1970, Pillsbury filed for a trademark for a "non-frozen balance energy snack in rod form containing nutritionally balanced amounts of carbohydrate, fat, and protein" which they dubbed "Space Food Sticks". (No basis for use of the term "nutritionally balanced" was provided.) A forerunner of energy bars, Space Food Sticks were promoted by Pillsbury for their association with NASA's efforts to create safe, healthy, and nutritional space food. 

Capitalizing on the popularity of the Apollo space missions, Pillsbury marketed a consumer version of the “perfectly balanced energy snack,” that was slightly modified, and a shorter version of the food sticks eaten by astronauts. Fourteen individually packaged sticks were included in a box, labeled as a "nutritionally balanced between-meal snack," and came in six flavors such as peanut butter, caramel, and chocolate.

Kids eating Space Food Sticks, 1969

But in 1971, just two years after Armstrong and Aldrin walked on the moon, Pillsbury decided to drop ‘Space’ from the advertising for the sticks, and ultimately from the product name. 

John Szafranski, a grocery product manager for Pillsbury at the time, said, “We used the word ‘Space’ because of the NASA project, because the product did indeed go to outer space, and because they were first marketed at a time when public excitement about the space program was at a peak.” He added that Pillsbury stopped using ‘Space’ in the product name because “the image that space food has in the minds of many consumers is a negative one. They think space food, in general, is dry – dehydrated – and not necessarily very tasty.”

In 1973, the Skylab 3 mission, scheduled for 60 days, included modified versions of Food Sticks in astronaut meals every third day would enable the mission to be extended to 85 days, while only adding an additional 59 pounds in the weight of the cargo the crew brought. The mission actually lasted 60 days, launched on July 28, 1973, and landed on September 25, 1973.

During the infamous Apollo 13 mission, when the crew had to abort their moon landing, the sticks were integrated into the daily menu for the three astronauts on board. The sticks stuck around for the next four Apollo launches. 

Pillsbury “Food Sticks” were remarketed as “an energy snack that gives you the balanced nutrition of a miniature meal” and as “the food for busy people.” Pillsbury also slowly changed Food Sticks from being called a “balanced nutrition snack” to a “balanced nutrition food.”

The success of Pillsbury Food Sticks was short-lived. They were only available in supermarket shelves until the 1980s, as waning interest led them to be discontinued. Other copycat versions soon became available in their place.

They were revived by Retrofuture Products, of Port Washington, New York, in 2006. Two flavors, chocolate, and peanut butter were released. They were sold at flight museums such as the Kennedy Space Center and the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum as well as online until production stopped in 2014.

Space Food Sticks

TV Commercials

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.