I was wondering when someone would finally ask about the pendulum!  If you
miss it, I strongly advise you to write to the National Museum of American
History and say so.  I would suggest writing Lonnie Bunch, the chief curator
(or perhaps the new Secretary of the Smithsonian, Larry Small).

I hope I don't get into too much trouble for this, but I too miss the
pendulum, and question the wisdom of removing something that obviously has
always been very popular.  On one hand, I can't get too exercised about it,
since the pendulum was not an historic artifact but was designed and built
for the builidng--but if the new Secretary really wants to double attendance
at the museum, he might want to think about keeping popular displays IN, not
getting rid of them.

The fact that the pendulum symbolizes science and technology, it seems to me,
is a weak reason for removing it.  Science and technology always will be an
important aspect of "American history," no matter how you slice it.

This is, of course, just my personal opinion.  A large segment of the NMAH
staff has wanted to get rid of the pendulum for a long time.  If visitors and
members of the museum community want it back, they should make their voices
heard.  I think most of the staff would agree that it's your museum too, and
it's possible that some of the folks who make the decisions aren't aware that
people care about this.

David Haberstich

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