Oldtimers at the museum and others with some time in DC will recall John Ptak and his incredible rare/antique science bookstore in Georgetown. John departed DC in 2002 and has apparently moved to Asheville, NC, His blog discusses "unusual connections in the history of science and mathematics with the arts and social history." boingboing.net highlighted a post on the blog describing a 1957 letter from a Colonel Leslie Moore to an unnamed "key" scientist at Ft. Detrick detailing the procedure to get the heck out of town before the nuke hit. The letter instructs the scientist to show up at the control point alone with the document on his person. Makes one long for the days of hunkering down under your school desk.
Ptak donated items to the museum collection, including the unique Princeton collection of dissected animal heads. The museum also has many items from Fort Detrick, including an autoclave the size of a Humvee.
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