luis meriwether and i have known each other perhaps 40 years, but only now my really beginning to get to know her, both as a writer and as a human being. she enjoyed her 93rd birthday on may 8 this year. my birthday is may 9 so we are sisters and twins in a way, sharing almost the same birthday. i feel privileged to have met her and to know her and to know her unrelenting energy. she is finishing her fourth novel, she has just finished the fourth draft of it and she also is the most up-to-date person i know on contemporary movies, film, and she knows and goes to see every film every day. she is extraordinarily active and beautiful. the manhattan borough president just declared may 8, 2016 luis meriwether celebration day memorializing her contribution to the arts as well as too civil rights and human rights, etc. on her on her behalf, i am so privileged to accept this award. she sends her thanks and her gratitude. thank you all for having me. [applause] >> so once more, i will point out, if you walk down to this corner here and then you walk up this way, you got the address, just, just

luis meriwether and i have known each other perhaps 40 years, but only now my really beginning to geto know her, both as a writer and as a human being. she enjoyed her 93rd birthday on may 8 this year. my birthday is may 9 so we are sisters and twins in a way, sharing almost the same birthday. i feel privileged to have met her and to know her and to know her unrelenting energy. she is finishing her fourth novel, she has just finished the fourth draft of it and she also is the most up-to-date person i know on contemporary movies, film, and she knows and goes to see every film every day. she is extraordinarily active and beautiful. the manhattan borough president just declared may 8, 2016 luis meriwether celebration day memorializing her contribution to the arts as well as too civil rights and human rights, etc. on her on her behalf, i am so privileged to accept this award. she sends her thanks and her gratitude. thank you all for having me. [applause] >> so once more, i will point out, if you walk down to this corner here and then you walk up this way, you got the address, just, just r

it was created by a man with another great name, a name perfect for meteorology, doctor george meriwether. doctor meriwether who is a surgeon had come to decide or perhaps imagine that when there was an approaching storm, freshwater leeches seem to get a little agitated. so he thought, how can i harness this meteorology wise and what what he did was built a device called the tempest prognosticator which is the very device you see before you and how it works was there is a circle of little jars in which a freshwater leech would be placed. the jars would be connected by little wires to bells, similar to the mummified monks now that i think about it. at the idea was that if a store were approaching, these leeches would shimmy and the ropes with jangle and the bells would ring and you would think i better bring the washing them. it did did not so much work. which is why we have thermometers and barometers other than, these prognosticators which is sad because look at this, but, there's still a model in a museum that is exactly the kind of museum that we love to celebrate, it is called baromet

he's talking to his secretary meriwether lewis in the lewis and clark expedition. back at the capitol, the capitol was the center of washington life in a different way from the white house. they used it for church services, for all sorts of gatherings, scientific demonstrations. people went there for entertainment, particularly women. and this is -- this is when the greenhouse sculpture of george washington was moved into the rotunda. this rotunda, this dome, the dome that's above them is the bull finch dome which was replaced during the civil war. really only one image of that dome. but again, good written accounts. they wanted washington's remains to stay at the capitol. that's what the crypt was for. but the family wouldn't let him leave mt. vernon so instead they decided he would be there in spirit and they commissioned this wonderful sculpture of him but people were appalled the president was presented in a semi-naked form. the sculptist said he was not going to spend his time regarding the habidasher's art. people complained it looked like he just got out of