Discussions on Newt Gingrich’s history background continued this week with an invitation to join the AHA from former AHA President Barbara Metcalf. Then, learn what it’s like to be an intern at the National Museum of American History, look through 4,000 digitized pages of Isaac Newton’s papers, study curriculum for teaching about the nation’s finances, and read some of the best long-form articles of 2011.

Letters to the Editor

• Gingrich the Historian
  Adam Hochschild’s recent New York Times op-ed review of Newt Gingrich’s 1971 Tulane doctoral dissertation concludes, “Mr. Gingrich may succeed in being elected president, but it is hard to imagine him, like Wilson after he left the White House, being elected president of the American Historical Association." In response, former AHA President Barbara D. Metcalf has written a Letter to the Editor of the New York Times, not getting into the AHA presidency, butexpressing that Gingrich is welcome to join the AHA. She explains that, “All of us seriously interested in history, as Mr. Gingrich clearly is, need the kind of ‘continuing education’ that the American Historical Association provides.” Another Letter to the Editor, from Yvette Alt Miller, cringes at the thought of anyone’s dissertation being eviscerated in the press. She concludes, “Personally, when I was a grad student, I was just happy to pass my defense!”

History Intern

• Designing history: the day of an exhibition design intern
  Learn what it means to be a design intern at the National Museum of American History, by following one through a typical day.

Digital Archives

• Cambridge Digital Library: Sir Isacc Newton’s Papers
  On The Chronicle’s Wired Campus blog, Jennifer Howard reports that the Cambridge Digital Library has launched and unveiled 4,000 digitized pages from Sir Isacc Newton’s papers.

Teaching

• Understanding Fiscal Responsibility
  Educators at Teachers College Columbia University have created World History and U.S. History curriculum for teachers to use to teach about the federal budget, national debt, and the national deficit.

Articles

• Give Me Something to Read: Best of 2011
  Kick back and read some of the best long-form articles of 2011, collected in this list from the blog Give Me Something to Read. Some highlights from this selection include, “Wikipedia And The Death of the Expert” and “Mind vs. Machine.”

Contributors: Elisabeth Grant and Vernon Horn

This post first appeared on AHA Today.