Summit at Shilow: Proving Grounds?

The Summit at Shilow

Over the years, we have rarely seen anyone in this development. Even taking a shortcut morning run through it, no one is around, yet there are cars in the driveway, lawns marked that they have been chemically treated for weeds, recycling bins at the curb side, and a few random lights in windows. No children are ever in the playground, and I have only seen one very quiet dog waiting by a door.

So...is this some military or government proving ground for secret testing? A search online turned this up about communities like this during the Cold War, “… Homes and commercial buildings were built to standards typical of American and European cities. Other structures included military fortifications (of types used by both NATO and the Warsaw Pact), civil defense, and ‘backyard’ shelters. In a typical test several buildings might be built using the same plan with different types of paint, landscaping, cleanliness of yards, wall angles, or distances from Ground Zero. Mannequins were placed in and around vehicles and buildings...”



Read the rest here about destruction and survivability testing at the Nevada National Security Site (N2S2), National Test Sites (NTS), and Proving Grounds. Perhaps this development just has some restrictive covenants for noise and being seen in public, in addition to the usual not hanging clothes on a clothesline.

Mimi and Eunice: Bees In Their Bonnets

Makes me smile.

Television ‘Deaths’

via wired
“Retro televisions sparked an interest for Berlin graphic designer Stephan Tillmans after he noticed the brightly colored picture breakdown when certain screens were switched off. After much experimentation with old televisions, Tillmans realized that every old television has its own ‘death,’ and, with enough patience, this could become an intriguing photographic subject…”
Read the rest here.