Bill Petro: historian, technologist, writer, podcaster
Writes about History, Popular Culture, Tech Trends, and Travel.

Contributing writer to the books Invitation to Church History, Vol 1 & 2 and
Product Management to Product Leadership: The Advanced Use Cases

History of Mach 1: Yeager Breaks the Sound Barrier – as told by him

October 14, 2026

Reading Time: 6 minutesTHE HISTORY OF MACH 1 On June 10, 1948, the U.S. Air Force confirmed that Captain Chuck Yeager had repeatedly attained supersonic speeds in the Bell X-1. ut it was on October 14, 1947, that Chuck Yeager, who died in 2020, actually broke the sound barrier, Mach 1, for the first confirmed time.   It…

History of Christopher Columbus: Hero or Heel?

October 12, 2026

Reading Time: 7 minutesHISTORY OF CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS he man who sailed from Spain to discover America was neither Spanish nor did he actually discover America, at least not the North American mainland. But it is true that:   In fourteen hundred ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean blue   Where was he from, where did he go, who paid…

History of October 10: 42 Day

October 10, 2026

Reading Time: 3 minutesHISTORY OF OCTOBER 10: 42 DAY October 10 is called 42 Day because it deals with the question of great, extraordinary, pronounced, substantial, momentous, whopping, cosmic importance to all of us:   Question: What is the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything? Answer: 42  

History of James Bond: Dr. No – 64 Years Ago

October 5, 2026

Reading Time: 25 minutesHISTORY OF JAMES BOND: DR. NO – 64 YEARS AGO our years ago, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the premiere of the first James Bond film, Dr. No” (1962), I wrote the following article on the history of the Bond film franchise. I discuss each film in the series, including its iconic…

History of St. Francis of Assisi

October 2, 2026

Reading Time: 7 minutesHistory of St. Francis of Assisi he man we know as St. Francis was born in Assisi, Italy, in 1181 or 1182, and died on October 3, 1226. His feast day is October 4. In October 2025, the Italian Parliament restored October 4th as a national feast, previously dropped in 1977, to take effect this…

History of October: The Pumpkin Spice Saga

October 1, 2026

Reading Time: 4 minutesHISTORY OF OCTOBER: THE PUMPKIN SPICE SAGA ctober, the tenth month of the year in both the older Julian and the current Gregorian calendar, was the eighth month (Latin octo) in the ancient Roman calendar, but with the addition of January and February, it got bumped to Number 10. The way it actually played out…

History of the Holidays

What is the history behind the holidays we celebrate, both sacred and secular? Many of the sacred holidays in our American “Judeo-Christian” heritage have secular associations, while many of the seemingly secular holidays actually have religious roots. This is the back story behind our popular holidays.

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Popular Culture

Featuring reviews of movies, concerts, and theatre. I write movie reviews as soon as I see them, which is usually the day they come out (or before). Reviews of Star Wars and Star Trek movies, Lord of the Rings, James Bond, and Harry Potter films, rock and jazz concerts, and theatre reviews.

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Tech Trends

Articles about current and future technologies and their possible implications. Discussions about Apple iPhone and Apple Watch and innovative technologies from other companies: social media, payment systems, personal data backup, etc.

 

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