In 1917 the world was at war—even the United States had joined the fray. Aviation research had mostly been co-opted for military purposes as the airplane—still a relatively new invention—was continuously adapted to fill new roles in the desperate struggle. Yet civilian research and development continued as people looked ahead (longingly) to the end of the war. Some of these images on the art and science of aviation show current practice, some of them show "blue sky" thinking, but they're all from the Scientific American Archive of 1917.