The most extraordinary mechanism in the world, so far as human knowledge runs, is also the most compact. A European medium-sized car weighs around 18 hundredweight, measures 170 inches in length, stands just over 50 inches high, and (at the cost of enormous expenditure on labour and manufacturing equipment) will do only three things - start, run and stop: a mere fraction of the super-machine’s capabilities.
Misc
Catch-all
Water
The chemical structure of water is truly amazing. Simple, yet brilliant. The oxygen moleule has extra negatively charged electrons. These electrons oppose the single electron in each hydrogen atom. The resulting structure gives a 104.5 degree angle between the two hydrogens and the one oxygen. This 104.5 degree angle is essential to all of water's unique properties. Were it not for this angle, you would not be alive!! This angle gives water its four very unique properties that sustain all life. Water also forms "hydrogen bonds", a type of VanderWaals force that is not an actual chemical bond.
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Lerts and Loophs - a draft
Edwin lay back and began the charging process. The small flies and miscellaneous other insects that made their home in his cavernous, warm nostrils detected the slow movement of air and became nervous. The smart ones among them decide that it's time to collect their belongings and leave to revisit some aging piece of decaying sweetness they suddenly remember merits their attention. Some others, mainly the younger ones, stay for the excitement and challenge while yet others don't have the experience or are just too dumb to realize the consequences.
Horizon - Are we alone in the universe?
SETI has been searching for a needle in a haystack...Recent discoveries by the Swiss involving star "wobbles" due to a planets gravitational pull have thrown up possible water bearing planets relatively close to earth in Libra - Gliese 581c.It's larger than earth and has twice the gravity. It's possibly too close to its sun however to be comfortable http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gliese_581_c but... Gliese 581d is further out and possibly could harbour life and frozen water.
Silbury Hill
Notes on BBC TV programme.
Q: how accurate is modern carbon dating?
Weird, more regularly shaped than the others in the area.
Tallest manmade hill in Europe. 4 million man hours.
Collapsing due to past archeological digs.
Comtemporary with great pyramids in Egypt, late neolicthic.
120 feet tall, covers 5 acres - hand built.
Kennet Valley, old Roman road (now A4) runs passed.
Chalk and earth construction.
Strange: Emphemeral lives / solid monuments. 180 generations ago.
My Cars
I thought I'd make a list of the cars I have owned over the years before I forget...
Private cars
More fun on the estuary!
I got a call form the Quay Master to sort my boat out whilst eating Sunday lunch so Tom and I high-tailed it down to Bosham to minimise local annoyance.
It seems I left the bungs in and the hull had a large amout of water swilling around in it causing the boat to ground and become immovable Our "neighbour" needed to move Running Bare over a little in order to get access - type pressure was also low. Tom and I bailed her out and prepared to go out for a little spin using the outboard. And so we did...
Stop Wilfing
Most of us spend too much time Wilfing on the internet. I'm guilty! Too easily I am distracted and lose my thread - there's so much of interest out there. How to keep focus and go for info that I originally started looking for. Need to take checkpoints in order to follow original threads. (Even as I type this I'm thinking of other things I need to google for!) Maybe there is a technique or software to help??
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