Posted by Jerry on January 25th, 2004 — Posted in History
Who would have thought eh? As soon as libraries came into being there were problems with people defacing, breaking or stealing library books! Perhaps that’s why the signs against poor library practice under Ashurbanipal in ancient Assyria seem a bit more extreme than a small fine:
“He who breaks this tablet or puts it in water or rubs it until you cannot recgnise it and cannot make it understood, may Ashur, Sin, Shamash, Adad and Ishtar, Bel, Nergal, Ishtar of Nineveh, Ishtar of Arbela, Ishtar of Bit Kidmurri, the gods of heaven and earth and the gods of Assyria, may all these curse him with a curse which cannot be relieved, terrible and merciless, as long as he lives, may they let his name, his seed, be carried off from the land, may they put his flesh in a dogs mouth.”
Of course the books were perhaps a bit fragile, being written on clay tablets in cuneiform script – but then they long outlasted any Egyptian library scrolls as these were written on fragile papyrus paper.
But it’s interesting to see that human nature has always been thus
Cheers
Jerry
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Posted by Jerry on January 24th, 2004 — Posted in History, Journal, Steam, Technology
Using photo-engraving technology used in making computer chips, the latest in nano-machines is… a steam engine! And apparently it works 🙂 Someone once said to me that as science gets smaller you can forget about physics and chemistry – it’s all about mechanical engineering. I guess they were right!
Image: courtesy Sandia National Laboratories, SUMMiTTM Technologies, www.mems.sandia.gov
The piston on this engine is only 5 microns across (about five one hundredths of the width of a human hair, or about half the size of a red blood cell). The engine was developed at Sandia Labs in the US by Dr. Jeff Sniegowski and his team.
It seems that a tiny electrical charge is sufficient to boil a minute amount of very pure water, the steam from which pushes a tiny piston and then when it cools enough the piston returns to its starting position. This is not only a steam engine, but using a cross between Savoury and Newcomen’s technology from right at the start of the steam age. You would have thought that nanotechnology would have stuck with tiny electric motors to do mechanical work, so it’s either a case of doing it because they can, or because there might be applications uniquely suited to the application of steam power. Any thoughts on this?
Cheers
Jerry
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Posted by Jerry on January 20th, 2004 — Posted in History, Journal, Writing
This morning, my partner Sharon pointed me to a new site from the British Library devoted to virtual exhibitions. The site has some lovely use of flash – tastefully restrained – which livens up the presentation enormously.
I particularly enjoyed the `literary landscapes’ section which marries literary figures with maps and images providing a context for their writing. Having visited Loch Katrine in Scotland (and taken the steam boat ride along its length), I liked the section on Sir Walter Scott despite his highly romanticised view of scotland portrayed in his writings, and the accompanying hand-coloured engraving by FJ Sargent from 1811. The web version has handy navigation icons and a zoom function – which works well on the high resolution images. There are maps too, providing a rich backdrop to a number of Scott’s novels.
Also included are Chaucer’s Kent, Wordsworth’s Lake District, Thomas Hardy’s Dorset, Jane Austen’s Bath (the place, not the ablution), and Defoe’s Moll Flanders.
I had a good poke (okay click) around in the Durham exhibition too – I loved the section on Jarrow Priory.
There is also a great ‘about Collect Britain’ page which talks about the digitisation project and the designers.
All in all a good site, well designed and informative – well worth a visit!
Cheers
Jerry
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Posted by Jerry on November 26th, 2003 — Posted in History, Technology
Leonardo da Vinci was notorious for leaving out key details in his notebook designs – another aspect of his information security protocols (like writing backwards). But, given that at least some of his designs would seem to work, like his wooden air supply pipe for a diving helmet, it would seem reasonable to explore some of his other designs. The helicopter (yes power to weight ratio is clearly a problem) has a significant design flaw as it stands. At the moment, the pilot would push the capstan to rotate the rotor by applying force through feet to the floor. But once enough speed was achieved to provide lift, the floor would contra-rotate, leaving the pilot without anything to push against. Now picture Leonardo’s helicopter linked as a pair with a mirror image helicopter and now two pilots – they would be able to work together applying force against each other… I wonder if that might just get off the ground?
Cheers
Jerry
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