Auspicious genius and noted inventor of some renown Alan Dower Blumlein, a great unsung genius of the early 20th century almost slips through the net without any serious recognition. Only now is he to be awarded a posthumous Grammy, after turning the music world upon it's head and creating stereo sound.
The engineer, born in Hampstead, North London, was killed while working upon a top-secret radar project for the military in 1942.
Born in 1903 he earned a first class degree at the Imperial College London, and joined Columbia Records (later EMI) in their research department. It was in 1931 whilst watching a cinematic film with his wife and finding himself unimpressed by the sound quality. After some thought he eventually came up with the idea of producing recorded sound with two microphones and recording separately. This concept became known as Binaural Recording, which later became the more familiar Stereo Recording. The first film produced with a stereo recording was of a steam locomotive passing the Columbia/EMI company HQ. During his years at the company, AD as he was affectionately by his colleagues, posted 128 patents. He also pioneered the Marconi/EMI television system for the BBC still used up until the digital conversion in 2012.
After this he then found more work with the military during World War ll but was killed on June 7 1942 In a flying accident, involving a converted Halifax Bomber, being used for experimental radar research. The plane caught fire at 15000 feet causing the deaths of all seven crew and passengers.
The award will be presented later this year and there is some talk of a film in his honour.
Unusual, futuristic, or just downright odd? It seems they've run out of space and a new office is needed, so they were never going to just move into a vacant block, they had to build one from scratch and this is the new Campus 2 in Cupurtino, California, no doubt the obvious choice for such an organisation.
Probably the last great project of Steve Jobs (who is to say they're not all great projects?) at a cost of a mere $5bn or £4bn if you prefer.
With four levels above ground and three below, the building will contain a thousand seat auditorium, a superior gym and at least 300 000, square feet of research space, all due to become operational in 2017.
The chosen designer, Lord Foster, of the UK Was also the designer of London's St Mary's Axe, also known as the Gherkin, and the new Wembley Stadium.
The Campus, is about one third of a mile in diameter with about 2.8 million square feet of space and will have something like 3000 panes of a special curved glass. There will be a multitude of special bicycles for staff, to ride around the space and the entire building will run upon Solar Power and Natural Gas. The building has so far created about 1300 construction jobs.
The centre of the project will be an open parkland, with thousands of tree and plant varieties and a preserved century-old barn.
Oh Dear, it's that time of year again, it's time to renew my Car Insurance Policy, just a simple task, all I'm looking for is an honest and fair deal, at a reasonable price, but price is where the problems begin. Every year, year on year, for that matter, my insurance company, whoever it is at the time, deems it necessary to raise the premium, for whatever reason, or more likely, no reason at all, to a new level of extortion, simply to make buck, from their customers. Loyalty, no claims, don't make me laugh, get on this planet!
Strangely enough, I used to think this was was some kind of fun, having to ring around to get a cheaper quote, simply to get a reasonable or what you may consider a fairer price. These days and after considerable experience and meeting a few dodgy insurance salesmen, on the way, the whole process is nothing more than CENSORED. Yet your Insurer no doubt wants you to feel this way, "what's the matter with you, save yourself suffering the inevitable run-around, accept the quote and just pay-up...sucker!
Got to admit, I always start searching for a new deal, as soon as I get the new quote, even if I'm just comparing prices, of course many of these insurers would just love to tie you into a bundle deal, with say House Insurance, Life Insurance, etc. And your Motor Insurance, I suppose some people, may well need, the "Breakdown Cover," it's a minimal amount, you never know when you might just need it! And that car they give you, when your car is off the road, whenever I've needed the car, it's not been available or whoops, I've got the wrong insurance, and as for the Legal Cover, somehow, I've always managed without this small matter. Incidentally, I do have a keyring, given to me by the Post Office, which, if I should lose my keys, will give the finder a reward, £10, if they should choose to claim it, and it's supposed to be a free, lifetime offer. I'll probably find myself back with the PO Insurers.
There is the other side of the coin, which you hear so much about and this is, all the dishonest drivers, and you are given the impression the country is full of them, getting the rest of us a bad name and as a result we are expected to pay more for their indiscretions.
But beware or be aware, these insurers are always trying to get your cash, will you let them?
Of course it helps if your enemy are trying to surrender the city in the first place, just one of the many problems faced by General Edmund Allenby, Commander of the "British, Egyptian Expeditionary Force," in the campaign to liberate the middle east, from the Turkish German Alliance.
After a series of battles leading up to the capture of Jerusalem and at one point the Mayor of Jerusalem, trying to surrender the city to a British Army Cook and Private Murch, actually turning down the offer, too many meals to prepare! Fortunately, Murch had the sense to report the incident to his senior officers, who in turn reported to the Generals, who then got themselves into something of a kerfuffle, trying to decide who should accept the surrender, only after a couple of days did Allenby, decide to accept the keys to the city.
Allenby, was under orders to try and capture the city before Christmas 1917 and it proved a great moral booster, to the allies, after what had been something of a difficult year. On December 11 1917, Allenby, rode to the Jaffa Gate, in the walls of the city, dismounted and then walked to the Citadel, in a simple act of humility, conscious of the city's residents and religions. At the Citadel he read out a proclamation, making it clear to everyone, he came as a conqueror, not a liberator, giving Jerusalem a new freedom, and promising to protect all religious buildings, properties and faiths.
By a stroke of good fortune, an interpreter, misspelt his name upon a leaflet as "Alla Bay," which to people of the Moslem faith, means; "Son of God!"
Had a few problems with Paul Revere, when I get some more time I will rewrite the page with more information.
The extraordinary Paul Revere, not only an adventurer, artist, dentist and a bell manufacturer but also when he wasn't doing all this, trying to save the fledgling Continental Congress, from an almost certain destruction, he was also a silversmith of some reputation.
A native of Boston, born 21 December 1734 or 1 January 1735 the third of twelve children, to a French father and local mother of a longstanding Boston family. Paul left school at thirteen years of age and became apprenticed to his father, as a silversmith. Through this trade he was able to make a number of useful contacts, which would stand him in good stead for the future years ahead. His father died in 1754 and 1756 Paul took a short term commission in the provincial army and was posted to Fort William Henry, for the summer, but soon returned to Boston to take charge of the families Silver Shop, in his own name. In 1757 he married Sarah Orne and their first child was born eight months later.
Paul Revere, was something of a successful business man and his Silversmith's was said to be of some size and style and very busy, he was selling his own work and imported foreign silver items as well. Paul Revere's work is said to be categorized into two more or less distinct periods, these being before and after the Revolutionary War, the pre-war years, being his most creative period.
