Lime Plaster

Lime plaster is a type of plaster consisting of sand, water and lime. One of the earliest known examples of its use is at Ain Ghazaal in Jordan.

Reinventing Bathrooms

The Duravit line also sports matching bathroom furniture.

Reinventing Radio

Ruark Audio makes modern radios.

What is the Ecliptic?

The ecliptic is the circular path on the celestial sphere that the sun appears to follow over the course of the year. Earth's own rotation makes the ecliptic difficult to observe.

Understanding the Physics behind RF Equipment - From kilo Hertz to giga Hertz

Airports employ a range of RF equipment such as ILS (instrument landing systems) or MLS (microwave landing systems).  The purpose of an ILS is to enable pilots to land without visual contact of the runway. It does this by transmitting radio signals.

The development of RF equipment came out of the study of "radio science".

RF refers to e-m wave frequencies between 3 kHz to 300 GHz (giga - ten to the power nine, or a factor of a billion). 300 GHz is a really really high frequency if you think about it.

Waves in the range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz are termed extremely high frequency (EHF) waves and were first investigated in the 1890s by Jagadish Chandra Bose.

What could such EHF waves possibly be used for?  In many former USSR nations, they are used in medical treatments (known as millimeter wave (MMW) therapy).

Hertz is the SI unit denoting one cycle per second. It is named after Heinrich Rudolf Hertz, the Hamburg-born German physicist who proved electromagnetic waves exist, a notion first theorised by the Scot, James Clerk Maxwell. At one time, electromagnetic waves were termed "Hertzian waves" by scientists.

Kovalam and Vizhinjam

Kovalam is a beach town in Kerala. It is 16km south of the city centre. Kovalam means "grove of coconut trees". It came to the fore when then Maharani of Travancore constructed a beach resort there towards the end of the 1920s. It is 3km away from the sea port of Vizhinjam. It is the site of a wave energy plant that generates power based on the OWC (oscillating water column) principle.

Statue Junction, Thiruvananthapuram

Statue Junction is a central place in Thiruvananthapuram. Government officials in Kerala are mostly located in the Secretariat close by (the foundation stone of which was laid in 1865). The statue is of Velayudham Thampi, a Dalawa, or Prime Minister, of Travancore. It is on MG Road.  Kerala is a state along the Malabar coast, the South Western shore of India. It is bordered by the Lakshadweep Sea to the West and Tamil Nadu to the East.

The Hoo Peninsula

The Hoo Peninsula is a peninsula separating the Thames and Medway estuaries in Kent, England.

What's a Supercapacitor?

A supercapacitor is a "high capacity" capacitor (typically storing between 10 to 100 times more energy per unit volume than electrolytic capacitors). They are a key component in electric cars.

What's the difference between a Glockenspiel and a Xylophone?

Both the glockenspiel and xylophone are percussion instruments. In both cases, a set of tuned keys are set in the manner of a keyboard. In the case of a glockenspiel, the keys are metal, and for the xylophone, the keys are wooden.  The glockenspiel is thus a type of "metallophone".

"Energy of a Photon" by Maxwell Planck

Energy of a photon, E, is proportional to its frequency, v, E = hv. This is a basic law of physics and one very easy to forget if not used daily.

The constant h is known as the Planck's constant.  (f is the frequency of the corresponding e-m wave). It is also known as the Planck-Einstein relation. The constant's unit is Joule seconds (energy integrated over time).

Put another way, the Planck constant is the proportionality ratio between the energy and frequency (equivalent wave frequency) of a photon. Its natural units are therefore quite understandably Joule seconds.

Think "wave-particle duality" and you will have a vague sense of what Planck's constant imputes.

Brunel

Brunel was an engineer heavily involved in railways and railway bridge engineering. He designed many things, including the original Paddington station and the Great Western, at the time, the longest ship in the world and became a model for Atlantic paddle-steamers (where steam drives the water wheel).

Ranks in the Military

Admiral of the Fleet - highest rank in the Royal Navy. During the Interregnum, the rank of Admiral was replaced by general at sea.
Field Marshal - highest rank in the British Army
Marshal of the Royal Air Force - highest rank of the British Royal Air Force
The First Lord of the Admiralty was the political head of the Royal Navy and was in existence from 1628 before eventually being merged into the new Ministry of Defence in 1964.

Richard Milhouse Nixon

Born in Yorba Linda, California
Studied at Whittier College (liberal arts college)
Elected to the House of Representatives (lower chamber of Congress) in 1946
Senate in 1950
Ran for Presidency in 1968 defeating Hubert Humphry
He as in office 1969 to 1974, preceded by Lyndon Johnson
Nixon ended American involvement in the Vietnam War in 1973
Nixon presided over the Apollo 11 moon landing
Nixon presided over the 1973 oil crisis - when members of OPEC proclaimed an oil embargo, in response to the US support for Israel during the Yom Kippur War (has been termed the first "oil shock", the second being in 1979)
He was also involved in the Watergate scandal, referring to the Watergate complex, which was at the time the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) the formal governing body of the United States Democratic Party (Nixon himself was a Republican)
Nixon wrote a number of books, including Six Crises, published by Doubleday, his first book written before he became President, recounting episodes when he served in the House of Representatives, the Senate and as Vice President to Dwight Eisenhower. He did not directly succeed Eisenhower though, who was succeeded by John F Kennedy.

Capital Cities of the Caribbean

Kingston, Jamaica
The Valley, Anguilla
Road Town, BVI
Charlotte Amalie, US Virgin Islands
San Juan, Puerto Rico ("Rich Port")
Havana, Cuba
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Port au Prince, Haiti
Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe
Fort-de-France, Martinique
Nassau, Bahamas
Castries, Saint Lucia
Willemstad, Curacao (Netherlands)
Oranjestad, Aruba (Netherlands)
Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines
St. George's, Grenada ("island of spice" due to its production of nutmeg and mace)
St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda
Georgetown, Cayman Islands
Basseterre, St. Kitts and Nevis
Philipsburg, Sint Maarten (Netherlands, though half the island is divided with the French)
Cockburn Town, Turks and Caicos Islands
Brades plus Little Bay (under construction, funded by DFID), Montserrat

Who was Langport-born Walter Bagehot?

Walter Bagehot was an essayist and businessman who ran shipping and banking businesses. He was born in the ancient market town of Langport, Somerset, where the Walter Bagehot Town Garden bears his name.

He studied mathematics at University College, London.

In 1867 he wrote a book called "The English Constitution". In it he does not restrict himself to England but takes the opportunity to explore the differences between British and American systems.

It is regarded as fundamental to understanding the principles of constitutional monarchy (where the Sovereign is Head of State, but legislation lies with an elected Parliament). He divided the constitution into two parts, the "dignified" and the "efficient".

He also wrote a description of the money markets in "Lombard Street" (a reference to the bank which was founded in 1800 and collapsed in 1886 - its address was 65 Lombard Street). He uses the term in the same way we now refer to the US financial markets as "Wall Street".

His work is often quoted by central bankers.

What exactly is UNESCO and where is it based?

UNESCO is a division of the United Nations. It is headquartered in the Place de Fontenoy in Paris in the 7em arrondissement, on the Rive Gauche, same side of the Seine as the Eiffel Tower. Its mission is co-ordinating international co-operation in education, science, culture and communication.

The Other Las Vegas

The other Las Vegas is situated in the central part of Spain. The capital is Aranjuez. The Tagos (Tajo) river runs by it, the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula (over 1,000 kilometres long).

Pisco

Pisco is brandy produced in Chile and Peru, developed by Spanish settlers as a substitute for their native orujo, a pomace brandy from Northern Spain.  Brandy is produced by distilling wine and has 35%-60% ABV. Pomace is the solid remains of grapes, olives or other fruit after pressing for juice and oil. It is often used as animal feed or fertilizer. A well known pomace brandy of Italian origin is grappa (often served as a digestivo or after-dinner drink).

Viaduct

A viaduct is a bridge with several spans, often used for crossing a valley. The word comes from Latin via being road.  The rest of the word follows the pattern of the English word, aqueduct.

The Pons Septimus in Southern France was the longest viaduct in antiquity. It was roughly 1500m long.

Birth of the SADC (Southern African Development Community) in the Early 1990s

The SADC was started in 1992,  headquartered in Botswana, and is a regional economic community comprising 15 member states from Angola, Botswana, Mauritius, Namibia to South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Note that its name refers to "Southern African" development community as opposed to "South African".

Its purposes are regional integration and poverty eradication. One of their stated integration goals is a single Southern African currency. The most northerly state in the SADC is the DR Congo, which has 70% of the world's coltan (tantalum from coltan is used in the manufacture of capacitors).

Intergovernmental Organisations or IGOs

Intergovernmental organisations are established by treaty between participating countries. They are distinct from mere "groupings" e.g. G10, or the Middle East Quartet.

Venice (Venezia) and its Six Districts (Sestieri)

Venice (Venezia) lies in the "Venetian Lagoon" and is connected to the Italian mainland by the Ponte della Liberta. Trains cross the bridge to reach the Venezia Santa Lucia station.  The airport in Venice is Marco Polo airport.

Venice is surrounded by islands like the San Michele Island and San Giorgio Island, and Giudecca to the South. These lagoon communities became the foundation for a maritime republic.

The Six Districts of Venice are:

• Cannaregio - the most populous district. The Jewish ghetto was the area where Jews were confined.
• Castello- the largest Sestieri.
• Dorsoduro - built on less swampy land.
• San Marco - the most famous, due to its Piazza.
• San Polo - linked to San Marco by the Rialto bridge.
• Santa Croce - only sestiere where car circulation is partly allowed.

The city's main mode of public transport is the vaporetto.

The Decameron (14th Century)

The Decameron (also known as Decamerone in Italian) is a collection of tales of seven women and three men sheltering in a villa just outside Florence to escape the Black Death. It is written in the Florentine dialect.

What is a frittata?

A frittata is an egg-based dish resembling an omelette with the consistency of quiche. Additional ingredients like meat, cheese and vegetables can be added. Kuku is a Persian form of frittata.

Hidden Figures (2016)

This movies is based on the real-life story of female African-American mathematicians at NASA, described in Margot Lee Shetterly's book of the same name. Taraji Henson (whose first name means "hope" in Swahili) of Empire-fame plays Katherine Johnson. Lynwood, California-born Kevin Costner stars as the head to the Space Research Program. Mahershala Ali (Remy in House of Cards) plays Katherine's husband.

xXx: Return of Xander Cage (2017)

Vin Diesel is back in the xXx series - started in 2002 and back for its third episode in 2017.

The film also features Ong Bak star Tony Jaa as Talon, Donny Yen as Xiang and Deepika Padukone as Serena.

Other roles include Samuel L Jackson plays Agent Gibbons, Ice Cube makes an appearance as "Darius Stone" and Hermione Corfield plays Ainsley. Barcelona forward Neymar also features.

Settings for the film include Detroit, London and the Dominican Republic.  As well as actually being filmed in the Dominican Republic, Hamilton and Toronto, Canada. were also used as backdrops.

Outside of acting, Vin Diesel's (real name Mark Sinclair) interests include One Race Films (ORF), a video production company established by him in Los Angeles in 1995. The budget for the film was $85m with box office of $152m.

Norwalk, Connecticut-born D.J. Caruso directs.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

Rogue One is the ship which goes on a mission to retrieve the plans for the Death Star.

Quotes from the film include -

"Be careful not to choke on your aspirations" - Darth Vader
"It's a chance for you to make a fresh start" - Mon Mothma
"What's your call sign - ", "Rogue, Rogue One"

Live by Night (2016)

Live by Night is co-written, stars and directed by Ben Affleck. It is based on a book by Boston-born novelist, Dennis Lehane.

Passengers (2016)

Passengers is a film directed by Morten Tyldum and produced by The Fast and the Furious Los Angeles born Neal Moritz. It is set on the fusion-powered starship Avalon transporting colonists to the planet Homestead II. Laurence Fishburn (Morpheus in the Matrix) stars and RADA-trained Michael Sheen plays the android bartender aboard the starship.