Computing
The Pocket Calculator
Introduction Some of you may know that the Doc has been ill after falling off of a ladder. A very bad accident and I was lucky not to break anything (other than my confidence at [more…]
Engineering
18th Century
One Small Step for Man… Brindley and the Trent and Mersey Canal
In an earlier piece, I mentioned the Trent and Mersey Canal, with its company headquarters in Stone, hinting that its history and the political shenanigans behind its construction might be worth an article in its [more…]
19th Century
The Rise and Fall of the Needle Gun 1841-1874
The Needle Gun Every once in a while in all fields of engineering there comes along an innovation that so revolutionises the existing technology that it makes long accepted ways of doing things obsolete and [more…]
Computing
Automations In My Home
Last year I moved into a new house. On moving in I tried to get the Hive heating system up and running so I could control it from my phone. The previous occupants had left [more…]
Animals
Cnuteneering, Part Thirty Four
Welcome back to Cnuteneering, where the possible is made more difficult by bone headed ignorance, overenthusiasm and pointy metal things being brought together. It’s been a while – you may want to refresh your memory [more…]
Business
“Real innovation and progress happen beyond Big Tech”, Part Two
Claudio Grass (CG): A lot people still consider it safer to go with a huge, established corporation, thinking these solutions would be more reliable and robust, especially for business applications. What is your take on [more…]
Business
“Real innovation and progress happen beyond Big Tech”, Part One
Those who know me and who have read my writings before will be very well aware of how important the topic of decentralization is to me and to my way of looking at the world, [more…]
20th Century
Erich Bachem – an engineer years ahead of his time (iii)
Introduction It was a sunny Saturday afternoon in mid-July 2010. I was sitting outside our tent on the Municipal Campsite at Bléré, in the Indre et Loire département of central France doing a crossword and [more…]
20th Century
Erich Bachem – an engineer years ahead of his time (ii)
Introduction From January 1943, with the commencement of American daylight bombing of German targets complementing the existing night time raids by the British Air Force, Luftwaffe superiority in the skies over Germany and its occupied [more…]