{"id":95369,"date":"2023-05-25T14:51:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-25T18:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/johncohn.org\/base\/?p=95369"},"modified":"2023-06-16T21:59:08","modified_gmt":"2023-06-17T01:59:08","slug":"thursday-night-london-day-2-with-laurence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/johncohn.org\/base\/2023\/05\/25\/thursday-night-london-day-2-with-laurence\/","title":{"rendered":"Thursday night – London Day 2 with Laurence"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Today was our first full day in London. We had arranged with Laurence Stales<\/a> for a guided science  tour of London. Laurence has a web site we found  (https:\/\/www.laurenceswalks.co.uk\/<\/a>) that we found online. We corresponded with him before the trip and he arranged the most wonderful 6 hour ‘back streets of science’ tour. It was fantastic. Laurence is a learned, funny, friendly and articulate interpreter of science  He’s a mechanical engineer, a  published author and an archivist in the Royal Institution. .  The perfect English science guy !<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We woke early-ish and took the tube to a shopping center opposite St. Pauls church and met up with Laurence

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We learned about how Robert Hooke figured out the catenary equations that allowed Hooke in 1670 to design the proper  curvature to allow St. Pauls dome to be built. (the catnery’s are related to those weird hyperbolic functions you never used on your calculator \ud83d\ude42  Hooke was a weird dude.. He was so secretive that he encoded the solution to the catenary solution he found as and anagram

abcccddeeeeefggiiiiiiiillmmmmnnnnnooprrsssttttttuuuuuuuux.<\/em>

which was later decrypted into the latin as 

Ut pendet continuum flexile, sic stabit contiguum rigidum inversum<\/em>

which translated to  english is

As hangs a flexible cable so, inverted, stand the touching pieces of an arch.<\/em>
 
Of course \ud83d\ude42 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hooke did so many things.. he helped remap London after the great fire of 1666.. he invented the law of a springs force (still called Hookes law) .. \/;  the was the head of the Royal Society…… .. When his arch Rival Sir Issac Newton took over the Royal Society, ehe had all pictures of Hooke removed….   We visited the Royal Society.. which was not much to see.. then saw it’s older more picturesque location. I enjoyed that  because the ROyal Society is the model for the US National Academy that I’m a. member of. 


<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We learned all this by 11 AM !

We spent the rest of the day exploring London science with Laurences expert help.   We stopped by THe brides church, Samuel Johnson (first official Eeglish lexicographer) . Kings College London (where3 I saw my freind and former bosses Harriett’s picture as one of the celebrated alums !!!<\/p>\n

Then lunch at the Royal Society…. including a lunch at their very nice cafeteria (actually .. I think anyone can eat there.. but it felt special with lLaurence \ud83d\ude42 

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

From there we walked a bit through the pop and circumstance of the recent coronation…  London was still in top form !



<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We walked to the Royal Instittion … which was my favorite thing of the day. Laurence is a. member and an archivist there. His knowledge of the place helped us reallly take in the place… 

The building is beutiful.. there4’s a model of  the physicists Michael Farady,. one of the most famous lumns.. note his hand nt the form of the right hand rule !


<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Touring the place with Laurence was amazing.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n


We loved the art in the gallery.. many famous scientists represented here.. including painings of the famous ‘christmas lectures’.. which still happen to this day !\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Note here that Lord Kelvin seems to be ‘resting his eyes’

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n