1.
Chemical substance
–
A chemical substance is a form of matter that has constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. It cannot be separated into components by physical methods, i. e. without breaking chemical bonds. Chemical substances can be chemical elements, chemical compounds, ions or alloys, Chemical substances are often called pure to set them apart from mixtures. A common example of a substance is pure water, it has the same properties. Other chemical substances commonly encountered in pure form are diamond, gold, table salt, however, in practice, no substance is entirely pure, and chemical purity is specified according to the intended use of the chemical. Chemical substances exist as solids, liquids, gases, or plasma, Chemical substances may be combined or converted to others by means of chemical reactions. Forms of energy, such as light and heat, are not matter, a chemical substance may well be defined as any material with a definite chemical composition in an introductory general chemistry textbook. According to this definition a chemical substance can either be a chemical element or a pure chemical compound. But, there are exceptions to this definition, a substance can also be defined as a form of matter that has both definite composition and distinct properties. The chemical substance index published by CAS also includes several alloys of uncertain composition, in geology, substances of uniform composition are called minerals, while physical mixtures of several minerals are defined as rocks. Many minerals, however, mutually dissolve into solid solutions, such that a rock is a uniform substance despite being a mixture in stoichiometric terms. Feldspars are an example, anorthoclase is an alkali aluminium silicate. In law, chemical substances may include both pure substances and mixtures with a composition or manufacturing process. For example, the EU regulation REACH defines monoconstituent substances, multiconstituent substances and substances of unknown or variable composition, the latter two consist of multiple chemical substances, however, their identity can be established either by direct chemical analysis or reference to a single manufacturing process. For example, charcoal is a complex, partially polymeric mixture that can be defined by its manufacturing process. Therefore, although the chemical identity is unknown, identification can be made to a sufficient accuracy. The CAS index also includes mixtures, polymers almost always appear as mixtures of molecules of multiple molar masses, each of which could be considered a separate chemical substance. However, the polymer may be defined by a precursor or reaction
2.
Precious metal
–
A precious metal is a rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical element of high economic value. Chemically, the precious metals tend to be less reactive than most elements and they are usually ductile and have a high lustre. Historically, precious metals were important as currency but are now regarded mainly as investment, Gold, silver, platinum, and palladium each have an ISO4217 currency code. The best known precious metals are the metals, gold. Although both have industrial uses, they are known for their uses in art, jewelry, fine jewelry. Other precious metals include the platinum metals, ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium. The demand for metals is driven not only by their practical use but also by their role as investments. Historically, precious metals have commanded much higher prices than common industrial metals, a metal is deemed to be precious if it is rare. The discovery of new sources of ore or improvements in mining or refining processes may cause the value of a metal to diminish. The status of a metal can also be determined by high demand or market value. Precious metals in bulk form are known as bullion and are traded on commodity markets, bullion metals may be cast into ingots or minted into coins. The defining attribute of bullion is that it is valued by its mass, the level of purity varies from issue to issue. The purest mass-produced bullion coins are in the Canadian Gold Maple Leaf series, a 100% pure bullion is nearly impossible, as the percentage of impurities diminishes, it becomes progressively more difficult to purify the metal further. Historically, coins had an amount of weight of alloy. The Krugerrand is the first modern example of measuring in pure gold, other bullion coins show neither the purity nor the fine-gold weight on the coin but are recognized and consistent in their composition. Many coins historically showed a denomination in currency, although nominally issued as legal tender, these coins face value as currency is far below that of their value as bullion. For instance, Canada mints a gold coin at a face value of $50 containing one troy ounce of gold—as of May 2011. Bullion coins minting by national governments gives them some numismatic value in addition to their bullion value, one of the largest bullion coins in the world was the 10, 000-dollar Australian Gold Nugget coin minted in Australia which consists of a full kilogram of 99. 9% pure gold
3.
London
–
London /ˈlʌndən/ is the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south east of the island of Great Britain and it was founded by the Romans, who named it Londinium. Londons ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its 1. 12-square-mile medieval boundaries. London is a global city in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research and development, tourism. It is crowned as the worlds largest financial centre and has the fifth- or sixth-largest metropolitan area GDP in the world, London is a world cultural capital. It is the worlds most-visited city as measured by international arrivals and has the worlds largest city airport system measured by passenger traffic, London is the worlds leading investment destination, hosting more international retailers and ultra high-net-worth individuals than any other city. Londons universities form the largest concentration of education institutes in Europe. In 2012, London became the first city to have hosted the modern Summer Olympic Games three times, London has a diverse range of people and cultures, and more than 300 languages are spoken in the region. Its estimated mid-2015 municipal population was 8,673,713, the largest of any city in the European Union, Londons urban area is the second most populous in the EU, after Paris, with 9,787,426 inhabitants at the 2011 census. The citys metropolitan area is the most populous in the EU with 13,879,757 inhabitants, the city-region therefore has a similar land area and population to that of the New York metropolitan area. London was the worlds most populous city from around 1831 to 1925, Other famous landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Pauls Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square, and The Shard. The London Underground is the oldest underground railway network in the world, the etymology of London is uncertain. It is an ancient name, found in sources from the 2nd century and it is recorded c.121 as Londinium, which points to Romano-British origin, and hand-written Roman tablets recovered in the city originating from AD 65/70-80 include the word Londinio. The earliest attempted explanation, now disregarded, is attributed to Geoffrey of Monmouth in Historia Regum Britanniae and this had it that the name originated from a supposed King Lud, who had allegedly taken over the city and named it Kaerlud. From 1898, it was accepted that the name was of Celtic origin and meant place belonging to a man called *Londinos. The ultimate difficulty lies in reconciling the Latin form Londinium with the modern Welsh Llundain, which should demand a form *lōndinion, from earlier *loundiniom. The possibility cannot be ruled out that the Welsh name was borrowed back in from English at a later date, and thus cannot be used as a basis from which to reconstruct the original name. Until 1889, the name London officially applied only to the City of London, two recent discoveries indicate probable very early settlements near the Thames in the London area
4.
United Kingdom
–
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
5.
Catalytic converter
–
A catalytic converter is an emissions control device that converts toxic gases and pollutants in exhaust gas to less toxic pollutants by catalyzing a redox reaction. Catalytic converters are used with internal combustion engines fueled by either petrol or diesel—including lean-burn engines as well as kerosene heaters, the first widespread introduction of catalytic converters was in the United States automobile market. These two-way converters combined oxygen with carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons to produce carbon dioxide, in 1981, two-way catalytic converters were rendered obsolete by three-way converters that also reduce oxides of nitrogen, however, two-way converters are still used for lean-burn engines. This is because three-way-converters require either rich or stoichiometric combustion to successfully reduce NOx and they are also used on some wood stoves to control emissions. This is usually in response to government regulation, either through direct environmental regulation or through health, the catalytic converter was invented by Eugene Houdry, a French mechanical engineer and expert in catalytic oil refining, who moved to the United States in 1930. Houdry first developed catalytic converters for smoke stacks called cats for short, in the mid-1950s, he began research to develop catalytic converters for gasoline engines used on cars. He was awarded United States Patent 2,742,437 for his work, widespread adoption of catalytic converters did not occur until more stringent emission control regulations forced the removal of the anti-knock agent tetraethyl lead from most types of gasoline. Lead is a catalyst poison and would disable a catalytic converter by forming a coating on the catalysts surface. Pfefferle developed a catalytic combustor for gas turbines in the early 1970s, allowing combustion without significant formation of nitrogen oxides, the catalytic converters construction is as follows, The catalyst support or substrate. For automotive catalytic converters, the core is usually a ceramic monolith with a honeycomb structure, metallic foil monoliths made of Kanthal are used in applications where particularly high heat resistance is required. Either material is designed to provide a surface area. A washcoat is a carrier for the materials and is used to disperse the materials over a large surface area. Aluminum oxide, titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide, or a mixture of silica, the catalytic materials are suspended in the washcoat prior to applying to the core. Washcoat materials are selected to form a rough, irregular surface and this in turn maximizes the catalytically active surface available to react with the engine exhaust. The coat must retain its surface area and prevent sintering of the metal particles even at high temperatures. These oxides are added as oxygen storage promoters. The catalyst itself is most often a mix of precious metal, platinum is the most active catalyst and is widely used, but is not suitable for all applications because of unwanted additional reactions and high cost. Palladium and rhodium are two precious metals used
6.
Glass coloring and color marking
–
Further metals and metal oxides can be added to glass during its manufacture to change its color which can enhance its aesthetic appeal. Examples of these additives are listed below, Iron oxide may be added to glass resulting in bluish-green glass which is used in beer bottles. Together with chromium it gives a green color, used for wine bottles. Sulfur, together with carbon and iron salts, is used to form iron polysulfides, in borosilicate glasses rich in boron, sulfur imparts a blue color. With calcium it yields a yellow color. Manganese can be added in small amounts to remove the green tint given by iron, manganese is one of the oldest glass additives, and purple manganese glass was used since early Egyptian history. Manganese dioxide, which is black, is used to remove the color from the glass, in a very slow process this is converted to sodium permanganate. In New England some houses built more than 300 years ago have window glass which is lightly tinted violet because of chemical change. This process is widely confused with the formation of desert amethyst glass, details of the process and the composition of the glass vary and so do the results, because it is not a simple matter to obtain or produce properly controlled specimens. Small concentrations of cobalt blue glass. The best results are achieved when using glass containing potash, very small amounts can be used for decolorizing. 2 to 3% of copper produces a turquoise color. Nickel, depending on the concentration, produces blue, or violet, lead crystal with added nickel acquires purplish color. Nickel together with an amount of cobalt was used for decolorizing of lead glass. Chromium is a very powerful colorizing agent, yielding dark green or in higher concentrations even black color, together with tin oxide and arsenic it yields emerald green glass. Cadmium together with sulphur forms cadmium sulfide and results in yellow color. Together with selenium and sulphur it yields shades of bright red, titanium, rarely used on its own, is more often employed to intensify and brighten other colorizing additives. Uranium can be added to give glass a fluorescent yellow or green color, uranium glass is typically not radioactive enough to be dangerous, but if ground into a powder, such as by polishing with sandpaper, and inhaled, it can be carcinogenic
7.
Fuel cell
–
A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction of positively charged hydrogen ions with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Fuel cells can produce electricity continuously for as long as these inputs are supplied, the first fuel cells were invented in 1838. The first commercial use of fuel cells came more than a later in NASA space programs to generate power for satellites. Since then, fuel cells have been used in other applications. Fuel cells are used for primary and backup power for commercial, industrial and residential buildings and they are also used to power fuel cell vehicles, including forklifts, automobiles, buses, boats, motorcycles and submarines. There are many types of cells, but they all consist of an anode, a cathode. The anode and cathode contain catalysts that cause the fuel to undergo reactions that generate positively charged hydrogen ions and electrons. The hydrogen ions are drawn through the electrolyte after the reaction, at the same time, electrons are drawn from the anode to the cathode through an external circuit, producing direct current electricity. At the cathode, hydrogen ions, electrons, and oxygen react to form water, Individual fuel cells produce relatively small electrical potentials, about 0.7 volts, so cells are stacked, or placed in series, to create sufficient voltage to meet an applications requirements. In addition to electricity, fuel cells produce water, heat and, depending on the source, very small amounts of nitrogen dioxide. The energy efficiency of a cell is generally between 40–60%, or up to 85% efficient in cogeneration if waste heat is captured for use. The fuel cell market is growing, and in 2013 Pike Research estimated that the fuel cell market will reach 50 GW by 2020. The first references to hydrogen fuel cells appeared in 1838 and he used a combination of sheet iron, copper and porcelain plates, and a solution of sulphate of copper and dilute acid. In a letter to the publication written in December 1838 but published in June 1839. His letter discussed current generated from hydrogen and oxygen dissolved in water, grove later sketched his design, in 1842, in the same journal. The fuel cell he used similar materials to todays phosphoric-acid fuel cell. In 1939, British engineer Francis Thomas Bacon successfully developed a 5 kW stationary fuel cell and this became known as the Grubb-Niedrach fuel cell. GE went on to develop this technology with NASA and McDonnell Aircraft and this was the first commercial use of a fuel cell
8.
Battery (electricity)
–
An electric battery is a device consisting of one or more electrochemical cells with external connections provided to power electrical devices such as flashlights, smartphones, and electric cars. When a battery is supplying power, its positive terminal is the cathode. The terminal marked negative is the source of electrons that when connected to a circuit will flow. It is the movement of ions within the battery which allows current to flow out of the battery to perform work. Historically the term specifically referred to a device composed of multiple cells. Primary batteries are used once and discarded, the materials are irreversibly changed during discharge. Common examples are the battery used for flashlights and a multitude of portable electronic devices. Secondary batteries can be discharged and recharged multiple times using mains power from a wall socket, examples include the lead-acid batteries used in vehicles and lithium-ion batteries used for portable electronics such as laptops and smartphones. According to a 2005 estimate, the battery industry generates US$48 billion in sales each year. Batteries have much lower energy than common fuels such as gasoline. This is somewhat offset by the efficiency of electric motors in producing mechanical work. The usage of battery to describe a group of electrical devices dates to Benjamin Franklin, alessandro Volta built and described the first electrochemical battery, the voltaic pile, in 1800. This was a stack of copper and zinc plates, separated by brine-soaked paper disks, Volta did not understand that the voltage was due to chemical reactions. Although early batteries were of value for experimental purposes, in practice their voltages fluctuated. It consisted of a pot filled with a copper sulfate solution, in which was immersed an unglazed earthenware container filled with sulfuric acid. These wet cells used liquid electrolytes, which were prone to leakage and spillage if not handled correctly, many used glass jars to hold their components, which made them fragile and potentially dangerous. These characteristics made wet cells unsuitable for portable appliances, near the end of the nineteenth century, the invention of dry cell batteries, which replaced the liquid electrolyte with a paste, made portable electrical devices practical. Batteries convert chemical energy directly to electrical energy, a battery consists of some number of voltaic cells
9.
Sustainability
–
In ecology, sustainability is the property of biological systems to remain diverse and productive indefinitely. Long-lived and healthy wetlands and forests are examples of biological systems. In more general terms, sustainability is the endurance of systems, the organizing principle for sustainability is sustainable development, which includes the four interconnected domains, ecology, economics, politics and culture. Sustainability science is the study of development and environmental science. Sustainability can also be defined as a process characterized by the pursuit of a common ideal. An ideal is by definition unattainable in a time and space. However, by persistently and dynamically approaching it, the results in a sustainable system. Healthy ecosystems and environments are necessary to the survival of humans, ways of reducing negative human impact are environmentally-friendly chemical engineering, environmental resources management and environmental protection. Information is gained from green chemistry, earth science, environmental science, Ecological economics studies the fields of academic research that aim to address human economies and natural ecosystems. Moving towards sustainability is also a challenge that entails international and national law, urban planning and transport, local and individual lifestyles. The name sustainability is derived from the Latin sustinere, sustain can mean “maintain, support, or endure”. ”The 2005 World Summit on Social Development identified sustainable development goals, such as economic development, social development and environmental protection. This view has been expressed as an illustration using three overlapping ellipses indicating that the three pillars of sustainability are not mutually exclusive and can be mutually reinforcing, in fact, the three pillars are interdependent, and in the long run none can exist without the others. The three pillars have served as a ground for numerous sustainability standards and certification systems in recent years. Standards which today explicitly refer to the bottom line include Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade. Some sustainability experts and practitioners have illustrated four pillars of sustainability, one such pillar is future generations, which emphasizes the long-term thinking associated with sustainability. There is also an opinion that considers resource use and financial sustainability as two pillars of sustainability. Sustainable development consists of balancing local and global efforts to meet human needs without destroying or degrading the natural environment. The question then becomes how to represent the relationship between those needs and the environment, a study from 2005 pointed out that environmental justice is as important as sustainable development
10.
Metallurgical assay
–
A metallurgical assay is a compositional analysis of an ore, metal, or alloy. Some assay methods are suitable for raw materials, others are more appropriate for finished goods, raw precious metals are assayed by an assay office. Silver is assayed by titration, gold by cupellation and platinum by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry, precious metal items of art or jewelry are frequently hallmarked. Where required to be hallmarked, semi-finished precious metal items of art or jewelry pass through the official testing channels where they are analyzed or assayed for precious metal content, in the past the assay was conducted by using the touchstone method but currently it is done using X-ray fluorescence. XRF is used because this method is more exacting than the touchstone test, the most exact method of assay is known as fire assay or cupellation. This method is suited for the assay of bullion and gold stocks rather than works of art or jewelry because it is a completely destructive method. The age-old touchstone method is suited to the testing of very valuable pieces, for which sampling by destructive means. A rubbing of the item is made on a stone, treated with acids. Red radiolarian chert or black siliceous slate were used to view the resultant treated streak of the sample, differences in precious metal content as small as 10 to 20 parts per thousand can often be established with confidence by the test. It is not indicated for use with white gold, for example, the modern X-ray fluorescence is also a non-destructive technique that is suitable for normal assaying requirements. It typically has an accuracy of 2 to 5 parts per thousand and is well-suited to relatively flat and it is a quick technique taking about three minutes, and the results can be automatically printed out by computer. It also measures the content of the alloying metals present. It is not indicated, however, for articles with chemical treatment or electroplating. The process for X-ray fluorescence assay involves melting the material in a furnace, following this, a sample is taken from the centre of the molten sample. Samples are typically using a vacuum pin tube. The sample is tested by X-Ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy. Metallurgical assay is typically completed in this way to ensure that an accurate assay is performed, X-ray Fluorescence assay is not as accurate as fire-assay but dependent on the spectrometer used, can achieve results of within 1 percent. The most elaborately accurate, but totally destructive, precious metal assay is fire-assay, if performed on bullion to international standards, the method can be accurate on gold metal to 1 part in 10,000
11.
Bank of England
–
The Bank of England, formally the Governor and Company of the Bank of England, is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694, it is the second oldest central bank in the world, after the Sveriges Riksbank, and it was established to act as the English Governments banker and is still one of the bankers for the Government of the United Kingdom. The Bank was privately owned by stockholders from its foundation in 1694 until it was nationalised in 1946, in 1998, it became an independent public organisation, wholly owned by the Treasury Solicitor on behalf of the government, with independence in setting monetary policy. The Banks Monetary Policy Committee has a responsibility for managing monetary policy. The Banks Financial Policy Committee held its first meeting in June 2011 as a macro prudential regulator to oversee regulation of the UKs financial sector, the Banks headquarters have been in Londons main financial district, the City of London, on Threadneedle Street, since 1734. It is sometimes known by the metonym The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street or The Old Lady, the busy road junction outside is known as Bank junction. Until 2016, the bank provided banking services as a popular privilege for employees. Englands crushing defeat by France, the dominant naval power, in naval engagements culminating in the 1690 Battle of Beachy Head, England had no choice but to build a powerful navy. No public funds were available, and the credit of William IIIs government was so low in London that it was impossible for it to borrow the £1,200,000 that the government wanted. To induce subscription to the loan, the subscribers were to be incorporated by the name of the Governor, the Bank was given exclusive possession of the governments balances, and was the only limited-liability corporation allowed to issue bank notes. The lenders would give the government cash and issue notes against the government bonds, the £1. 2m was raised in 12 days, half of this was used to rebuild the navy. This helped the new Kingdom of Great Britain – England and Scotland were formally united in 1707 – to become powerful, the power of the navy made Britain the dominant world power in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The establishment of the bank was devised by Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax, the plan of 1691, which had been proposed by William Paterson three years before, had not then been acted upon. The Royal Charter was granted on 27 July through the passage of the Tonnage Act 1694, the first governor was Sir John Houblon, who is depicted in the £50 note issued in 1994. The charter was renewed in 1742,1764, and 1781, the Bank moved to its current location in Threadneedle Street in 1734, and thereafter slowly acquired neighbouring land to create the edifice seen today. When the idea and reality of the National Debt came about during the 18th century, the 1844 Bank Charter Act tied the issue of notes to the gold reserves and gave the Bank sole rights with regard to the issue of banknotes. Private banks that had previously had that right retained it, provided that their headquarters were outside London, a few English banks continued to issue their own notes until the last of them was taken over in the 1930s. Scottish and Northern Irish private banks still have that right, the bank acted as lender of last resort for the first time in the panic of 1866
12.
Birmingham
–
Birmingham is a major city and metropolitan borough of West Midlands, England lying on the River Rea, a small river that runs through Birmingham. It is the largest and most populous British city outside London, the city is in the West Midlands Built-up Area, the third most populous urban area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2,440,986 at the 2011 census. Birminghams metropolitan area is the second most populous in the UK with a population of 3.8 million and this also makes Birmingham the 8th most populous metropolitan area in Europe. By 1791 it was being hailed as the first manufacturing town in the world, perhaps the most important invention in British history, the industrial steam engine, was invented in Birmingham. From the summer of 1940 to the spring of 1943, Birmingham was bombed heavily by the German Luftwaffe in what is known as the Birmingham Blitz. The damage done to the infrastructure, in addition to a deliberate policy of demolition and new building by planners, led to extensive demolition. Today Birminghams economy is dominated by the service sector and its metropolitan economy is the second largest in the United Kingdom with a GDP of $121. 1bn, and its six universities make it the largest centre of higher education in the country outside London. Birmingham is the fourth-most visited city in the UK by foreign visitors, Birminghams sporting heritage can be felt worldwide, with the concept of the Football League and lawn tennis both originating from the city. Its most successful football club Aston Villa has won seven league titles, people from Birmingham are called Brummies, a term derived from the citys nickname of Brum. This originates from the citys name, Brummagem, which may in turn have been derived from one of the citys earlier names. There is a distinctive Brummie accent and dialect, Birminghams early history is that of a remote and marginal area. The main centres of population, power and wealth in the pre-industrial English Midlands lay in the fertile and accessible river valleys of the Trent, the Severn and the Avon. The area of modern Birmingham lay in between, on the upland Birmingham Plateau and within the wooded and sparsely populated Forest of Arden. Birmingham as a settlement dates from the Anglo-Saxon era, within a century of the charter Birmingham had grown into a prosperous urban centre of merchants and craftsmen. By 1327 it was the third-largest town in Warwickshire, a position it would retain for the next 200 years, by 1700 Birminghams population had increased fifteenfold and the town was the fifth-largest in England and Wales. The importance of the manufacture of goods to Birminghams economy was recognised as early as 1538. Equally significant was the emerging role as a centre for the iron merchants who organised finance, supplied raw materials. The 18th century saw this tradition of free-thinking and collaboration blossom into the phenomenon now known as the Midlands Enlightenment
