1.
Royal Mail
–
Royal Mail plc is a postal service company in the United Kingdom, originally established in 1516. The companys subsidiary, Royal Mail Group Limited, operates the brands Royal Mail, General Logistics Systems, an international logistics company, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Mail Group. The company provides mail collection and delivery services throughout the UK, letters are deposited in a pillar or wall box, taken to a post office, or collected in bulk from businesses. Deliveries are made at least once every day except Sundays and bank holidays at uniform charges for all UK destinations, Royal Mail generally aims to make first class deliveries the next business day throughout the nation. For most of its history, Royal Mail has been a public service, however, following the Postal Services Act 2011, a majority of the shares in Royal Mail were floated on the London Stock Exchange in 2013. The UK government initially retained a 30% stake in Royal Mail, however it sold its shares in 2015. The Royal Mail can trace its history back to 1516, when Henry VIII established a Master of the Posts, upon his accession to the throne of England at the Union of the Crowns in 1603, James VI and I moved his court to London. One of his first acts from London was to establish the royal postal service between London and Edinburgh, in an attempt to control over the Scottish Privy Council. The Royal Mail service was first made available to the public by Charles I on 31 July 1635, the monopoly was farmed out to Thomas Witherings. In the 1640s Parliament removed the monopoly from Witherings and during the Civil War, to keep his monopoly in those troubled times Prideaux improved efficiency and used both legal impediments and illegal methods. In 1653 Parliament set aside all previous grants for postal services, in July 1655 the Post Office was put under the direct government control of John Thurloe, a Secretary of State, and best known to history as Cromwells spymaster general. Previous English governments had tried to prevent conspirators communicating, Thurloe preferred to deliver their post having surreptitiously read it, the first Postmaster General was appointed in 1661, and a seal was first fixed to the mail. Between 1719 and 1763, Ralph Allen, postmaster at Bath, signed a series of contracts with the post office to develop and he organised mail coaches which were provided by both Wilson & Company of London and Williams & Company of Bath. The early Royal Mail Coaches were similar to ordinary family coaches, the first mail coach ran in 1784, operating between Bristol and London. Delivery staff received uniforms for the first time in 1793, the first mail train ran in 1830, on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. The Post Offices money order system was introduced in 1838, in December 1839 the first substantial reform started when postage rates were revised by the short-lived Uniform Fourpenny Post. Greater changes took place when the Uniform Penny Post was introduced on 10 January 1840 whereby a single rate for delivery anywhere in Great Britain and Ireland was pre-paid by the sender. A few months later, to certify that postage had been paid on a letter, the sender could affix the first adhesive postage stamp, other innovations were the introduction of pre-paid William Mulready designed postal stationery letter sheets and envelopes
Royal Mail
–
The
Louth -London Royal Mail, by
Charles Cooper Henderson, 1820
Royal Mail
–
Royal Mail plc
Royal Mail
–
Edinburgh and London Royal Mail, by
Jacques-Laurent Agasse
Royal Mail
–
Lower Edmonton Royal Mail sorting office, in London
2.
Mount Pleasant Mail Centre
–
The Mount Pleasant Mail Centre is a mail centre operated by Royal Mail in London, England. The site has previously operated as one of the largest sorting offices in the world and it is located in the London Borough of Islington, on the boundary with the London Borough of Camden. It was officially opened on 30 August 1889 when the Post Office Act was passed by Parliament and it was built on the location of the former Coldbath Fields Prison that ceased to function in 1885. The original prison gate was incorporated into the post office and not demolished until 1901, the remaining sections of the prison were demolished in 1929, when the new wing was built as an extension to the Letter Office. From 1927 to 2003, Mount Pleasant was connected to other major Royal Mail offices and railways stations in London, in the 1970s, it pioneered the use of optical character recognition for sorting purposes with the installation of a machine in 1979. It is located on a 12-acre site in the Mount Pleasant area of Clerkenwell, Mount Pleasant hosts the British Postal Museum & Archive, located in Freeling House on the back of the sorting office. A Post Office branch forms part of the site, fronting on to Rosebery Avenue and it is proposed by Royal Mail that half the site will be used for residential and commercial redevelopment. The remaining operational part of the site is being modernised, the site is the mail centre of the EC postcode area, the N postcode area, the W1 postcode district and the WC postcode area. Mount Pleasant, an exhibition curated by the British Postal Museum & Archive
Mount Pleasant Mail Centre
–
London's largest sorting office, Mount Pleasant
Mount Pleasant Mail Centre
–
Aerial view looking west
3.
Greenbat
–
Greenwood & Batley were a large engineering manufacturer with a wide range of products, including armaments, electrical engineering, and printing and milling machinery. They also produced a range of railway locomotives under the brand name Greenbat. The works was in Armley, Leeds, UK, Thomas Greenwood and John Batley first set up their business in 1856, both having previously worked at Fairburn’s Wellington Foundry in Leeds. Their first premises, the Albion Foundry, was taken over from Thomas W. Lord, the foundry was located on East Street by the River Aire, however this quickly became too small for their needs and in 1859 they constructed the Albion Works in Armley Road, Leeds. In 1885 the company branched out into Flour and Oil Milling Machinery as a result of the acquisition of the business of Joseph Whitham, Perseverance Iron Works, Kirkstall Road, by 1888 the works covered 11 acres and employed around 1600 men. A rail connection with the Great Northern Railway was installed in 1890 to bring in raw materials, Greenwood & Batley rapidly became a giant of a company, manufacturing an incredible range of products. Their primary business was military equipment both in terms of machinery to make armaments and the production of such as bullets. They also produced some of the first tanks in the First World War, an early innovation was the installation of their own electricity generating station, completed in 1894. This allowed machine tools to be electrically driven rather than the traditional common shafts driven by steam, a further acquisition in 1896 saw Greenwood & Batley take over Smith, Beacock & Tannett, Victoria Foundry, Water Lane, Leeds. This company were the successors to the Murray Round Foundry and were involved in the manufacture of Machine Tools. The company was bought by Hunslet Holdings for £1. 65M who continued to use the Greenbat name for their battery locomotives, by 1984 the work had been transferred to Jack Lane and the Albion Works were mothballed. In 1987 the site was sold and the works demolished, testing Machines for strength of Material. For making Armour Plates, Ordnance, Gun Mountings and Ammunition, also for Small Arms Cartridges, Gunpowder, &c. rolling Mills for Metal Coining, Presses and Minting Machinery. The Albion, Leeds, and Anglo-American systems for Extraction of every kind of Vegetable Oil including Machinery for Preparing and Decorticating Seeds, Presses for making Cattle Feeding Cakes, Seed and Grain Elevators and Warehousing machinery. Improved Patented Machines for Preparing and Spinning Waste Silk, China Grass, Rhea, Ramie, frickarts Improved Corliss Steam Engines, single compound and triple expansion of the largest powers, for driving Factories, Mills, Electrical Installations, &c. Sole Manufacturers of The Brayton Patent Oil Engine, all kinds of Dynamos and Motors for Lighting or Transmission of Power. Speciality, Motors for electrically driven Machine Tools &c, de Lavals Patent Steam Turbine Motors, Turbine Dynamos, Turbine Pumps and Fans. Manufacturers of all kinds of Military Small Arms Ammunition e. g.303 British, self-propelling Torpedoes for the Navy, and Horse Shoes for the British Government
Greenbat
–
Greenbat
battery-electric locomotive 6061 (built 1961) at Steeple Grange Light Railway
4.
Track gauge
–
In rail transport, track gauge is the spacing of the rails on a railway track and is measured between the inner faces of the load-bearing rails. All vehicles on a network must have running gear that is compatible with the track gauge, as the dominant parameter determining interoperability, it is still frequently used as a descriptor of a route or network. There is a distinction between the gauge and actual gauge at some locality, due to divergence of track components from the nominal. Railway engineers use a device, like a caliper, to measure the actual gauge, the nominal track gauge is the distance between the inner faces of the rails. In current practice, it is specified at a distance below the rail head as the inner faces of the rail head are not necessarily vertical. In some cases in the earliest days of railways, the company saw itself as an infrastructure provider only. Colloquially the wagons might be referred to as four-foot gauge wagons, say and this nominal value does not equate to the flange spacing, as some freedom is allowed for. An infrastructure manager might specify new or replacement track components at a variation from the nominal gauge for pragmatic reasons. Track is defined in old Imperial units or in universally accepted metric units or SI units, Imperial units were established in United Kingdom by The Weights and Measures Act of 1824. In addition, there are constraints, such as the load-carrying capacity of axles. Narrow gauge railways usually cost less to build because they are lighter in construction, using smaller cars and locomotives, as well as smaller bridges, smaller tunnels. Narrow gauge is often used in mountainous terrain, where the savings in civil engineering work can be substantial. Broader gauge railways are generally expensive to build and require wider curves. There is no single perfect gauge, because different environments and economic considerations come into play, a narrow gauge is superior if ones main considerations are economy and tight curvature. For direct, unimpeded routes with high traffic, a broad gauge may be preferable, the Standard, Russian, and 46 gauges are designed to strike a reasonable balance between these factors. In addition to the general trade-off, another important factor is standardization, once a standard has been chosen, and equipment, infrastructure, and training calibrated to that standard, conversion becomes difficult and expensive. This also makes it easier to adopt an existing standard than to invent a new one and this is true of many technologies, including railroad gauges. The reduced cost, greater efficiency, and greater economic opportunity offered by the use of a common standard explains why a number of gauges predominate worldwide
Track gauge
–
Indian Narrow and Broad gauge tracks
Track gauge
–
Track gauge
Track gauge
–
Fish-belly cast-iron rails from the Cromford and High Peak Railway
Track gauge
–
An early Stephenson locomotive
5.
Loading gauge
–
A loading gauge defines the maximum height and width for railway vehicles and their loads to ensure safe passage through bridges, tunnels and other structures. Classification systems vary between different countries and gauges may vary across a network, even if the track gauge remains constant, containerisation and a trend towards larger shipping containers has led rail companies to increase structure gauges to compete effectively with road haulage. Compliance with a loading gauge can be checked with a car which in the past were simple wooden frames or physical feelers mounted on rolling stock. The difference between the two is called the clearance, the terms dynamic envelope or kinematic envelope – which include factors such as suspension travel, overhang on curves and lateral motion on the track – are sometimes used in place of loading gauge. The height of platforms is also a consideration when considering the loading gauge of passenger trains, where the two are not directly compatible, steps may be required which will increase loading times. Where long carriages are used on a platform, gaps will occur between the platform and the carriage door, causing additional risk. Problems increase where trains of several different loading gauges and train floor heights use the same platform, the size of load that can be carried on a railway of a particular gauge is also influenced by the design of the rolling stock. Low-deck rolling stock can sometimes be used to carry taller 9 ft 6 in shipping containers on lower gauge lines although their low-deck rolling stock cannot then carry as many containers. Larger out-of-gauge loads can also sometimes be conveyed by taking one or more of the measures, operate at low speed. Cross over from a track with inadequate clearance to another track with greater clearance, prevent operation of other trains on adjacent tracks. Use refuge loops to allow trains to operate on other tracks, use of Schnabel cars that manipulate the load up and down or left and right to clear obstacles. Use gauntlet track to shift the train to side or center, for locomotives that are too heavy, ensure that fuel tanks are nearly empty. Turn off power in overhead wiring or in third rail, rapid Transit railways generally have a very small loading gauge. This reduces the cost of tunnel construction and these systems only use their own rolling stock. The loading gauge on the lines of Great Britain, most of which were built before 1900, is generally smaller than in other countries. In mainland Europe, the slightly larger Berne gauge was agreed to in 1913, as a result, British trains have noticeably and considerably smaller loading gauges and smaller interiors, despite the track being standard gauge along with much of the world. This results in increased costs for purchasing trains as they must be designed for the British network. The International Union of Railways has developed a series of loading gauges named A, B, B+
Loading gauge
–
The clearance between train and tunnel is often small. London Underground train at
Hendon.
Loading gauge
–
Template to check if the load falls within the loading gauge
Loading gauge
–
London Underground operates differing loading gauges. Here a
Metropolitan line A Stock sub-surface train (left) passes a
Piccadilly line 1973 Stock tube train (right)
Loading gauge
–
Zürich - Lucerne
IC2000 double-decker Intercity train
6.
Railway electrification system
–
A railway electrification system supplies electric power to railway trains and trams without an on-board prime mover or local fuel supply. Electrification has many advantages but requires significant capital expenditure, selection of an electrification system is based on economics of energy supply, maintenance, and capital cost compared to the revenue obtained for freight and passenger traffic. Different systems are used for urban and intercity areas, some electric locomotives can switch to different supply voltages to allow flexibility in operation, Electric railways use electric locomotives to haul passengers or freight in separate cars or electric multiple units, passenger cars with their own motors. Electricity is typically generated in large and relatively efficient generating stations, transmitted to the railway network, some electric railways have their own dedicated generating stations and transmission lines but most purchase power from an electric utility. The railway usually provides its own lines, switches and transformers. Power is supplied to moving trains with a continuous conductor running along the track usually takes one of two forms. The first is a line or catenary wire suspended from poles or towers along the track or from structure or tunnel ceilings. Locomotives or multiple units pick up power from the wire with pantographs on their roofs that press a conductive strip against it with a spring or air pressure. Examples are described later in this article, the second is a third rail mounted at track level and contacted by a sliding pickup shoe. Both overhead wire and third-rail systems usually use the rails as the return conductor. In comparison to the alternative, the diesel engine, electric railways offer substantially better energy efficiency, lower emissions. Electric locomotives are usually quieter, more powerful, and more responsive and they have no local emissions, an important advantage in tunnels and urban areas. Different regions may use different supply voltages and frequencies, complicating through service, the limited clearances available under catenaries may preclude efficient double-stack container service. Possible lethal electric current due to risk of contact with high-voltage contact wires, overhead wires are safer than third rails, but they are often considered unsightly. These are independent of the system used, so that. The permissible range of voltages allowed for the voltages is as stated in standards BS EN50163. These take into account the number of trains drawing current and their distance from the substation, railways must operate at variable speeds. Until the mid 1980s this was only practical with the brush-type DC motor, since such conversion was not well developed in the late 19th century and early 20th century, most early electrified railways used DC and many still do, particularly rapid transit and trams
Railway electrification system
–
Electric locomotives under the wires in
Sweden.
Railway electrification system
–
Railroad
rotary converter at
Illinois Railway Museum
Railway electrification system
–
Mercury arc rectifier
7.
Third rail
–
A third rail is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway track. It is used typically in a transit or rapid transit system. Third rail systems are supplied from direct current electricity. The third-rail system of electrification is unrelated to the third used in dual gauge railways. Third-rail systems are a means of providing electric power to trains. On most systems, the rail is placed on the sleeper ends outside the running rails. The conductor rail is supported on ceramic insulators or insulated brackets, the trains have metal contact blocks called shoes which make contact with the conductor rail. The traction current is returned to the station through the running rails. The conductor rail is made of high conductivity steel. The conductor rails have to be interrupted at level crossings, crossovers, tapered rails are provided at the ends of each section, to allow a smooth engagement of the trains contact shoes. Because third rail systems present electric shock hazards close to the ground, a very high current must therefore be used to transfer adequate power, resulting in high resistive losses, and requiring relatively closely spaced feed points. The electrified rail threatens electrocution of anyone wandering or falling onto the tracks. This can be avoided by using platform screen doors, or the risk can be reduced by placing the rail on the side of the track away from the platform. There is also a risk of pedestrians walking onto the tracks at level crossings, the Paris Metro has graphic warning signs pointing out the danger of electrocution from urinating on third rails, precautions which Chicago did not have. The end ramps of conductor rails present a practical limitation on speed due to the impact of the shoe. The world speed record for a rail train is 174 km/h attained on 11 April 1988 by a British Class 442 EMU. In the event of a collision with an object, the beveled end ramps of bottom running systems can facilitate the hazard of having third rail penetrate the interior of a passenger car. This is believed to have contributed to the death of five passengers in the Valhalla train crash of 2015, third rail systems using top contact are prone to accumulations of snow, or ice formed from refrozen snow, and this can interrupt operations
Third rail
–
Third rail at the
West Falls Church Metro station near Washington, D.C., electrified at 750 volts. The third rail is at the top of the image, with a white canopy above it. The two lower rails are the ordinary running rails; current from the third rail returns to the power station through these.
Third rail
–
A
British Class 442 third-rail
electric multiple unit in
Battersea. This is the fastest class of third-rail EMU in the world, reaching 108 mph (174 km/h).
Third rail
–
Paris Metro. The
guiding rails of the rubber-tyred lines are also current conductors. The horizontal
current collector is between the pair of rubber wheels.
Third rail
–
London Stansted Airport people mover with central rail power feed
8.
Narrow gauge railway
–
A narrow-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge narrower than the 1,435 mm of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow-gauge railways are between 600 mm and 1,067 mm, narrow-gauge railways also have specialized use in mines and other environments where a very small structure gauge makes a very small loading gauge necessary. Narrow-gauge railways also have general applications. Many narrow-gauge street tramways are used, particularly in Europe, where 1,000 mm metre gauge tramways are common, the earliest recorded railway is shown in the De re metallica of 1556, which shows a mine in Bohemia with a railway of about 2 ft gauge. During the 16th century, railways were mainly restricted to hand-pushed narrow-gauge lines in mines throughout Europe, during the 17th century, mine railways were extended to provide transportation above ground. These lines were industrial, connecting mines with nearby transportation points and these railways were usually built to the same narrow gauge as the mine railways from which they developed. The worlds first steam locomotive on rails, built in 1802 by Richard Trevithick for the Coalbrookdale Company, during the 1820s and 1830s, a number of industrial narrow-gauge railways in the United Kingdom used steam locomotives. In 1842, the first narrow-gauge steam locomotive outside the UK was built for the 1,100 mm gauge Antwerp-Ghent Railway in Belgium, historically, many narrow-gauge railways were built as part of specific industrial enterprises and were primarily industrial railways rather than general carriers. Some common uses for these industrial narrow-gauge railways were mining, logging, construction, tunnelling, quarrying, extensive narrow-gauge networks were constructed in many parts of the world for these purposes. For example, mountain logging operations in the 19th century often used narrow-gauge railways to transport logs from mill sites to market, significant sugarcane railways still operate in Cuba, Fiji, Java, the Philippines, and Queensland. Narrow-gauge railway equipment remains in use for the construction of tunnels. Extensive narrow-gauge railway systems served the front-line trenches of both sides in World War I and they were a short-lived military application, and after the end of the war, the surplus equipment from these created a small boom in narrow gauge railway building in Europe. Narrow-gauge railways usually cost less to build because they are lighter in construction, using smaller cars and locomotives, as well as smaller bridges, smaller tunnels. Narrow gauge is often used in mountainous terrain, where the savings in civil engineering work can be substantial. It is also used in populated areas where the potential demand is too low for broader gauge railways to be economically viable. This is the case in some of Australia and most of Southern Africa, the use of such railways has almost vanished due to the capabilities of modern trucks. In many countries, narrow gauge railways were built as feeder or branch lines to feed traffic to more important standard gauge lines, the choice was often not between a narrow-gauge railway and a standard gauge one, but between a narrow-gauge railway and none at all. Some bulk commodities, such as coal, ore, and gravel, can be transshipped, but this still incurs time penalties
Narrow gauge railway
–
Woodcut from
De re metallica showing narrow gauge railway in mine, 1556
Narrow gauge railway
–
Minimum
Narrow gauge railway
–
A train at Bad Bubendorf station on the 750 mm (2 ft 5 1 ⁄ 2 in) gauge
Waldenburgerbahn between
Liestal and
Waldenburg in Switzerland [1]
Narrow gauge railway
–
The 3 ft (914 mm) gauge
Disneyland Railroad in
California
9.
General Post Office
–
The General Post Office was officially established in England in 1660 by Charles II and it eventually grew to combine the functions of state postal system and telecommunications carrier. Similar General Post Offices were established across the British Empire, in 1969 the GPO was abolished and the assets transferred to The Post Office, changing it from a Department of State to a statutory corporation. For the more recent history of the system in the United Kingdom, see the article Royal Mail. Originally, the GPO was a monopoly covering the despatch of items from a sender to a specific receiver. The postal service was known as the Royal Mail because it was built on the system for royal. In 1661 the office of Postmaster General was created to oversee the GPO, the GPO created a network of post offices where senders could submit items. All post was transferred from the post office of origination to distribution points called sorting stations, initially it was the recipient of the post who paid the fee, and he had the right to refuse to accept the item if he did not wish to pay. The charge was based on the distance the item had been carried so the GPO had to keep an account for each item. The first general post office in London opened in 1643, just 8 years after King Charles I legalised use of the posts for private correspondence. It was probably on Cloak Lane near Dowgate Hill, coffee houses in the City such as Lloyds and Garraways organised private transport of mail among their patrons. The Royal Mail moved its headquarters to Lombard Street in the City in 1678 to better curtail such practices, when the Central London Railway was built in 1900 its nearby station was named Post Office. Smirkes building was felt to be too small by this time, however, in 1912, the former GPO East was demolished, the current headquarters of BT, a post World War II building, occupies the site of the old Telegraph Office. The theory was used to state control of the mail service into every form of electronic communication possible on the basis that every sender used some form of distribution service. These distribution services were considered in law as forms of electronic post offices and this applied to telegraph and telephone switching stations. In the mid 19th century several private companies were established in the UK. The responsibility for the electric telegraphs was officially transferred to the GPO on Friday,4 February 1870, overseas telegraphs did not fall within the monopoly. The private telegraph companies that existed were bought out. The new combined telegraph service had 1,058 telegraph offices in towns,6,830,812 telegrams were transmitted in 1869 producing revenue of £550,000
General Post Office
–
Clerks at work at the post office in London circa 1808.
General Post Office
–
Arms of
Her Majesty's Government
General Post Office
–
The 19th-century headquarters of the General Post Office in St Martins-le-Grand in the City of London.
General Post Office
–
The Inland Letter Office at the General Post Office in 1845.
10.
Underground Electric Railways Company of London
–
The Underground Electric Railways Company of London Limited, known operationally as the Underground for much of its existence, was established in 1902. It was also the parent company from 1902 of the District Railway, the UERL is a precursor of todays London Underground, its three tube lines form the central sections of todays Bakerloo, Northern and Piccadilly lines. The UERL struggled financially in the first years after the opening of its lines, a policy of expansion by acquisition was followed before World War I, so that the company came to operate the majority of the underground railway lines in and around London. It also controlled large bus and tram fleets, the profits from which subsidised the financially weaker railways, in the 1920s, competition from small unregulated bus operators reduced the profitability of the road transport operations, leading the UERLs directors to seek government regulation. The first deep-level tube railway, the City & South London Railway, construction had started on one other line and then stopped following a financial crisis. The rest of the companies were struggling to raise funding, the District Railway was a sub-surface underground railway which had opened in 1868. Its steam-hauled services operated around the Inner Circle and on branches to Hounslow, Wimbledon, Richmond, Ealing, Whitechapel, by 1901, the DR was struggling to compete with emerging motor bus and electric tram companies and the CLR which were eroding its passenger traffic. To become more competitive, the DR was contemplating a programme of electrification and it also had parliamentary approval for a congestion-relieving deep-level line that was to run beneath its existing route between Gloucester Road and Mansion House. Yerkes had unsuccessfully attempted to bribe the city council and Illinois state legislature into granting him a 100-year franchise for the tramway system, following a public backlash, he sold his Chicago investments and turned his attention to opportunities in London. Yerkes first acquisition in London was the Charing Cross, Euston, Perks was also a large shareholder in Yerkes next target, the Metropolitan District Railway, usually known as the District Railway or DR. By March 1901, the syndicate had acquired a controlling interest in the DR, Yerkes established the Metropolitan District Electric Traction Company on 15 July 1901 with himself as managing director. The company raised £1 million to carry out the works including the construction of the generating station. In September 1901, Perks became the DRs chairman, the Brompton and Piccadilly Circus Railway was a tube railway company which had been purchased by the DR in 1898, but had remained a separate financial entity. It had permission to construct a line from South Kensington to Piccadilly Circus, at South Kensington it was to connect to the deep level line planned by the DR. On 12 September 1901, the DR-controlled board of the B&PCR sold the company to the MDETC, in the same month, the B&PCR took over the Great Northern and Strand Railway, a tube railway with permission to build a line from Strand to Finsbury Park. The routes of the B&PCR and GN&SR were subsequently linked and combined with part of the DRs tube route to create the Great Northern, Piccadilly, Yerkes final purchase was the Baker Street and Waterloo Railway in March 1902 for £360,000. The BS&WR had permission to construct a line from Paddington to Elephant & Castle and, unlike his other tube railway purchases, construction work had started in 1898. With a varied collection of companies under his control, Yerkes established the UERL in April 1902 to take control of all and manage the planned works
Underground Electric Railways Company of London
–
Charles Yerkes, UERL chairman from 1902
Underground Electric Railways Company of London
–
Geographic map of the UERL's three deep-level tube lines in 1907
Underground Electric Railways Company of London
–
Originally built with four chimneys,
Lots Road Power Station provided electricity for all of the UERL's lines.
Underground Electric Railways Company of London
–
Russell Square station, an example of the
Leslie Green design used for the UERL's stations
11.
Chicago Tunnel Company
–
The Chicago Tunnel Company built a 2 ft narrow gauge railway freight tunnel network under the downtown of the city of Chicago. This was regulated by the Interstate Commerce Commission as an interurban despite the fact that it operated entirely under central Chicago, did not carry passengers and it inspired the construction of the London Post Office Railway. Initial plans for the called for filling them with phone cables. When the city refused to permit manholes through which cable could be unreeled into the tunnels, in early 1905, the system was taken over by the Illinois Tunnel Company. By this time,26 miles of a projected 60 miles of tunnel had been completed, the actual construction work was subcontracted to the Illinois Telephone Construction Company, under the management of George W. Jackson. By 1904, the first round of financing for tunnel system construction had largely been spent, with this financing, the Chicago Subway Company, incorporated in New Jersey, became a new holding company for the tunnel system. The Chicago Warehouse and Terminal Company was an affiliate, formed in 1904 to construct and operate facilities for interchanging freight with railroads. The tunnel company refused to recognize the union and began firing union members, despite the intervention of Congressman William Lorimer, all 260 employees went on strike on May 9. The company hired strikebreakers and refused to rehire any of the strikers, the Tunnel Company ran into a problem with a part of its planned expansion. In November 1906, the Chicago Board of Local Improvements announced it was considering widening Halsted Street between Chicago Avenue and 22nd Street, by 1909, the cost of construction had bankrupted the Illinois Tunnel Company. By this time, it was estimated that $30,000,000 had been spent on building and operating the tunnel. In 1913, the Chicago Tunnel Company agreed to sell its operations to American Telephone and Telegraph Company. By 1920, all telephone cables had been removed from the tunnels, by 1914, about 60 miles of tunnel had been constructed, typically 7 feet 6 inches high and 6 feet wide, with 2 ft gauge track. 19 elevators connected the tunnel with customers, and five elevators served universal public stations where freight could be dropped off or picked up by the public. The railroad operated 132 electric locomotives, typically 30 to 50 horsepower each, in 1914, the tunnel company handled 609,320 short tons of freight,275,218 short tons of which were merchandise. The remainder was presumably coal, ash and excavation debris, from 1912 into the 1930s, the tunnel company was managed by Sherman Weld Tracy. It was never profitable, but it avoided receivership, with most of the stock held by J. Ogden Armour, E. H. Harriman. Excavation debris from the new tunnels was hauled away by the Chicago Tunnel Company as the subway replaced the freight tunnels along their route
Chicago Tunnel Company
–
Under the streets of Chicago, pre 1906.
Chicago Tunnel Company
–
Tunnel under construction in 1902. The freshly cut clay ahead of the concrete work shows clear knife marks.
Chicago Tunnel Company
–
Trackwork in a typical
grand union where two tunnels intersected, photographed before 1906.
Chicago Tunnel Company
–
Two Morgan Locomotives posed for a publicity photo in 1904 at State and Randolph. Superintendent George W. Jackson is at the controls on the left.
12.
Whitechapel
–
Whitechapel is a district in the East End of London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Because the area is close to the London Docklands and east of the city, it has been a place for immigrants. The area was the centre of the London Jewish community in the 19th and early 20th century, in the latter half of the 20th century, Whitechapel became a significant settlement for the British Bangladeshi community, particularly on Whitechapel Road and Brick Lane. Whitechapels heart is Whitechapel High Street, extending further east as Whitechapel Road, the churchs earliest known rector was Hugh de Fulbourne in 1329. Around 1338, it became the church of Whitechapel, called, for unknown reasons. The church was destroyed through enemy action in World War II and its location, Whitechapel High Street and Whitechapel Road are now part of the A11 road, anciently the initial part of the Roman road between the City of London and Colchester, exiting the city at Aldgate. In later times, travellers to and from London on this route were accommodated at the coaching inns which lined Whitechapel High Street. By the late 16th century, the suburb of Whitechapel and the area had started becoming the other half of London. Located east of Aldgate, outside the City Walls and beyond official controls, it attracted the less fragrant activities of the city, particularly tanneries, breweries, foundries and slaughterhouses. In 1680, the Rector of Whitechapel, the Rev. Ralph Davenant, William Booth began his Christian Revival Society, preaching the gospel in a tent, erected in the Friends Burial Ground, Thomas Street, Whitechapel, in 1865. Others joined his Christian Mission, and on 7 August 1878 the Salvation Army was formed at a meeting held at 272 Whitechapel Road, a statue commemorates both his mission and his work in helping the poor. In the Victorian era the population of poor English country stock was swelled by immigrants from all over. Writing of the period 1883–1884, Yiddish theatre actor Jacob Adler wrote, The further we penetrated into this Whitechapel, never in Russia, never later in the worst slums of New York, were we to see such poverty as in the London of the 1880s. This endemic poverty drove women to prostitution. In October 1888 the Metropolitan Police estimated that there were 1,200 prostitutes of very low class resident in Whitechapel, reference is specifically made to them in Charles Booths Life and Labour of the People in London, specially to dwellings called Blackwall Buildings belonging to Blackwall Railway. Such prostitutes were numbered amongst the 11 Whitechapel murders, some of which were committed by the serial killer known as Jack the Ripper. Riis had recently documented the astoundingly bad conditions in large swaths of the city of the United States. London, a socialist, thought it worthwhile to explore conditions in the city of the nation that had invented modern capitalism
Whitechapel
–
The new
Royal London Hospital building
Whitechapel
–
Whitechapel High Street in 1905
Whitechapel
–
Part of
Charles Booth 's
poverty map showing Commercial Road in Whitechapel 1889. The red areas are "well-to-do" and black areas are the "lowest class...occasional labourers, street sellers, loafers, criminals and semi-criminals".
Whitechapel
–
Plaque remembering King Edward VII.
13.
Liverpool Street railway station
–
The station opened in 1874 as a replacement for Bishopsgate station as the Great Eastern Railways main London terminus. By 1895 it had the largest number of platforms on any railway station in London. During the First World War, an air raid on the station in 1917 led to 162 deaths, in the build-up to the Second World War, the station served as the entry point for thousands of child refugees arriving in London as part of the Kindertransport rescue mission. Liverpool Street was built as a station with provision for the Underground. A tube station opened in 1875 for the Metropolitan Railway, and the station today is served by the Central, Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines, Liverpool Street is the third-busiest railway station in the United Kingdom after Waterloo and Victoria, both also in London. It is managed directly by Network Rail, a few daily express trains to Harwich International provide a connection with the Dutchflyer ferry to Hook of Holland. Stansted Express trains provide a link to Stansted Airport and Southend Victoria-bound services stop at Southend Airport, most passenger services on the Great Eastern Main Line are operated by Greater Anglia. Since 2015, the Shenfield metro service has been controlled by TfL Rail, a small number of late-evening and weekend services operated by c2c run via Barking. The station is split into two halves, the west side for the Lea Valley Lines services and the east side for services via Stratford. The typical off-peak weekday service pattern from Liverpool Street is, Liverpool Street station was built as the new London terminus of the Great Eastern Railway which served Norwich, the GER had been formed from the merger of several railway companies, inheriting Bishopsgate as its London terminus. Consequently, the GER planned a more central station, the station was planned to be around 630 by 200 ft in area, with its main façade onto Liverpool Street and an additional entrance on Bishopsgate-Street. The line and station construction were authorised by the Great Eastern Railway Act 1864, the station was built on a 10 acres site previously occupied by the Bethlem Royal Hospital, adjacent to Broad Street station, west of Bishopsgate and facing onto Liverpool Street to the south. The development land was purchased, displacing around 3,000 residents of the parish of St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate. To manage the disruption caused by rehousing, the company was required by the 1864 Act to run daily low-cost workmens trains from the station. The station was designed by GER engineer Edward Wilson and built by Lucas Brothers, the overall design was approximately Gothic, built using stock bricks and bath stone dressings. The building incorporated booking offices as well as the offices of the GER, including chairmans, board, committee, secretary. The station was built with a connection to the sub-surface Metropolitan Railway, with the platform sunk below ground level, the Metropolitan Railway used the station as a terminus from 1 February 1875 until 11 July 1875, their own underground station opened on 12 July 1875. Local trains began serving the partially completed station from 2 October 1874, the original City terminus at Bishopsgate closed to passengers and was converted for use as a goods station from 1881
Liverpool Street railway station
–
Main station concourse
Liverpool Street railway station
–
Plan of Liverpool Street and Broad Street (c.1888)
Liverpool Street railway station
–
Liverpool Street station, west elevation (1896)
Liverpool Street railway station
–
Original trainshed cross-section (1875)
14.
National Rail
–
The name and the accompanying double arrow symbol are the intellectual property of the Secretary of State for Transport. The National Rail logo was introduced by ATOC in 1999, and was used on the Great Britain public timetable for the first time in the edition valid from 26 September in that year. Rules for its use are set out in the Corporate Identity Style Guidelines published by the Rail Delivery Group, the NR title is sometimes described as a brand. As it was used by British Rail, the operator before franchising, its use also maintains continuity and public familiarity. National Rail should not be confused with Network Rail, the two networks are generally coincident where passenger services are run. Most major Network Rail lines carry traffic and some lines are freight only. About twenty privately owned operating companies, each franchised for a defined term by government. The Rail Delivery Group is the association representing the TOCs and provides core services. It also runs Rail Settlement Plan, which allocates ticket revenue to the various TOCs, and Rail Staff Travel and it does not compile the national timetable, which is the joint responsibility of the Office of Rail Regulation and Network Rail. Since the privatisation of British Rail there is no longer a single approach to design on railways in Great Britain, the look and feel of signage, liveries and marketing material is largely the preserve of the individual TOCs. However, National Rail continues to use BRs famous double-arrow symbol and it has been incorporated in the National Rail logotype and is displayed on tickets, the National Rail website and other publicity. The trademark rights to the arrow symbol remain state-owned, being vested in the Secretary of State for Transport. The double arrow was already prescribed for indicating a railway station, the lettering used in the National Rail logotype is a modified form of the typeface Sassoon Bold. It is a misconception that Rail Alphabet was also used for printed material. The British Rail typefaces of choice from 1965 were Helvetica and Univers, TOCs may use what they like, examples include Futura, Helvetica, Frutiger, Bliss, and a modified version of Precious by London Midland. Several conurbations have their own metro or tram systems, most of which are not part of National Rail, LO now also possesses some infrastructure in its own right, following the reopening of the former East London line of London Underground as the East London Railway of LO. Heathrow Express and Eurostar are also not part of the National Rail network despite sharing of stations, northern Ireland Railways were never part of British Rail, which was always confined to Great Britain, and therefore are not part of the National Rail network. National Rail services have a common ticketing structure inherited from British Rail, through tickets are available between any pair of stations on the network, and can be bought from any station ticket office
National Rail
–
Young Person railcard rail ticket from
Wellington to
Shrewsbury
National Rail
–
Child Return from East Kilbride
15.
Mount Pleasant Sorting Office
–
The Mount Pleasant Mail Centre is a mail centre operated by Royal Mail in London, England. The site has previously operated as one of the largest sorting offices in the world and it is located in the London Borough of Islington, on the boundary with the London Borough of Camden. It was officially opened on 30 August 1889 when the Post Office Act was passed by Parliament and it was built on the location of the former Coldbath Fields Prison that ceased to function in 1885. The original prison gate was incorporated into the post office and not demolished until 1901, the remaining sections of the prison were demolished in 1929, when the new wing was built as an extension to the Letter Office. From 1927 to 2003, Mount Pleasant was connected to other major Royal Mail offices and railways stations in London, in the 1970s, it pioneered the use of optical character recognition for sorting purposes with the installation of a machine in 1979. It is located on a 12-acre site in the Mount Pleasant area of Clerkenwell, Mount Pleasant hosts the British Postal Museum & Archive, located in Freeling House on the back of the sorting office. A Post Office branch forms part of the site, fronting on to Rosebery Avenue and it is proposed by Royal Mail that half the site will be used for residential and commercial redevelopment. The remaining operational part of the site is being modernised, the site is the mail centre of the EC postcode area, the N postcode area, the W1 postcode district and the WC postcode area. Mount Pleasant, an exhibition curated by the British Postal Museum & Archive
Mount Pleasant Sorting Office
–
London's largest sorting office, Mount Pleasant
Mount Pleasant Sorting Office
–
Aerial view looking west
16.
Mowlem
–
Mowlem was one of the largest construction and civil engineering companies in the United Kingdom. Carillion bought the firm in 2006, the firm was founded by John Mowlem in 1822, and was continued as a partnership by successive generations of the Mowlem and Burt families, including George Burt, and Sir John Mowlem Burt. The company was awarded a Royal Warrant in 1902 and went public on the London Stock Exchange in 1924, during the Second World War the company was one of the contractors engaged in building the Mulberry harbour units. Mowlem acquired SGB Group, a supplier of scaffolding, in 1986, Mowlem also bought Unit Construction in 1986, giving the firm a substantial presence in private housebuilding - within two years, sales were up to an annual rate of 1,200. The ensuing recession led to losses of over £180m between 1991 and 1993 and banking covenants came under pressure, the housing division was sold to Beazer in 1994. Mowlem was bought by Carillion in February 2006, Mowlem was also the owner and developer of London City Airport completed in 1986. Code Name Mulberry, The Planning Building and Operation of the Normandy Harbours, Mowlem 1822 -1972 - company brochure
Mowlem
–
Mowlem
Mowlem
–
Tower 42 Built by Mowlem
17.
Tunnelling shield
–
A tunnelling shield is a protective structure used during the excavation of large, man-made tunnels. When excavating through ground that is soft, liquid, or otherwise unstable, there is a risk to workers, a tunnelling shield serves as a temporary support structure. It is in place for the short time from when the tunnel is excavated until it can be lined with a permanent support structure. The permanent structure may be made up of, depending on the period, bricks, concrete, cast iron, the structure nevertheless protected the men from cave-ins as they laboured within it, digging the tunnel out in front of themselves. The first successful tunnelling shield was developed by Sir Marc Isambard Brunel and patented by him, Brunel and his son Isambard Kingdom Brunel used it to excavate the Thames Tunnel beginning in 1825. Brunel is said to have inspired in his design by the shell of the shipworm Teredo navalis. The shield was built by Maudslay, Sons & Field of Lambeth, London, brunels original design was substantially improved by Peter W. Barlow in the course of the construction of the Tower Subway under the River Thames in central London in 1870. The shield was 7 ft 3in in diameter, the Barlow design was enlarged and further improved by James Henry Greathead for the construction of the City and South London Railway in 1884, with tunnels 10 ft 2in in diameter. His system was used in the driving of the 12-foot-1 3⁄4-inch diameter running tunnels for the Waterloo & City Railway which opened in 1898. The station tunnels at the City station were the largest diameter tunnelling shields in the world at the time, to this day, most tunnelling shields are still loosely based on the Greathead shield. An original Greathead Shield used in the excavation of the deep London Underground lines remains in place in disused tunnels beneath Moorgate station, the early deep tunnels for the London Underground were built in this way. The shield divided the workface into overlapping portions that each worker could excavate, a tunnel boring machine consists of a shield and trailing support mechanisms. A rotating cutting wheel is located at the front end of the shield, behind the cutting wheel there is a chamber where the excavated soil is either mixed with slurry or left as-is, depending on the type of the TBM. The choice for a type of TBM depends on the soil conditions. Systems are also present for removal of the soil, behind the chamber there is a set of hydraulic jacks supported by the finished part of the tunnel which are used to push the TBM forward. Once a certain distance has been excavated, a new ring is built using the erector. The erector is a system which picks up precast concrete segments. The tunnel lining is the wall of the tunnel and it usually consists of precast concrete segments which form rings
Tunnelling shield
–
The tunnelling shield used for the construction of the
Xinyi Line on the
Taipei Metro system in
Taiwan.
Tunnelling shield
–
Diagram of the tunnelling shield used to construct the Thames Tunnel
Tunnelling shield
–
The Greathead tunnelling shield in use on the Waterloo & City Railway
18.
Bakerloo line
–
The Bakerloo line /ˌbeɪkərˈluː/ is a line of the London Underground, coloured brown on the Tube map. It runs partly on the surface and partly at deep level, from Elephant and Castle in Central London, via the West End, the line serves 25 stations, of which 15 are below ground. It was so named because it serves Baker Street and Waterloo, North of Queens Park, the line shares tracks with London Overgrounds Watford DC Line and runs parallel to the West Coast Main Line. It is the ninth busiest line on the network, carrying over 111 million passengers annually, for a detailed history of the line, see Baker Street and Waterloo Railway. The route had its origins in the projects of the pneumatic 1865 Waterloo and Whitehall Railway. It was extended to Elephant & Castle five months later, on 5 August, the contraction of the name to Bakerloo rapidly caught on, and the official name was changed to match in July 1906. As a result, work on the line was stopped for a few months and did not resume until Charles Yerkes and UERL stepped in, in 1915 the line was extended to Queens Park, where it joined the LNWRs Euston-Watford DC line to Watford Junction. Bakerloo services to Watford Junction were reduced in the 1960s and cut back in 1982 to Stonebridge Park, services as far as Harrow & Wealdstone were gradually restored from 1984, and in 1989 the present all-day service was instituted. By the mid-1930s, the Metropolitan line was suffering from congestion caused by the capacity of its tracks between Baker Street and Finchley Road stations. The Bakerloo line took over the Metropolitan lines service to Stanmore on 20 November 1939, a projected extension as far as Camberwell was shown on a 1949 edition of the Underground map but no further work was done. The train describers at Warwick Avenue station showed Camberwell as a destination until the 1990s, one oddity is that, almost from its opening until 1917, the Bakerloo operated with the polarity of the conductor rails reversed, the outside rail negative and the centre rail positive. This came about because the Bakerloo shared a power source with the District Railway, on the Bakerloo, the outside conductor rail tended to leak to the tunnel wall, whereas on the District Railway, the centre rail shared a similar problem. The solution was to reverse the polarity on the Bakerloo line, in 1917, the two lines were separated when the LNWR began its New Line service between Euston and Watford Junction, which the Bakerloo would share north of Queens Park. As a result, normal operation was restored, the line celebrated its centenary on 10 March 2006, when various events were organised on the line. This was in conjunction with the reorganisation of a number of north London railways under London Overground, under a former London Plan it was projected that by 2026 the Bakerloo line would be re-extended from Harrow & Wealdstone to Watford Junction, restoring the pre-1982 service. The railway line from Queens Park to Watford Junction, currently shared with London Overground, the 1949 extension to Camberwell proposal was resurrected in 2006 when the then London Mayor, Ken Livingstone, suggested that an extension was being considered within 20 years. However, there are no firm commitments to this extension and it remains at the proposal stage, tfLs Transport T2025 - Transport Vision for a growing world city investment programme identifies the ambition to separate the present Northern line into two self-contained lines by 2025. In this scenario, an extension to the Bakerloo line would no longer be required, in its July 2011 London & South East Route Utilisation Strategy, Network Rail recommended extending the Bakerloo line from Elephant & Castle to Lewisham and then taking over the Hayes Line
Bakerloo line
Bakerloo line
–
The northbound Bakerloo line platform at
Edgware Road
Bakerloo line
–
A 1938 Bakerloo train at
Harlesden station
Bakerloo line
–
The interior of a Bakerloo train
19.
London Underground
–
The London Underground is a public rapid transit system serving London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom. The network has expanded to 11 lines, and in 2015–16 carried 1.34 billion passengers, the 11 lines collectively handle approximately 4.8 million passengers a day. The system has 270 stations and 250 miles of track, despite its name, only 45% of the system is actually underground in tunnels, with much of the network in the outer environs of London being on the surface. In addition, the Underground does not cover most southern parts of Greater London, the current operator, London Underground Limited, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London, the statutory corporation responsible for the transport network in Greater London. As of 2015, 92% of operational expenditure is covered by passenger fares, the Travelcard ticket was introduced in 1983 and Oyster, a contactless ticketing system, in 2003. Contactless card payments were introduced in 2014, the LPTB was a prominent patron of art and design, commissioning many new station buildings, posters and public artworks in a modernist style. Other famous London Underground branding includes the roundel and Johnston typeface, to prepare construction, a short test tunnel was built in 1855 in Kibblesworth, a small town with geological properties similar to London. This test tunnel was used for two years in the development of the first underground train, and was later, in 1861, the worlds first underground railway, it opened in January 1863 between Paddington and Farringdon using gas-lit wooden carriages hauled by steam locomotives. It was hailed as a success, carrying 38,000 passengers on the opening day, the Metropolitan District Railway opened in December 1868 from South Kensington to Westminster as part of a plan for an underground inner circle connecting Londons main-line termini. The Metropolitan and District railways completed the Circle line in 1884, built using the cut and this opened in 1890 with electric locomotives that hauled carriages with small opaque windows, nicknamed padded cells. The Waterloo and City Railway opened in 1898, followed by the Central London Railway in 1900, the Metropolitan Railway protested about the change of plan, but after arbitration by the Board of Trade, the DC system was adopted. When the Bakerloo was so named in July 1906, The Railway Magazine called it an undignified gutter title, by 1907 the District and Metropolitan Railways had electrified the underground sections of their lines. In January 1913, the UERL acquired the Central London Railway, the Bakerloo line was extended north to Queens Park to join a new electric line from Euston to Watford, but World War I delayed construction and trains reached Watford Junction in 1917. During air raids in 1915 people used the stations as shelters. An extension of the Central line west to Ealing was also delayed by the war, the Metropolitan promoted housing estates near the railway with the Metro-land brand and nine housing estates were built near stations on the line. Electrification was extended north from Harrow to Rickmansworth, and branches opened from Rickmansworth to Watford in 1925, the Piccadilly line was extended north to Cockfosters and took over District line branches to Harrow and Hounslow. In 1933, most of Londons underground railways, tramway and bus services were merged to form the London Passenger Transport Board, the Waterloo & City Railway, which was by then in the ownership of the main line Southern Railway, remained with its existing owners. In the same year that the London Passenger Transport Board was formed, in the following years, the outlying lines of the former Metropolitan Railway closed, the Brill Tramway in 1935, and the line from Quainton Road to Verney Junction in 1936
London Underground
–
A deep-level
Central line train at
Lancaster Gate bound for
Ealing Broadway
London Underground
–
London Underground
London Underground
–
A larger sub-surface
Metropolitan line train at
Farringdon bound for
Aldgate
London Underground
–
The Metropolitan Railway opened using GWR broad gauge locomotives
20.
Postmaster General of the United Kingdom
–
The Postmaster General of the United Kingdom was a Cabinet-level ministerial position in HM Government. Aside from maintaining the system, the Telegraph Act of 1868 established the Postmaster Generals right to exclusively maintain electric telegraphs. This would subsequently extend to telecommunications and broadcasting, the office was abolished in 1969 by the Post Office Act 1969. A replacement public authority governed by a chairman was established under the name of the Post Office, in England, the monarchs letters to his subjects are known to have been carried by relays of couriers as long ago as the 15th century. The earliest mention of Master of the Posts is in the Kings Book of Payments where a payment of £100 was authorised for Tuke as master of the posts in February 1512. Belatedly, in 1517, he was appointed to the office of Governor of the Kings Posts. In 1609 it was decreed that letters could only be carried and delivered by persons authorised by the Postmaster General, in 1657 an Act entitled Postage of England, Scotland and Ireland Settled set up a system for the British Isles and enacted the position of Postmaster General. The Act also reasserted the postal monopoly for letter delivery and for post horses, after the Restoration in 1660, a further Act confirmed this and the post of Postmaster-General, the previous Cromwellian Act being void. 1660 saw the establishment of the General Letter Office, which would become the General Post Office. A similar position evolved in the Kingdom of Scotland prior to the 1707 Act of Union, the office was abolished in 1969 by the Post Office Act 1969. A new public authority governed by a chairman was established under the name of the Post Office, from 1691 to 1823 there were two Postmasters General, to divide the patronage between the Whigs and Tories. In 1823 the idea of a Whig and a Tory sharing the post was abolished
Postmaster General of the United Kingdom
–
Albert Illingworth 1916–1921
Postmaster General of the United Kingdom
–
Arms of
Her Majesty's Government General Post Office
Postmaster General of the United Kingdom
–
The former site of the General Letter Office in London
Postmaster General of the United Kingdom
–
William Ormsby-Gore
21.
Tony Benn
–
Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn, originally known as Anthony Wedgwood Benn, but later as Tony Benn, was a British politician, writer, and diarist. He was a member of parliament for 47 years between the 1950 and 2001 general elections and a Cabinet minister in the Labour governments of Harold Wilson and James Callaghan in the 1960s and 1970s. Originally a moderate, he was identified as being on the hard left from the early 1980s. Benn inherited a peerage on his fathers death, which prevented his continuing as an MP and he fought to remain in the House of Commons, and then campaigned for the ability to renounce the title, a campaign which succeeded with the Peerage Act 1963. He was an member of the Fabian Society and its Chair 1964–65. In the Labour Government of 1964–70 he served first as Postmaster General, where he oversaw the opening of the Post Office Tower and he unsuccessfully challenged Neil Kinnock for the Labour leadership in 1988. Benn was described as one of the few UK politicians to have become more left-wing after holding ministerial office, after leaving Parliament, Benn was President of the Stop the War Coalition from 2001 until his death in 2014. Benn was born in London on 3 April 1925 and he had two brothers, Michael, who was older, and David, a specialist in Russia and Eastern Europe. William Benn was elevated to the House of Lords with the title of Viscount Stansgate in 1942 – the new coalition government was short of working Labour peers in the upper house. In 1945–46, William Benn was the Secretary of State for Air in the first majority Labour Government, Benns mother, Margaret Wedgwood Benn, was a theologian, feminist and the founder President of the Congregational Federation. Later in his life, Benn emphasised issues regarding morality and righteousness, ive never thought we can understand the world we lived in unless we understood the history of the church, Benn said to the Catholic Herald. All political freedoms were won, first of all, through religious freedom, some of the arguments about the control of the media today, which are very big arguments, are the arguments that would have been fought in the religious wars. You have the satellites coming in now – well, it is the church all over again. According to Peter Wilby in the New Statesman, Benn decided to do without the paraphernalia and doctrine of organised religion, although Benn became more agnostic as he became older, he was intrigued by the interconnections between Christianity, radicalism and socialism. Ive looked at Labour leaders in a funny way ever since, Benn also met David Lloyd George when he was 12 and later recalled that, while still a boy, he once shook hands with Mahatma Gandhi. This was in 1931, while his father was Secretary of State for India, would I have been a freedom fighter or a terrorist. In July 1943 Benn enlisted in the Royal Air Force as an aircraftman 2nd Class and his father and elder brother Michael were already serving in the RAF. He was granted a commission as a pilot officer on 10 March 1945
Tony Benn
–
Benn in 2007
Tony Benn
–
Benn speaking at the
Glastonbury Festival in 2008
Tony Benn
–
Tony Benn and
Giles Fraser speaking at
Levellers ' Day,
Burford, 17 May 2008
Tony Benn
–
Benn on the cover of Dartford Living, September 2009
22.
Communication Workers Union (UK)
–
The Communication Workers Union is the main trade union in the United Kingdom for people working for telephone, cable, DSL and postal delivery companies. Formed in 1995, by the merger of the Union of Communication Workers and National Communications Union, CWU members work for Royal Mail, the Post Office, BT, O2, cable TV, Accenture HR Services, Orange, Virgin Media and other communication companies. Members expertise includes engineering, computing, clerical, mechanical, driving, retail, the basis of the strike was a disagreement over pay and pensions. On 7 June 2007, the unions postal members voted by 77. 5% to strike after a 2. 5% pay rise coupled with £350 million every year for five years of cuts was offered. They took their first one-day strike on 29 June 2007, the action then progressed to a series of rolling strikes. Further industrial action was taken in 2009, an overwhelming three to one vote in favour backed the dispute and two days of national strike action were called in October 2009. This followed significant periods of local action in London, Bristol. Following the interim agreement, strike action was suspended and talks held under the auspices of Acas, in December 2009, a national agreement was struck and a ballot of the membership on an agreement on pay and working conditions was carried out. This agreement was supported by CWU members in January 2010. The agreement increased pay and changed working arrangements, particularly in delivery, the agreement was headed business transformation and discussions and implementation arrangements continued nationally and in each workplace on the detail of the agreement. As a result, both the union and Royal Mail claimed to have agreed a fully funded modernisation plan, in early 2010 the CWU balloted all of its BT employed members for strike action over a pay claim for 2010. The ballot result was never announced due to legal challenges but following extensive negotiations CWU reached a settlement on pay with BT. A national ballot of members agreed the pay deal. He was replaced by Andy Kerr, at the CWU Annual Conference 2008 there was much debate about the unions relationship with Labour. It was agreed, and remains union policy that a ballot would be held to cease funds to the party if privatisation of postal services took place, since the election of the Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition government the union has sought to re-define its relationship with the Labour Party. In July 2010 the unions National Executive Committee agreed to nominate, in turn, Ed Balls MP supported the unions Keep The Post Public campaign in the summer of 2010 in opposition of the planned coalition governments intention to privatise Royal Mail. A member of the Association of British Credit Unions Limited, it is open to members, the credit union is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the PRA. Ultimately, like the banks and building societies, members’ savings are protected against business failure by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. org, by LibCom. org 1st Class Credit Union
Communication Workers Union (UK)
–
CWU
23.
Greater London Authority
–
The Greater London Authority is a top-tier administrative body for Greater London, England. It consists of an elected executive Mayor of London, currently Sadiq Khan. The authority was established in 2000, following a referendum, and derives most of its powers from the Greater London Authority Act 1999. It is a regional authority, with powers over transport, policing, economic development. Three functional bodies — Transport for London, the Mayors Office for Policing and Crime, the planning policies of the Mayor of London are detailed in a statutory London Plan that is regularly updated and published. The Greater London Authority is mostly funded by government grant and it is also a precepting authority. The GLA is unique in the British local government system, in terms of structure, elections, the GLA is responsible for the strategic administration of the 1579 km² of Greater London. It shares local government powers with the councils of 32 London boroughs and it was created to improve the co-ordination between the local authorities in Greater London, and the Mayor of Londons role is to give London a single person to represent it. The Mayor proposes policy and the GLAs budget, and makes appointments to the capitals strategic executive such as Transport for London, the primary purpose of the London Assembly is to hold the Mayor of London to account by scrutiny of his or her actions and decisions. The assembly must also accept or amend the Mayors budget on an annual basis, the GLA is based at City Hall, a new building on the south bank of the River Thames, next to Tower Bridge. The GLA is different from the Corporation of the City of London with its largely ceremonial Lord Mayors, in 1986, the Greater London Council was abolished by the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher. On abolition, the functions of the GLC were transferred to bodies controlled by central government or joint boards nominated by the London Borough councils. Some of the service functions were transferred down to the councils themselves. For the next 14 years there was no single elected body for the whole of London, the Labour Party never supported the abolition of the GLC and made it a policy to re-establish some form of citywide elected authority. After the Labour party won the 1997 general election, the policy was outlined in a White paper entitled A Mayor and Assembly for London. Simultaneously with the elections to the London Borough councils, a referendum was held on the establishment of the GLA in May 1998, the Greater London Authority Act 1999 passed through Parliament, receiving the Royal Assent in October 1999. In a controversial campaign, the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair, attempted to block Livingstones nomination. In reaction, Livingstone stood as an independent candidate, resulting in his expulsion from the Labour Party, following an interim period in which the Mayor and Assembly had been elected but had no powers, the GLA was formally established on 3 July 2000
Greater London Authority
Greater London Authority
–
London
24.
Urban exploration
–
Urban exploration is the exploration of man-made structures, usually abandoned ruins or not usually seen components of the man-made environment. Photography and historical interest/documentation are heavily featured in the hobby and, although it may sometimes involve trespassing onto private property, informally named urbexing, the popular activity is engaged with by people of all ages, even the elderly. Urbex (or urban exploration may also be referred to as draining, urban spelunking, urban rock climbing, urban caving, the nature of this activity presents various risks, including both physical danger and the possibility of arrest and punishment. Some activities associated with urban exploration may violate local or regional laws, ventures into abandoned structures are perhaps the most common example of urban exploration. At times, sites are entered first by locals and may suffer from large amounts of graffiti, in Japan, abandoned infrastructure is known as haikyo, but the term is synonymous with the practice of urban exploration. Haikyo are particularly common in Japan because of its rapid industrialization, damage during World War II, the 1980s real estate bubble, Abandoned sites are also popular among historians, preservationists, architects, archaeologists, industrial archaeologists, and ghost hunters. The term infiltration is often associated with the exploration of active structures, people entering restricted areas may be committing trespass and civil prosecution may result. Catacombs such as found in Paris, Rome, Odessa. Explorers of these are known as cataphiles, entry into storm drains, or draining, is another common form of urban exploration. Groups devoted to the task have arisen, such as the Cave Clan in Australia, draining has a specialized set of guidelines, the foremost of which is When it rains, no drains. The dangers of becoming entrapped, washed away, or killed increase dramatically during a heavy rainfall, a small subset of explorers enter sanitary sewers. Sometimes they are the connection to caves or other subterranean features. Sewers are among the most dangerous locations to explore owing to risk of poisoning by buildups of toxic gas, Exploring active and abandoned subway and underground railway tunnels, bores and stations is often considered to be trespassing and can result in civil prosecution. As a result, this type of exploration is rarely publicized, one important exception to this is the abandoned subway of Rochester, New York, the only American city to have an abandoned, formerly used, subway system. Universities, and other institutions such as hospitals, often distribute hazardous superheated steam for heating or cooling buildings from a central heating plant. These pipes are run through utility tunnels, which are often intended to be accessible solely for the purposes of maintenance. Nevertheless, many of steam tunnels, especially those on college campuses. This practice was once called vadding at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, though students there now refer to it as roof, some steam tunnels have dirt floors, poor lighting and temperatures upwards of 45 °C
Urban exploration
–
Light Painting inside an abandoned limestone quarry in
France.
Urban exploration
–
Urban explorers at the entrance of a technical gallery under construction in Paris, France
Urban exploration
–
Abandoned Salbert fortifications
Urban exploration
–
Catacombs (France)
25.
University of Cambridge
–
The University of Cambridge is a collegiate public research university in Cambridge, England, often regarded as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. Founded in 1209 and given royal status by King Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. The university grew out of an association of scholars who left the University of Oxford after a dispute with the townspeople, the two ancient universities share many common features and are often referred to jointly as Oxbridge. Cambridge is formed from a variety of institutions which include 31 constituent colleges, Cambridge University Press, a department of the university, is the worlds oldest publishing house and the second-largest university press in the world. The university also operates eight cultural and scientific museums, including the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridges libraries hold a total of around 15 million books, eight million of which are in Cambridge University Library, a legal deposit library. In the year ended 31 July 2015, the university had an income of £1.64 billion. The central university and colleges have an endowment of around £5.89 billion. The university is linked with the development of the high-tech business cluster known as Silicon Fen. It is a member of associations and forms part of the golden triangle of leading English universities and Cambridge University Health Partners. As of 2017, Cambridge is ranked the fourth best university by three ranking tables and no other institution in the world ranks in the top 10 for as many subjects. Cambridge is consistently ranked as the top university in the United Kingdom, the university has educated many notable alumni, including eminent mathematicians, scientists, politicians, lawyers, philosophers, writers, actors, and foreign Heads of State. Ninety-five Nobel laureates, fifteen British prime ministers and ten Fields medalists have been affiliated with Cambridge as students, faculty, by the late 12th century, the Cambridge region already had a scholarly and ecclesiastical reputation, due to monks from the nearby bishopric church of Ely. The University of Oxford went into suspension in protest, and most scholars moved to such as Paris, Reading. After the University of Oxford reformed several years later, enough remained in Cambridge to form the nucleus of the new university. A bull in 1233 from Pope Gregory IX gave graduates from Cambridge the right to teach everywhere in Christendom, the colleges at the University of Cambridge were originally an incidental feature of the system. No college is as old as the university itself, the colleges were endowed fellowships of scholars. There were also institutions without endowments, called hostels, the hostels were gradually absorbed by the colleges over the centuries, but they have left some indicators of their time, such as the name of Garret Hostel Lane. Hugh Balsham, Bishop of Ely, founded Peterhouse, Cambridges first college, the most recently established college is Robinson, built in the late 1970s
University of Cambridge
–
Emmanuel College Chapel
University of Cambridge
–
University of Cambridge coat of arms
University of Cambridge
–
Sir Isaac Newton was a student of the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
–
Trinity Lane in the snow, with
King's College Chapel (centre),
Clare College Chapel (right), and the
Old Schools (left)
26.
Liverpool Street Station
–
The station opened in 1874 as a replacement for Bishopsgate station as the Great Eastern Railways main London terminus. By 1895 it had the largest number of platforms on any railway station in London. During the First World War, an air raid on the station in 1917 led to 162 deaths, in the build-up to the Second World War, the station served as the entry point for thousands of child refugees arriving in London as part of the Kindertransport rescue mission. Liverpool Street was built as a station with provision for the Underground. A tube station opened in 1875 for the Metropolitan Railway, and the station today is served by the Central, Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines, Liverpool Street is the third-busiest railway station in the United Kingdom after Waterloo and Victoria, both also in London. It is managed directly by Network Rail, a few daily express trains to Harwich International provide a connection with the Dutchflyer ferry to Hook of Holland. Stansted Express trains provide a link to Stansted Airport and Southend Victoria-bound services stop at Southend Airport, most passenger services on the Great Eastern Main Line are operated by Greater Anglia. Since 2015, the Shenfield metro service has been controlled by TfL Rail, a small number of late-evening and weekend services operated by c2c run via Barking. The station is split into two halves, the west side for the Lea Valley Lines services and the east side for services via Stratford. The typical off-peak weekday service pattern from Liverpool Street is, Liverpool Street station was built as the new London terminus of the Great Eastern Railway which served Norwich, the GER had been formed from the merger of several railway companies, inheriting Bishopsgate as its London terminus. Consequently, the GER planned a more central station, the station was planned to be around 630 by 200 ft in area, with its main façade onto Liverpool Street and an additional entrance on Bishopsgate-Street. The line and station construction were authorised by the Great Eastern Railway Act 1864, the station was built on a 10 acres site previously occupied by the Bethlem Royal Hospital, adjacent to Broad Street station, west of Bishopsgate and facing onto Liverpool Street to the south. The development land was purchased, displacing around 3,000 residents of the parish of St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate. To manage the disruption caused by rehousing, the company was required by the 1864 Act to run daily low-cost workmens trains from the station. The station was designed by GER engineer Edward Wilson and built by Lucas Brothers, the overall design was approximately Gothic, built using stock bricks and bath stone dressings. The building incorporated booking offices as well as the offices of the GER, including chairmans, board, committee, secretary. The station was built with a connection to the sub-surface Metropolitan Railway, with the platform sunk below ground level, the Metropolitan Railway used the station as a terminus from 1 February 1875 until 11 July 1875, their own underground station opened on 12 July 1875. Local trains began serving the partially completed station from 2 October 1874, the original City terminus at Bishopsgate closed to passengers and was converted for use as a goods station from 1881
Liverpool Street Station
–
Main station concourse
Liverpool Street Station
–
Plan of Liverpool Street and Broad Street (c.1888)
Liverpool Street Station
–
Liverpool Street station, west elevation (1896)
Liverpool Street Station
–
Original trainshed cross-section (1875)
27.
Crossrail
–
Crossrail is a 118-kilometre railway line under development in London and the home counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Essex. The project was approved in 2007 and construction began in 2009 on the central section and it has been described as one of Europes largest infrastructure construction projects. Its main feature is 21 km of new twin tunnels through central London and these tunnels will run from Paddington to Stratford and Canary Wharf in the east. Crossrail will be operated by MTR Corporation Ltd as a London Rail concession of Transport for London, in a similar manner to London Overground. The need for extra capacity along this corridor is such that the head of TfL, Sir Peter Hendy. New nine-carriage Class 345 trains will run at frequencies in the section of up to 24 trains per hour in each direction. The project that became Crossrail has origins in the 1943 County of London Plan and 1944 Greater London Plan by Patrick Abercrombie and these led to a specialist investigation by the Railway Committee, appointed in 1944 and reporting in 1946 and 1948. The term Crossrail emerged in the 1974 London Rail Study Report, although the idea was seen as imaginative, only a brief estimate of cost was given, £300 million. A feasibility study was recommended as a priority so that the practicability. It was also suggested that the alignment of the tunnels should be safeguarded while a decision was taken. The Central London Rail Study of 1989 proposed tunnels linking the rail network as the East–West Crossrail, City Crossrail. The City route was shown as a new connection across the City of London linking the Great Northern Route with London Bridge, the report also recommended a number of other schemes including a Thameslink Metro route enhancement, and the Chelsea–Hackney line. The cost of the east–west scheme including rolling stock was estimated at £885 million, in 1991 a private bill was submitted to Parliament for a scheme including a new underground line from Paddington to Liverpool Street. In 2001 Cross London Rail Links, a joint-venture between TfL and the DfT, was formed to develop and promote the Crossrail scheme, the proposal was rejected by Crossrail, and failed to receive the backing of the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, or the DfT. In February 2008 the Bill moved to the House of Lords, the Act gave CLRL the powers necessary to build the line. Construction began on 15 May 2009 when construction started, in September 2009 the project received £1 billion in funding. The money was lent to TfL by the European Investment Bank, the original planned schedule was that the first trains would run in 2017, but in 2010 the government delayed this to 2018 in order to save £1 billion. Crossrails central core section will utilise new east–west twin tunnels under central London, the tunnelled sections will be approximately 22 kilometres in length
Crossrail
–
Construction of the Crossrail portal at Royal Oak, from a footbridge to the west of
Royal Oak tube station, July 2011
Crossrail
–
Crossrail
Crossrail
–
Construction of Crossrail at Tottenham Court Road in September 2011
Crossrail
–
The second Tunnel Boring Machine "Ada" en route to the Royal Oak Portal, June 2012
28.
Cast-iron
–
Cast iron is a group of iron-carbon alloys with a carbon content greater than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its low melting temperature. Carbon ranging from 1. 8–4 wt%, and silicon 1–3 wt% are the main alloying elements of cast iron, Iron alloys with less carbon content are known as steel. While this technically makes the Fe–C–Si system ternary, the principle of cast iron solidification can be understood from the simpler binary iron–carbon phase diagram, cast iron tends to be brittle, except for malleable cast irons. It is resistant to destruction and weakening by oxidation, the earliest cast iron artefacts date to the 5th century BC, and were discovered by archaeologists in what is now Jiangsu in China. Cast iron was used in ancient China for warfare, agriculture, during the 15th century, cast iron became utilized for artillery in Burgundy, France, and in England during the Reformation. The first cast iron bridge was built during the 1770s by Abraham Darby III, cast iron is also used in the construction of buildings. Cast iron is made by re-melting pig iron, often along with quantities of iron, steel, limestone, carbon. Phosphorus and sulfur may be burnt out of the iron, but this also burns out the carbon. Depending on the application, carbon and silicon content are adjusted to the desired levels, other elements are then added to the melt before the final form is produced by casting. Cast iron is melted in a special type of blast furnace known as a cupola. After melting is complete, the molten cast iron is poured into a furnace or ladle. Cast irons properties are changed by adding various alloying elements, or alloyants, next to carbon, silicon is the most important alloyant because it forces carbon out of solution. A low percentage of silicon allows carbon to remain in solution forming iron carbide, a high percentage of silicon forces carbon out of solution forming graphite and the production of grey cast iron. Other alloying agents, manganese, chromium, molybdenum, titanium and vanadium counteracts silicon, promotes the retention of carbon, nickel and copper increase strength, and machinability, but do not change the amount of graphite formed. The carbon in the form of graphite results in an iron, reduces shrinkage, lowers strength. Sulfur, largely a contaminant when present, forms iron sulfide, the problem with sulfur is that it makes molten cast iron viscous, which causes defects. To counter the effects of sulfur, manganese is added because the two form into manganese sulfide instead of iron sulfide, the manganese sulfide is lighter than the melt so it tends to float out of the melt and into the slag
Cast-iron
–
A
cast iron pan.
Cast-iron
–
Steels and other iron–carbon alloy phases
Cast-iron
–
Cast iron drain, waste and vent piping
Cast-iron
–
Cast iron plate on grand piano
29.
Digital camera
–
A digital camera or digicam is a camera that produces digital images that can be stored in a computer, displayed on a screen and printed. Most cameras sold today are digital, and digital cameras are incorporated into many devices ranging from PDAs, Digital and movie cameras share an optical system, typically using a lens with a variable diaphragm to focus light onto an image pickup device. The diaphragm and shutter admit the correct amount of light to the imager, just as with film, however, unlike film cameras, digital cameras can display images on a screen immediately after being recorded, and store and delete images from memory. Many digital cameras can also record moving videos with sound, some digital cameras can crop and stitch pictures and perform other elementary image editing. The history of the camera began with Eugene F. Lally of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. His 1961 idea was to take pictures of the planets and stars while travelling through space to give information about the astronauts position, unfortunately, as with Texas Instruments employee Willis Adcocks filmless camera in 1972, the technology had yet to catch up with the concept. Steven Sasson as an engineer at Eastman Kodak invented and built the first electronic camera using a charge-coupled device image sensor in 1975, earlier ones used a camera tube, later ones digitized the signal. Early uses were military and scientific, followed by medical. In the mid to late 1990s digital cameras became common among consumers, by the mid-2000s digital cameras had largely replaced film cameras, and higher-end cell phones had an integrated digital camera. By the beginning of the 2010s, almost all smartphones had a digital camera. The two major types of image sensor are CCD and CMOS. A CCD sensor has one amplifier for all the pixels, while each pixel in a CMOS active-pixel sensor has its own amplifier, compared to CCDs, CMOS sensors use less power. Cameras with a small sensor use a back-side-illuminated CMOS sensor, overall final image quality is more dependent on the image processing capability of the camera, than on sensor type. The resolution of a camera is often limited by the image sensor that turns light into that discrete signals. The brighter the image at a point on the sensor. Depending on the structure of the sensor, a color filter array may be used. The number of pixels in the sensor determines the cameras pixel count, in a typical sensor, the pixel count is the product of the number of rows and the number of columns. For example, a 1,000 by 1,000 pixel sensor would have 1,000,000 pixels, final quality of an image depends on all optical transformations in the chain of producing the image
Digital camera
–
Front and back of
Canon PowerShot A 95, a typical pocket-size digital camera
Digital camera
–
Hasselblad 503CW with Ixpress V96C
digital back, an example of a professional digital camera system
Digital camera
–
Image at left has a higher pixel count than the one to the right, but has lower
spatial resolution.
Digital camera
30.
Brillouin scattering
–
Brillouin scattering, named after Léon Brillouin, refers to the interaction of light and material waves within a medium. It is mediated by the refractive index dependence on the properties of the medium, as described in optics. From the perspective of solid state physics, Brillouin scattering is an interaction between a wave and one of the three above-mentioned crystalline lattice waves. The scattering is inelastic i. e. the photon may lose energy, such a shift in photon energy, corresponding to a Brillouin shift in frequency, is equal to the energy of the released or absorbed quasiparticle. Thus, Brillouin scattering can be used to measure the energies, wavelengths, to measure a Brillouin shift a commonly employed device called the Brillouin spectrometer is used, the design of which is derived from a Fabry–Pérot interferometer. The difference is that Rayleigh scattering involves only the random and incoherent thermal fluctuations, in contrast with the correlated, Raman scattering is another phenomenon that involves inelastic scattering of light caused by the vibrational properties of matter. The detected range of shifts and other effects are very different compared to Brillouin scattering. The beam may display Brillouin scattering as a result of vibrations, usually in the direction opposite the incoming beam. For liquids and gases, the frequency shifts typically created are of the order of 1–10 GHz resulting in shifts of ~1–10 pm in the visible light. Stimulated Brillouin scattering is one effect by which optical phase conjugation can take place, inelastic scattering of light caused by acoustic phonons was first predicted by Léon Brillouin in 1922. Leonid Mandelstam is believed to have recognised the possibility of such scattering as early as 1918, in order to credit Mandelstam, the effect is also called Brillouin-Mandelstam scattering. Other commonly used names are Brillouin light scattering and Brillouin-Mandelstam light scattering, the process of stimulated Brillouin scattering was first observed by Chiao et al. in 1964. The optical phase conjugation aspect of the SBS process was discovered by Zel’dovich et al. in 1972, Brillouin scattering can also be employed to sense mechanical strain and temperature in optical fibers. Scattering Raman scattering Léon Brillouin, Ann, R. Y. Chiao, C. H. Townes and B. P. Stoicheff, Stimulated Brillouin scattering and coherent generation of intense hypersonic waves, Phys. Zel’dovich, V. I. Popovichev, V. V. Ragulskii and F. S. Faisullov, JETP,15,109 CIMIT Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology Brillouin scattering in the Encyclopedia of Laser Physics and Technology Surface Brillouin Scattering, U. Hawaii List of labs performing Brillouin scattering measurements
Brillouin scattering
–
Contents
31.
Laser scanner
–
In modern engineering, the term laser scanning is used with two related, but separate meanings. The first, more general, meaning is the deflection of laser beams. The second, more specific, meaning is the steering of laser beams followed by a distance measurement at every pointing direction. This method, often called 3D object scanning, 3D laser scanning or lidar, is used to rapidly capture shapes of objects, buildings, a laser rangefinder is a device which uses a laser beam to determine the distance to an object. This article focuses on the meaning, i. e. on the methods. Most laser scanners use moveable mirrors to steer the laser beam, the steering of the beam can be one-dimensional, as inside a laser printer, or two-dimensional, as in a laser show system. One also uses the terms raster scanning and vector scanning to distinguish the two situations, to control the scanning motion, scanners need a rotary encoder and control electronics that provide, for a desired angle or phase, the suitable electric current to the motor or galvanometer. A software system usually controls the motion and, if 3D scanning is implemented. Each of the two flat or polygonal mirrors is then driven by a galvanometer or by an electric motor, two-dimensional systems are essential for most applications in material processing, confocal microscopy, and medical science. Some applications require positioning the focus of a beam in three dimensions. This is achieved by a lens system, usually called a focus shifter or z-shifter. Many laser scanners further allow changing the laser intensity, in laser projectors for laser TV or laser displays, the three fundamental colors - red, blue, and green - are combined in a single beam and then reflected together with two mirrors. The most common way to move mirrors is, as mentioned, however, piezoelectric actuators or magnetostrictive actuators are alternative options. They offer higher achievable angular speeds, but often at the expense of smaller achievable maximum angles, there are also microscanners, which are MEMS devices containing a small mirror that has controllable tilt in one or two dimensions, these are used in pico projectors. When two Risley prisms are rotated against each other, a beam of light can be scanned at will inside a cone, such scanners are used for tracking missiles. When two optical lenses are moved or rotated against each other, a beam can be scanned in a way similar to mirror scanners. Some special laser scanners use, instead of moving mirrors, acousto-optic deflectors or electro-optic deflectors and these mechanisms allow the highest scanning frequencies possible so far. They are used, for example, in laser TV systems, on the other hand, these systems are also much more expensive than mirror scanning systems
Laser scanner
–
Laser scanning module with two galvanometers, from Scanlab AG. The red arrow shows the path of the laser beam.
Laser scanner
–
A high speed mobile laser scanning system for 3D data acquisition mounted on an automobile.
32.
Islington London Borough Council
–
Islington London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Islington in Greater London, England. The council was created by the London Government Act 1963 and replaced two local authorities, Finsbury Metropolitan Borough Council and Islington Metropolitan Borough Council and it is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Islington is divided into 16 wards, each electing three councillors, following the May 2014 election, Islington Council comprises 47 Labour Party councillors and 1 Green Party councillor. Of these 48 councillors, the Leader of the Council is Councillor Richard Watts, there have previously been a number of local authorities responsible for the Islington area. The current local authority was first elected in 1964, a year before coming into its powers. The present Islington Borough Council replaced Finsbury Metropolitan Borough Council and Islington Metropolitan Borough Council, both were created in 1900, in Islington the borough council replaced the parish vestry. It was envisaged through the London Government Act 1963 that Islington as a London local authority would share power with the Greater London Council. This arrangement lasted until 1986 when Islington Council gained responsibility for services that had been provided by the Greater London Council. Islington became an authority in 1990. Islington Council is elected every four years, with 48 councillors being elected from 16 wards, the Liberal Democrats then had a majority from 1999 to the 2006 election, but continued to run the council as a minority administration until 2010 when Labour won a majority. As of the 2014 election the council is composed of the following councillors, - In October 2013 Richard Watts was elected Leader of the Council replacing Catherine West
Islington London Borough Council
–
Coat of arms
Islington London Borough Council
–
Islington London Borough Council
33.
London Post Office Railway 1930 Stock
–
The London Post Office Railway 1930 Stock and 1936 Stock was built by English Electric. These units comprised the bulk of the fleet from the 1930s until the introduction of the 1980 Stock, the articulated units were designed to replace the earlier unsuccessful 1927 Stock, which were prone to derailments. An initial 50 units were ordered, being built in two batches from 1930–1931 and they reused electrical equipment from withdrawn 1927 Stock units. Due to an increase in levels, ten further units were built in 1936. The numbering details of units is shown in the table below, After the introduction of the 1980 Stock, some units were retained, all remaining units were withdrawn in 2003 when the system closed. Several units have been preserved, most of which are from the batch of 1930 Stock
London Post Office Railway 1930 Stock
–
1930 Stock Car No. 803 at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre
34.
London Post Office Railway 1980 Stock
–
The London Post Office Railway 1980 Stock was built by Hunslet in Leeds between 1980 and 1982. The units were ordered from Greenbat, but this company went into administration after building just three sets. The design incorporated several of the features tested in the prototype 1962 Stock, thirty-four of these units were built, primarily to replace the ageing fleet of 1930/1936 Stock, although some of the earlier units were retained. The new sets were numbered in the range 501-534. Following the closure of the system in 2003, all units have been withdrawn
London Post Office Railway 1980 Stock
–
1980 Stock Mail rail cars on the London Post Office Railway.
35.
Launceston Steam Railway
–
The Launceston Steam Railway is a 1 ft 11 1⁄2 in narrow gauge railway operating from the town of Launceston in Cornwall. The railway is built on the trackbed of the North Cornwall Railway to 1 ft 11 1⁄2 in narrow gauge and runs for 2 1⁄2 miles to Newmills, where there is a farm park. The first railway to reach Launceston was the Launceston and South Devon Railway, opened in 1865 from Launceston to Plymouth, and later absorbed into the Great Western Railway. In 1886 the London and South Western Railway opened its railway from Halwill Junction, extended to Padstow in stages in the 1890s, the two Launceston stations were side by side, the Great Western closed in 1962 and the Southern in 1966. In 1965, trainee teacher Nigel Bowman rescued the steam locomotive Lilian from the Penrhyn Slate Quarry in North Wales, purchase of the trackbed took several years, and the first 1⁄2 mile of track opened on Boxing Day 1983. The railway was extended progressively, the latest opening to Newmills in 1995 bringing the line to its current 2 1⁄2-mile length, the LSR starts at a new station just west of the original LSWR station, which is now an industrial estate. Launceston station is the station on the railway, and the sheds. The line runs from the station through a cutting, passing under a bridge and aqueduct carrying a mill leat. The line is now on an embankment and crosses a bridge over a track before arriving at Hunts Crossing. After Hunts Crossing the line crosses two farm crossings and then reaches Canna Park which was the terminus before the extension to Newmills. From Canna Park there is a short run to Newmills. Adjacent to the Newmills station is the Newmills Farm Park, all public train services are operated by the steam locomotives, whilst the internal combustion locomotives are used for maintenance work. The railway has four passenger carriages, all built on site and based on those built for the Manx Electric Railway, Torrington and Marland Railway, RNAD box vans, slate wagons and tipping wagons
Launceston Steam Railway
–
Launceston Steam Railway
36.
Highgate tube station
–
Highgate is a London Underground station and former railway station in Archway Road, in the London Borough of Haringey in north London. The station takes its name from nearby Highgate Village and it is on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line, between Archway and East Finchley stations and is in Travelcard Zone 3. The station was opened in 1867 as part of the Great Northern Railways line between Finsbury Park and Edgware stations. As part of their only partially completed Northern Heights plan, the London Underground started serving the station in 1941, the platforms of the surface station remain, but were last used in 1954, and the section of the line through them to Finsbury Park was lifted by 1972. One of the original 1867 station buildings still exists, and is in use as a private house, Highgate station was originally constructed by the Edgware, Highgate and London Railway in the 1860s on its line from Finsbury Park station to Edgware station. Before the line was opened it was purchased in July 1867 by the larger Great Northern Railway, whose line from Kings Cross ran through Finsbury Park on its way to Potters Bar. The station opened along with the railway to Edgware on 22 August 1867, because of the hilly terrain, the station was built in a deep cutting excavated from Highgate Hill adjacent to Archway Road. Tunnels penetrated the hillside at each end of the station, leading towards East Finchley to the north, when built, the station had two side platforms, with three tracks between them, and a station building on the south side. A footbridge linked the two platforms, a branch line was constructed from Highgate to Alexandra Palace by the Muswell Hill Railway and opened on 22 May 1872. The new branch split from the route north of the station in a wide arc around Highgate Wood. The next station on the line when it opened was Muswell Hill. In the 1880s, the station was rebuilt, with two flanking a central island platform instead of the two side platforms. The island platform was accessed from an office in the middle of the footbridge. In 1911, the MHR branch was taken over by the GNR, after the 1921 Railways Act created the Big Four railway companies, the GNR became part of the London & North Eastern Railway in 1923. To provide an interchange between the new platforms and the existing surface platforms, a subterranean concourse was constructed immediately beneath the existing station. The concourse was connected to the platforms with escalators and to the existing platforms by stairs. Street entrances to the concourse were provided from the south and the north, at the same time, the buildings on the surface platforms were partly reconstructed and the footbridge was removed. Northern line services through the new tunnels to East Finchley started operating on 3 July 1939 although they did not stop at Highgate until later, following the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, works to complete the electrification of the LNER lines were slowed or halted
Highgate tube station
–
Eastern entrance on Priory Gardens
Highgate tube station
–
View looking north-west
Highgate tube station
–
One of the extra-long platforms constructed for, but never used by nine-car trains
Highgate tube station
–
Platform building constructed for the Northern line
37.
Cranley Gardens railway station
–
Cranley Gardens railway station was a station in the Muswell Hill area of north London. It was located between Highgate station and Muswell Hill station at the junction of Muswell Hill Road and Cranley Gardens, nothing remains of the station today and its site is now occupied by housing and a school. The branch line from Highgate to Alexandra Palace was built by the Muswell Hill Railway and opened in 1873, in 1911 the line was taken over by the Great Northern Railway. After the 1921 Railways Act created the Big Four railway companies, the LNER closed the station on 1 December 1930, and reopened it in July 1932. Works to modernise the track began in the late 1930s and were well advanced when they were halted by the Second World War, works were completed from Highgate to High Barnet and Mill Hill East and that section was incorporated into the Northern line. Further works on the section between Finsbury Park and Alexandra Palace were postponed and the continued under the operation of the LNER between 1939 and 1941. After the war, dwindling numbers and a shortage of funds lead to the cancellation of the unfinished works in 1950. The station was closed temporarily from 29 October 1951 until 7 January 1952, the line continued to be used for goods until 18 May 1957 when it was closed completely. The track was removed and the buildings were demolished. The station buildings and platforms remained derelict for years until demolished in the late 1960s. The trackbed between Muswell Hill and Finsbury Park is now the Parkland Walk, edgware, Highgate and London Railway Site of station on Multimap Londons Transport Photographic Archive Cranley Gardens station in 1935 Disused stations - Cranley Gardens
Cranley Gardens railway station
–
Closed stations
Cranley Gardens railway station
–
Cranley Gardens station on a 1920 map
38.
The Great Game
–
This resulted in an atmosphere of distrust and the constant threat of war between the two empires. This would protect India and also key British sea trade routes by stopping Russia from gaining a port on the Persian Gulf or the Indian Ocean, Russia proposed Afghanistan as the neutral zone. Historians consider that the Great Game ended on 10 September 1895 with the signing of the Pamir Boundary Commission protocols, the 1901 novel Kim by Rudyard Kipling, made the term popular and introduced the new implication of great power rivalry. It became even more popular after 1979, the term the Great Game was used well before the 19th century and was associated with games of risk, such as cards and dice. The French equivalent Le grand jeu dates back to at least 1585 and is associated with meanings of risk, chance, the term The Great Game is attributed to Captain Arthur Conolly who had been appointed as a political officer. In July 1840, in correspondence to Major Henry Rawlinson who had recently appointed as the new political agent in Kandahar, Conolly wrote, Youve a great game. The expediency, nay the necessity of them will be seen, One common popular use of the term is related to spies and their military value or political influence on the peoples of a region. It was introduced into mainstream consciousness by the British novelist Rudyard Kipling in his novel Kim and it was first used academically by Professor H. W. C. The use of the term The Great Game to describe Anglo-Russian rivalry in Central Asia became common only after the Second World War and it was rarely used before that period. The start of the 19th Century saw the Indian subcontinent ruled in part by independent princely states, during the 19th Century a political and diplomatic confrontation existed between Britain and Russia over Afghanistan. It later became known as The Great Game and this resulted in an atmosphere of distrust and the constant threat of war between the two empires. If Russia were to control of the Emirate of Afghanistan. Napoleon had proposed a joint Franco-Russian invasion of India to his Imperial Majesty Paul I of Russia. In 1801 Paul, fearing a future action by the British against Russia and her allies in Europe, decided to make the first move towards where he believed the British Empire was weakest. He wrote to the Ataman of the Don Cossacks Troops, Cavalry General Vasily Petrovich Orlov, directing him to march to Orenburg, conquer the Central Asian Khanates, Paul was assassinated in the same year and the invasion was terminated. Napoleon tried to persuade Pauls son, Tsar Alexander I of Russia, to invade India, in 1807, Napoleon dispatched General Claude Matthieu, Count Gardane on a French military mission to Persia, with the intention of persuading Russia to invade India. However, Britain was left with concerns about being able to defend India, in 1810, Lieutenant Henry Pottinger and Captain Charles Christie undertook an expedition from Nushki to Isfahan disguised as Muslims. After the disastrous French invasion of Russia in 1812 and the collapse of the French army, following the Treaty of Turkmenchay 1828 and the Treaty of Adrianople, Britain feared that Persia and Turkey would become protectorates of Russia
The Great Game
–
Persia at the beginning of the Great Game in 1814
The Great Game
–
Central Asia, circa 1848
The Great Game
–
Political cartoon depicting the Afghan
Emir Sher Ali with his "friends" the
Russian Bear and
British Lion (1878)
The Great Game
–
People of
Central Asia c. 1861–1880.
39.
Lavie Tidhar
–
Lavie Tidhar is an Israeli-born writer, working across multiple genres. He has lived in the United Kingdom and South Africa for long periods of time, as well as Laos, as of 2013, Tidhar lives in London. His novel Osama won the 2012 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, beating Stephen Kings 11/22/63 and his novel A Man Lies Dreaming won the 2015 Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize, worth £5000, for Best British Fiction. Tidhar grew up in the atmosphere of an Israeli Kibbutz. He began to travel extensively from the age of 15 and incorporates his experiences as a traveller into several of his works,2016 Premio Roma, Best Foreign Fiction category, shortlisted for A Man Lies Dreaming. 2016 Seiun Award, Best Translated Novel category, shortlisted for The Violent Century,2016 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, longlisted for A Man Lies Dreaming. 2015 Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize winner, for A Man Lies Dreaming,2012 World Fantasy Award winner, Best Novel, for Osama. 2012 British Fantasy Award winner, Best Novella, for Gorel & The Pot-Bellied God,2012 BSFA Award winner, Non-Fiction, for The World SF Blog. 2012 John W. Campbell Memorial Award nominee, Best Novel,2012 Sidewise Award nominee, Long Form, for Camera Obscura. 2012 BSFA Award nominee, Best Novel, for Osama,2012 Kitschies Award nominee, Best Novel, for Osama. 2011 World Fantasy Award nominee, Special Award – Non Professional,2011 Sturgeon Award nominee, Best Short Story, for The Night Train. 2011 Airship Award nominee, Best Novel, for Camera Obscura, the Tel Aviv dossier, a novel. CS1 maint, Uses authors parameter Tidhar, Lavie, the Violent Century, Hodder & Stoughton,2013. Review in the Guardian A Man Lies Dreaming, Hodder & Stoughton,2014, review in the Guardian Central Station, Tachyon Publications,2016. A collection of five linked short stories related to Tidhars previous British Fantasy Award-winning novella Gorel & The Pot-Bellied God, a collection of four linked short stories re-imagining pulp fantasy in Jewish terms. United Kingdom, House of Murky Depths,2012, adolf Hitlers I Dream of Ants. United Kingdom, House of Murky Depths,2012, forthcoming 5-part miniseries, due end of 2017. ISBN 978-1782760719 A series of anthologies published since 2009, collecting stories of international speculative fiction
Lavie Tidhar
–
Lavie Tidhar in London in 2006
40.
Hudson Hawk
–
Hudson Hawk is a 1991 American action comedy film directed by Michael Lehmann. Bruce Willis stars in the role and also co-wrote both the story and the theme song. Danny Aiello, Andie MacDowell, James Coburn, David Caruso, Lorraine Toussaint, Frank Stallone, Sandra Bernhard, the live action film makes heavy use of cartoon-style slapstick, including sound effects, which enhances the movies signature surreal humour. The plot combines material based on theories, secret societies. A recurring plot device in the film has Hudson and his partner Tommy Five-Tone singing songs concurrently but separately, to time, willis-Aiello duets of Bing Crosbys Swinging on a Star and Paul Ankas Side by Side feature on the films soundtrack. The holders of the puppet strings turn out to be a psychotic American corporation, Mayflower Industries, run by husband and wife Darwin and Minerva Mayflower and their blade-slinging butler, throughout the adventure, Hudson is foiled in attempts to drink a cappuccino. After blowing up an auctioneer to cover up the theft of the Sforza, Hawk sticks syringes into Antony Marios face and falls out of the ambulance on a gurney, and the Marios try to run him down with the ambulance as his gurney speeds along the highway. The brothers are killed when their driver, startled by the array of syringes in Antonys face, immediately afterwards, Hawk meets CIA head George Kaplan and his CIA agents–Snickers, Kit Kat, Almond Joy, and Butterfinger –who take him to Darwin and Minerva Mayflower. Hawk successfully steals the Da Vinci Codex from another museum, Tommy Five-Tone fakes his death so they can escape. They are discovered and attacked by the CIA Agents, and Kaplan reveals that he and his agents stole the piece, Hawk and Tommy cause Snickers and Almond Joy to be killed by their own explosive device, and they escape. Kit Kat and Butterfinger take Anna to the castle where the Macchina dellOro is being reconstructed, a showdown takes place at the castle between the remaining CIA agents, the Mayflowers, and the team of Hudson, Five-Tone, and Baragli. Kit Kat and Butterfinger are betrayed and killed by Minerva, Tommy fights Darwin and Alfred inside Darwins speeding limo, and Hudson fights George Kaplan on the roof of the castle. Kaplan topples from the castle and lands of the roof of the limo, Alfred plants a bomb in the limo and escapes with Darwin, Tommy is trapped inside and Kaplan is hanging onto the hood. The bomb detonates as the speeds over a cliff. Darwin and Minerva force Hawk to put together the crystal powering the machine, when the Mayflowers activate the machine, it malfunctions and explodes, killing Minerva and Darwin. Hawk battles Alfred, using Alfreds own blades to decapitate him, Hawk and Baragli escape the castle and discover Tommy waiting for them at a cafe, having miraculously escaped death. Hawk finally gets to enjoy a cappuccino, Bruce Willis as Eddie Hawkins/Hudson Hawk Danny Aiello as Tommy Five-Tone Messina Andie MacDowell as Anna Baragli James Coburn as George Kaplan Sandra Bernhard as Minerva Mayflower Richard E. The films score was composed and conducted by Michael Kamen with Robert Kraft, Kraft also wrote Hawk Swing, Hudson Hawk Theme - Dr. is featured, although not included on the soundtrack, when Hudson Hawk is taken for the first time to the headquarters of the Mayflowers
Hudson Hawk
–
Theatrical release poster
41.
Vatican City
–
Vatican City, officially Vatican City State or the State of Vatican City, is a walled enclave within the city of Rome. With an area of approximately 44 hectares, and a population of 842, however, formally it is not sovereign, with sovereignty being held by the Holy See, the only entity of public international law that has diplomatic relations with almost every country in the world. It is an ecclesiastical or sacerdotal-monarchical state ruled by the Bishop of Rome – the Pope, the highest state functionaries are all Catholic clergy of various national origins. Vatican City is distinct from the Holy See, which dates back to early Christianity and is the episcopal see of 1.2 billion Latin. According to the terms of the treaty, the Holy See has full ownership, exclusive dominion, within Vatican City are religious and cultural sites such as St. Peters Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums. They feature some of the worlds most famous paintings and sculptures, the unique economy of Vatican City is supported financially by the sale of postage stamps and tourist mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of publications. The name Vatican City was first used in the Lateran Treaty, signed on 11 February 1929, the name is taken from Vatican Hill, the geographic location of the state. Vatican is derived from the name of an Etruscan settlement, Vatica or Vaticum meaning garden, located in the area the Romans called vaticanus ager. The official Italian name of the city is Città del Vaticano or, more formally, Stato della Città del Vaticano, although the Holy See and the Catholic Church use Ecclesiastical Latin in official documents, the Vatican City officially uses Italian. The Latin name is Status Civitatis Vaticanæ, this is used in documents by not just the Holy See. The name Vatican was already in use in the time of the Roman Republic for an area on the west bank of the Tiber across from the city of Rome. Under the Roman Empire, many villas were constructed there, after Agrippina the Elder drained the area and laid out her gardens in the early 1st century AD. In AD40, her son, Emperor Caligula built in her gardens a circus for charioteers that was completed by Nero, the Circus Gaii et Neronis, usually called, simply. Even before the arrival of Christianity, it is supposed that this originally uninhabited part of Rome had long considered sacred. A shrine dedicated to the Phrygian goddess Cybele and her consort Attis remained active long after the Constantinian Basilica of St. Peter was built nearby, the particularly low quality of Vatican water, even after the reclamation of the area, was commented on by the poet Martial. The Vatican Obelisk was originally taken by Caligula from Heliopolis in Egypt to decorate the spina of his circus and is thus its last visible remnant and this area became the site of martyrdom of many Christians after the Great Fire of Rome in AD64. Ancient tradition holds that it was in this circus that Saint Peter was crucified upside-down, opposite the circus was a cemetery separated by the Via Cornelia. Peters in the first half of the 4th century, the Constantinian basilica was built in 326 over what was believed to be the tomb of Saint Peter, buried in that cemetery
Vatican City
–
View of St. Peter's Square from the top of Michelangelo's dome
Vatican City
–
Flag
Vatican City
–
The Vatican
obelisk was originally taken from Egypt by
Caligula.
Vatican City
–
Bands of the British army's 38th Brigade playing in front of St Peter's Basilica, June 1944
42.
Bruce Willis
–
Walter Bruce Willis is an American actor, producer, and singer. His career began on the Off-Broadway stage and then in television in the 1980s and he is known for his role of John McClane in the Die Hard series. He has appeared in over 60 films, including Color of Night, Pulp Fiction,12 Monkeys, The Fifth Element, Armageddon, The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Sin City, Red, The Expendables 2, and Looper. Willis married actress Demi Moore in 1987, and they had three daughters, including Rumer, before their divorce in 2000, since 2009, he has been married to model Emma Heming, with whom he has two daughters. Willis was born Walter Bruce Willis on March 19,1955, in the town of Idar-Oberstein and his father, David Willis, was an American soldier. His mother, Marlene, was German, born in Kassel, Willis is the oldest of four children, he has a sister, Florence, and a brother, David. His brother Robert died of cancer in 2001, aged 42. After being discharged from the military in 1957, Williss father took his back to Carneys Point Township. Willis has described himself as having come from a line of blue collar people. His mother worked in a bank and his father was a welder, master mechanic, Willis attended Penns Grove High School in his hometown, where he encountered issues with a stutter. He was nicknamed Buck-Buck by his schoolmates, after high school, Willis took a job as a security guard at the Salem Nuclear Power Plant and transported work crews at the DuPont Chambers Works factory in Deepwater, New Jersey. After working as an investigator, Willis turned to acting. He enrolled in the Drama Program at Montclair State University, where he was cast in the production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Willis left school in his year and moved to New York City. Willis left New York City and headed to California to audition for television shows. In 1984, he appeared in an episode of the TV series Miami Vice, in 1985, he was the guest actor in the first episode of the 1980s revival of The Twilight Zone, Shatterday. He auditioned for the role of David Addison Jr. of the television series Moonlighting, competing against 3,000 other actors for the position, during the height of the shows success, beverage maker Seagram hired Willis as the pitchman for their Golden Wine Cooler products. The advertising campaign paid the rising star between $5–7 million over two years, in spite of that, Willis chose not to renew his contract with the company when he decided to stop drinking alcohol in 1988
Bruce Willis
–
Willis at the 2010
San Diego Comic-Con International
Bruce Willis
–
Willis upon receiving an Emmy Award in 1987 for Best Actor in
Moonlighting
Bruce Willis
–
Willis at the
2006 Cannes Film Festival
Bruce Willis
–
Willis at a
Live Free or Die Hard premiere in June 2007
43.
Charlie Higson
–
Charles Murray Charlie Higson is an English actor, comedian, author, and former singer. He has also written and produced for television, born in Frome, Somerset, Higson was educated at Sevenoaks School, Kent and at the University of East Anglia in Norwich where he met Paul Whitehouse, David Cummings and Terry Edwards. Higson, Cummings and Edwards formed the band The Higsons of which Higson was the singer from 1980 to 1986. They released two singles on the Specials 2 Tone Records label and this was after he had formed the punk band The Right Hand Lovers, wherein he performed as Switch. Higson then became a decorator – including decorating the house of Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie – before he turned to writing for Harry Enfield with Paul Whitehouse and he came to public attention as one of the main writers and performers of the BBC Two sketch show The Fast Show. He worked with Whitehouse on the radio comedy Down the Line and is to work with him again on a television project, in 1994 Higson co-wrote the screenplay for the film thriller Suite 16. He worked as producer, writer, director and occasional guest star on Randall & Hopkirk from 2000 to 2001, subsequent television work has included writing and starring in BBC Threes Fast Show spin-off sitcom Swiss Toni. He has starred in Tittybangbang on BBC Three and appeared as a panellist on QI, in 2010 he co-directed and starred in the series Bellamys People. This has led Time Out to describe him as The missing link between Dick Emery and Brett Easton Ellis, in 2004, it was announced that Higson would pen the Young Bond series of James Bond novels, aimed at younger readers and concentrating on the characters school-days at Eton. Higson was himself educated at Sevenoaks School, where he was a contemporary of Jonathan Evans, the first novel, SilverFin, was released on 3 March 2005 in the UK and on 27 April 2005 in the US. A second novel, Blood Fever, was released on 5 January 2006 in the UK and 1 June in the US, the third novel, Double or Die, was published on 4 January 2007 having had its title announced the day before. The next, Hurricane Gold, came out in hardcover in the UK in September 2007, in this year he also made a debut performance on the panel show QI. His final Young Bond novel, By Royal Command, was released in hardcover in the UK on 4 September 2008, Higson is currently writing a post-apocalyptic, zombie-horror series of books for young adults. The eponymous first book in the series, titled The Enemy, was released in the UK by Puffin Books in 2009, book 2, The Dead, was released in the UK in September 2010. Book 3, The Fear, was published on 15 September 2011, book 4, The Sacrifice, was released 20 September 2012. Book 5, The Fallen, was released 12 September 2013, at another, in John Lyons School, he revealed that the last book in his series would be called The End. The Hunted was published on 1 January 2014 and The End was published in October 2015, in 2011, Higson appeared with the original cast in an online-only version of The Fast Show sponsored by Fosters Lager. In June 2013 Higson wrote an adaptation of A Caribbean Mystery
Charlie Higson
–
Charlie Higson in 2013
44.
Young Bond
–
Young Bond is a series of young adult spy novels featuring Ian Flemings secret agent James Bond as a young teenage boy attending school at Eton College in the 1930s. The series, written by Charlie Higson, was planned to include only five novels, however, after the release of the fifth novel. Since the release of the first novel, SilverFin, in 2005, the series has very successful and has led to further works including games, a graphic novel. English-language versions of the books are published by Puffin Books in the United Kingdom, according to Charlie Higson, Ian Fleming Publications initially planned for him to only write one novel and that every subsequent novel would be written by a rotating author. This plan fell apart and Higson agreed to author future books in the series, however, comments made by Higson in an interview could suggest that after Higsons five books are completed, the series may be continued by another author. SilverFin, In 1933, thirteen-year-old James Bond arrives at Eton College for boys for the first time to continue his schooling, there he meets an American bully and his arms dealing father, Lord Randolph Hellebore. While on Easter break, Bonds adventure continues in the Highlands of Scotland, teaming up with Red Kelly, James finally reaches a castle and a loch and discovers a deadly secret. Blood Fever, In 1933, James Bond is back at Eton where he is now a member of a secret risk-taking club known as the Danger Society. When summer vacation arrives, Bond goes on a trip to the Italian island of Sardinia where he stays with his much older cousin Victor. While there, James investigates a Roman secret society known as the Millenaria that has planned throughout history to restore the Roman Empire and it seems the Millenaria are still active and are led by the sinister Count Ugo Carnifex. Double or Die, The third Young Bond novel is set entirely in England during Christmas, the book involves Russian spies attempting to build an early computer. The title of the book was chosen by fans via an online poll, Hurricane Gold, The fourth Young Bond novel, Hurricane Gold, is set in Mexico and the Caribbean. The book was released on 6 September 2007 in the UK, the book contains many references to Mayan mythology and much of the end is focused on it. By Royal Command, The fifth Young Bond novel was released in the UK on 3 September 2008, in this book, James Bond falls in love with his Irish maid, Roan. Bond leaves Eton College due to the incident with the maid and this book is set in multiple European countries including Austria, England, France, Germany and Switzerland. The Royal Family and the British secret service also play a part in the plot, the Young Bond Rough Guide to London, Puffin Books/Rough Guides 64-page booklet featuring London locations from Double or Die. Danger Society, The Young Bond Dossier, Puffin Books Complete and definitive guide to the world and it includes the Young Bond short story A Hard Man to Kill by Charlie Higson. An original Young Bond short story by Charlie Higson titled A Hard Man to Kill was published in the companion book Danger Society, The Young Bond Dossier on 29 October 2009
Young Bond
–
Illustration of a young James Bond by
Kev Walker
45.
Double or Die
–
Double Or Die is the third novel in the Young Bond series depicting Ian Flemings superspy James Bond as a teenager in the 1930s. The novel, written by Charlie Higson, was released in the United Kingdom by Puffin Books on 4 January 2007, a special hardcover Limited Collectors Edition was released as a Waterstones Bookstore exclusive on 25 October 2007. The title was announced on 3 January 2007 at the book launch at Waterstones in Piccadilly. The alternative titles which were available for the public to vote for were N. E. M. E. S. I. S. and The Deadlock Cipher. The storys prologue is set in Highgate Cemetery, where Professor Alexis Fair burn, Fair burn manages to leave the piece of paper with which he was tracing. The story itself starts with young James Bond and his friend, Perry Mandeville, out of the blue, a letter to Pritpal from Fair burn comes, regarding Fairburns resignation from Eton. To House Master Codrose and Headmaster Elliot, the mistakes are due to Fair burns scatterbrained personality and eccentricity, James and Pritpal work towards trying to decipher them - the first of them are easy - some wrong names in the letter translate into Solve seven cryptic clues. However, they have to get photographs of the letter. Eventually, they get it and continue, James decides to come along to the meeting, but all the man does is play a game of Hearts, during which James wins five pounds. The man gives his name as Ivar Peterson, who is a professor at Cambridge University, however, James and Pritpal do not believe him. James arranges with Perry to go to Cambridge University during Perrys fathers birthday leave, before James can go to London, there is a break in at the school. James is sure that the intruder was intending to take something related to Fairburn, James decides to leave for London with Perry at once and learns that one more clue, when solved, says that Fair burn has actually been kidnapped. As he and Perry drive to London, they spy an old Bentley that is for sale, eventually, they arrive in London and James goes off to Cambridge University to find Peterson. However, when he goes into his office, he discovers that Peterson has been murdered with an Apache revolver bayonet, the killer is, in fact, still in the room, and James flees before he can be attacked. James then reads a letter that he took from Petersons desk, before he can work out what it means, the killer James had seen arrives with his accomplice. James flees in his Bramford and Martin, but the men give chase and he manages to escape the vehicle before it explodes and hides under a bridge. James passes out from the cold and wakes up in a hospital, after managing to steal a suit and shoes, James returns to Perrys house. The two realise that John Charnage is actually Sir John Charnage, a businessman whose father used to own a chemical factory
Double or Die
–
First edition UK paperback
46.
London Pneumatic Despatch Company
–
The system was used between 1863 and 1874. In 1855 and 1856 they reported favourably but there would be significant cost, in 1859 Thomas Webster Rammell and Josiah Latimer Clark proposed an underground tube network in central London for the more speedy and convenient circulation of despatches and parcels. The company was founded in 1859 with offices at 6 Victoria Street, capital of £150,000 was sought through 15,000 shares at £10 each. With initial funding of £25,000, the company tested the technology and constructed a route at the Soho Foundry of Boulton. The first full-scale trial was at Battersea during the summer of 1861, a single tube was installed,452 yards long, with curves of up to 300 feet radius and gradients of up to 1 in 22. 2 ft narrow gauge track was cast inside the tube, wheeled capsules were fitted with vulcanised rubber flaps to make an air seal. Power was provided by a 30 horse-power steam engine with a 21 feet diameter fan, single capsules weighed up to 3 tonnes, and achieved speeds up to 40 mph. A permanent line of 2 ft narrow gauge was constructed between Euston railway station and the North West District Post Office in Eversholt Street, a distance of approximately a third of a mile, the line was tested from 15 January 1863, and operation started on 20 February 1863. A capsule conveying up to 35 bags of mail could make the journey between terminals in one minute. Thirteen journeys were operated each day, with an operating cost of £1 4s 5d. The Post Office was charged a fee for use of the service. At this signal we hear a shovel of coke thrown into a furnace, is twenty-one feet in diameter, and is composed of two discs of iron. These discs are braced together by spoke-like partitions, and these partitions communicate with an opening for the entrance of air about the axis, as this wheel rapidly revolves, the air is sucked in at its centre, and thrown off. This gale is not allowed to disperse itself, however, but when any work has to be done, is confined within a paddle-box, and allowed to pass out. Through a pipe in connection with the great pneumatic despatch tube. and we hear them rumbling off on their journey at a rate, we are informed. A bell connected with an electric telegraph warns him that the attendant at the end of the tube is about to thrust the carriage into the tube on its return journey. The prospectus proposed a network of lines between points so important that it is unnecessary to dwell upon the magnitude of the traffic that must naturally arise between them. The first line was to have been a route linking the Camden Town and Euston stations of the London, work started on a 3 ft 8 1⁄2 in narrow gauge line from Euston to Holborn in September 1863
London Pneumatic Despatch Company
–
Pneumatic Despatch Company vehicle
London Pneumatic Despatch Company
–
Testing at Battersea
London Pneumatic Despatch Company
–
First dispatch of mail bags through the pneumatic tube from the district office in Eversholt Street to Euston Station.
Illustrated London News, 18 February 1863
London Pneumatic Despatch Company
–
General Post Office in St Martin's le Grand
47.
Munich
–
Munich is the capital and largest city of the German state of Bavaria, on the banks of River Isar north of the Bavarian Alps. Munich is the third largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Hamburg, the Munich Metropolitan Region is home to 5.8 million people. According to the Globalization and World Rankings Research Institute Munich is considered an alpha-world city, the name of the city is derived from the Old/Middle High German term Munichen, meaning by the monks. It derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who ran a monastery at the place that was later to become the Old Town of Munich, Munich was first mentioned in 1158. From 1255 the city was seat of the Bavarian Dukes, black and gold—the colours of the Holy Roman Empire—have been the citys official colours since the time of Ludwig the Bavarian, when it was an imperial residence. Following a final reunification of the Wittelsbachian Duchy of Bavaria, previously divided and sub-divided for more than 200 years, like wide parts of the Holy Roman Empire, the area recovered slowly economically. In 1918, during the German Revolution, the house of Wittelsbach, which governed Bavaria since 1180, was forced to abdicate in Munich. In the 1920s, Munich became home to political factions, among them the NSDAP. During World War II, Munich was heavily bombed and more than 50% of the entire city, the postwar period was characterised by American occupation until 1949 and a strong increase of population and economic power during the years of the Wirtschaftswunder after 1949. The city is home to corporations like BMW, Siemens, MAN, Linde, Allianz and MunichRE as well as many small. Munich is home to national and international authorities, major universities, major museums. Its numerous architectural attractions, international events, exhibitions and conferences. Munich is one of the most prosperous and fastest growing cities in Germany and it is a top-ranked destination for migration and expatriate location, despite being the municipality with the highest density of population in Germany. Munich nowadays hosts more than 530,000 people of foreign background, the year 1158 is assumed to be the foundation date, which is the earliest date the city is mentioned in a document. The document was signed in Augsburg, by that time the Guelph Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony and Bavaria, had built a bridge over the river Isar next to a settlement of Benedictine monks—this was on the Old Salt Route and a toll bridge. In 1175, Munich was officially granted city status and received fortification, in 1180, with the trial of Henry the Lion, Otto I Wittelsbach became Duke of Bavaria and Munich was handed over to the Bishop of Freising. In 1240, Munich was transferred to Otto II Wittelsbach and in 1255, Duke Louis IV, a native of Munich, was elected German king in 1314 and crowned as Holy Roman Emperor in 1328. He strengthened the position by granting it the salt monopoly
Munich
–
From left to right: The
Munich Frauenkirche, the
Nymphenburg Palace, the
BMW Headquarters, the
New Town Hall, the
Munich Hofgarten and the
Allianz Arena.
Munich
–
Munich city
coat of arms
Munich
–
Banners with the colours of Munich (left) and Bavaria (right) with the
Frauenkirche in the background
Munich
–
Bombing damage to the Altstadt. Note the roofless and pockmarked Altes Rathaus looking up the Tal. The roofless Heilig-Geist-Kirche is on the right of the photo. Its spire, without the copper top, is behind the church. The Talbruck gate tower is missing completely.
48.
World War II
–
World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
World War II
–
Clockwise from top left: Chinese forces in the
Battle of Wanjialing, Australian
25-pounder guns during the
First Battle of El Alamein, German
Stuka dive bombers on the
Eastern Front in December 1943, a U.S. naval force in the
Lingayen Gulf,
Wilhelm Keitel signing the
German Instrument of Surrender, Soviet troops in the
Battle of Stalingrad
World War II
–
The
League of Nations assembly, held in
Geneva,
Switzerland, 1930
World War II
–
Adolf Hitler at a German
National Socialist political rally in
Weimar, October 1930
World War II
–
Italian soldiers recruited in 1935, on their way to fight the
Second Italo-Abyssinian War
49.
Munich S-Bahn
–
The Munich S-Bahn is an electric rail transit system in Munich, Germany. S-Bahn is the German abbreviation for Stadtschnellbahn, and the Munich S-Bahn exhibits characteristics of rapid transit and commuter rail systems. The Munich S-Bahn network is operated by S-Bahn München, a subsidiary of DB Regio Bayern that is itself a subsidiary of the German national railway and it is now integrated into the Munich Transport and Tariff Association and interconnected throughout the city with the locally owned Munich U-Bahn. Today, the S-Bahn covers most of the area of the Munich Metropolitan area of about 2.7 million inhabitants. The Munich S-Bahn was established on 28 May 1972, the system has seven branches in the west, which were originally numbered from north to south from the S1 to the S7. These are coupled with the five eastern branches, operational requirements have changed several times, particularly due to line extensions, resulting in random numbering in the east. Two lines end at Munich East station, these are currently S1 and S6, the first change was made in June 1991 when the branch to Ebersberg changed from S4 to S5 as a requirement to shorten the travel time to and from Herrsching. The line to Wolfratshausen was first called the S10, the S-Bahn branch in the east via Ismaning to the airport was designated as the S8. Later this was combined with the original line S3, which shared part the route of the S8, the old route S5 was later largely replaced by the current S3, so there is currently no line S5. In addition there are lines S20 and S27, which run from Munich Central Station and these two lines do not run through the trunk line tunnel. The numbers beginning with 2 comes from the time of the introduction of these lines and these lines cross the Isar via Großhesselohe Bridge. In the Deutsche Bahn time table, the S-Bahn lines are numbered from 999.1 to 999.8 and 999.20, the basic interval of the Munich S-Bahn is one train every 20 minutes. On parts of branches during peak hours there is a 10-minute frequency produced by added trains. There are also additional trains on the western section of the S4. On some branches, one of three trains does not run to the station at off-peak times, so that on these outer sections trains run at 20 or 40 minutes alternatively. Terminus of extra services in peak, up to here services in the peak run at 10-minute intervals. Occasional additional services to create 10 minute frequency, the S-Bahn partly operates on its own routes, parts of it are double-track lines where S-Bahn operations are mixed with other traffic, and in some cases more than two tracks are available. In the latter case one-or two tracks are set aside for the S-Bahn operations only and the two tracks are used for the remaining traffic
Munich S-Bahn
–
S-Bahn train at Hackerbrücke
(Br 423)
Munich S-Bahn
–
S-Bahn station Marienplatz with S7 to Munich East
Munich S-Bahn
–
ET 420
Munich S-Bahn
–
S-Bahn
