Catching up and Longitude

I must apologize, I haven't posted anything for a while but it has been a little manic around here.

My sister came to visit last weekend and I have also been busy trying to get hold of some zooplankton for my experiments (I run out). Plus, I have been preparing to head to Scotland next week, to demonstrate for an Oceanography undergraduate module but I will report on that when I get back.

Cycling over Tower Bridge

My sister Valentina, her fiancée Gabriele and our friends Marco and Eleonora took advantage of a bank holiday weekend in Italy and popped over to the UK. We spent a couple of days in London, under the blazing sun and we managed to fit a few touristy things in (spending the minimum amount of money I must stress!).

I particularly enjoyed renting those push bikes that Barcklays and their "cycle hire" scheme sponsors all around London http://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/14808.aspx 

the London Eye in a summer day

We crossed Tower Bridge and cycled along the Thames path and docked our bikes at the London Eye. Along Southbank the "Indian Summer" festival was in full swing to celebrate the festival of Britain, apparently. Lovely set up with lots of stalls and street performers. To note: the queue for the London eye was so long that I couldn't figure out where it started. Pretty busy all around I say.

We then headed  South-East to Greenwich on the Thames ferry. I have never been there before. There were people everywhere! We managed to scramble up the observatory on the top of the hill but due to economical constraints we didn't enter it http://www.nmm.ac.uk/places/royal-observatory/. 

Yet, we were able to see the Prime Meridian, nicely laid out for people to pose with. We decided that a picture with us walking on it, wasn't worth braving the queue starting from outside the courtyard so we just admired it from afar (it is located pretty close to the gates in fact). 

Prime Meridian. Greenwich Observatory.

I think I would have liked to go inside and browse the planetarium and museum display, I am intrigued by Harrison's timekeepers. I read his biography written by Dava Sobel. The book is titled Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time and it explains in details how the invention of the chronometer improved navigation.

Summary: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longitude_(book)

"Before the 18th century ocean navigators could not find an accurate way of determining longitude. This failure caused ships to miss their destination, many times crashing into rocks and killing their crews. A practical solution came from a simple carpenter, John Harrison, who solved one of the most difficult problems of his time by creating an accurate chronometer. The best scientists of the time, including Isaac Newton, thought it impossible. Harrison spent four decades perfecting a watch that would ultimately earn him the prize established by the Longitude Act of 1714, thanks to the recognition and influence of King George III of England" (from: http://www.nobeliefs.com/sobel.htm)

Imperial units of length.

The book is short and easy to read. Anyone interested in all things historical, mechanics, engineering, navigation and science would enjoy it, even if they are not great readers.

The observatory has also organised a photographic competition called "Astronomy Photographer of the Year"
http://www.nmm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/astronomy-photographer-of-the-year/
It looks very promising, I am really not going to miss it! It's all online too. The pictures are amazing, the night sky never fails to amaze anyone with it's beauty romance and mysteries. Enjoy the show.

Grabriele, Marco, Eleonora and I