Archive for the ‘Miscellaneous stuff’ Category

Designing for Human Behavior

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

Garrett G Jones on sound mirrors at the Designing for Human Behavior blog at the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture:

…. Microphones placed at foci the of the reflectors enabled a listener to detect the sound of aircrafts several kilometers out in the English Channel. My idea takes this primitive device and relocates it within modern contexts. Sound mirrors or sound theatres can be used at a more urban or residential scale as installations for people to sit and interact within. The premise is to sit within the concrete dome, which could be oriented in any direction, and that sounds of the surroundings become amplified as they are reflected and echoed within the dome.
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Parabolic sound mirrors to reflect and focus sound

Friday, April 10th, 2009

The Whipple Museum of the History of Science in Cambridge has a webpage about some parabolic sound mirrors to reflect and focus sound.

This apparatus consists of a pair of brass parabolic reflectors mounted on wooden stands. One of the reflectors has a bracket with a hook for hanging a pocket watch. The demonstrator would use this apparatus to show how the sound of a ticking watch may be heard at a considerable distance having first been made into a beam, projected over a distance and refocused. Very little is known about this pair of mirrors in the Whipple’s collection. It is thought that they were made in France or Germany during the second quarter of the nineteenth century.
Source: Whipple Museum of the History of Science

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Photos from August 2008 guided walk

Sunday, March 8th, 2009

Dave Snowdon went on a guided walk to the sound mirrors of Lade Pit, Dungeness on 17 August 2008. There were, apparently, 261 people who attended this walk. The largest group in the 11 years Dr. Scarth has been giving these talks.

He has some photos of the mirror and the crowds on his website.

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2009 guided walks to the Denge sound mirrors

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009

The Romney Marsh Countryside Project has announced the dates when the sound mirrors at Denge can be visited in 2009.

Denge sound mirror guided walk

Due to the overwhelming popularity of last years Echoes of the Sky tours we are making a few changes this year. We will be holding a new open day on Sunday 19th July. The island will be open from 10am in the morning until 5pm. Dr Richard Scarth, an expert on these structures, will be present to answer any questions. We will have a number of staff stationed at key places to help direct people to the island. There will a member of staff on the bridge asking for a £2 donation per person to cover costs. Parking is available at Lade car park, opposite Taylor Road on Coast Drive (halfway between the Pilot Pub and Romney Sands) (TR 085 208). This will be a non-booking event, you just need to turn up on the day. The walk will be across shingle. For anymore details contact the Romney Marsh Countryside Project on 01797 367934 or email us at mail@rmcp.co.uk.

ECHOES FROM THE SKY WALKS 2009 WALKS DATES ANNOUNCED

As well as the new open day we will be holding two guided walks on Sunday 16th August and Sunday 13th September. They will be lead by ourselves and Dr Richard Scarth, the world’s expert on these structures. The walks start at 2pm and we will be meeting at the Lade car park opposite Taylor Road on Coast Drive (halfway between the Pilot Pub and Romney Sands) (TR 085 208). The walk will last approximately 2.5 hours and is over shingle. It is a non-booking event and donations are appreciated. For more information contact the RMCP on 01797 367934 or email mail@rmcp.co.uk
Source: RMCP

Obviously people should confirm details with RMCP nearer the time. The walks are well worth doing!

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Once the rockets were up, this is where they came down

Wednesday, January 14th, 2009

Not directly related to sound mirrors (V2 rockets were supersonic), but sound mirror fans might be interested in London V2 Rocket Sites…Mapped at Londonist.

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Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland book

Monday, March 24th, 2008

Cover of Pillboxes in Britain & Ireland I’ve acquired a copy of the newly-published book Pillboxes of Britain & Ireland, by Mike Osbourne.

While it doesn’t cover sound mirrors, it is an excellent and comprehensive book on pillbox design and development, with typologies, plans, photographs and details of the theory and use of pillboxen. It is well worth any connoisseur of concrete defensive structures getting hold of a copy.

While we’re at it, I’ll also mention another good recent read, the new Osprey book on Armored Trains. I would review it, but this review says it all pretty well.

Unfortunately the book doesn’t mention the armoured train in Sarajevo.

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