MACHINE TOOLS BY JOHN ASCHAUER
JOHN ASCHAUER was a model builder extraordinaire. Whereas others fashioned car, aircraft or architectural models, Aschauer built 1/16th scale machine tools. There’s a permanent collection of Aschauer’s models at the … Continue reading
THE TOWER OF HANOI—AND CANNONBALLS
IS THE Tower of Hanoi a kid’s game? A mathematical endeavor connected to cannonballs? Or a calendar to the end of the universe? Yes, yes and yes. Start with a … Continue reading
ROTARY AUTOMOBILES
A CAR’S wheels rotate, they don’t go up and down. Thus, whatever other complications in moving a car, there has to be a basic transformation of reciprocating pistons into rotating … Continue reading
ROTARY ENGINES: HOLD THE CRANK, SPIN THE REST
I’M TALKING about a rotary engine in the traditional sense, its crankshaft firmly fixed to the frame, its engine block with radially aligned cylinders spinning around and producing power. (By … Continue reading
1964 WORLD’S FAIR
IT’S SAID you never forget your first kiss, your first love, your first…. But what about your first taco? Wife Dottie almost rolled on the floor in laughter today when … Continue reading
MILES AIRCRAFT LTD AND ITS M.57 AEROVAN
THE BRITISH Miles Aircraft Ltd was a family business, and what a family it was: See http://wp.me/p2ETap-24M. The varied talents of F.G. Miles, his wife Blossom and his brother George … Continue reading
HAPPY (SORT OF) BIRTHDAY, WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
RECORDS INDICATE William Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564, precisely 450 years ago. Well, not precisely, because of England’s Gregorian Calendar change in the 1700s. In fact, his actual … Continue reading
BLOSSOM MILES—AIRCRAFT DESIGNER
I WAS researching the Miles M.57 Aerovan, but got sidetracked by romance. Maybe you’ll share my enthusiasm for F.G. Miles and his wife Blossom as well as their aircraft, about … Continue reading
CREATIVE HEARING, TAKE 2
PART OF the fun of listening is trying to figure out what is being said. I mentioned a few family classics of this creative hearing in http://wp.me/p2ETap-1rY. Things like “penguins” when … Continue reading
THE LEICA FREEDOM TRAIN
GERMAN CAMERA-maker Ernst Leitz II and his daughter Elsie Kühn-Leitz quietly rescued hundreds of Jews by smuggling them out of Nazi Germany during the 1930s. Their efforts came to light … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 