http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb31/Andrew_K_Fletcher/Trees/APocketFullOfAcorns.jpg
Link to original file.
Friday 5 September 2008
A Pocket Full Of Acorns Tree Planting Project
http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb31/Andrew_K_Fletcher/Trees/APocketFullOfAcorns.jpg
Link to original file.
Monday 28 July 2008
Raining In The Main Hollidays In Britain
An observation over 21 years living in Paignton.
Holiday main seasons down comes the rain. It can be dry for weeks on end and as soon as the motorists arrive in their drives the rain arrives. Now it could be a coincidence but it happens too often IMO.
So what changes have occurred that might be responsible for causing it to rain?
1. Sometimes along our particular part of the coast we are privileged to be visited by some unusual clouds rolling along the coastline. They do not cross over the hot dry coastline beyond the black tarmac road. So one side is shrouded in mist, the other side is a bright sunshine day with clear air. This can last for many hours as the mist rolls around like washing in a tumble dryer and is channelled along the coast.
2. Where the trees meet the sea mist rolls inland and hugs the wooded areas but goes no further than the tree line does. Walking in the trees on these particular days the temperature is several degrees below that outside of the trees and the air is saturated with water, the trees are dripping and the ground is moistened.
3. When the mist finally vanishes it remains shrouding the trees and the trees milk the remaining water from the air over several hours more
4. Thermals rising from the hot tarmac road can be seen as you drive along it. You can see the wavy thermal pattern as the heat rises. These thermals rise high into the atmosphere and form an invisible barrier against ocean born humidity. These same thermals cause the same barrier along desert coastlines and are undoubtedly responsible for the inherent lack of rainfall in these areas.
5. Trees transpire vast amounts of water into the atmosphere and in doing so remove the thermal barrier that prevents cloud and mist from crossing onto the land. They lower the temperature and as warm moist air rises it is cooled causing a downdraught which causes warm air to rise in a density flow and indeed this can be seen happening at times when dew point has been reached.
6. The holiday traffic involves a massive increase in vehicles cruising along the hot roads. These obviously provide some shadow and while they are moving along they remain cooled by the moistened air flowing over them from the exhaust emissions of other vehicles so an overall reduction in temperatures due to traffic is offset against the heat generated by the engine and the friction from the transmission, brakes and tyres.
7. The exhaust emissions contain collectively a vast amount of warm water released into the atmosphere along with particles which rise due to the heat from combustion. These gasses quickly cool transferring the heat into the atmosphere and fall back towards the ground while the dry hot air rises again generating the same flow and return system that the trees perform.
8. This additional water from exhausts also blocks out some of the suns energy and like the trees removes the thermal barrier so moisture from the ocean can again cross onto the land and fall as rain, and rain it does with incredible regularity.
So the old adage said to holiday makers with regularity “you have brought the bad weather with you may have a lot of truth in it after all.
Holiday main seasons down comes the rain. It can be dry for weeks on end and as soon as the motorists arrive in their drives the rain arrives. Now it could be a coincidence but it happens too often IMO.
So what changes have occurred that might be responsible for causing it to rain?
1. Sometimes along our particular part of the coast we are privileged to be visited by some unusual clouds rolling along the coastline. They do not cross over the hot dry coastline beyond the black tarmac road. So one side is shrouded in mist, the other side is a bright sunshine day with clear air. This can last for many hours as the mist rolls around like washing in a tumble dryer and is channelled along the coast.
2. Where the trees meet the sea mist rolls inland and hugs the wooded areas but goes no further than the tree line does. Walking in the trees on these particular days the temperature is several degrees below that outside of the trees and the air is saturated with water, the trees are dripping and the ground is moistened.
3. When the mist finally vanishes it remains shrouding the trees and the trees milk the remaining water from the air over several hours more
4. Thermals rising from the hot tarmac road can be seen as you drive along it. You can see the wavy thermal pattern as the heat rises. These thermals rise high into the atmosphere and form an invisible barrier against ocean born humidity. These same thermals cause the same barrier along desert coastlines and are undoubtedly responsible for the inherent lack of rainfall in these areas.
5. Trees transpire vast amounts of water into the atmosphere and in doing so remove the thermal barrier that prevents cloud and mist from crossing onto the land. They lower the temperature and as warm moist air rises it is cooled causing a downdraught which causes warm air to rise in a density flow and indeed this can be seen happening at times when dew point has been reached.
6. The holiday traffic involves a massive increase in vehicles cruising along the hot roads. These obviously provide some shadow and while they are moving along they remain cooled by the moistened air flowing over them from the exhaust emissions of other vehicles so an overall reduction in temperatures due to traffic is offset against the heat generated by the engine and the friction from the transmission, brakes and tyres.
7. The exhaust emissions contain collectively a vast amount of warm water released into the atmosphere along with particles which rise due to the heat from combustion. These gasses quickly cool transferring the heat into the atmosphere and fall back towards the ground while the dry hot air rises again generating the same flow and return system that the trees perform.
8. This additional water from exhausts also blocks out some of the suns energy and like the trees removes the thermal barrier so moisture from the ocean can again cross onto the land and fall as rain, and rain it does with incredible regularity.
So the old adage said to holiday makers with regularity “you have brought the bad weather with you may have a lot of truth in it after all.
Wednesday 25 June 2008
An Alternative method of Multiplication
This was the way I taught my sons to learn their multiplication tables at 5 and 6 years. They could recite them forwards and reversed to 23X and beyond just by recognising the patterns in this simple formula rather than drawing the traditional times table and learning them off by heart. At least this way they got to understand the patterns in numbers, which I am sure has helped them to recognise other patterns, particularly patterns in music and language.
No one ever taught me this method of simple multiplication and I have not seen it anywhere since though would not be surprised to find it being taught elsewhere. I was helping the boys do multiplication when the patterns jumped out at me, so got them to see the patterns and write them down without having to think higher that reducing a number by 4 and increasing a number by 2.
Multiplication and patterns. (A different way to teach multiplication)
Think of the number 10
Think of the number 9 in relation to the number 10, it is 1 down from number 10
So the pattern will be the left column goes up 1 and the right column drops down 1
If it were the number 7 then the right column would drop down 3 and the left column would go up 1 except when the previous number permits 7 to be added without pushing the left column up 1 like after the number 70
If it were the number 29 being multiplied then the right column would drop by 1 and the left column would go up 2
And the number 10 would have a stagnant 0 in the right column and go up by 1 in the left column.
9
18
27
36
45
54
63
72
81
90
99
108
9X Formula 1 up 1 down
7X Formula 1 up 3 down
This made learning for them very enjoyable. At the age of 7 and 8 I got them a pitman typing tutor for the commodore 67 computer and rewarded them with £15.00 each for completing the course, learning myself and my wife to type quickly and accurately into the bargain. They both play the guitar. My eldest is currently travelling around the world started in Thailand, can now speak and write fluent Thai having taught English there for 18 months the last time he went travelling. This time he has travelled to Malaysia, Indonesia, Komodo Islands, Krakatoa, Heading to Bali now and planning to work in Australia for a year or more and says it is very easy to learn the language in Indonesia. My youngest is in the building trade planning to develop properties.
Andrew K Fletcher
No one ever taught me this method of simple multiplication and I have not seen it anywhere since though would not be surprised to find it being taught elsewhere. I was helping the boys do multiplication when the patterns jumped out at me, so got them to see the patterns and write them down without having to think higher that reducing a number by 4 and increasing a number by 2.
Multiplication and patterns. (A different way to teach multiplication)
Think of the number 10
Think of the number 9 in relation to the number 10, it is 1 down from number 10
So the pattern will be the left column goes up 1 and the right column drops down 1
If it were the number 7 then the right column would drop down 3 and the left column would go up 1 except when the previous number permits 7 to be added without pushing the left column up 1 like after the number 70
If it were the number 29 being multiplied then the right column would drop by 1 and the left column would go up 2
And the number 10 would have a stagnant 0 in the right column and go up by 1 in the left column.
9
18
27
36
45
54
63
72
81
90
99
108
9X Formula 1 up 1 down
7X Formula 1 up 3 down
This made learning for them very enjoyable. At the age of 7 and 8 I got them a pitman typing tutor for the commodore 67 computer and rewarded them with £15.00 each for completing the course, learning myself and my wife to type quickly and accurately into the bargain. They both play the guitar. My eldest is currently travelling around the world started in Thailand, can now speak and write fluent Thai having taught English there for 18 months the last time he went travelling. This time he has travelled to Malaysia, Indonesia, Komodo Islands, Krakatoa, Heading to Bali now and planning to work in Australia for a year or more and says it is very easy to learn the language in Indonesia. My youngest is in the building trade planning to develop properties.
Andrew K Fletcher
Friday 16 May 2008
Tight Rope Walkers at Hennock Reservoirs
A great day out with Jude, Sylvia and our 4 Bull terriers. Ooops nearly forgot Titch the Lancashire Healer.
At the end of a gorgeous sunny walk through these tranquil lakes we stopped for a coffee from the flask and met some friendly people who set up a tight rope, and after applying considerable tension to it with my immense strength of course :) they proceeded to try the art of tightrope walking. I decided to film it for them and for our own amusement as they became thoroughly engaged in this somewhat hillarious activity. I even had a go myself but these guys n gals were much better than me :)
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