London Water and Steam Museum (Kew Bridge)

On Wednesday June 17, the EIL students along with Profs. Berry and Dickerson visited the London Museum of Water and Steam at Kew Bridge. They witnessed the startup of the three-story Boulton & Watt engine, the oldest engine on site (built in 1820) and ceased working in 1943 before being restored to working order in 1975. That engine was built by Boulton & Watt of the Soho Foundry, Birmingham in 1820, the year after the death of James Watt. In 1848 it was converted to work on the Cornish cycle, using higher pressure steam. Richard Albanese, chief engineer and our visit's host, allowed two of the EIL students to handle the shutdown of the engine.  Richard and his staff also started all four of the large rotative engines in the Steam Hall for the visit. The tour this year also included the boiler room, tool and parts shop, and the Victorian (belt-driven) tool workshop.  The group photo was between the Hathorn Davey Triple Expansion Engine and the James Simpson (Waddon) Engine in the Steam Hall. The Hathorn Davey engine was built in Leeds in 1910 by and was previously in service in a pumping station at Newmarket. It reflects the transition toward internal combustion engines in that the cylinders are inverted and placed in a line directly over the crankshaft in much the same way as a modern car engine. The Waddon Engine is a historic horizontal cross-compound steam pumping engine built in 1910. It holds the distinction of being the very last steam water-pumping engine to operate in regular service in the UK, officially retiring in 1983.  Before leaving the Museum, the students competed in an outdoor bubble relay under very windy conditions.

 

 

Matins Service at St. Paul's Cathedral

Four EIL students joined Professor Berry and his daughter, Rebecca, in attending the 10:00 am Choral Matins service at St. Paul's Cathedral on Sunday, June 14. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of England. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London. Its dedication in honour of Paul the Apostle dates back to the original cathedral church on this site, founded in AD 604.  After the service, the group enjoyed coffee, tea and cakes at the nearby Paul Bakery & Cafe.

Birthdays Abroad

Celebrating birthdays while studying abroad sometimes means celebrating without family and friends for the first time.  Fortunately,  EIL students tend to form new bonds that can last a lifetime. They become like family! 

Fordham University Classroom

Profs. Berry and Dickerson present their morning lectures and afternoon laboratory sessions for ECE 301 and ME 331 in a reserved classroom at nearby Fordham University. The larger classroom has the amenities of tables (rather than small flip-over desk tops) and air conditioning.  Students can take their lunch break on the outside (top floor) terrace or in the common room on the ground floor at Fordham.

 

Bletchley Park and National Museum of Computing

On the afternoon of Tuesday, June 9, the EIL students along with Profs. Berry and Dickerson and Lewis Leming (IES Abroad London Customized Programs and Projects Manager) visited Bletchley Park (north of London). Bletchley Park (BP) is where Alan Turing and his colleagues in Hut 8 broke the (naval) Enigma code during World War II. The students witnessed demonstrations of working Enigma, Bombe, and Colossus machines. The Colossus was the world's first electric digital computer that was programmable. The Colossus computers were developed to help in the cryptanalysis of the Hitler's Lorenz cipher.  Between visiting Hut 8, the Bletchley Park Mansion, and the Turing archives in BP, there was time for an outdoor chess game near a playground.  The group photo this year was not taken in front of the Mansion due to scaffolding associated with repairs to the roof and exterior.

 

Greenwich

On Friday, June 5, the EIL students along with Profs. Berry and Dickerson took an Uber boat up the Thames River to Greenwich.  After arrival, the group took a short bus ride to the Thames Barrier, just north of the Greenwich Town Centre. Operated by the Environment Agency of the British government, the Thames Barrier is one of the largest movable flood barriers in the world.  Returning to Greenwich (via bus), the EIL students toured the Cutty Sark ship and the Royal Observatory, including a group photo across the Prime Meridian that separates the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. In the Time and Longitude Gallery of the Flamsteed House at the Royal Observatory, students were able to see the four Harrison's sea clocks from the eighteenth century.  Harrison's H4 clock is considered the most important timekeeper ever made. It is the machine that helped solve the problem of keeping accurate time at sea and finally won Harrison huge rewards from the Board of Longitude and the British Government.  As is customary,  group photos were taken at the Prime Meridian (Longitude 0) and with Southeast London as the background.