New paintings and regular art updates.
The cogs are a bit messy on the hat. I might change the shading, but I’m painting under electric light now so it’s got a different cast or hue to how it was painting in daylight. But it’s almost done…. Tiring and hard to see details…. I’ve added a few gold highlights, I might add some silvers. I will have it done by tomorrow I think….
The clocks in the UK go forward tonight so we lose an hour in bed. The good things is that there are less accidents in the summer. When I was a child in the 70’s I think? They bought in three years where the clocks didn’t go back in autumn. It was darker in the morning but children who were tired in the evening were going home from school in brighter light. They had less accidents according to Rospa (royal society for the prevention of accidents).
The idea of extending British Summer time was not taken up because the sun didn’t come up in Scotland until after 10am I think. It was suggested again in the nineties but was not accepted by parliament. It also saves energy because people use less lighting and heating. Maybe the idea should be revisited.
I forgot to put the clocks back last night. No real problem, it just meant I got an extra hour in bed. What does sadden me is that it’s 5.15pm and its already dark. Sometimes in the winter months it feels like you never see the sun. It hides behind the clouds, keeping its light lost in their faces.
As the year turns in the northern hemisphere the sun sinks further south, rising in an arc that tops at an angle, so consequently there is less daylight. In the southern hemisphere the earth is tipped towards the sun bringing more light to that part of the world.
Celestial mechanics is interesting. The fact that the earth is tipped on its axis is the cause. If the earth was upright all parts would have exactly 12 hours of daylight and night, there would be no seasons. But the angle of the earth would wobble more without the moon. It helps stabilise its orbit around the sun. Look things up, find things out, you might be surprised!
Oh no! Clocks go back tomorrow night. What does that mean? Lighter mornings, but it goes dark an hour earlier.
They did an experiment in the 1960’s I think. They kept British summer time for about three years. It stayed lighter in the evenings. The other effect was that there were less accidental deaths of children because they were not going back from school in the dark when they were tired. But it didn’t catch on because sunrise in the North and Scotland was at about 10am. The idea has been suggested a few times since then but was voted down in Parliament. Maybe one day they will change it permanently. I wish they would. It also saved money and reduced power usage. So maybe its worth it.
We decided to visit the time and space exhibition at the world museum, Liverpool, while we went to see the exhibition of the terracotta army from China.
Time and space is on the top floor. Along with a planetarium (which we didn’t know you had to book). There were some stunning clocks and watches and scientific instruments. It’s not as interactive as Jodrell Bank, but it feels authentic, like an old fashioned museum, there were spectroscopic instruments from Liverpool University, and part of an old cyclotron. There was also a feed from the international Space Station which was on http://www.nasatv you could even log in to the signal your self.
After watching the new Dr Who series on TV it was good to see the reality.
Mallaband-Brown