Specifically, Number 10 Downing Street.
Yes, it's the official residence of the Prime Minister. During the 1980's, it apparently was in very bad shape and was remodeled. Did Margaret and Denis Thatcher live there during the remodeling, or was it mostly for ceremonial purposes then?
Rumours at the time said it wasn't so much for re-furbishment as for making it into a stronghold, reinforced against bomb and mortar damage ( from the IRA). Bullet/bomb proof windows, doors, roof etc.
One magazine even said there was steel plates inserted in the walls.
10 Downing Street isn't just one house/building - it's many buildings all interconnected with each other, so Maggie could have been kipping anywhere inside.
hth.
I've designed and worked such systems for a few embassies. It's a bit more than a rumor from what I gathered among people in that line of work. Still, it would be nice to have that confirmed first hand.
ETA: After a CRS check, #10 Downing was hit by a parcel bomb late 82 in which INLA claimed responsibility. That syncs with what I recall people telling me was the emphasis for hardening that location.
And in 1991, the IRA conducted an attack with a homemade mortar on #10, and one of the shells exploded in the garden of #10 while the cabinet was meeting, so the threat was very, very real.
In 1991 the IRA launched three mortar rounds at 10 downing st and very nearly hit it. There was a meeting in progress and some minor injuries. Apparently there was special glass etc. I remember it in the news at the time, and my memory is that people said that the building has poorly protected.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downing_Street_mortar_attack
The Wikipedia article cites books that assess that, if a mortar round had hit, there would likely have been deaths.
The Cabinet War Rooms - now a museum called the Churchill War Rooms - were built in the Second World War and turned out to not be bomb proof either. Fascinating story and parallels too. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk/8158099.stm
Secondary question - any of you that are old enough have any members of the House of Commons (or Lords) that were in office in 1984 that you'd like to see mentioned? Or have vaporized? Seems that a certain alien is visiting London right now - at least in the current chapter I'm writing.
Can he? Oh, yeah, not a problem.
Will he?
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Maybe just a small portion of it, that's technically not in the city.
Oh, and it's already been written, in Chapter 32. I'm working on Chapter 38, that's why I needed the info on British political jerks, for realism.
Maybe just a small portion of it, that's technically not in the city.
If he doesn't vaporize the entire DC metro area, what's the point.
Nuke them from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.
If he doesn't vaporize the entire DC metro area, what's the point.
While we're at it, let's just wipe out the entire U.S.A. and return us to the good ol' times when we were British colonies.
British colonies.
We were not all British colonies. Parts of the USA were Spanish, Dutch, Russian (Alaska), and French (Louisiana purchase) colonies. Hawaii was independent. A great deal of the country was Native American, not owned by any European Nation. The 1776 war was with Britain but the 13 colonies that emerged were far less than the current 50 states and some other territories.
While we're at it, let's just wipe out the entire U.S.A. and return us to the good ol' times when we were British colonies.
Since you want to go there, the 'good ol' times' would be without anyone from any other country, at least to us. So if you really feel that way just pack some bags and head on back to your genetic origins.
Let me offer apologies to all, including Remus2, who believed I was serious about wiping out the USA. I was trying to respond sarcastically to the suggestion that part of the U.S., the "entire DC metro area" be vaporized, which brought no other protests.
Remus2
6/9/2020, 11:06:34 PM
Updated: 6/9/2020, 11:07:05 PM
@PotomacBob
While we're at it, let's just wipe out the entire U.S.A. and return us to the good ol' times when we were British colonies.
Since you want to go there, the 'good ol' times' would be without anyone from any other country, at least to us. So if you really feel that way just pack some bags and head on back to your genetic origins.
I was trying to respond sarcastically to the suggestion that part of the U.S., the "entire DC metro area" be vaporized, which brought no other protests.
I think every one else realized that the original suggestion to vaporize the "entire DC metro area" wasn't serious.
I thought the nuke them from orbit quote would have been a dead giveaway.
I thought the nuke them from orbit quote would have been a dead giveaway.
That's why Cal was only a few miles high at Pyongyang. The thing is - with a KEW, you don't NEED nukes. Just big rocks.
And Gorman always was an asshole. :)
Rods from God have always tickled my fancy.
Heinlein used big rocks in the Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Niven & Pournelle used an even bigger rock in Footfall & Lucifer's Hammer.
Ryk E.Spoor went for a really big really fast rock, the Chixulub Impactor in Boundary.
Niven went for over kill with an interstellar space craft at a noticable fraction of C driven by an insane AI in one of the Man Kzin Wars.
Science fiction seems to have a fixation on recreating Mjolnir.
Using all of them on DC might be a good idea.
Niven went for over kill with an interstellar space craft at a noticable fraction of C driven by an insane AI in one of the Man Kzin Wars.
At even just 0.01C, a 10kg impactor would have the energy of a small nuke.
A lot of people don't appreciate just how vast the gap is between the speed of sound and the speed of light.
The US Navy has been experimenting with rail gun technology with mach 10 KE impactors (who needs explosives?).
0.01C would be somewhere around mach 7000.
0.01C would be somewhere around mach 7000.
Even faster: close to mach 8809.9 (6706166 mph)
close to mach 8809.9
1. That's somewhere around mach 7000. :).
2. Was the .9 really necessary?
1. That's somewhere around mach 7000. :).
2. Was the .9 really necessary?
1. Of course, just a small difference of about 1377717 mph
2. I thought mentioning it as mach 8809.911 was a little over the top ;)
Of course, just a small difference of about 1377717 mph
I was only off by about 25%. That's close enough isn't it?
A lot of people don't appreciate just how vast the gap is between the speed of sound and the speed of light.
The figures given above are all well and good for near sea level, where we live, but much easier to remember is the case for where long-haul airliners fly: there the speed of sound is roughly 300m/s, a millionth of the speed of light.
But then, a lot of people don't appreciate just how big a million is, either.
But then, a lot of people don't appreciate just how big a million is, either.
For scale:
https://www.quora.com/Can-I-carry-one-million-dollars-in-one-dollar-bills-in-a-suit-case
A bundle of 200 bills weighs about half a pound and takes up about 15 cubic inches of spaces. A million in singles would mean you'd need 5,000 of these bundles. That would weigh over a ton, and take up 75,000 cubic inches, which is roughly 40 cubic feet. That would be a heck of suitcase, and I'd be singularly impressed if you managed to heft it.
ETA: a couple more views of scale
https://www.ehd.org/science_technology_largenumbers.php
One way to better understand large numbers is to compare the heights of stacks of varying numbers of dollar bills. The thickness of a single one dollar bills measures .0043 inches or .0000000679 miles.
The height of a stack of 100 one dollar bills measures .43 inches.
The height of a stack of 1,000 one dollar bills measures 4.3 inches.
The height of a stack of 1,000,000 one dollar bills measures 4,300 inches or 358 feet – about the height of a 30 to 35 story building.
Yet another way to understand large numbers is to compare the lengths of varying numbers of dollar bills laid end-to-end. The length of a single one dollar bills measures 6.14 inches.
The length of 100 one dollar bills laid end-to-end measures 614 inches or 51.17 feet.
The length of 1,000 one dollar bills laid end-to-end measures 512 feet. This would approximate the length of some of the longer home run balls hit by professional baseball players. (The world record for the longest home run, estimated at 643 feet, was set in 1961 by Mickey Mantle.)
The length of 1,000,000 (one million) one dollar bills laid end-to-end extends 96.9 miles. This would easily traverse the 21 miles across the English Channel from the shores of England to the shores of France and back more than two and a half times.
Cyril Smith MP for Rochdale - a big fat paedophile.
Robert Maxwell MP a Newspaper owner who robbed his employees Pension Fund.
Some more to pick from - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_scandals_in_the_United_Kingdom#1980s
The only renovations done under Thatcher were some of the public rooms, not the residence. The major renovations were done in the 1960s. The security improvements were during Majors' time.
Interestingly, Blair and Cameron found out that 10 was too small for the size of their families and lived in 11 Downing St
I think mach numbers vary with altitude.
"MACH NUMBER is defined as a speed ratio, referenced to the speed of sound, i.e. Since the temperature and density of air decreases with altitude, so does the speed of sound, hence a given true velocity results in a higher MACH number at higher altitudes."
I think mach numbers vary with altitude.
They do.
I may have done way too much research into that for A True History.
I think mach numbers vary with altitude.
My bad, I should have added "at 20°C in dry air at sea level".
at sea level
The sea isn't level. It rises, it falls. Always in motion is the surface of the ocean.
The sea isn't level. It rises, it falls. Always in motion is the surface of the ocean.
Look up "standard sea-level conditions" or "sea-level standard".
Look up "standard sea-level conditions"
How can there be standard sea-level conditions when there isn't a standard sea level? Sea level can vary significantly even over just a few meters (horizontally) and over time at a fixed location.
And if you haven't figured out by now that I am yanking your chain, :P
Isn't the sea higher at one end of the Panama Canal than the other?
No idea. It certainly isn't impossible. Are the Pacific and Atlantic tides in sync?
Isn't the sea higher at one end of the Panama Canal than the other?
Yes it is. Specifically, it's higher on the Pacific side.
https://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/
A little math and you can determine current conditions for specific buoys from Atlantic side to Pacific side.
And if you haven't figured out by now that I am yanking your chain, :P
We were each yanking on one side of the chain :D
How can there be standard sea-level conditions when there isn't a standard sea level?
Not to mention the small fact that the sea covers around 70% of a sphere(ish) globe. So which bit is 'level' because the rest cannot be level with that exact spot.
Ok, the flat earth crowd can ignore that.
:)
And don't we all live on the Disc-world?
You know, elephants on the back of a tortoise sort of thing? I find that rather eloquent.
These days it starts with EGM96 model, (Earth Gravity Model 96). That in turn is used as the Geoid reference point in the WGS84 (World Gravity System 84). From that, the Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL) is determined.
Localized MSL's have been verified via JPL/NASA Jason Series missions.
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/jason-3/
Prior to the space age, precision is not a word one would apply to sea levels. In some cases, the acronym WAG was a better description.
From that, the Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL) is determined.
That's a mean(average), not a standard.
Mean Sea Level
(MSL) - The arithmetic mean of hourly water elevations observed over a specific 19-year tidal epoch.
Lets not be mean.
There are other measures of central tendency. I prefer a la mode (with ice cream, vanilla is nice) or a spiritualist medium (or is that a median? which has something to do with highways). And we can be home on the Range, where the deer and the antelope play. I am not sure what they play, probably not chess or checkers or most card games because they don't have the pieces or cards. Maybe they play poke her, so they get off spring. They don't get off fall, winter or summer?
That's a mean(average), not a standard.
Why can't averages just get along?
Why can't averages just get along?
Because means are well, mean.
On the other hand medians and modes can certainly get along.
On the other hand medians and modes can certainly get along.
Only because both medians and modes regularly seek to punch a well paid clairvoyant...
In other words, they regularly strike a happy medium... :)
Why can't averages just get along?
They get along just fine if the distribution is normal. It's only when things aren't normal that they start to have different opinions about where the middle should be.
if the distribution is normal
A former statistics student wants to tell you not every distribution is normal. Typically n (the number of data points) needs to be more than 30, and a lot more than 30 in many cases. I visited with an actuary, who does statistics for insurance companies, and asked him for guidance on what to use to adjust current rates to make them profitable for future years. He said there are about two dozen possible answers, the Insurance Commissioner's office would approve a large number of distributions he could use if he only had three years of results to adjust. What numbers do you want, I can give your whatever answer you want.
At current prices 18 kilograms of gold is worth $1,000,000, at the same time ten kilograms of $100 notes is worth $1,000,000. Was there ever a time that paper was worth more than gold?
Was there ever a time that paper was worth more than gold?
The value of a $100 note is not in the paper. A $1 note and a $100 note are printed on basically the same paper.
The operative word in that is "worth." Any given measure of worth only has the value assigned and agreed upon by two or more people. Even then, it's only potential until execution of trade.
ETA: As a direct answer to your question, in 1918, a Federal Reserve Note was issued in the demonization of 10,000 dollars. In that same year, gold averaged 18.99 per troy ounce.
Yes, it's the official residence of the Prime Minister. During the 1980's, it apparently was in very bad shape and was remodeled. Did Margaret and Denis Thatcher live there during the remodeling, or was it mostly for ceremonial purposes then?
On Doctor Who, it was equipped with a safe room. The Doctor and friends survived the whole building being blown up around them, in the safe room. That's all I know about 10 Downing Street, and I have no idea if it's true about the safe room.
