The first time the sound barrier was broken the pilot died. The speed of sound is 770 mph. As the aeroplane gets faster the molecules of air are compressed and form a shock wave. He showed some impressive photos of this. There is kinetic heating and, for instance, Concorde generated a fuselage temperature of 174°C although the ambient temperature is -60°C at 60,000 feet.
Read moreDr Harry Mycock - Ascent of Aconcagua
The Speaker for the evening, Dr Harry Mycock, gave an account of his attempt at ascent of Aconcagua. This is the highest mountain in the southern hemisphere at 23,000 feet. He said he had climbed mountains since his days as a student and this particular mountain is the highest one that can be trekked.
Read moreMr Ken Ingamells - Shackleton in Antarctica
Mr Ingamells described this time as the ‘heroic era of Polar exploration’. Sir Ernest Shackleton was a doctor’s son from Sydenham Kent. He was apprenticed to a shipping line and had worked hard to get his masters ticket.
Read moreMedical students - 2008 Foott Memorial Bursary
He described Cairo with its 18 million population 75% of whom are under 25 and his accommodation in a cheap downtown hotel. He was attached to the A&E department of the University Hospital, which treats over 1 million patients a year.
Read moreMr James Munro FRCS - Walter Reed and Yellow Fever
Yellow Fever was known as the yellow plague in the Roman and Byzantine empires. It crossed the Atlantic in the slave trade and caused epidemics in the Caribbean and southern states of America. It presents with anorexia, vomiting and jaundice after which there is a remission which is followed by multiorgan failure, black vomit and death in 50% cases.
Read moreDr David Doyle - Fashions in head injuries and fashions in dispatching infants
He described his early training in Edinburgh with a Dr Ford Robinson, who had discovered that the spirocheate was the cause of GPI, and the post mortem room with the most beautiful rose garden which it transpired was where the PM room assistants dumped the blood after autopsies
Read moreDr John Wales - A Night to Remember
Dr Wales said that the shipping trade, at the turn of the 20th century, was one of conducting vast numbers of emigrants from the old world to the new world – and that included lots of Irish. The shipping lines made their money from the 3rd class passengers.
Read moreMr James Davis - Chichester Harbour
He described the inlet up to Fishbourne as being as it was in Roman times, but that today there were threats to the environment: local authorities under pressure to build more houses, private developers who cant get planning permission leaving sites to rot; areas of farming land under shining plastic and even global warming causing higher tides.
Read moreProfessor Jonathan Montgomery - Future Directions for Hampshire’s NHS
He wondered how fair and transparent clinical excellence awards were and were they value for money? He considered they should be more objective. The Committee were taking care to see that the localities were getting it right and that there was more transparency.
Read moreProfessor George Lewith - Acupuncture – recent advances
He said that with respect to acupuncture the critical discovery was of endorphins and the subsequentphysiological studies that showed that acupuncture increased CSF endorphins. The question that is of most concern though, is ‘what is acupuncture and what is placebo?
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