The Engineer

With the child-proof tops (mouthwash, bleach, ant-powder, weedkiller, etc.), I modify the first one (by cutting the internal tabs off with a craft knife) then transfer the 'special cap' each time I start a new bottle. Mind you, when modifying one my knife slipped (close shave but no blood drawn). Why don't they give us a choice between 'sensible adult' and 'child-proof'? We're not all numpties. Another way into tight jars is to stab the lid with a paring knife (me and my knives - you'd never know I used to work in Health and Safety) Today, a colleague handed me a Nescafe coffee sachet and

In regard of asphalt, it might be down to naming convention. The European Asphalt Pavement Society says it is aggregate bound with bitumen. As Abraham Lincoln once said: "You can't believe everything you read on Wikipedia."

Of course everyone can form and hold an opinion on matters of importance and indeed should. That includes those who vote, those who don't (but could) and those who are not allowed to vote for whatever reason. That is quite different from complaining about the outcome of a ballot where one could have voted but choose not to. If an otherwise unknown person had stood for Notts. PCC and those 78% had voted for him, Mr T would now be unemployed.

The chimney sweep. The paperboy. Of course the rag and bone man has been replaced by the man who takes anything metallic that is not bolted down.

The important thing in a democracy is always to cast your vote - if only 22% turned out, the other 78% can't complain about the outcome. I sincerely hope that turnout on 23 June for the EU referendum is significantly more than 22%. The result needs to reflect the desire of the majority of those eligible to vote, not just the majority of those who care to vote.

No sign of a schematic for 1042 on that site. Don't actually need one yet - just 'nice to have' if I can find one. A user guide or full spec. might be more useful for now.

Smiffy49, I will be able to sort crackling inputs if necessary, even if that means new 1/4" sockets. I was a little concerned to find the mains fuse blackened and in two pieces but a new fuse got it to fire up. I don't have suitable cab(s) at present to evaluate fully but have found that most of the pots are scratchy when I attached a couple of 8" drivers. I can strip the pots and clean/lube. Each of the four channels has two inputs labelled 1 and 2. It is all mono so I don't know whether these are mike and line or what. Also each channel has an aux push button. I need to clean the pots

I've acquired an old (1970s?) stage amplifier / PA unit and wondered whether anyone here has experience of using this model (because I have no instructions). It is a Carlsbro Marlin 1042, four channel mono input, mono output (something like 100-120W). It is 'solid state' (no tubes/valves) and has a spring reverb inside. There is a Notts. connection in that Carlsbro was founded in 1969 by Stuart and Sheila Mercer in Mansfield and made a range of professional audio/PA equipment; some big names used their gear and it was regarded as creating a distinct 'British sound'. Carlsbro went into admi

I disagree with the notion (oft proffered by theatrical luvvies) that Shakespeare was the greatest ever playwright. During his lifetime (and in the years before and since) there must have been thousands of playwrights. Statistically, the quality of their work would follow Normal Distribution (most average, some above and some below). Even if he were at the top end of his game, several others would be close; it's just that they didn't get published. Shakespeare had the connections and good fortune to gain the status that would nowadays be called celebrity. Or maybe I just don't 'get' Shake

I heard say that it was closing because of a European Directive that makes it illegal to sell cigarettes in packets of 10 after a certain date (think that's next year) - theory is that having to buy 20 will deter some youngsters. Apparently Horizon is geared up for 10s and it's not economically viable to convert to 20s (given that Imperial Tobacco already has other plants doing 20s). Whilst the sell-by date for 10s is next year, the manufacture-by date is this year so they have been producing flat out before having to switch off. They will then have a stockpile of 10s to sell over the next

Hello Dalafizz and welcome to the forum. Does the marriage certificate not show their ages? You'd need that to have a chance of finding his birth. Be aware though that they weren't always truthful (or sometimes didn't actually know). As you might know, life events (Christenings, marriages and deaths) prior to 1837 were recorded in parish registers (for 1837 onwards births, marriages and deaths were recorded by the government through Registry Offices). 1822 also predates any useful Census records (usefulness commencing in 1841). I see you're not in the UK (therefore can't visit records of

The concept of "I" or "Me" emanates from the brain. Everything else in your body is just a brain support system. This means that as and when medical science is sufficiently advanced, your head (or your brain) could have a body transplant. You could not have a head transplant. Fret not, you would still be Beduth.

Prof. Andrew Shepherd of the National Centre for Earth Observation is a notable expert and contributes to the Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. His studies suggest that melting ice from both poles has been responsible for a fifth of the global rise in sea levels since 1992, 11mm in all. Most of the rest (four fifths) was caused by the thermal expansion of the warming oceans and the melting of mountain glaciers. The study is supported by NASA and the European Space Agency. I think that whilst melting of polar ice caps is only a small contributor to rising se

SEA LEVEL IS AVERAGE OF HIGH AND LOW TIDES Sea level is taken as a mean (between high and low tides) and would be the level if the moon didn't cause tides, the wind didn't cause waves, the rivers stopped flowing and the sun stopped evaporating the oceans. All of these variations are why it was measured over a number of years (1915 to 1921 for the UK Ordnance Survey) to get a reasonable average as a reference. The mean sea level has been rising around an inch per decade for at least the last 100 years. Rise is mostly caused by the water getting warmer (it is expanding). The rest comes from

Wasn't that the one that gave you an extra packet when the arrow on the knob pointed forwards?

Traditionally, external doors opened inwards for various reasons including: (1) If the door were unglazed (as most were), a caller wouldn't get clobbered when you open it. (2) Outward opening would have hinges on the outside - these could be cut hence were less secure. (3) If it were raining, the door would get wet while open, probably inside as well as outside. (4) It would be a bit dangerous if there were steps outside (having to reach up to the handle/lock). Then along came French Windows and patio doors. Plenty of glass, usually at rear of property and not the primary exit - opening

They added a chemical called mercaptan to the odourless natural gas (methane) to make it smelly.

Looks like East Midlands was the first region in UK to be converted. Here's a related article from Evening Post by a chap who was a fitter in Nottingham at the time. http://www.nottinghampost.com/gas-70s-deaf-man-snoozing-armchair-caused-panic/story-17094347-detail/story.html

BUMP AGAIN Just when did we get converted to natural gas in Nottingham? I was living in Bulwell at the time and recall they came round to see what appliances you had then on a second visit they replaced some parts. Don't know whether every appliance was capable of upgrade - did they make anyone scrap really old stuff? On the web I found it was a ten year programme 1967 to 1977 but hope someone here can narrow that down.

You're probably thinking of Tetrasol - a branded variant of carbon tetrachloride (used as a solvent and switch cleaner), which of course you can't buy now (something to do with depleting the ozone layer) so quite fitting to the thread title.

The USP of Corrie was that it reflected the gritty lives of working class folk in the years not long after rationing had ended. Hardly anyone had a car, married women didn't work and after a hard day's work, the blokes would go down the pub on the corner and the street was of course cobbled. Over the years they've tried to keep it 'fresh', including stories about illegal drugs, alcoholism, various illnesses including cancer, same-sex relationships, ethnic diversity, etc. without acknowledging the glaring anachronisms. By now, the road would have tarmac, the pub would have been long-gone, th

The allocation of postcodes depended originally on the location of the automated sorting offices where mail would be taken to / distributed from. Around this part of the UK they include: Nottingham (NG) Peterborough (PE) Sheffield (S) Norwich (NR) Northampton (NN) Birmingham (B) Wolverhampton (WV) The following no longer have automated sorting offices (though obviously the postcodes didn't change): Derby (DE) Doncaster (DN) Hull (HU) Stoke on Trent (ST) Leicester (LE) Coventry (CV) I don't think there was ever one in Lincolnshire. Separately, whilst not a follower of any parti

Robinson Crusoe - still have that theme tune in my head.

Also from BP, the one where John Noakes climbed Nelson's Column - ladder at the top leaning backwards, no safety harness or anything - no way the'd let a 'celeb' do that nowadays. I used to like the dubbed Tales from Europe; I particularly recall The Singing Ringing Tree and The Tinderbox.

The pre-digital system for colour TV transmission in North America was called NTSC (National Television Systems Committee). It wasn't too good at coping with fluctuations in the signal so we [technicians in the UK] referred to it "Never The Same Colour"