close+reading

matter

A n

1 gen chose f ; ( of specified nature) affaire f ; ( requiring solution) problème m ; ( on agenda) point m ; business matters affaires fpl ; money matters questions fpl d'argent ; the matter in hand/under discussion l'affaire en question/dont il est question ; it will be no easy matter cela ne sera pas (une affaire) facile ; the matter is closed l'affaire est close ; I have important matters to discuss j'ai des choses importantes à discuter ; matters have taken an unexpected turn les choses ont pris un tour inattendu ; report the matter to the police signalez la chose à la police ; the main matter on the agenda le point principal à l'ordre du jour ; matters arising Admin points non inscrits à l'ordre du jour ; private matter affaire privée ; this is a matter for the police c'est un problème qui relève de la police ; there's the small matter of the £1,000 you owe me il y a le petit problème des 1 000 livres sterling que tu me dois ; Catherine is dealing with the matter Catherine s'occupe du problème ; that's another matter c'est un autre problème, c'est une autre histoire ; it's no small matter ce n'est pas une broutille ; to let the matter drop en rester là ; to take the matter further/no further aller/ne pas aller plus loin ; the fact ou truth of the matter is that la vérité est que ; I know nothing of the matter je ne suis au courant de rien ;

2 ( question) question f ; a matter of une question de [experience, importance, opinion, principle, taste] ; it's a matter of urgency c'est urgent ; a matter of life and death, a life or death matter une question de vie ou de mort ; it will just be a matter of months ce ne sera qu'une question de mois ; a matter of a few euros/days l'affaire de quelques euros/jours ; ‘will he recover?’-‘it's a matter of time’ ‘s'en remettra-t-il?’-‘c'est une question de temps’ ; it's only a matter of time before they separate ils vont se séparer, ce n'est plus qu'une question de temps ;

3 the matter (something wrong, trouble) un problème ; is anything the matter? y a-t-il un problème? ; there was something the matter il y avait un problème ; there's nothing the matter il n'y a pas de problème ; what's the matter? qu'est-ce qu'il y a? ; there's nothing the matter with me je n'ai rien ; what's the matter with Louise? qu'est-ce qu'elle a Louise? ; there's something the matter with her car sa voiture a un problème ; there's something the matter with her eye elle a quelque chose à l'œil ; what's the matter with doing a bit of work? iron ça t'ennuierait de travailler un peu? ;

4 Sci ( substance) matière f ; inert matter matière inerte ; inorganic/organic matter matière inorganique/organique ; vegetable matter matière végétale ; a particle of matter une particule ; colouring matter colorant m ;

5 ( on paper) advertising matter publicité f ; printed matter imprimés mpl ; reading matter lecture f ;

6 (content of article, book, speech etc) contenu m ; subject matter contenu m ; matter and style le fond et la forme ;

7 Med ( pus) pus m.

B vi être important ; children/details matter les enfants/les détails sont importants ; politeness matters la politesse est importante ; to matter to sb [behaviour, action] avoir de l'importance pour qn ; [person] compter pour qn ; it matters to me where you go and what you do tes faits et tes gestes ont de l'importance pour moi ; it matters to me! c'est important pour moi! ; it matters how you speak/where you sit ta façon de parler/l'endroit où tu t'assieds a de l'importance ; it really doesn't matter cela n'a absolument aucune importance ; it doesn't matter how/when peu importe comment/quand (+ indic) ; it doesn't matter whether peu importe que (+ subj) ; ‘I'm late’-‘oh, it doesn't matter’ ‘je suis en retard’-‘oh, ça ne fait rien’ ; ‘what about Richard?’-‘oh, it doesn't matter about him!’ ‘et Richard?’-‘oh, il ne faut pas s'inquiéter pour lui!’ ; it matters that she feels/is etc c'est grave qu'elle se sente/soit etc ; does it matter that I can' t be there? est-ce que c'est grave si je ne peux pas venir? ; does it really matter? ( reprovingly) qu'est-ce que ça peut faire?

as a matter of course systématiquement ; as a matter of fact en fait ; for that matter d'ailleurs ; don't speak to me like that! or to anyone else, for that matter! ne me parle pas sur ce ton! ni à qui que ce soit d'autre d'ailleurs! ; no matter! peu importe! ; no matter how late it is/what he did peu importe l'heure/ce qu'il a fait ; that's the end of the matter, there's an end to the matter c'est mon/son etc dernier mot ; to make matters worse pour ne rien arranger ; to take matters into one's own hands prendre les choses en main.

put [pʊt]

mettre ⇒ 1 (a), 1 (c)-(f), 1 (i) dire ⇒ 1 (g) soumettre ⇒ 1 (h) placer ⇒ 1 (i), 1 (l) investir ⇒ 1 (k), 1 (l) miser ⇒ 1 (m)

(pt & pp put, cont putting)

1 transitive verb

(a) (into specified place or position) mettre;

∎ put the saucepan on the shelf mets la casserole sur l'étagère;

∎ she put her hand on my shoulder elle a mis sa main sur mon épaule;

∎ put the chairs nearer the table approche les chaises de la table;

∎ he put his arm around my shoulders il passa son bras autour de mes épaules;

∎ she put her arms around him elle l'a pris dans ses bras;

∎ to put one's head round the door/through the window passer la tête par la porte/par la fenêtre;

∎ did you put any salt in? as-tu mis du sel (dedans)?;

∎ put some more water on to boil remettez de l'eau à chauffer;

∎ he put another brick on the pile il a mis une autre brique sur la pile;

∎ to put a coin/a letter/a gun into sb's hand glisser ou mettre une pièce/une lettre/un revolver dans la main de qn;

∎ she put a match to the wood elle a allumé le bois;

∎ to put an advert in the paper mettre une annonce dans le journal;

∎ they want to put me in an old folks' home ils veulent me mettre dans une maison pour les vieux;

∎ to put a child to bed mettre un enfant au lit, coucher un enfant;

∎ to put a man on the moon envoyer un homme sur la lune;

∎ he put the telescope to his eye il a porté la longue-vue à son œil;

∎ to put honour before riches préférer l'honneur à l'argent;

∎ to put a play on the stage monter une pièce;

∎ to put a guard on the door faire surveiller la porte;

∎ figurative I didn't know where to put myself! je ne savais plus où me mettre!;

∎ put yourself in my position or place mettez-vous à ma place;

∎ to put oneself into sb's hands s'en remettre à qn;

∎ put it out of your mind or head sors-le-toi de la tête;

∎ I had long put this thought out of my mind ça faisait longtemps que je m'étais sorti cette idée de la tête;

∎ we put a lot of emphasis on creativity nous mettons beaucoup l'accent sur la créativité;

∎ don't put too much trust in what he says ne te fie pas trop à ce qu'il dit;

∎ familiar put it there! (shake hands) tope-là!, serrons-nous la pince!

(b) (push or send forcefully)

∎ he put his fist through the window il a passé son poing à travers le carreau;

∎ he put a bullet through his head il s'est mis une balle dans la tête;

∎ she put her pen through the whole paragraph elle a rayé tout le paragraphe d'un coup de stylo

(c) (impose → limit, responsibility, tax) mettre;

∎ to put a ban on sth interdire qch;

∎ it puts an extra burden on our department c'est un fardeau de plus pour notre service;

∎ the new tax will put 5p on a packet of cigarettes la nouvelle taxe augmentera de 5 pence le prix d'un paquet de cigarettes

(d) (into specified state) mettre;

∎ you're putting me in an awkward position vous me mettez dans une situation délicate;

∎ I hope I've not put you to too much trouble j'espère que je ne vous ai pas trop dérangé;

∎ music always puts him in a good mood la musique le met toujours de bonne humeur;

∎ the new rules will be put into effect next month le nouveau règlement entrera en vigueur le mois prochain;

∎ to put sb out of a job mettre qn au chômage;

∎ to put a prisoner on bread and water mettre un prisonnier au pain sec et à l'eau;

∎ the money will be put to good use l'argent sera bien employé;

∎ to put sb to sleep endormir qn;

∎ euphemism the dog had to be put to sleep il a fallu piquer le chien

(e) (write down) mettre, écrire;

∎ I forgot to put my address j'ai oublié de mettre mon adresse;

∎ what date shall I put? quelle date est-ce que je mets?

(f) (bring about)

∎ to put an end or a stop to sth mettre fin ou un terme à qch

(g) (say, express) dire, exprimer;

∎ I wouldn't put it quite like that je ne dirais pas cela;

∎ I don't know how to put it je ne sais comment dire;

∎ to put one's thoughts into words exprimer sa pensée, s'exprimer;

∎ let me put it this way laissez-moi l'exprimer ainsi;

∎ it was, how shall I put it, rather long c'était, comment dirais-je, un peu long;

∎ to put it another way,… en d'autres termes,…;

∎ he put it better than that il l'a dit ou formulé mieux que ça;

∎ you could have put that better tu aurais pu tourner cela un peu mieux;

∎ she put it politely but firmly elle l'a dit poliment mais clairement;

∎ as Churchill once put it comme l'a dit Churchill un jour;

∎ to put it briefly or simply, they refused bref ou en un mot, ils ont refusé;

∎ to put it bluntly pour parler franc;

∎ putting it in terms you'll understand… plus simplement, pour que vous compreniez…

(h) (present, submit → suggestion, question) soumettre; (→ motion) proposer, présenter;

∎ to put a proposal to the board présenter une proposition au conseil d'administration;

∎ he put his case very well il a très bien présenté son cas;

∎ I have a question to put to the Prime Minister j'ai une question à soumettre au Premier ministre;

∎ Law I put it to you that… n'est-il pas vrai que…?;

∎ I put it to the delegates that now is the time to act je tiens à dire aux délégués que c'est maintenant qu'il faut agir

(i) (class, rank) placer, mettre;

∎ I wouldn't put them in the same class as the Beatles je ne les mettrais ou placerais pas dans la même catégorie que les Beatles;

∎ I put my family above my job je fais passer ma famille avant mon travail

(j) (set to work)

∎ to put sb to work mettre qn au travail;

∎ they put her on the Jones case ils l'ont mise sur l'affaire Jones

(k) (devote → effort) investir, consacrer;

∎ to put a lot of time/energy into sth consacrer beaucoup de temps/d'énergie à qch, investir beaucoup de temps/d'énergie dans qch;

∎ she puts more into their relationship than he does elle s'investit plus que lui dans leur relation;

∎ to put a lot of work into sth/doing sth beaucoup travailler à qch/pour faire qch;

∎ Sport he put everything he had into his first service il a tout mis dans son premier service

(l) (invest → money) placer, investir;

∎ she had put all her savings into property elle avait investi ou placé toutes ses économies dans l'immobilier

(m) (bet) miser, parier;

∎ to put money on a horse miser ou parier sur un cheval;

∎ he put all his winnings on the red il misa tous ses gains sur le rouge

(n) Sport

∎ to put the shot lancer le poids

(o) Nautical

∎ to put a ship into port rentrer un bateau au port

2 intransitive verb

∎ Nautical to put to sea lever l'ancre, appareiller;

∎ they had to put back into harbour ils ont dû rentrer au port;

∎ we put into port at Bombay nous avons relâché ou fait relâche à Bombay

3 noun

(a) Sport lancer m (du poids);

∎ his third put son troisième lancer

(b) Stock Exchange option f de vente, put m;

∎ put and call stellage m, double option f

►► Stock Exchange put band période f de validité d'une option de vente;

Stock Exchange put bond emprunt m à fenêtre;

Stock Exchange put option option f de vente;

Stock Exchange put warrant warrant m à la vente

➲ put about

1 separable transitive verb

(a) (spread → gossip, story) faire courir; (→ rumour) faire circuler;

∎ to put it about that… faire circuler le bruit que…;

∎ it is being put about that he intends resigning le bruit court qu'il a l'intention de démissionner

(b) Nautical

∎ to put a boat about virer de bord

(c) familiar

∎ to put it or oneself about (be promiscuous) coucher à droite à gauche

2 intransitive verb

Nautical virer de bord

➲ put across separable transitive verb

(a) (communicate → gen) faire comprendre; (→ feeling) communiquer;

∎ to put sth across to sb faire comprendre qch à qn;

∎ I don't know how to put the argument across to them je ne sais pas comment leur faire comprendre cet argument;

∎ she knows how to put her ideas across elle sait bien faire passer ses idées;

∎ she's good at putting herself across elle sait se mettre en valeur

(b) British familiar

∎ to put one across on sb avoir qn, rouler qn;

∎ don't try putting anything across on me! ne me prends pas pour un imbécile!

➲ put around separable transitive verb

= put about separable transitive verb (a)

➲ put aside separable transitive verb

(a) (book, piece of work) mettre de côté, poser

(b) (disregard, ignore) écarter, laisser de côté;

∎ let's put aside our differences of opinion for the moment laissons nos différends de côté pour le moment;

∎ put aside all gloomy thoughts oublie toutes ces pensées maussades

(c) (save, keep) mettre de côté;

∎ we have a little money put aside nous avons un peu d'argent de côté

➲ put at separable transitive verb

(estimate) estimer;

∎ they put the cost of repairs to the bridge at around $10,000 ils estiment le montant des réparations du pont à environ 10 000 dollars;

∎ I wouldn't have put her (age) at more than twenty-five je ne lui aurais pas donné plus de vingt-cinq ans;

∎ what would you put it at? quelle est votre estimation?

➲ put away separable transitive verb

(a) (tidy) ranger; (return to its place) remettre à sa place; (car) garer;

∎ put your toys away! range tes jouets!;

∎ put your money/wallet away (I'm paying) range ton argent/ton portefeuille

(b) (save) mettre de côté;

∎ I have a few pounds put away j'ai un peu d'argent de côté, j'ai quelques économies;

∎ to put something away for one's old age mettre quelque chose de côté pour sa retraite

(c) familiar (lock up → in prison) coffrer; (→ in mental home) enfermer^□

(d) familiar (eat) enfourner, s'envoyer; (drink) descendre, écluser;

∎ he can really put it away! (food) il a un sacré appétit!; (drink) qu'est-ce qu'il descend!

➲ put back

1 separable transitive verb

(a) (replace, return) remettre;

∎ put that record back where you found it! remets ce disque où tu l'as trouvé!

(b) (postpone) remettre;

∎ the meeting has been put back to Thursday la réunion a été repoussée ou remise à jeudi

(c) (slow down, delay) retarder;

∎ the strike has put our schedule back at least a month la grève nous a fait perdre au moins un mois sur notre planning

(d) (turn back → clock) retarder;

∎ we put the clocks back next weekend le week-end prochain, on passe à l'heure d'hiver;

∎ figurative this decision has put the clock back cette décision nous a ramenés en arrière

(e) familiar (drink) descendre, écluser

2 intransitive verb

∎ Nautical to put back (to port) rentrer au port

➲ put by separable transitive verb

(save → money) mettre de côté; (→ supplies) mettre en réserve;

∎ have you got anything put by? avez-vous un peu d'argent de côté?

➲ put down

1 separable transitive verb

(a) (on table, floor etc) poser;

∎ put that knife down at once! pose ce couteau tout de suite!;

∎ put me down! lâche-moi!;

∎ put that down! laisse (ça)!;

∎ to put the phone down raccrocher;

∎ he put the phone down on me il m'a raccroché au nez;

∎ it's one of those books you just can't put down c'est un de ces livres que tu ne peux pas poser avant de l'avoir fini;

∎ I couldn't put it down (book) je l'ai lu d'un trait

(b) (drop off → passenger) déposer, laisser

(c) (write down) écrire, inscrire; (enrol, enter on list) inscrire;

∎ put down your name and address écrivez votre nom et votre adresse;

∎ she put us down as Mr and Mrs Smith elle nous a inscrits sous le nom de M. et Mme Smith;

∎ it's never been put down in writing ça n'a jamais été mis par écrit;

∎ I can put it down as expenses je peux le faire passer dans mes notes de frais

(d) (on agenda) inscrire à l'ordre du jour;

∎ to put down a motion of no confidence déposer une motion de censure

(e) (quell) réprimer, étouffer;

∎ the revolt was put down by armed police la révolte a été réprimée par les forces de police

(f) (belittle) rabaisser, critiquer;

∎ he's always putting students down il passe son temps à critiquer les étudiants;

∎ you shouldn't put yourself down tu ne devrais pas te sous-estimer

(g) British euphemism (kill)

∎ to have a cat/dog put down faire piquer un chat/chien

(h) (pay as deposit) verser;

∎ I've already put £50 down on the sofa j'ai déjà versé 50 livres pour le canapé

(i) (store → wine) mettre en cave

(j) (put to bed → baby) coucher

(k) (land → plane) poser

(l) (close → umbrella) fermer

2 intransitive verb

(land → plane, pilot) atterrir, se poser

➲ put down as separable transitive verb

classer parmi;

∎ I think they'd put me down as a mere amateur je crois qu'ils me classeraient parmi les simples amateurs

➲ put down for separable transitive verb

inscrire pour;

∎ put me down for £20 inscrivez-moi pour 20 livres;

∎ I'll put you down for Thursday at three o'clock je vous mets jeudi à trois heures;

∎ they've already put their son down for public school ils ont déjà inscrit leur fils dans une école privée

➲ put down to separable transitive verb

mettre sur le compte de;

∎ you can't put all the country's problems down to inflation vous ne pouvez pas mettre tous les problèmes du pays sur le compte de l'inflation;

∎ I put it down to her stubbornness je mets ça sur le compte de son entêtement;

∎ we'll have to put it down to experience au moins on a appris quelque chose

➲ put forth inseparable transitive verb

(a) literary (sprout → shoots, leaves) produire

(b) formal (state → argument, reason) avancer

➲ put forward separable transitive verb

(a) (suggest → proposal, idea, hypothesis) avancer; (→ candidate) proposer;

∎ she put her name forward for the post of treasurer elle a posé sa candidature au poste de trésorière;

∎ to put one's best foot forward (walk faster) presser le pas; figurative se mettre en devoir de faire de son mieux

(b) (turn forward → clock, hands of clock) avancer;

∎ we put the clocks forward next weekend le week-end prochain, on passe à l'heure d'été

(c) (bring forward) avancer;

∎ the meeting has been put forward to early next week la réunion a été avancée au début de la semaine prochaine

➲ put in

1 separable transitive verb

(a) (place inside bag, container, cupboard etc) mettre dans;

∎ he put the eggs in the fridge il a mis les œufs dans le réfrigérateur;

∎ to put one's contact lenses in mettre ses lentilles de contact;

∎ to put one's head in at the window passer la tête par la fenêtre;

∎ Sport (in rugby) to put the ball in remettre la balle en jeu

(b) (insert, include) insérer, inclure;

∎ have you put in the episode about the rabbit? as-tu inclus l'épisode du lapin?

(c) (interject) placer;

∎ her name was Alicia, the woman put in elle s'appelait Alicia, ajouta la femme

(d) (install) installer;

∎ we're having central heating put in nous faisons installer le chauffage central;

∎ the voters put the Tories in les électeurs ont mis les conservateurs au pouvoir;

∎ they've put in a new manager at the factory ils ont nommé un nouveau directeur à l'usine

(e) (devote → time) passer;

∎ I've put in a lot of work on that car j'ai beaucoup travaillé sur cette voiture;

∎ I put in a few hours' revision before supper j'ai passé quelques heures à réviser avant le dîner;

∎ to put in an hour's work faire une heure de travail;

∎ to put in a full day at the office passer toute la journée au bureau;

∎ you only get out what you put in on ne récolte que ce qu'on sème

(f) (submit → request, demand) déposer, soumettre;

∎ they put in a claim for a 10 percent pay rise ils ont déposé une demande d'augmentation de salaire de 10 pour cent;

∎ to put in an application for a job déposer sa candidature pour ou se présenter pour un emploi

2 intransitive verb

Nautical relâcher, faire relâche;

∎ we put in at Wellington nous avons relâché ou fait relâche à Wellington

➲ put in for

1 separable transitive verb

présenter;

∎ we're putting him in for the 500 metres nous le présentons pour le 500 mètres;

∎ to put pupils in for an examination présenter des élèves à un examen

2 inseparable transitive verb

∎ to put in for sth (post) poser sa candidature pour qch; (leave, promotion) faire une demande de qch, demander qch;

∎ she put in for a transfer to Florida elle a demandé à être mutée en Floride

➲ put off

1 separable transitive verb

(a) (drop off → passenger) déposer, laisser;

∎ just put me off at the corner vous n'avez qu'à me laisser ou me déposer au coin

(b) (postpone → meeting, appointment) remettre à plus tard, repousser; (→ decision, payment) remettre à plus tard, différer; (→ work) remettre à plus tard; (→ guests) décommander;

∎ the meeting has been put off until tomorrow la réunion a été renvoyée ou remise à demain;

∎ I kept putting off telling him the truth je continuais à repousser le moment de lui dire la vérité;

∎ I can't put him off again je ne peux pas encore annuler un rendez-vous avec lui

(c) (dissuade)

∎ once he's made up his mind nothing in the world can put him off une fois qu'il a pris une décision, rien au monde ne peut le faire changer d'avis

(d) (distract) déranger, empêcher de se concentrer;

∎ he deliberately tries to put his opponent off il fait tout pour empêcher son adversaire de se concentrer;

∎ the noise put her off her service le bruit l'a gênée ou dérangée pendant son service

(e) (repel) dégoûter, rebuter;

∎ it's the smell that puts me off c'est l'odeur qui me rebute;

∎ don't be put off by his odd sense of humour ne te laisse pas rebuter par son humour un peu particulier;

∎ it put me off skiing for good ça m'a définitivement dégoûté du ski;

∎ it put me off my dinner ça m'a coupé l'appétit

(f) (switch off → television, radio etc) éteindre

2 intransitive verb

Nautical déborder du quai, pousser au large;

∎ to put off from the shore quitter la côte, prendre le large

➲ put on separable transitive verb

(a) (clothes, make-up, ointment) mettre;

∎ put your hat on mets ton chapeau;

∎ to put on one's make-up se maquiller

(b) (present, stage → play, opera) monter; (→ poetry reading, slide show etc) organiser;

∎ why can't they put something decent on for a change? (on TV, radio) ils ne pourraient pas passer quelque chose d'intéressant pour une fois?

(c) (lay on, provide → train) mettre en service;

∎ they put on excellent meals on Sundays ils servent d'excellents repas le dimanche;

∎ they have put on twenty extra trains ils ont ajouté vingt trains

(d) (gain → speed, weight) prendre;

∎ I've put on a few pounds j'ai pris quelques kilos

(e) (turn on, cause to function → light, radio, gas) allumer; (→ record, tape) mettre; (→ handbrake) mettre, serrer;

∎ put the heater on mets ou allume le chauffage;

∎ he put on some Vivaldi/the news il a mis du Vivaldi/les informations;

∎ I've put the kettle on for tea j'ai mis de l'eau à chauffer pour le thé;

∎ to put on the brakes freiner

(f) (start cooking) mettre (à cuire);

∎ I forgot to put the peas on j'ai oublié de mettre les petits pois à cuire

(g) (bet) parier;

∎ I put £10 on the favourite j'ai parié 10 livres sur le favori

(h) (assume) prendre;

∎ to put on airs prendre des airs;

∎ he put on a silly voice il a pris une voix ridicule;

∎ to put on an act jouer la comédie;

∎ familiar don't worry, he's just putting it on ne t'inquiète pas, il fait du cinéma ou du chiqué

(i) familiar (tease) faire marcher;

∎ you're putting me on! là, tu me fais marcher!

(j) (apply → pressure) exercer

(k) (add) ajouter;

∎ the tax increase will put another 10p on a gallon of petrol l'augmentation de la taxe va faire monter le prix du gallon d'essence de 10 pence

(l) (impose) imposer;

∎ new restrictions have been put on bringing animals into the country de nouvelles restrictions ont été imposées à l'importation d'animaux dans le pays

(m) (attribute)

∎ it's hard to put a price on it c'est difficile d'en évaluer ou estimer le prix

(n) (advance → clock) avancer

(o) (on telephone)

∎ could you put him on, please? pouvez-vous me le passer, s'il vous plaît?

➲ put onto separable transitive verb

(help find) indiquer à;

∎ I'll put you onto a good solicitor je vous donnerai le nom d'un ou je vous indiquerai un bon avocat;

∎ she's put me onto quite a few bargains elle m'a indiqué plusieurs bonnes affaires;

∎ to put the police/taxman onto sb dénoncer qn à la police/au fisc;

∎ what put you onto the butler, detective inspector? qu'est-ce qui vous a amené à soupçonner le maître d'hôtel, commissaire?

➲ put out

1 separable transitive verb

(a) (place outside) mettre dehors, sortir;

∎ have you put the dustbin out? as-tu sorti la poubelle?;

∎ I'll put the washing out (to dry) je vais mettre le linge (dehors) à sécher;

∎ to put a cow out to grass mettre une vache en pâture

(b) (remove)

∎ to put sb's eye out éborgner qn;

∎ you almost put my eye out! tu as failli m'éborgner!

(c) (issue → apology, announcement) publier; (→ story, rumour) faire circuler; (→ new record, edition, model etc) sortir; (→ appeal, request) faire; (broadcast) émettre;

∎ police have put out a description of the wanted man la police a publié une description de l'homme qu'elle recherche;

∎ to put out an SOS lancer un SOS

(d) (extinguish → fire, light, candle) éteindre; (→ cigarette) éteindre, écraser; (→ gas) fermer;

∎ don't forget to put the light out when you leave n'oubliez pas d'éteindre (la lumière) en partant

(e) (lay out, arrange) sortir;

∎ the valet had put out a suit for me le valet de chambre m'avait sorti un costume

(f) (stick out, stretch out → arm, leg) étendre, allonger; (→ hand) tendre; (→ tongue) tirer;

∎ she walked up to me and put out her hand elle s'approcha de moi et me tendit la main;

∎ she put out a foot to trip him up elle a mis un pied en avant pour le faire trébucher

(g) (dislocate)

∎ to put one's back/shoulder out se démettre le dos/l'épaule;

∎ I've put my back out je me suis déplacé une vertèbre

(h) (annoy, upset)

∎ to be put out about sth être fâché à cause de qch;

∎ he seems quite put out about it on dirait que ça l'a vraiment contrarié

(i) (inconvenience) déranger;

∎ I hope I haven't put you out j'espère que je ne vous ai pas dérangé;

∎ she's always ready to put herself out for other people elle est toujours prête à rendre service

(j) (sprout → shoots, leaves) produire

(k) (make unconscious → with drug, injection) endormir

(l) (subcontract) sous-traiter;

∎ we put most of our work out nous confions la plus grande partie de notre travail à des sous-traitants

(m) Horticulture (plant out) repiquer

2 intransitive verb

(a) Nautical prendre le large;

∎ to put out to sea faire appareiller

(b) American familiar (woman) accepter de coucher ( for avec);

∎ everyone knows she puts out tout le monde sait qu'elle est prête à coucher;

∎ did she put out? est-ce qu'elle a bien voulu coucher?;

∎ she'd put out for anybody elle coucherait avec le premier venu

➲ put over = put across

➲ put round separable transitive verb

(spread → gossip, story) faire courir

➲ put through separable transitive verb

(a) Telecommunications (connect) passer la communication à;

∎ hold on, I'll try to put you through ne quittez pas, je vais essayer de vous le/la passer;

∎ put the call through to my office passez-moi la communication dans mon bureau;

∎ I'll put you through to Mrs Powell je vous passe Mme Powell

(b) (carry through, conclude) conclure;

∎ we finally put through the necessary reforms nous avons fini par faire passer les réformes nécessaires

(c) (subject to) soumettre à;

∎ he was put through a whole battery of tests on l'a soumis à toute une série d'examens;

∎ I'm sorry to put you through this je suis désolé de vous imposer ça;

∎ have you any idea what you're putting him through? as-tu la moindre idée de ce que tu lui fais subir?;

∎ familiar to put sb through it en faire voir de toutes les couleurs à qn; (at interview) faire passer un mauvais quart d'heure à qn;

∎ he really put me through it il m'en a vraiment fait voir (de toutes les couleurs)

(d) (pay for)

∎ he put himself through college il a payé ses études

➲ put together separable transitive verb

(a) (place side by side → two objects) mettre côte à côte; (→ facts) rapprocher, comparer;

∎ he's more trouble than the rest of them put together il nous crée plus de problèmes à lui seul que tous les autres réunis

(b) (kit, furniture, engine) monter, assembler; (meal) préparer, confectionner; (menu) élaborer; (dossier) réunir; (proposal, report) préparer; (story, facts) reconstituer; (show, campaign) organiser, monter;

∎ to put sth (back) together again remonter qch;

∎ we're trying to put together enough evidence to convict him nous essayons de réunir assez de preuves pour le faire condamner;

∎ to put together a convincing picture of what happened reconstituer une idée convaincante de ce qui s'est passé;

∎ the programme is nicely put together ce programme est bien fait;

∎ I'll just put a few things together (in my bag) je vais faire rapidement ma valise

➲ put under separable transitive verb

(with drug, injection) endormir

➲ put up

1 separable transitive verb

(a) (raise → hand) lever; (→ flag) hisser; (→ hood) relever; (→ umbrella) ouvrir; (→ one's hair, coat collar) relever;

∎ could all those going put up their hands? que tous ceux qui y vont lèvent la main;

∎ put your hands up! haut les mains!;

∎ familiar put 'em up! (in surrender) haut les mains!; (to fight) défends-toi!;

∎ I'm going to put my feet up for a few minutes je vais me reposer un peu

(b) (erect → tent) dresser, monter; (→ house, factory) construire; (→ monument, statue) ériger; (→ scaffolding) installer, monter; (→ ladder) dresser;

∎ they put up a statue to her ils érigèrent une statue en son honneur

(c) (install, put in place) mettre; (curtains) poser, accrocher; (wallpaper) poser;

∎ they've already put up the Christmas decorations ils ont déjà installé les décorations de Noël;

∎ the shopkeeper put up the shutters le commerçant a baissé le rideau de fer

(d) (send up → rocket, satellite) lancer

(e) (display → sign) mettre; (→ poster) afficher;

∎ the results will be put up tomorrow les résultats seront affichés demain

(f) (show → resistance) offrir, opposer;

∎ to put up a good show bien se défendre;

∎ to put up a struggle se défendre, se débattre

(g) (present → argument, proposal) présenter;

∎ he puts up a good case for abstention il a des arguments convaincants en faveur de l'abstention

(h) (offer for sale)

∎ to put sth up for sale/auction mettre qch en vente/aux enchères

(i) (put forward → candidate) présenter; (→ person, name) proposer (comme candidat);

∎ we are not putting up any candidates nous ne présentons aucun candidat

(j) familiar (provide → capital) fournir;

∎ who's putting the money up for the new business? qui finance la nouvelle entreprise?;

∎ we put up our own money nous sommes auto-financés

(k) (increase) faire monter, augmenter;

∎ this will put up the price of meat ça va faire augmenter ou monter le prix de la viande

(l) (give hospitality to) loger, héberger;

∎ to put sb up for the night coucher qn

(m) (urge, incite)

∎ to put sb up to (doing) sth pousser qn à (faire) qch

(n) archaic (put away → sword, pistol) rengainer

2 intransitive verb

(a) British

∎ to put up at a hotel descendre dans un hôtel;

∎ where are you putting up? où est-ce que tu loges?; (in hotel) où es-tu descendu?;

∎ I'm putting up at Gary's for the moment je loge chez Gary pour le moment

(b) (stand → in election) se présenter, se porter candidat;

∎ she put up as a Labour candidate elle s'est présentée comme candidate du parti travailliste

(c) familiar

∎ put up or shut up! assez parlé, agissez!

➲ put upon inseparable transitive verb

(usu passive) to put upon sb (abuse) abuser de qn; (exploit) exploiter qn;

∎ you shouldn't let yourself be put upon like that! tu ne devrais pas te laisser marcher sur les pieds comme ça!

➲ put up with inseparable transitive verb

supporter, tolérer;

∎ I refuse to put up with this noise any longer! je ne supporterai pas ce bruit une minute de plus!;

∎ we'll have to put up with it il faut l'accepter ou nous y résigner

✾ Book 'Put Out More Flags' Waugh 'Hissez le grand pavois'

SUBJECT AREA: Chemical technology, Weapons and armour

[br]

[br]

[br]

His family came from Germany and he was the son of a music master. He first became interested in science at the age of 14, when visiting his mineralogist uncle in Hamburg, and studied chemistry at the Royal Polytechnic Institution in London. In 1845 he became one of the twenty-six founding students, under A.W.von Hofmann, of the Royal College of Chemistry. Such was his aptitude for the subject that within two years he became von Hermann's assistant and demonstrator. In 1851 Abel was appointed Lecturer in Chemistry, succeeding Michael Faraday, at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, and it was while there that he wrote his Handbook of Chemistry, which was co-authored by his assistant, Charles Bloxam.

Abel's four years at the Royal Military Academy served to foster his interest in explosives, but it was during his thirty-four years, beginning in 1854, as Ordnance Chemist at the Royal Arsenal and at Woolwich that he consolidated and developed his reputation as one of the international leaders in his field. In 1860 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, but it was his studies during the 1870s into the chemical changes that occur during explosions, and which were the subject of numerous papers, that formed the backbone of his work. It was he who established the means of storing gun-cotton without the danger of spontaneous explosion, but he also developed devices (the Abel Open Test and Close Test) for measuring the flashpoint of petroleum. He also became interested in metal alloys, carrying out much useful work on their composition. A further avenue of research occurred in 1881 when he was appointed a member of the Royal Commission set up to investigate safety in mines after the explosion that year in the Sealham Colliery. His resultant study on dangerous dusts did much to further understanding on the use of explosives underground and to improve the safety record of the coal-mining industry. The achievement for which he is most remembered, however, came in 1889, when, in conjunction with Sir James Dewar, he invented cordite. This stable explosive, made of wood fibre, nitric acid and glycerine, had the vital advantage of being a "smokeless powder", which meant that, unlike the traditional ammunition propellant, gunpowder ("black powder"), the firer's position was not given away when the weapon was discharged. Although much of the preliminary work had been done by the Frenchman Paul Vieille, it was Abel who perfected it, with the result that cordite quickly became the British Army's standard explosive.

Abel married, and was widowed, twice. He had no children, but died heaped in both scientific honours and those from a grateful country.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Architecture and building, Civil engineering

[br]

[br]

[br]

Albert received a sound education in the arts and sciences, carefully designed to fit him for a role as consort to the future Queen Victoria. After their marriage in 1840, Albert threw himself into the task of establishing his position as, eventually, Prince Consort and uncrowned king of England. By his undoubted intellectual gifts, unrelenting hard work and moral rectitude, Albert moulded the British constitutional monarchy into the form it retains to this day. The purchase in 1845 of the Osborne estate in the Isle of Wight provided not only the growing royal family with a comfortable retreat from London and public life, but Albert with full scope for his abilities as architect and planner. With Thomas Cubitt, the eminent engineer and contractor, Albert erected at Osborne one of the most remarkable buildings of the nineteenth century. He went on to design the house and estate at Balmoral in Scotland, another notable creation.

Albert applied his abilities as architect and planner in the promotion of such public works as the London sewer system and, in practical form, the design of cottages for workers, such as those in south London, as well as those on the royal estates. Albert's other main contribution to technology was as educationist in a broad sense. In 1847, he was elected Chancellor of Cambridge University. He was appalled at the low standards and narrow curriculum prevailing there and at Oxford. He was no mere figurehead, but took a close and active interest in the University's affairs. With his powerful influence behind them, the reforming fellows were able to force measures to raise standards and widen the curriculum to take account, in particular, of the rapid progress in the natural sciences. Albert was instrumental in ending the lethargy of centuries and laying the foundations of the modern British university system.

In 1847 the Prince became Secretary of the Royal Society of Arts. With Henry Cole, the noted administrator who shared Albert's concern for the arts, he promoted a series of exhibitions under the auspices of the Society. From these grew the idea of a great exhibition of the products of the decorative and industrial arts. It was Albert who decided that its scope should be international. As Chairman of the organizing committee, by sheer hard work he drove the project through to a triumphant conclusion. The success of the Exhibition earned it a handsome profit for which Albert had found a use even before it closed. The proceeds went towards the purchase of a site in South Kensington, for which he drew up a grand scheme for a complex of museums and colleges for the education of the people in the sciences and the arts. This largely came to fruition and South Kensington today is a fitting memorial to the Prince Consort's wisdom and concern for the public good.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Horology

[br]

[br]

[br]

John Arnold was apprenticed to his father, a watchmaker, and then worked as an itinerant journeyman in the Low Countries and, later, in England. He settled in London in 1762 and rapidly established his reputation at Court by presenting George III with a miniature repeating watch mounted in a ring. He later abandoned the security of the Court for a more precarious living developing his chronometers, with some financial assistance from the Board of Longitude. Symbolically, in 1771 he moved from the vicinity of the Court at St James's to John Adam Street, which was close to the premises of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures \& Commerce.

By the time Arnold became interested in chronometry, Harrison had already demonstrated that longitude could be determined by means of a timekeeper, and the need was for a simpler instrument that could be sold at an affordable price for universal use at sea. Le Roy had shown that it was possible to dispense with a remontoire by using a detached escapement with an isochronous balance; Arnold was obviously thinking along the same lines, although he may not have been aware of Le Roy's work. By 1772 Arnold had developed his detached escapement, a pivoted detent which was quite different from that used on the European continent, and three years later he took out a patent for a compensation balance and a helical balance spring (Arnold used the spring in torsion and not in tension as Harrison had done). His compensation balance was similar in principle to that described by Le Roy and used riveted bimetallic strips to alter the radius of gyration of the balance by moving small weights radially. Although the helical balance spring was not completely isochronous it was a great improvement on the spiral spring, and in a later patent (1782) he showed how it could be made more truly isochronous by shaping the ends. In this form it was used universally in marine chronometers.

Although Arnold's chronometers performed well, their long-term stability was less satisfactory because of the deterioration of the oil on the pivot of the detent. In his patent of 1782 he eliminated this defect by replacing the pivot with a spring, producing the spring detent escapement. This was also done independendy at about the same time by Berthoud and Earnshaw, although Earnshaw claimed vehemently that Arnold had plagiarized his work. Ironically it was Earnshaw's design that was finally adopted, although he had merely replaced Arnold's pivoted detent with a spring, while Arnold had completely redesigned the escapement. Earnshaw also improved the compensation balance by fusing the steel to the brass to form the bimetallic element, and it was in this form that it began to be used universally for chronometers and high-grade watches.

As a result of the efforts of Arnold and Earnshaw, the marine chronometer emerged in what was essentially its final form by the end of the eighteenth century. The standardization of the design in England enabled it to be produced economically; whereas Larcum Kendall was paid £500 to copy Harrison's fourth timekeeper, Arnold was able to sell his chronometers for less than one-fifth of that amount. This combination of price and quality led to Britain's domination of the chronometer market during the nineteenth century.

[br]

See also: Phillips, Edouard

SUBJECT AREA: Architecture and building

[br]

[br]

[br]

Of Scandinavian parentage, Arup attended school in Germany and Denmark before taking his degree in mathematics and philosophy at Copenhagen University in 1914. He then graduated as a civil engineer from the Royal Technical College in the same city, specializing in the theory of structures.

Arup retained close ties with Europe for some time, working in Hamburg as a designer for the Danish civil engineering firm of Christiani \& Nielsen. Then, in the 1930s, he began what was to be a long career in England as an engineering consultant to a number of architects who were beginning to build with modern materials (par-ticularly concrete) and methods of construction. He became consultant to the famous firm of Tecton (under the direction of Berthold Lubetkin) and was closely associated with the leading projects of that firm at the time, notably the High-point flats at Highgate, the Finsbury Health Centre and the award-winning Penguin Pool at the Regent's Park Zoological Gardens, all in London.

In 1945 Arup founded his own firm, Ove Arup \& Partners, working entirely as a consultant to architects, particularly on structural schemes, and in 1963 he set up a partnership of architects and engineers, Arup Associates. The many and varied projects with which he was concerned included Coventry Cathedral and the University of Sussex with Sir Basil Spence, the Sydney Opera House with Joern Utzon and St Catherine's College, Oxford, with Arne Jacobsen.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Agricultural and food technology

[br]

[br]

[br]

Robert Bakewell was the son of the tenant farming the 500-acre (200 hectare) Dishley Grange Farm, near Loughborough, where he was born. The family was sufficiently wealthy to allow Robert to travel, which he began to do at an early age, exploring the farming methods of the West Country, Norfolk, Ireland and Holland. On taking over the farm he continued the development of the irrigation scheme begun by his father. Arthur Young visited the farm during his tour of east England in 1771. At that time it consisted of 440 acres (178 hectares), 110 acres (45 hectares) of which were arable, and carried a stock of 60 horses, 400 sheep and 150 other assorted beasts. Of the arable land, 30 acres (12 hectares) were under root crops, mainly turnips.

Bakewell was not the first to pioneer selective breeding, but he was the first successfully to apply selection to both the efficiency with which an animal utilized its food, and its physical appearance. He always had a clear idea of the animal he wanted, travelled extensively to collect a range of animals possessing the characteristics he sought, and then bred from these towards his goal. He was aware of the dangers of inbreeding, but would often use it to gain the qualities he wanted. His early experiments were with Longhorn cattle, which he developed as a meat rather than a draught animal, but his most famous achievement was the development of the Improved Leicester breed of sheep. He set out to produce an animal that would put on the most meat in the least time and with the least feeding. As his base he chose the Old Leicester, but there is still doubt as to which other breeds he may have introduced to produce the desired results. The Improved Leicester was smaller than its ancestor, with poorer wool quality but with greatly improved meat-production capacity.

Bakewell let out his sires to other farms and was therefore able to study their development under differing conditions. However, he made stringent rules for those who hired these animals, requiring the exclusive use of his rams on the farms concerned and requiring particular dietary conditions to be met. To achieve this control he established the Dishley Society in 1783. Although his policies led to accusations of closed access to his stock, they enabled him to keep a close control of all offspring. He thereby pioneered the process now recognized as "progeny testing".

Bakewell's fame and that of his farm spread throughout the country and overseas. He engaged in an extensive correspondence and acted as host to all of influence in British and overseas agriculture, but it would appear that he was an over-generous host, since he is known to have been in financial difficulties in about 1789. He was saved from bankruptcy by a public subscription raised to allow him to continue with his breeding experiments; this experience may well have been the reason why he was such a staunch advocate of State funding of agricultural research.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Metallurgy

[br]

[br]

[br]

William, the youngest of the three sons of Nehemiah Champion, stemmed from a West Country Quaker family long associated with the metal trades. His grandfather, also called Nehemiah, had been one of Abraham Darby's close Quaker friends when the brassworks at Baptist Mills was being established in 1702 and 1703. Nehemiah II took over the management of these works soon after Darby went to Coalbrookdale, and in 1719, as one of a group of Bristol copper smelters, he negotiated an agreement with Lord Falmouth to develop copper mines in the Redruth area in Cornwall. In 1723 he was granted a patent for a cementation brass-making process using finely granulated copper rather than the broken fragments of massive copper hitherto employed.

In 1730 he returned to Bristol after a tour of European metallurgical centres, and he began to develop an industrial process for the manufacture of pure zinc ingots in England. Metallic zinc or spelter was then imported at great expense from the Far East, largely for the manufacture of copper alloys of golden colour used for cheap jewellery. The process William developed, after six years of experimentation, reduced zinc oxide with charcoal at temperatures well above the boiling point of zinc. The zinc vapour obtained was condensed rapidly to prevent reoxidation and finally collected under water. This process, patented in 1738, was operated in secret until 1766 when Watson described it in his Chemical Essays. After encountering much opposition from the Bristol merchants and zinc importers, William decided to establish his own integrated brassworks at Warmley, five meals east of Bristol. The Warmley plant began to produce in 1748 and expanded rapidly. By 1767, when Warmley employed about 2,000 men, women and children, more capital was needed, requiring a Royal Charter of Incorporation. A consortium of Champion's competitors opposed this and secured its refusal. After this defeat William lost the confidence of his fellow directors, who dismissed him. He was declared bankrupt in 1769 and his works were sold to the British Brass Company, which never operated Warmley at full capacity, although it produced zinc on that site until 1784.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Architecture and building

[br]

[br]

[br]

Born Elinor Coade, she never married but adopted, as was customary in business in the eighteenth century, the courtesy title of Mrs. Following the bankruptcy and death of her father, George Coade, in Exeter, Eleanor and her mother (also called Eleanor) moved to London and founded the works at Lambeth, South London, in 1769 that later became famous as the Coade factory. The factory was located at King's Arms Stairs, Narrow Wall. During the eighteenth century, several attempts had been made in other businesses to manufacture a durable, malleable artificial stone that would be acceptable to architects for decorative use. These substances were not very successful, but Coade stone was different. Although stories are legion about the secret formula supposedly used in this artificial stone, modern methods have established the exact formula.

Coade stone was a stoneware ceramic material fired in a kiln. The body was remarkable in that it shrank only 8 per cent in drying and firing: this was achieved by using a combination of china clay, sand, crushed glass and grog (i.e. crushed and ground, previously fired stoneware). The Coade formula thus included a considerable proportion of material that, having been fired once already, was unshrinkable. Mrs Coade's name for the firm, Coade's Lithodipyra Terra-Cotta or Artificial Stone Manufactory (where "Lithodipyra" is a term derived from three Greek words meaning "stone", "twice" and "fire"), made reference to the custom of including such material (such as in Josiah Wedgwood's basalt and jasper ware). The especially low rate of shrinkage rendered the material ideal for making extra-life-size statuary, and large architectural, decorative features to be incorporated into stone buildings.

Coade stone was widely used for such purposes by leading architects in Britain and Ireland from the 1770s until the 1830s, including Robert Adam, Sir Charles Barry, Sir William Chambers, Sir John Soane, John Nash and James Wyatt. Some architects introduced the material abroad, as far as, for example, Charles Bulfinch's United States Bank in Boston, Massachusetts, and Charles Cameron's redecoration for the Empress Catherine of the great palace Tsarkoe Selo (now Pushkin), near St Petersburg. The material so resembles stone that it is often mistaken for it, but it is so hard and resistant to weather that it retains sharpness of detail much longer than the natural substance. The many famous British buildings where Coade stone was used include the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, Carlton House and the Sir John Soane Museum (all of which are located in London), St George's Chapel at Windsor, Alnwick Castle in Northumberland, and Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland.

Apart from the qualities of the material, the Coade firm established a high reputation for the equally fine quality of its classical statuary. Mrs Coade employed excellent craftsmen such as the sculptor John Bacon (1740–99), whose work was mass-produced by the use of moulds. One famous example which was widely reproduced was the female caryatid from the south porch of the Erechtheion on the acropolis of Athens. A drawing of this had appeared in the second edition of Stuart and Revett's Antiquities of Athens in 1789, and many copies were made from the original Coade model; Soane used them more than once, for example on the Bank of England and his own houses in London.

Eleanor Coade was a remarkable woman, and was important and influential on the neo-classical scene. She had close and amicable relations with leading architects of the day, notably Robert Adam and James Wyatt. The Coade factory was enlarged and altered over the years, but the site was finally cleared during 1949–50 in preparation for the establishment of the 1951 Festival of Britain.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Metallurgy

[br]

[br]

[br]

Darby's father, John, was a farmer who also worked a small forge to produce nails and other ironware needed on the farm. He was brought up in the Society of Friends, or Quakers, and this community remained important throughout his personal and working life. Darby was apprenticed to Jonathan Freeth, a malt-mill maker in Birmingham, and on completion of his apprenticeship in 1699 he took up the trade himself in Bristol. Probably in 1704, he visited Holland to study the casting of brass pots and returned to Bristol with some Dutch workers, setting up a brassworks at Baptist Mills in partnership with others. He tried substituting cast iron for brass in his castings, without success at first, but in 1707 he was granted a patent, "A new way of casting iron pots and other pot-bellied ware in sand without loam or clay". However, his business associates were unwilling to risk further funds in the experiments, so he withdrew his share of the capital and moved to Coalbrookdale in Shropshire. There, iron ore, coal, water-power and transport lay close at hand. He took a lease on an old furnace and began experimenting. The shortage and expense of charcoal, and his knowledge of the use of coke in malting, may well have led him to try using coke to smelt iron ore. The furnace was brought into blast in 1709 and records show that in the same year it was regularly producing iron, using coke instead of charcoal. The process seems to have been operating successfully by 1711 in the production of cast-iron pots and kettles, with some pig-iron destined for Bristol. Darby prospered at Coalbrookdale, employing coke smelting with consistent success, and he sought to extend his activities in the neighbourhood and in other parts of the country. However, ill health prevented him from pursuing these ventures with his previous energy. Coke smelting spread slowly in England and the continent of Europe, but without Darby's technological breakthrough the ever-increasing demand for iron for structures and machines during the Industrial Revolution simply could not have been met; it was thus an essential component of the technological progress that was to come.

Darby's eldest son, Abraham II (1711–63), entered the Coalbrookdale Company partnership in 1734 and largely assumed control of the technical side of managing the furnaces and foundry. He made a number of improvements, notably the installation of a steam engine in 1742 to pump water to an upper level in order to achieve a steady source of water-power to operate the bellows supplying the blast furnaces. When he built the Ketley and Horsehay furnaces in 1755 and 1756, these too were provided with steam engines. Abraham II's son, Abraham III (1750–89), in turn, took over the management of the Coalbrookdale works in 1768 and devoted himself to improving and extending the business. His most notable achievement was the design and construction of the famous Iron Bridge over the river Severn, the world's first iron bridge. The bridge members were cast at Coalbrookdale and the structure was erected during 1779, with a span of 100 ft (30 m) and height above the river of 40 ft (12 m). The bridge still stands, and remains a tribute to the skill and judgement of Darby and his workers.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Electricity

[br]

[br]

[br]

When he was 14 years old Davenport was apprenticed to a blacksmith for seven years. At the close of his apprenticeship in 1823 he opened a blacksmith's shop in Brandon, Vermont. He began experimenting with electromagnets after observing one in use at the Penfield Iron Works at Crown Point, New York, in 1831. He saw the device as a possible source of power and by July 1834 had constructed his first electric motor. Having totally abandoned his regular business, Davenport built and exhibited a number of miniature machines; he utilized an electric motor to propel a model car around a circular track in 1836, and this became the first recorded instance of an electric railway. An application for a patent and a model were destroyed in a fire at the United States Patent Office in December 1836, but a second application was made and Davenport received a patent the following year for Improvements in Propelling Machinery by Magnetism and Electromagnetism. A British patent was also obtained. A workshop and laboratory were established in New York, but Davenport had little financial backing for his experiments. He built a total of over one hundred motors but was defeated by the inability to obtain an inexpensive source of power. Using an electric motor of his own design to operate a printing press in 1840, he undertook the publication of a journal, The Electromagnet and Mechanics' Intelligencer. This was the first American periodical on electricity, but it was discontinued after a few issues. In failing health he retired to Vermont where in the last year of his life he continued experiments in electromagnetism.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Chemical technology, Textiles

[br]

[br]

[br]

Deacon was apprenticed at the age of 14 to the London engineering firm of Galloway \& Sons. Faraday was a friend of the family and gave Deacon tuition, allowing him to use the laboratories at the Royal Institution. When the firm failed in 1839, Deacon transferred his indentures to Nasmyth \& Gaskell on the Bridgewater Canal at Patricroft. Nasmyth was then beginning work on his steam hammer and it is said that Deacon made the first model of it, for patent purposes. Around 1848, Deacon joined Pilkington's, the glassmakers at St Helens, where he learned the alkali industry, which was then growing up in that district on account of the close proximity of the necessary raw materials, coal, lime and salt. Wishing to start out on his own, he worked as Manager at the chemical works of a John Hutchinson. This was followed by a partnership with William Pilkington, a former employer, who was later replaced by Holbrook Gaskell, another former employer. Deacon's main activity was the manufacture of soda by the Leblanc process. He sought improvement by substituting the ammonia-soda process, but this failed and did not succeed until it was perfected by Solvay. Deacon did, however, with his Chief Chemist F.Hurter, introduce improvements in the Leblanc process during the period 1866–70. Hydrochloric acid, which had previously been a waste product and a nuisance, was oxidized catalytically to chlorine; this could be converted with lime to bleaching powder, which was in heavy demand by the textile industry. The process was patented in 1870.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Photography, film and optics

[br]

[br]

[br]

As a young man Georges Demenÿ was a pioneer of physical education in France, and this led him to contact the physiologist Professor Marey in 1880. Marey had made a special study of animal movement, and Demenÿ hoped to work with him on research into physiological problems related to gymnastics. He joined Marey the following year, and when in 1882 the Physiological Station was set up near Paris to develop sequence photography for the study of movement. Demenÿ was made Head of the laboratory. He worked with the multiple-image fixed-plate cameras, and was chiefly responsible for the analysis of the records, having considerable mathematical and graphical ability. He also appeared as the subject in a number of the sequences. When in 1888 Marey began the development of a film camera, Demenÿ was involved in its design and operation. He became interested in the possibility of using animated sequence photographs as an aid to teaching of the deaf. He made close-up records of himself speaking short phrases, "Je vous aime" and "Vive la France" for example, which were published in such journals as Paris Photographe and La Nature in 1891 and 1892. To present these in motion, he devised the Phonoscope, which he patented on 3 March 1892. The series of photographs were mounted around the circumference of a disc and viewed through a counter-rotating slotted disc. The moving images could be viewed directly, or projected onto a screen. La Nature reported tests he had made in which deaf lip readers could interpret accurately what was being said. On 20 December 1892 Demenÿ formed a company, Société Générale du Phonoscope, to exploit his invention, hoping that "speaking portraits" might replace family-album pictures. This commercial activity led to a rift between Marey and Demenÿ in July 1893. Deprived of access to the film cameras, Demenÿ developed designs of his own, patenting new camera models in France on 10 October 1893 and 27 July 1894. The design covered by the latter had been included in English and German patents filed in December 1893, and was to be of some significance in the early development of cinematography. It was for an intermittent movement of the film, which used an eccentrically mounted blade or roller that, as it rotated, bore on the film, pulling down the length of one frame. As the blade moved away, the film loop so formed was taken up by the rotation of the take-up reel. This "beater" movement was employed extensively in the early years of cinematography, being effective yet inexpensive. It was first employed in the Chronophotographe apparatus marketed by Gaumont, to whom Demenÿ had licensed the patent rights, from the autumn of 1896. Demenÿ's work provided a link between the scientific purposes of sequence photography— chronophotography—and the introduction of commercial cinematography.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Metallurgy

[br]

[br]

[br]

Dony trained initially for the Church, and it is not known how he became interested in the production of zinc. Liège, however, was close to extensive deposits of the zinc ore calamine, and brass had been made since Roman times in the region between Liège and Aix-la-Chapelle (now Aachen). William Champion's technique of brass manufacture was known there and was considered to be too complicated and expensive for the routine manufacture of brass. Dony may have learned about earlier processes of manufacturing zinc on the European continent from his friend Professor Villette of Liège University, and about English methods from Henri Delloye, a friend of both Villette and Dony and who visited Birmingham and Bristol on their behalf to study zinc smelting processes and brass manufacture at first hand. By 21 March 1805 Dony had succeeded in extracting zinc from calamine and casting it in ingots. On the basis of this success he applied to the French Republican administration for assistance and in 1806 was assigned by Napoleon the sole mining rights to the calamine deposits of the Vieille Montagne, or Altenberg, near Moresnet, five miles (8 km) from Aachen. With these rights went the obligation of developing an industrially viable method of zinc refining. In 1807 he constructed a small factory at Isle and there, after much effort, he perfected his celebrated horizontal retort process, the "Liège Method". After July 1809 zinc was being produced in abundance, and in January 1810 Dony was granted an Imperial Patent giving him a monopoly of zinc manufacture for fifteen years. He erected a rolling mill at Saint-Léonard and attempted to persuade the Minister of Marine to use zinc sheets rather than copper for the protection of ships. Between 1809 and 1810 Dony reduced the price of zinc in Liège from 8.60 to 2.60 francs per kilo. However, after 1813 he began to encounter financial problems and in 1818 he surrendered his commercial interests to his partner Dominique Mosselman (d. 1837). The horizontal retort process soon rendered obsolete that of William Champion, and variants of the Liège Method were rapidly evolved in Germany, Britain and the USA.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Land transport, Railways and locomotives

[br]

[br]

[br]

Engerth was Chairman of the judges for the Semmering Locomotive Trials, held in 1851 to find locomotives suitable for working the sharply curved and steeply graded section of the Vienna-Trieste railway that was being built over the Semmering Pass, the first of the transalpine main lines. When none of the four locomotives entered proved suitable, Engerth designed his own. Six coupled wheels were at the fore part of the locomotive, with the connecting rods driving the rear pair: at the back of the locomotive the frames of the tender were extended forward on either side of the firebox, the front wheels of the tender were ahead of it, and the two parts were connected by a spherical pivot ahead of these. Part of the locomotive's weight was carried by the tender portion, and the two pairs of tender wheels were coupled by rods and powered by a geared drive from the axle of the rear driving-wheels. The powered drive to the tender wheels proved a failure, but the remaining characteristics of the locomotive, namely short rigid wheel-base, large firebox, flexibility and good tracking on curves (as drawbar pull was close behind the driving axle), were sufficient for the type to be a success. It was used on many railways in Europe and examples in modified form were built in Spain as recently as 1956. Engerth became General Manager of the Austro-Hungarian State Railway Company and designed successful flood-prevention works on the Danube at Vienna.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Textiles

[br]

[br]

[br]

James Hargreaves was first a carpenter and then a hand-loom weaver at Stanhill, Blackburn, probably making Blackburn Checks or Greys from linen warps and cotton weft. An invention ascribed to him doubled production in the preparatory carding process before spinning. Two or three cards were nailed to the same stock and the upper one was suspended from the ceiling by a cord and counterweight. Around 1762 Robert Peel (1750–1830) sought his assistance in constructing a carding engine with cylinders that may have originated with Daniel Bourn, but this was not successful. In 1764, inspired by seeing a spinning wheel that continued to revolve after it had been knocked over accidentally, Hargreaves invented his spinning jenny. The first jennies had horizontal wheels and could spin eight threads at once. To spin on this machine required a great deal of skill. A length of roving was passed through the clamp or clove. The left hand was used to close this and draw the roving away from the spindles which were rotated by the spinner turning the horizontal wheel with the right hand. The spindles twisted the fibres as they were being drawn out. At the end of the draw, the spindles continued to be rotated until sufficient twist had been put into the fibres to make the finished yarn. This was backed off from the tips of the spindles by reversing them and then, with the spindles turning in the spinning direction once more, the yarn was wound on by the right hand rotating the spindles, the left hand pushing the clove back towards them and one foot operating a pedal which guided the yarn onto the spindles by a faller wire. A piecer was needed to rejoin the yarns when they broke. At first Hargreaves's jenny was worked only by his family, but then he sold two or three of them, possibly to Peel. In 1768, local opposition and a riot in which his house was gutted forced him to flee to Nottingham. He entered into partnership there with Thomas James and established a cotton mill. In 1770 he followed Arkwright's example and sought to patent his machine and brought an action for infringement against some Lancashire manufacturers, who offered £3,000 in settlement. Hargreaves held out for £4,000, but he was unable to enforce his patent because he had sold jennies before leaving Lancashire. Arkwright's "water twist" was more suitable for the Nottingham hosiery industry trade than jenny yarn and in 1777 Hargreaves replaced his own machines with Arkwright's. When he died the following year, he is said to have left property valued at £7,000 and his widow received £400 for her share in the business. Once the jenny had been made public, it was quickly improved by other inventors and the number of spindles per machine increased. In 1784, there were reputed to be 20,000 jennies of 80 spindles each at work. The jenny greatly eased the shortage of cotton weft for weavers.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Domestic appliances and interiors

[br]

[br]

[br]

Harington was a writer and poet and was a godson of Queen Elizabeth I. In 1596 he published a satire entitled A New Discourse upon a Stale Subject called the Metamorphosis of Ajax, which described the water-closet that he constructed for his home in Kelston, near Bath. Ajax was a whimsical reference to "jakes", a euphemism for privy or closet. The use of the water-closet, he declared, "would make unsavoury Places sweet, noisome Places wholesome and filthy Places cleanly". The water-closet was illustrated in his book and was, in effect, a water-fed and -controlled close-stool. Water was pumped up into a cistern, which fed a closet pan, and was retained there by the operation of a valve. The water action was controlled by a handle set into the seat of the pan, thus causing the sewage to be discharged into a cesspool beneath. However, because of the lack of adequate water supplies and sewage systems, Harington's invention was not generally taken up until 1775, when Alexander Cumming patented it.

[br]

SUBJECT AREA: Electricity, Telecommunications

[br]

[br]

[br]

Sent to stay with relatives at the age of 6 because of the illness of his father, when the latter died in 1811 Henry was apprenticed to a silversmith and then turned to the stage. Whilst he was ill himself, a book on science fired his interest and he began studying at Albany Academy, working as a tutor to finance his studies. Initially intending to pursue medicine, he then spent some time as a surveyor before becoming Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy at Albany Academy in 1826. There he became interested in the improvement of electromagnets and discovered that the use of an increased number of turns of wire round the core greatly increased their power; by 1831 he was able to supply to Yale a magnet capable of lifting almost a ton weight. During this time he also discovered the principles of magnetic induction and self-inductance. In the same year he made, but did not patent, a cable telegraph system capable of working over a distance of 1 mile (1.6 km). It was at this time, too, that he found that adiabatic expansion of gases led to their sudden cooling, thus paving the way for the development of refrigerators. For this he was recommended for, but never received, the Copley Medal of the Royal Society. Five years later he became Professor of Natural Philosophy at New Jersey College (later Princeton University), where he deduced the laws governing the operation of transformers and observed that changes in magnetic flux induced electric currents in conductors. Later he also observed that spark discharges caused electrical effects at a distance. He therefore came close to the discovery of radio waves. In 1836 he was granted a year's leave of absence and travelled to Europe, where he was able to meet Michael Faraday. It was with his help that in 1844 Samuel Morse set up the first patented electric telegraph, but, sadly, the latter seems to have reaped all the credit and financial rewards. In 1846 he became the first secretary of the Washington Smithsonian Institute and did much to develop government support for scientific research. As a result of his efforts some 500 telegraph stations across the country were equipped with meteorological equipment to supply weather information by telegraph to a central location, a facility that eventually became the US National Weather Bureau. From 1852 he was a member of the Lighthouse Board, contributing to improvements in lighting and sound warning systems and becoming its chairman in 1871. During the Civil War he was a technical advisor to President Lincoln. He was a founder of the National Academy of Science and served as its President for eleven years.

[br]