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121 ground
ground [graʊnd]terre ⇒ 2 (a), 2 (k) sol ⇒ 2 (a) terrain ⇒ 2 (b), 2 (c), 2 (e), 2 (h) stade ⇒ 2 (c) rez-de-chaussée ⇒ 2 (f) domaine ⇒ 2 (g) fond ⇒ 2 (i), 2 (j) fonder ⇒ 3 (a) former ⇒ 3 (b) mettre à la terre ⇒ 3 (e) moulu ⇒ 5 parc ⇒ 6 (a) motif ⇒ 6 (b) raison ⇒ 6 (b)1 pt & pp of grind2 noun∎ the ground is often frozen in winter la terre est souvent gelée en hiver;∎ at ground level au niveau du sol;∎ the children sat on the ground les enfants se sont assis par terre;∎ to pick sth up off the ground ramasser qch par terre;∎ drive the stakes firmly into the ground enfoncez solidement les pieux dans le sol;∎ above ground en surface;∎ below ground sous terre;∎ to burn sth to the ground réduire qch en cendres;∎ to fall to the ground tomber par ou à terre;∎ to go to ground se terrer;∎ to run a fox to ground traquer un renard jusqu'à son terrier;∎ to run sb to ground (criminal, suspect etc) traquer qn;∎ I finally ran him to ground in the library j'ai fini par le trouver à la bibliothèque;∎ figurative to be on firm ground être sûr de son fait;∎ to change or shift one's ground changer de tactique;∎ it suits him down to the ground ça lui va à merveille, ça lui convient parfaitement;∎ to run a car into the ground utiliser une voiture jusqu'à ce qu'elle rende l'âme;∎ to run a company into the ground faire couler une entreprise;∎ to work oneself into the ground se tuer au travail;∎ figurative he has built his success from the ground up il a réussi en partant de rien;∎ Tennis to hit a ground stroke frapper la balle au rebond∎ there's a lot of hilly ground in Scotland il y a beaucoup de coins vallonnés en Écosse∎ the crowds are leaving the ground la foule des spectateurs sort du stade∎ fishing grounds zones fpl réservées à la pêche;∎ training ground terrain m d'entraînement ou d'exercice∎ to give/to lose ground céder/perdre du terrain;∎ to stand or to hold one's ground tenir bon;∎ to gain ground (in battle) gagner du terrain; (idea, concept) faire son chemin, progresser; (news) se répandre(g) (UNCOUNT) (area of reference) domaine m, champ m;∎ his article covers a lot of ground dans son article, il aborde beaucoup de domaines;∎ this is new ground for me pour moi, c'est un domaine nouveau∎ you're on dangerous ground vous êtes sur un terrain glissant;∎ for them, politics is forbidden ground pour eux, la politique est un sujet tabou ou un domaine interdit;∎ a middle ground un terrain d'entente, un compromis(i) (background) fond m;∎ on a green ground (painting) sur fond vert;∎ the middle ground le second plan∎ to connect to ground mettre à la terre ou à la masse∎ ground (bass) basse f contrainte∎ my fears proved well grounded mes craintes se sont révélées fondées, il s'est avéré que mes craintes étaient fondées∎ the students are well grounded in computer sciences les étudiants ont une bonne formation ou de bonnes bases en informatique(c) (plane, pilot)∎ to be grounded être interdit de vol;∎ the plane was grounded for mechanical reasons l'avion a été interdit de vol à cause d'un incident mécanique∎ to ground the ball aplatir (le ballon)(ship) échouer;∎ the submarine had grounded on a sandbank le sous-marin s'était échoué ou avait échoué sur un banc de sable(a) (around house) parc m, domaine m; (around block of flats, hospital) terrain m; (more extensive) parc m;∎ the house has extensive grounds la maison est entourée d'un grand parc;∎ the grounds are patrolled by dogs le terrain est gardé par des chiens(b) (reason) motif m, raison f; (cause) cause f, raison f; (basis) base f, raison f; (pretext) raison f, prétexte m;∎ to have (good) ground or grounds for doing sth avoir de bonnes raisons de faire qch;∎ you have no grounds for believing that he's lying vous n'avez aucune raison de croire qu'il ment;∎ there are grounds for suspecting arson il y a lieu de penser qu'il s'agit d'un incendie criminel;∎ what grounds have you for saying that? qu'est-ce qui vous permet d'affirmer cela?;∎ he was excused on the grounds of poor health il a été exempté en raison de sa mauvaise santé;∎ on medical/moral grounds pour (des) raisons médicales/morales;∎ on what grounds? à quel titre?;∎ Law grounds for appeal voies fpl de recours;∎ grounds for complaint grief m;∎ grounds for divorce motif m de divorce(c) (of coffee) marc m►► Military ground attack offensive f terrestre;Fishing ground bait amorce f de fond, appât m de fond;Music ground bass basse f contrainte;American ground beef steak m haché;Entomology ground beetle carabidé m;Botany ground cherry physalis m;American Electricity ground connection prise f de terre;Aviation ground control contrôle m au sol;ground cover végétation f basse;ground cover plant (plante f) couvre-sol m inv;ground crew personnel m au sol, personnel m non-navigant;ground fire feu m de broussailles;British ground floor rez-de-chaussée m inv;∎ figurative to get in on the ground floor (at beginning of project) participer dès le début; (buy shares) acheter des actions dès leur émission;Military ground forces armée f de terre;ground frost gelée f blanche;Botany ground ivy lierre m terrestre;∎ at ground level au rez-de-chaussée;Fishing ground line ligne f de fond;Aviation ground operator (who organizes services, transfers etc) voyagiste m ou agence f de réceptif, réceptif m;ground pepper poivre m moulu;ground personnel personnel m au sol, personnel m non navigant;ground pollution pollution f du sol;ground rage = dans un aéroport, comportement agressif de certains passagers envers le personnel au sol, dû à une attente excessive avant l'embarquement;ground rent redevance f foncière;ground rice farine f de riz;ground rule procédure f, règle f;∎ to lay down the ground rules établir les règles du jeu;Zoology ground squirrel spermophile m;ground staff Sport personnel m responsable de l'entretien d'un terrain de sport; British (at airport) personnel m au sol, personnel m non-navigant;Military ground war guerre f terrestre;Geology ground water nappe f phréatique;American Electricity ground wire fil m de terre;Military ground zero hypocentre m, point m zéro -
122 national
national ['næʃənəl]national;∎ the national newspapers la presse nationale;∎ he became a national hero il est devenu un héros national;∎ the country's national sport le sport national du pays;∎ a source of national pride une source de fierté nationale;∎ the killings caused a national outcry les assassinats ont scandalisé le pays;∎ on a national scale à l'échelle nationale;∎ they won 38 percent of the national vote ils ont remporté 38 pour cent des voix sur l'ensemble du pays;∎ it's not in the national interest ce n'est pas dans l'intérêt du pays2 noun∎ all EU nationals tous les ressortissants des pays de l'Union européenne;∎ Irish nationals ressortissants mpl de la République d'Irlande(b) (newspaper) journal m national►► national accounting comptabilité f nationale;national anthem hymne m national;French Canadian national assembly (in Quebec) Assemblée f nationale;British old-fashioned national assistance assistance f publique;American National Association of Colleges and Universities = association des établissements d'enseignement supérieur américains;British the National Audit Office ≃ la Cour des comptes;national bank = banque agréée par le gouvernement américain et qui doit faire partie du système bancaire fédéral;the National Cancer Institute = organisme américain de recherche sur le cancer;the National Childbirth Trust = organisme d'information et d'éducation des jeunes parents en Grande-Bretagne;Australian national code football m australien;American the National Collegiate Athletic Association = association interuniversitaire traitant des questions sportives;American Politics National Convention = grande réunion du parti démocrate ou républicain pour choisir le "ticket" (candidats à la présidence et à la vice-présidence);national costume costume m national;the National Council for Civil Liberties = en Grande-Bretagne, ligue de défense des droits du citoyen luttant contre toute forme de discrimination;the National Council for Vocational Qualifications = organisme britannique responsable de la formation professionnelle;the National Curriculum = programme introduit en 1988 définissant au niveau national (Angleterre et pays de Galles) le contenu de l'enseignement primaire et secondaire;Finance national debt dette f publique, dette f de l'État;national dress costume m national;the National Endowment for the Arts = organisme américain accordant des bourses à des artistes, des musées ou des compagnies théâtrales;the National Endowment for the Humanities = organisme américain accordant des bourses à des écrivains ou à des chercheurs;the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts = organisme indépendant d'aide financière, à partir de fonds provenant de la Loterie nationale, aux artistes, inventeurs et scientifiques;Press National Enquirer = hebdomadaire américain à sensation;British the National Enterprise Board ≃ Agence f nationale pour le développement industriel;British Politics the National Executive Committee = comité chargé de définir la ligne d'action du parti travailliste;the National Exhibition Centre = centre de conférences et d'expositions à Birmingham (Angleterre);National Express ® = société d'autocars reliant les principales villes de Grande-Bretagne;British National Extension College centre m d'enseignement à distance;the National Farmers' Union = syndicat britannique d'exploitants agricoles;the National Film Theatre = cinémathèque à Londres;the National Foundation of the Arts and Humanities = organisme public américain d'aide à l'action culturelle;the National Front = parti d'extrême droite britannique, ≃ le Front national;the National Gallery la National Gallery (principal musée de peinture du Royaume-Uni, situé à Londres);national government gouvernement m de coalition;Finance National Giro = service britannique de chèques postaux;the National Graphical Association = syndicat britannique d'imprimeurs;national grid British Electricity réseau m national d'électricité; Geography réseau m;the National Guard (in the US) la Garde nationale (armée nationale américaine composée de volontaires);National Guardsman membre m de la Garde nationale;the National Health (Service) = système créé en 1946 en Grande-Bretagne et financé par l'État, assurant la gratuité des soins et des services médicaux, ≃ la Sécurité sociale;∎ to get treatment on the National Health (Service) se faire soigner sous le régime de la Sécurité sociale;British National Health Service glasses = modèle de lunettes remboursé par la Sécurité sociale;National Heritage = organisme ayant pour mission la conservation du patrimoine;national hunt (racing) courses fpl d'obstacles;national income revenu m national;British national insurance = système britannique de sécurité sociale (maladie, retraite) et d'assurance chômage;national insurance contributions cotisations fpl à la Sécurité sociale;national insurance number numéro m de Sécurité sociale;American the National Labor Relations Board = organisme américain de conciliation et d'arbitrage des conflits du travail, ≃ conseil m de prud'hommes;Press National Lampoon = revue satirique américaine;National League = l'une des deux ligues professionnelles de base-ball aux États-Unis;the National Lottery = loterie nationale britannique;the National Liberation Front le Front de libération nationale;the National Maritime Museum = musée de la mer situé à Greenwich;National Missile Defence System projet m NMD (programme de défense antimissiles américain);National Organization for Women = organisation de lutte pour les droits de la femme;national park parc m national;the National Portrait Gallery = musée londonien entièrement consacré aux portraits;National Power = entreprise privée de production d'électricité en Angleterre et au pays de Galles;Finance national product produit m national;National Public Radio = réseau américain de stations de radio libres;national readership survey étude f nationale sur le lectorat;the National Rifle Association = association américaine défendant le droit au port d'armes;British National Savings Bank ≃ Caisse f nationale d'épargne;National Savings certificate bon m de caisse d'épargne;Irish national school école f primaire;American the National Science Foundation = organisme d'aide à la recherche scientifique;national security sécurité f nationale;American Politics National Security Adviser = conseiller du président américain sur les questions de sécurité nationale;Politics the National Security Council le Conseil de sécurité nationale;British national service service m militaire;British national serviceman appelé m, militaire m du contingent;national socialism national-socialisme m;1 nounnational-socialiste mfnational-socialiste;the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children = association britannique de protection de l'enfance;Irish national teacher instituteur(trice) m,f;the National Theatre (in London) = important centre dramatique à Londres, siège de la Royal National Theatre Company;American the National Transportation Safety Board = agence du gouvernement américain chargée des questions de sécurité dans le domaine des transports;British the National Trust = organisme non gouvernemental britannique assurant la conservation de certains paysages et monuments historiques;National Trust property ≃ site m protégé;the National Trust for Scotland = organisme non gouvernemental assurant la conservation de certains paysages et monuments historiques écossais;National Vocational Qualification = diplôme britannique professionnel national;the National Weather Service = les services météorologiques américainsⓘ NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE Le "National Health Service" ou "NHS" fut créé par le gouvernement travailliste en 1946, donnant accès à chacun aux soins médicaux gratuits. Cependant, au cours des années 80, le gouvernement de Margaret Thatcher voulut encourager le public à souscrire des assurances médicales privées, et le "NHS" subit des coupes budgétaires importantes. Au cours de ces dernières années, la polémique autour du "National Health Service" s'est intensifiée. Le "NHS" connaît en effet de nombreuses difficultés. -
123 staff
1 noun∎ the company has a staff of fifty l'effectif de la société est de cinquante personnes;∎ we have ten lawyers on the staff notre personnel comprend dix avocats;∎ reductions in the clerical staff une réduction du personnel administratif;∎ is he staff or a member of staff? est-ce qu'il fait partie du personnel?;∎ staff only (sign) réservé au personnel;∎ staff/student ratio taux m d'encadrement, rapport m entre le nombre de professeurs et le nombre d'étudiants∎ she was asked to join the President's campaign staff on lui a demandé de faire partie de l'état-major de campagne du Président(c) (rod) bâton m; (flagpole) mât m; (of banner, lance) hampe f; (for shepherd) houlette f; (for bishop) crosse f, bâton m pastoral; British (in surveying) jalon m; figurative (support) soutien m;∎ treble staff portée en clé de sol(canteen, outing etc) du personnel(usu passive) pourvoir en personnel;∎ the branch is staffed by or with competent people le personnel de la succursale est compétent;∎ the office is only staffed between the hours of 2 and 4 pm il y a quelqu'un au bureau de 14h à 16h seulement;∎ the committee is completely staffed by volunteers le comité est entièrement composé de bénévoles►► staff association ≃ comité m d'entreprise;Military staff college école f supérieure de guerre;Military staff corporal ≃ sergent-major m;staff manager chef m du personnel;British staff nurse infirmier(ère) m,f diplômé(e);Military staff officer officier m d'état-major;staff training formation f du personnel;staff turnover roulement m du personnel -
124 young
(a) (in age, style, ideas → person, clothes) jeune;∎ the young men and women of today les jeunes gens et les jeunes femmes d'aujourd'hui;∎ a young woman une jeune femme;∎ young people les jeunes mpl, la jeunesse f;∎ the younger generation la jeune génération;∎ families with young children les familles qui ont des enfants en bas âge;∎ my younger brother mon frère cadet, mon petit frère;∎ I'm ten years younger than she is j'ai dix ans de moins qu'elle;∎ I'm not as young as I was! je n'ai plus (mes) vingt ans!;∎ he is young for such responsibility il est bien jeune pour de telles responsabilités;∎ you're only young once! la jeunesse ne dure qu'un temps!;∎ in my younger days dans ma jeunesse, quand j'étais jeune;∎ British how is young Christopher? comment va le jeune Christopher?;∎ the young Mr Ford, Mr Ford the younger le jeune M. Ford, M. Ford fils;∎ now listen here young man! écoutez-moi bien, jeune homme!;∎ old-fashioned her young man son petit ami, son amoureux;∎ old-fashioned his young lady sa petite amie, son amoureuse;∎ young lady! mademoiselle!;∎ she's quite a young lady now c'est une vraie jeune fille maintenant;∎ what do you have to say for yourself, young lady? qu'avez-vous à dire, mademoiselle?(b) (youthful) jeune;∎ he is young for forty-five il fait jeune pour quarante-cinq ans;∎ she is a young forty-five elle a quarante-cinq ans, mais elle ne les fait pas;∎ he's young for his age il est jeune pour son âge, il ne fait pas son âge;∎ to be young at heart avoir la jeunesse du cœur(c) (recent → grass, plant) nouveau(elle); (→ wine) jeune, vert; Geology (→ rock formation) jeune, récent;∎ a young country/company un pays/une société de création récente∎ the young les jeunes (gens) mpl, la jeunesse;∎ a game suitable for young and old alike un jeu pour les jeunes et les moins jeunes(b) (of animal) petits mpl;∎ a lioness and her young une lionne et ses petits;∎ to be with young (animal) être pleine ou grosse►► young blood (new attitudes, ideas, people) sang m nouveau ou neuf;British Young Offenders' Institution = centre de détention pour mineurs;History the Young Pretender le jeune Prétendant (surnom de Charles Stuart, l'un des deux prétendants au trône);History & figurative Young Turk jeune-turc (jeune-turque) m,f -
125 network organization
Gen Mgta company or group of companies that has a minimum of formal structures and relies instead on the formation and dissolution of teams to meet specific objectives. A network organization utilizes information and communications technologies extensively, and makes use of know-how across and within companies along the value chain. -
126 Hjorth, Soren
SUBJECT AREA: Electricity[br]b. 13 October 1801 Vesterbygaard, Denmarkd. 28 August 1870 Copenhagen, Denmark[br]Danish engineer and inventor who first proposed the principle of the self-excited dynamo.[br]After passing a legal examination, Hjorth found employment in the state treasury in Copenhagen and in 1830 advanced to be Clerk of the Exchequer and Secretary. In 1834 he visited England to study the use of steam road and rail vehicles. Hjorth was involved in the formation of the first railway company in Denmark and became Technical Director of Denmark's first railway, a line between Copenhagen and Roskilde that opened in 1847. In 1848 he petitioned the Government for funds to visit England and have built there an electric motor of his own design with oscillating motion. This petition, supported by Hans Christian Oersted (1777–1851), was granted. A British patent was obtained for the machine, an example being exhibited at the 1851 Great Exhibition in London. Turning his attention to the generation of electricity, he conceived as early as May 1851 the dynamo electric principle with self-excitation that was incorporated in his patent in 1855. Unfortunately, Hjorth held the firm but mistaken belief that if he could use his dynamo to drive a motor he would obtain more power than was consumed in driving the dynamo. The theory of conservation of energy was being only slowly accepted at that time, and Hjorth, with little scientific training, was to be disappointed at the failure of his schemes. He worked with great perseverance and industry to the end of his life on the design of his electrical machines.[br]Bibliography11 April 1855, British patent no. 806 (Hjorth's self-excited dynamo).11 April 1855, British patent nos. 807 and 808 (reciprocating and rotary electric motors).Further ReadingS.Smith, 1912, Soren Hjorth, Copenhagen (the most detailed biography).1907, "Soren Hjorth, discoverer of the dynamo-electric principle", Electrical Engineering 1: 957–8 (a short biography).Catalogue of the 1851 Exhibition, 1851, London, pp. 1, 359–60 (for a description of Hjorth's electromagnetic engine with oscillating motion.GW -
127 Lavoisier, Antoine Laurent
SUBJECT AREA: Chemical technology[br]b. 26 August 1743 Paris, Franced. 8 May 1794 Paris, France[br]French founder of the modern science of chemistry.[br]As well as receiving a formal education in law and literature, Lavoisier studied science under some of the leading figures of the day. This proved to be an ideal formation of the man in whom "man of science" and "public servant" were so intimately combined. His early work towards the first geological map of France and on the water supply of Paris helped to win him election to the Royal Academy of Sciences in 1768 at the youthful age of 25. In the same year he used some of his private income to buy a part-share in the "tax farm", a private company which leased from the Government the right to collect certain indirect taxes.In 1772 Lavoisier began his researches into the related phenomena of combustion, respiration and the calcination or oxidation of metals. This culminated in the early 1780s in the overthrow of the prevailing theory, based on an imponderable combustion principle called "phlogiston", and the substitution of the modern explanation of these processes. At the same time, understanding of the nature of acids, bases and salts was placed on a sounder footing. More important, Lavoisier defined a chemical element in its modern sense and showed how it should be applied by drawing up the first modern list of the chemical elements. With the revolution in chemistry initiated by Lavoisier, chemists could begin to understand correctly the fundamental processes of their science. This understanding was the foundationo of the astonishing advance in scientific and industrial chemistry that has taken place since then. As an academician, Lavoisier was paid by the Government to carry out investigations into a wide variety of practical questions with a chemical bias, such as the manufacture of starch and the distillation of phosphorus. In 1775 Louis XVI ordered the setting up of the Gunpowder Commission to improve the supply and quality of gunpowder, deficiencies in which had hampered France's war efforts. Lavoisier was a member of the Commission and, as usual, took the leading part, drawing up its report and supervising its implementation. As a result, the industry became profitable, output increased so that France could even export powder, and the range of the powder increased by two-thirds. This was a material factor in France's war effort in the Revolution and the Napoleonic wars.As if his chemical researches and official duties were not enough, Lavoisier began to apply his scientific principles to agriculture when he purchased an estate at Frechines, near Blois. After ten years' work on his experimental farm there, Lavoisier was able to describe his results in the memoir "Results of some agricultural experiments and reflections on their relation to political economy" (Paris, 1788), which holds historic importance in agriculture and economics. In spite of his services to the nation and to humanity, his association with the tax farm was to have tragic consequences: during the reign of terror in 1794 the Revolutionaries consigned to the guillotine all the tax farmers, including Lavoisier.[br]Bibliography1862–93, Oeuvres de Lavoisier, Vols I–IV, ed. J.B.A.Dumas; Vols V–VI, ed. E.Grimaux, Paris (Lavoisier's collected works).Further ReadingD.I.Duveen and H.S.Klickstein, 1954, A Bibliography of the Works of Antoine Laurent Lavoisier 1743–1794, London: William Dawson (contains valuable biographical material).D.McKie, 1952, Antoine Lavoisier, Scientist, Economist, Social Reformer, London: Constable (the best modern, general biography).H.Guerlac, 1975, Antoine Laurent Lavoisier, Chemist and Revolutionary, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons (a more recent work).LRDBiographical history of technology > Lavoisier, Antoine Laurent
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128 Stephenson, George
[br]b. 9 June 1781 Wylam, Northumberland, Englandd. 12 August 1848 Tapton House, Chesterfield, England[br]English engineer, "the father of railways".[br]George Stephenson was the son of the fireman of the pumping engine at Wylam colliery, and horses drew wagons of coal along the wooden rails of the Wylam wagonway past the house in which he was born and spent his earliest childhood. While still a child he worked as a cowherd, but soon moved to working at coal pits. At 17 years of age he showed sufficient mechanical talent to be placed in charge of a new pumping engine, and had already achieved a job more responsible than that of his father. Despite his position he was still illiterate, although he subsequently learned to read and write. He was largely self-educated.In 1801 he was appointed Brakesman of the winding engine at Black Callerton pit, with responsibility for lowering the miners safely to their work. Then, about two years later, he became Brakesman of a new winding engine erected by Robert Hawthorn at Willington Quay on the Tyne. Returning collier brigs discharged ballast into wagons and the engine drew the wagons up an inclined plane to the top of "Ballast Hill" for their contents to be tipped; this was one of the earliest applications of steam power to transport, other than experimentally.In 1804 Stephenson moved to West Moor pit, Killingworth, again as Brakesman. In 1811 he demonstrated his mechanical skill by successfully modifying a new and unsatisfactory atmospheric engine, a task that had defeated the efforts of others, to enable it to pump a drowned pit clear of water. The following year he was appointed Enginewright at Killingworth, in charge of the machinery in all the collieries of the "Grand Allies", the prominent coal-owning families of Wortley, Liddell and Bowes, with authorization also to work for others. He built many stationary engines and he closely examined locomotives of John Blenkinsop's type on the Kenton \& Coxlodge wagonway, as well as those of William Hedley at Wylam.It was in 1813 that Sir Thomas Liddell requested George Stephenson to build a steam locomotive for the Killingworth wagonway: Blucher made its first trial run on 25 July 1814 and was based on Blenkinsop's locomotives, although it lacked their rack-and-pinion drive. George Stephenson is credited with building the first locomotive both to run on edge rails and be driven by adhesion, an arrangement that has been the conventional one ever since. Yet Blucher was far from perfect and over the next few years, while other engineers ignored the steam locomotive, Stephenson built a succession of them, each an improvement on the last.During this period many lives were lost in coalmines from explosions of gas ignited by miners' lamps. By observation and experiment (sometimes at great personal risk) Stephenson invented a satisfactory safety lamp, working independently of the noted scientist Sir Humphry Davy who also invented such a lamp around the same time.In 1817 George Stephenson designed his first locomotive for an outside customer, the Kilmarnock \& Troon Railway, and in 1819 he laid out the Hetton Colliery Railway in County Durham, for which his brother Robert was Resident Engineer. This was the first railway to be worked entirely without animal traction: it used inclined planes with stationary engines, self-acting inclined planes powered by gravity, and locomotives.On 19 April 1821 Stephenson was introduced to Edward Pease, one of the main promoters of the Stockton \& Darlington Railway (S \& DR), which by coincidence received its Act of Parliament the same day. George Stephenson carried out a further survey, to improve the proposed line, and in this he was assisted by his 18-year-old son, Robert Stephenson, whom he had ensured received the theoretical education which he himself lacked. It is doubtful whether either could have succeeded without the other; together they were to make the steam railway practicable.At George Stephenson's instance, much of the S \& DR was laid with wrought-iron rails recently developed by John Birkinshaw at Bedlington Ironworks, Morpeth. These were longer than cast-iron rails and were not brittle: they made a track well suited for locomotives. In June 1823 George and Robert Stephenson, with other partners, founded a firm in Newcastle upon Tyne to build locomotives and rolling stock and to do general engineering work: after its Managing Partner, the firm was called Robert Stephenson \& Co.In 1824 the promoters of the Liverpool \& Manchester Railway (L \& MR) invited George Stephenson to resurvey their proposed line in order to reduce opposition to it. William James, a wealthy land agent who had become a visionary protagonist of a national railway network and had seen Stephenson's locomotives at Killingworth, had promoted the L \& MR with some merchants of Liverpool and had carried out the first survey; however, he overreached himself in business and, shortly after the invitation to Stephenson, became bankrupt. In his own survey, however, George Stephenson lacked the assistance of his son Robert, who had left for South America, and he delegated much of the detailed work to incompetent assistants. During a devastating Parliamentary examination in the spring of 1825, much of his survey was shown to be seriously inaccurate and the L \& MR's application for an Act of Parliament was refused. The railway's promoters discharged Stephenson and had their line surveyed yet again, by C.B. Vignoles.The Stockton \& Darlington Railway was, however, triumphantly opened in the presence of vast crowds in September 1825, with Stephenson himself driving the locomotive Locomotion, which had been built at Robert Stephenson \& Co.'s Newcastle works. Once the railway was at work, horse-drawn and gravity-powered traffic shared the line with locomotives: in 1828 Stephenson invented the horse dandy, a wagon at the back of a train in which a horse could travel over the gravity-operated stretches, instead of trotting behind.Meanwhile, in May 1826, the Liverpool \& Manchester Railway had successfully obtained its Act of Parliament. Stephenson was appointed Engineer in June, and since he and Vignoles proved incompatible the latter left early in 1827. The railway was built by Stephenson and his staff, using direct labour. A considerable controversy arose c. 1828 over the motive power to be used: the traffic anticipated was too great for horses, but the performance of the reciprocal system of cable haulage developed by Benjamin Thompson appeared in many respects superior to that of contemporary locomotives. The company instituted a prize competition for a better locomotive and the Rainhill Trials were held in October 1829.Robert Stephenson had been working on improved locomotive designs since his return from America in 1827, but it was the L \& MR's Treasurer, Henry Booth, who suggested the multi-tubular boiler to George Stephenson. This was incorporated into a locomotive built by Robert Stephenson for the trials: Rocket was entered by the three men in partnership. The other principal entrants were Novelty, entered by John Braithwaite and John Ericsson, and Sans Pareil, entered by Timothy Hackworth, but only Rocket, driven by George Stephenson, met all the organizers' demands; indeed, it far surpassed them and demonstrated the practicability of the long-distance steam railway. With the opening of the Liverpool \& Manchester Railway in 1830, the age of railways began.Stephenson was active in many aspects. He advised on the construction of the Belgian State Railway, of which the Brussels-Malines section, opened in 1835, was the first all-steam railway on the European continent. In England, proposals to link the L \& MR with the Midlands had culminated in an Act of Parliament for the Grand Junction Railway in 1833: this was to run from Warrington, which was already linked to the L \& MR, to Birmingham. George Stephenson had been in charge of the surveys, and for the railway's construction he and J.U. Rastrick were initially Principal Engineers, with Stephenson's former pupil Joseph Locke under them; by 1835 both Stephenson and Rastrick had withdrawn and Locke was Engineer-in-Chief. Stephenson remained much in demand elsewhere: he was particularly associated with the construction of the North Midland Railway (Derby to Leeds) and related lines. He was active in many other places and carried out, for instance, preliminary surveys for the Chester \& Holyhead and Newcastle \& Berwick Railways, which were important links in the lines of communication between London and, respectively, Dublin and Edinburgh.He eventually retired to Tapton House, Chesterfield, overlooking the North Midland. A man who was self-made (with great success) against colossal odds, he was ever reluctant, regrettably, to give others their due credit, although in retirement, immensely wealthy and full of honour, he was still able to mingle with people of all ranks.[br]Principal Honours and DistinctionsPresident, Institution of Mechanical Engineers, on its formation in 1847. Order of Leopold (Belgium) 1835. Stephenson refused both a knighthood and Fellowship of the Royal Society.Bibliography1815, jointly with Ralph Dodd, British patent no. 3,887 (locomotive drive by connecting rods directly to the wheels).1817, jointly with William Losh, British patent no. 4,067 (steam springs for locomotives, and improvements to track).Further ReadingL.T.C.Rolt, 1960, George and Robert Stephenson, Longman (the best modern biography; includes a bibliography).S.Smiles, 1874, The Lives of George and Robert Stephenson, rev. edn, London (although sycophantic, this is probably the best nineteenthcentury biography).PJGR
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