Tag: Scottish

The Advent of the Steam Engine Permanently Changing the World

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Scottish mechanical engineer James Watt taught himself engineering and at age 27 he invented the modern steam engine. Watt was inspired by a pot of tea which he observed boiling, as the lid of the kettle would move when excessive heat had built up. Watt realized from this encounter that steam power may have the ability to be harnessed to perform work. Building upon a design already in existence which used steam to drive a piston to pump water out of mining operations, Watt revolutionized this technology by adding gears and wheels. Early steam engines only pumped up and down, but after Watt discovered how to effectively implement wheels and other facets, he took the idea of steam power and made it transportable via rotary motion. This simple alternate design paved the way for countless machines which succeeded it, as gears and wheels allow an infinite number of combinations to be constructed allowing for adaptations to all forms of industry. The world became smaller and faster seemingly overnight as humans and animals were no longer required to perform all forms of work. Watts’ engine started the Industrial Revolution, one of the most important periods within human history as it nearly autonomously created the modern technological age

The Etymology of the Gaelic Spirit Whisky

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The Gaelic term “uisce beatha” (pronounced “ish-kah bahh”) translates to mean “water of life” and was originally intended to be used as the name for Scottish whisky. The term was shortened to “uisce” (pronounced “oosh-key”) which is where the English term “whisky” is derived

The Development of Modern Institutionalized Psychological Torture as a Means of Interrogation

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In the 1950’s, Scottish psychiatrist Ewen Cameron started experimenting upon his own patients which ushered in the modern age of the psychological techniques leveraged by governments to extract information from high value targets and low level targets alike. In 1951, the U.S., the U.K., and Canada began developing the Survival Evasion Resistance Escape program, abbreviated as “SERE” (pronounced “sear”) designed for when domestic soldiers became captured by enemy forces (e.g. aircraft shot down over enemy lines) as well as techniques which could be used against captured Soviets. This research became dominant within Canadian universities for almost a decade, with researchers beginning similar psychiatric experiments within psychiatric hospitals in the U.K. In the U.S. The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency dominated most research and had over 160 secret projects within 80 institutions, comprising a total of $25,000,000 ($25 million) allocated for human experimentation. This project was code named “MK Ultra”. In 1963, many of Cameron’s psychological experiments were codified for the first time and compiled within the Kubark Counterintelligence Interrogation hand guide, a book which is now declassified and freely available online. The term “kubark” is a cryptonym, the name for the Central Intelligence Agency itself. This content became the foundation for the method of psychological interrogation and psychological torture which the Central Intelligence Agency disseminated across the U.S. intelligence community and worldwide among allies for 30 years after its initial release. Since the 1950’s, confirmed cases backed by evidence and testimony of these techniques of torture being used have been recognized or admitted to by governments in 28 nation states including Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Borneo, Brazil, British Guyana, British Cameroon, Canada, Chile, Cuba, the UK, Guatemala, Honduras, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Lithuania, Morocco, Northern Ireland, Pakistan, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Thailand, Turkey, Uruguay, Vienna, and Yemen

Whilst I rarely if ever will submit an opinion upon this blog, I feel that it is important to state that the Kubark Counterintelligence Interrogation hand guide is now declassified and been made public. To educate yourself so that these techniques cannot be used against you, click here to read the Kubark Counterintelligence Interrogation hand guide

King Edward II’s Homosexual Relationship with Piers Gaveston

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Piers Gaveston, a minor noble who engaged in a homosexual relationship with Edward II, may have been overlooked during the 13th century if it were not for the lavish gifts Edward II showered upon Gaveston. Gaveston was exiled from the realm by Edward I for referring to Edward II as his brother. When Edward I died, his son Edward II brought Gaveston back into his kingdom and provided him with money, gold, title, and land. This caused the whole of England to murmur behind closed doors, against the king. It was not so much the act of homosexuality which infuriated the barons, it was the man of whom Edward II fell in love with. The nobles drafted a list of grievances against Edward II referred to as “The Ordinances”. Gaveston eventually fled and was captured by the Scots. Gaveston was sentenced as an enemy of the state and was executed despite Edward II’s attempted intervention

The Advent of the Kaleidoscope

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The kaleidoscope was invented in 1816 by Sir David Brewster who was a Scottish mathematician and physicist noted for his various contributions to the field of optics. Brewster patented his invention in 1817 but thousands of unauthorized reproductions were constructed and sold, resulting in Brewster receiving little financial benefit from his invention. Brewster named the kaleidoscope as he did because of the Greek term “kalos” which means “beautiful”, “eidos” which means “form”, and “scopos” which means “watcher”