Fascinating and useful fact thread

[RichardCranium]

Ever since we standardised on time across the country, trains running East to West have to run slower than trains running West to East to compensate for the time difference.

Trains running North-South and South-North are, of course, unaffected.

[RichardCranium]

The obelisk commemorating the Great Fire of London in Pudding Lane is constructed such that at mid-day on the anniversary of the fire, if you follow the shadow from its tip ("T'was shurly ye hotest Playce on ye Planette as ledd ran as do mine owne Waters" - Christopher Wren's diary - written on the plaque on the obelisk's base) to the monument and carry on, it points at what was believed at the time to be the coldest place on Earth: the South Pole.

[RichardCranium]

A tardigrade is almost indestructible. It can be frozen, dried, irradiated and boiled and survive deep vacuum and come out laughing.

A retrograde is a 1960s tardigrade.

[thunderlizard]

It weren't Barry the Spanner what done that post office in Beckenham, because Barry was up in Reigate with a mark see. It were Cyprus Chris what done it, though it were probably Barry what gave him the nod about the cash drop.

[Troll]

Trains running North-South and South-North are, of course, unaffected.

Not so... everyone knows trains and cars travel faster heading South as it is all downhill

HTH

[TimberWolf]

Ever since we standardised on time across the country, trains running East to West have to run slower than trains running West to East to compensate for the time difference.

Trains running North-South and South-North are, of course, unaffected.

Trains probably run fastest running in a heading slightly off due east along the equator, because they get a Coriolis boost both tangent to the surface in that easterly direction and radially away from the centre of the earth, thus making them lighter too. Boomed. Not sure if this maximises the effect though (of course the force is maximum at the poles, but there it works against you).

[RichardCranium]

Almost all trains in Britain are made in Germany at the vast Deutsche München Überbahn (DMU) works. Being in the old East Germany, these made all the rolling stock for the Soviet Union. Because they are not made to EU standards, that cannot be delivered by rail across the continent and have to be transported on low-loaders to the UK, which is why you sometimes see trains on lorries on the motorway.

[Sysman]

Trains probably run fastest running in a heading slightly off due east along the equator, because they get a Coriolis boost both tangent to the surface in that easterly direction and radially away from the centre of the earth, thus making them lighter too. Boomed. Not sure if this maximises the effect though (of course the force is maximum at the poles, but there it works against you).

In theory maybe. In practice, have you ever seen how fast an equatorial train goes?

[EternalOptimist]

steam trains didnt run on steam pressure. thats a common misunderstanding.

steam trains run on atmospheric pressure


FACT

[RichardCranium]

Not so... everyone knows trains and cars travel faster heading South as it is all downhill

HTH

What about in Australia? Do they go faster going North?