Thursday, September 30, 2010

Idyllic Scene


Here's an idyllic scene. It's the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC, or NGK) in Leipoldtville, just over 200km/120mi north of Cape Town. It was built in 1958. The foundation stone quotes Psalm 22:5: "Op U het ons vertrou en nie beskaamd gestaan nie." You may click on the photo for VGA.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Apartheid In The Church

I was in conversation recently with a village dominee. He said to me: "I hate to say it, but there still is apartheid in the Church. We have traditionalists in the Church, particularly in the rural areas. They are very loyal to the Church, but they don't understand the first thing about the true and glorious gospel. Often they have influence, and often they have money. They sit in the midst of Church Councils, or they threaten to pull their financial support." OBSERVATION: See Church Segregation for an example of what this might mean. I was, however, heartened by my conversation with this dominee.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

URC Facade


I am taken by surprise, sometimes, by the posts which prove to be most popular on this blog. A fairly popular post during the past few days has been URC Elands Bay. Inside, as will be seen through the link provided, this Church has little to distinguish it from a warehouse. Outside, it has this facade (pictured), which faces a busy thoroughfare. You may click on the image to enlarge to 220k.

Unimaginative DRC


Here's another unimaginative Dutch Reformed Church (DRC, or NGK). Admittedly, it is a nice piece of work, and well kept. However, it is nothing more and nothing less than the standard DRC formula of a symmetrical building with a spire centrally placed – with the usual customisation. Apart from this, some Dutch Reformed Churches will daringly off-set the spire, or add balconies inside, yet one seldom encounters anything really different. This is the DRC Lambert's Bay, nearly 300km/200mi north of Cape Town. It displays three stones with three dates: 1930, 1985, and 2007. Only the third is explained: it marks the "Halfeeufees" ("Half Century Celebration").

Sunday, September 26, 2010

URC Elands Bay


I visited this Uniting Reformed Church (URC, or VGK) this morning in Elands Bay, a scattered coastal town 220km/140mi north of Cape Town. There were about fifty people in the service. The singing was joyful, and the message was simple. The circuit dominee was on his monthly visit. He had three points: 1. God regretted that He created humankind. 2. "The core" of human life is to serve and glorify Christ. And 3. we joyfully anticipate a life that is better by far. (See URC Facade for a photo of the Church's exterior).

Inventions Again

Returning to the subject of inventions, I had a few "big ones" which are widely known today. One of them was the wind-up LED torch/flashlight. I sold the copyright in October 2000. Then in March 2006 some cuckoos patented it! (US Patent no. 7 019 492). It is now the LightStorm flashlight. Another "big one" was the disco strobe/flash necklace, which one sees everywhere today, in various forms. I sold the copyright in February 2004. This is now produced by Firefly, among others. A third "big one" was the micropower wart remover, which has gone into production all over the world, and is also advertised for treating cold sores. I sold the copyright in September 2004. This is now produced, among others, by WartAbater. OBSERVATION: I decided to stick to selling copyrights, since the world of patents/trademarks is costly and rapacious (and disturbing). Also, actually, it would have been hard for me to tell which of my many designs would "make it" and be worth the patents/trademarks. So I could have made my fortune ... or could I?

Friday, September 17, 2010

Technology Authority


Interestingly, Technorati has me down about equally as a Technology Authority and a Religion Authority. With this in mind, Everyday Practical Electronics (EPE) magazine is to publish a new design of mine next month (October). It's an all-band regenerative radio. These are very interesting radios. They have an extra knob (regeneration) that other radios don't have -- like manual cars/autos that have the clutch pedal where automatics don't. That's a glimpse of my design above right. This particular design is "idiot proof".

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Church Steeple


It's been a while since I published a Church photo. This is the steeple of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC, or NGK) Aurora. The entrance to the Church is directly below. The two rounded walls enclose two circular staircases to two balconies inside. There's a view from the balconies at Aurora DRC. You may click on the photo to view this in VGA resolution.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

3-D Movies


For those who live in Australasia, in the latest (September) edition of Silicon Chip magazine, I describe how one may create one's own 3D movies. It's easy actually, if one knows how, and has the patience. The magazine previously ran some articles on state-of-the-art 3D movie-making. The 3D photo (click on it to enlarge) shows the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Cape Town. One needs to squint to see the 3D here, which is not the case with 3D movies.

Monday, September 6, 2010

Experimenter Lives

Several years ago, I invented a medical device, which several companies subsequently put into production (there's a brief description at Medical Device). It is a micropower device which pulses a vanishingly small amount of power through the skin. This morning, I happened to apply it to my head. Instantly there was a flash and sparks, as though lightning had hit the room -- but no sound. I said to myself: "Phew, what happened? Did I blow out the mains?" But of course, impossible, this is a micropower device, and no connection with the mains. Then it dawned on me -- ah, I'd just applied it to my head! OBSERVATION: In fact I ignored a caution that appears in my own original instructions. It's a little unsettling to see that manufacturers have stripped out that caution -- no doubt to preserve the appearance of safety.