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Keith Vivian Alexander
Keith Vivian Alexander is a New Zealand mechanical engineer and inventor. He is a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Canterbury, in Christchurch, and the inventor of the springfree trampoline. Alexander began his professional life as a primary school teacher. After 4 years of teaching he returned to university to complete a degree in engineering, conducting research on an invention of his own to gain his PhD. Post graduation, Alexander worked for an engineering consultancy for a period of 6 years, in which time he led a team in developing advanced heavy presses for the New Zealand wool industry. Following this, Alexander moved to CWF Hamilton, a New Zealand company which pioneered the jet boat, where he worked on a number of projects including waterjet development which resulted in patented innovations. 1996 saw Alexander take up a position at the University of Canterbury where he still teaches mechanical engineering design & product innovation. Since 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of Canterbury
The University of Canterbury (UC; ; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1873 as Canterbury College, the first constituent college of the University of New Zealand. It is New Zealand's second-oldest university, after the University of Otago, which was founded four years earlier, in 1869. Its original campus was in the Christchurch Central City, but in 1961 it became an independent university and began moving out of its original neo-Gothic buildings, which were re-purposed as the Christchurch Arts Centre. The move was completed on 1 May 1975 and the university now operates its main campus in the Christchurch suburb of Ilam. The university offers bachelors, masters, and doctoral degrees in, among others, Arts, Commerce, Education (physical education), Fine Arts, Forestry, Health Sciences, International Relations and Diplom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and maintain mechanical systems. It is one of the oldest and broadest of the List of engineering branches, engineering branches. Mechanical engineering requires an understanding of core areas including mechanics, Analytical dynamics, dynamics, thermodynamics, materials science, design, structural analysis, and electricity. In addition to these core principles, mechanical engineers use tools such as computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), computer-aided engineering (CAE), and product lifecycle management to design and analyze manufacturing plants, industrial equipment and industrial machinery, machinery, HVAC, heating and cooling systems, transport systems, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christchurch
Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over half a million. It is located in the Canterbury Region, near the centre of the east coast of the South Island, east of the Canterbury Plains. It is located near the southern end of Pegasus Bay, and is bounded to the east by the Pacific Ocean and to the south by the ancient volcanic complex of the Banks Peninsula. The Avon River / Ōtākaro, Avon River (Ōtākaro) winds through the centre of the city, with Hagley Park, Christchurch, a large urban park along its banks. With the exception of the Port Hills, it is a relatively flat city, on an average around above sea level. Christchurch has a reputation for being an English New Zealanders, English city, with its architectural identity and nickname the 'Garden City' due to similarities with garde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jet Boat
A jetboat is a boat propelled by a jet of water ejected from the back of the craft. Unlike a powerboat or motorboat that uses an external propeller in the water below or behind the boat, a jetboat draws the water from under the boat through an intake and into a pump-jet inside the boat, before expelling it through a nozzle at the stern. The modern jetboat was developed by New Zealand engineer Sir William Hamilton in the mid-1950s. His goal was a boat to run up the fast-flowing rivers of New Zealand that were too shallow for propellers. Previous attempts at waterjet propulsion had very short lifetimes, generally due to the inefficient design of the units and the fact that they offered few advantages over conventional propellers. Unlike these previous waterjet developments, such as Campini's and the Hanley Hydrojet, Hamilton had a specific need for a propulsion system to operate in very shallow water, and the waterjet proved to be the ideal solution. The popularity of the j ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martin Jetpack
The Martin Jetpack was a single-person aircraft under development. Despite its name, it did not use a jet pack as such, but ducted fans for lift. Martin Aircraft Company of New Zealand (not related to Glenn L. Martin Company, the US company also known as Martin Aircraft) developed it, and unveiled it at the Experimental Aircraft Association's 2008 AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, US. The US Federal Aviation Administration classified it as an experimental ultralight airplane. It used a petrol engine with two ducted fans to provide lift. It was specified to have a maximum speed of , a flight ceiling of , a range of , and endurance of about 28 minutes of flight. Empty weight was . Martin Aircraft initially planned to target first responders as customers. In 2019, the company closed. History The Martin Jetpack was under development for over 30 years. Glenn Neal Martin started work on it in his Christchurch garage in the 1980s. New Zealand aviation regulatory authorities approved ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alan Gibbs
Alan Timothy Gibbs (born 1939) is a New Zealand-born businessman, entrepreneur and former public servant. During the 1960s and 1970s, Gibbs was involved in manufacturing and investment banking, before overseeing the corporatisation of New Zealand's forestry sector as chair of the New Zealand Forestry Corporation during the Fourth Labour Government. Gibbs is a founding member and major funder of the ACT Party and has been a prominent advocate of free-market reform since the 1980s. He is the founder of Gibbs Amphibians, which produces amphibious vehicles. Early life Alan Gibbs was born in Christchurch, the son of Theodore Nisbet Gibbs and Elsie Gibbs. His father was a businessman and active member of the National Party who chaired a Royal Commission on taxation for the First National Government. In 1963, after graduating from university, Gibbs was employed as Third Secretary in the New Zealand High Commission in London through his father's connection to future Prime Minis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aquada
The Gibbs Aquada is a high speed amphibious vehicle developed by Gibbs Sports Amphibians. It is capable of speeds over on land and on water. Rather than adding wheels to a boat design, or creating a car that floats, the Aquada was designed from the ground up to perform very well in both fields, with over 60 patents covering technical innovations. The Gibbs Aquada was a limited production concept car produced in 2003 and 2004. The Gibbs Aquada is powered by a 2.5 L Rover V6 engine. In 2004 Richard Branson, owner of the Virgin Group, used a Gibbs Aquada to set a new record for crossing the English Channel in an amphibious vehicle. Branson cut 4 hours 20 minutes off the previous record of 6 hours, which had stood since the late 1960s. The officially recorded time was 1 hour 40 minutes, 6 seconds. For the August 2004 edition of ''Top Gear'' magazine, journalist Paul Walton drove an Aquada into and around the Monaco harbour during the Grand Prix of Monaco to watch the eve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trampoline
A trampoline is a device consisting of a piece of taut, strong fabric stretched between a steel frame often using many coiled spring (device), springs. People bounce on trampolines for recreational and competitive purposes. The fabric that users bounce on (commonly known as the "bounce mat" or "trampoline bed") is not elastic itself; the elasticity is provided by the springs that connect it to the frame, which store potential energy. History Early trampoline-like devices A game similar to trampolining was developed by the Inuit, who would toss blanket dancers into the air on a walrus skin one at a time (see Nalukataq) during a spring celebration of whale harvest. There is also some evidence of people in Europe having been tossed into the air by a number of people holding a blanket. Mak in the Wakefield Mystery Play ''The Second Shepherds' Play'', and Sancho Panza in ''Don Quixote'', are both subjected to blanketing – however, these are clearly non-voluntary, non-recrea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand Inventors
New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1999 * "new", a song by Loona from the 2017 single album '' Yves'' * "The New", a song by Interpol from the 2002 album ''Turn On the Bright Lights'' Transportation * Lakefront Airport, New Orleans, U.S., IATA airport code NEW * Newcraighall railway station, Scotland, station code NEW Other uses * ''New'' (film), a 2004 Tamil movie * New (surname), an English family name * NEW (TV station), in Australia * new and delete (C++), in the computer programming language * Net economic welfare, a proposed macroeconomic indicator * Net explosive weight, also known as net explosive quantity * Network of enlightened Women, an American organization * Newar language, ISO 639-2/3 language code new * Next Entertainment World, a South Korean media company ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Academic Staff Of The University Of Canterbury
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and Skills, skill, north of Ancient Athens, Athens, Greece. The Royal Spanish Academy defines academy as scientific, literary or artistic society established with public authority and as a teaching establishment, public or private, of a professional, artistic, technical or simply practical nature. Etymology The word comes from the ''Academy'' in ancient Greece, which derives from the Athenian hero, ''Akademos''. Outside the city walls of Athens, the Gymnasium (ancient Greece), gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning. The sacred space, dedicated to the goddess of wisdom, Athena, had formerly been an olive Grove (nature), grove, hence the expression "the groves of Academe". In these gardens, the philos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
