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Most people consider such work innocent and amusing, but it may easily be made more. Take the question of the antennas of insects. It took the combined experiments of a German and an American to discover that the plumed antennæ of the male mosquito vibrated differently to different parts of the female's song, thus representing an outward ear.
I had no computer at the time and no Keplerian elements. I mounted a small video camera in the centre of four 16-element Yagi antennas and rotated the elevation and azimuth motors until I could see the moon in the centre of the monitor in the shack. Of course when the sky was overcast I was out of business. Much later when I obtained a little Sinclair ZX80 computer life became easier.
Moths fold their wings back upon their bodies, covering the lower wing, which is usually bright in colour, with the upper wing. They fold their antennas back on the line of their wings. Butterflies raise the wings above their bodies and lay them back to back, putting their antennae between them if they move them at all.
Arcot pointed toward a tall, oddly-shaped antenna that rose from the highest building of the city. "There's your answer. That antenna is similar to those we found on the planets of the Black Star; it's a heat screen. They probably had such antennas all over the planet. "Unfortunately, the screen's efficiency goes up as the fourth power of the temperature.
The governments of many countries world-wide immediately protested to Moscow, and all they got in reply was a brief statement that the U.S.S.R. was carrying out "an experiment". The reason for the very strong on/off pulses was probably because, at first, the Russians were using existing radar antennas which permit the transmitting and receiving functions to share the same antenna.
Like a marine reptile he had even penetrated certain caves of the coast, drowsy and glacial lakes illuminated by mysterious openings where the atmosphere is black and the water transparent, where the swimmer has a bust of ebony and legs of crystal. In the course of these swimming expeditions he ate all the living beings he encountered fastened to the rocks by antennas and arms.
The change of antennas and transmitting frequencies is made during the ten-minute interval between programmes, which always begin on the hour, preceded by the now familiar signature tune of a shepherd playing his flute with the tinkling of sheep-bells in the background, recorded in 1936, followed by the Greek National Anthem.
"You must be very careful in packing those butterfly cases; the slightest jar might break wings and antennas, you know." Le Bihan shook hands with me and pointed to the great pile of boxes. "They're all cork lined," he said, "but Fortin and I are putting felt around each box. The Entomological Society of Paris pays the freight."
Human beings ought not to draw in their antennas at every ungentle touch, like supersensitive insects. Is the remembrance of hours passed in gladsome kindly intercourse nothing to you? All through my journeyings I have thought of you continually. But it is absurd to continue in this vein.
The two down-link 8 element yagis are each fitted with a small D.C. motor directly coupled to a 9 inch length of M5 brass studding rotating inside a block of PTFE linked to a push rod which can move the antennas 75 degrees both sides of the vertical position, either in unison or in opposite directions.
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