Polymethyl methacrylate, in the future, its common name will be called plexiglass, or acrylic.
But for now, this is still a polymer that does not exist in this world.
The development of plexiglass and the development of the aircraft manufacturing industry between World War I and World War II can be regarded as mutually reinforcing.
With the advancement of technology and industry, airplanes fly faster and faster, flying at higher and higher altitudes. The air at high altitudes becomes thinner and colder, and the oncoming wind becomes stronger and stronger.
As the environment becomes increasingly harsh, the use of an open-top cockpit design is likely to pose a certain risk to the driver's personal safety, so closed cockpits have to be adopted.
In order not to block the driver's field of vision, glass gradually appeared on the aircraft.
However, glass is inherently fragile. In order to prevent changes in air pressure or possible breakage caused by bird strikes, the glass on the aircraft must be very thick, and the windows cannot be opened too large.
This increases the load on the aircraft and reduces the pilot's field of vision.
If, as Chen Muwu said, there is such a material that is as transparent as glass, is lighter than glass, is stronger than glass, and has better weather resistance, it will indeed bring great benefits to aircraft. promote.
Some people may say that in order to make some money, Chen Muwu produced plexiglass in advance for use on airplanes, which is a disguised act of funding the enemy.
The more advanced the enemy's weapons are, the more intensified the aggression against China will be.
But in fact, the emergence of plexiglass has the least impact on the development of aircraft.
Without engines with more thrust and more aerodynamic aircraft design drawings, the performance of the aircraft will not be significantly improved.
So replacing the glass on airplanes with plexiglass is really the most insignificant thing.
Moreover, Chen Muwu only knew that this material was called polymethyl methacrylate, which is a polymer polymerized from methyl methacrylate.
Although he told Dowding that he could provide this material.
But Chen Muwu had no idea whether he could make plexiglass in the laboratory and how long it would take to make the first piece of plexiglass.
However, this does not affect his bragging. The military has always been generous in its investment in weapons and equipment, and Chen Langtai will never get too much research funding.
In fact, Chen Muwu didn't need to explain so much. Daoding was very interested in this new material that he didn't know what it was called.
However, what attracted him most was not the lightness or ease of processing, but bulletproofness.
A bulletproof and transparent material can not only be installed in aircraft and fly into the sky, but also has great uses on land.
Replacement glass installed on cars, carriages and even tanks also provides an extra layer of protection for personal safety.
But Dowding is also a master who doesn't let go of eagles when he sees rabbits.
He couldn't just take Chen Muwu's word for it and decide to do business with him out of thin air without even seeing the actual samples.
Even if this new material is indeed as magical as Chen Muwu said, Brigadier General Daoding cannot make the final decision.
Now he didn't bother to use what he had seen and heard in Hagang to get close to Chen Muwu. Instead, he couldn't wait to discuss this new material with Chen Muwu: "Dr. Chen, this new material you mentioned is brought to you today." come yet?"
"of course not."
Chen Muwu thought to himself, I only came up with this idea after meeting you, so how could I carry it with me.
"Then when can I see this new material?"
Chen Muwu was invited here today to give a speech to the gang of ghost clubs.
If he continued to discuss business with Dowding, it would be a bit overwhelming and not very polite.
"You might as well leave me your address and I'll contact you in a few days."
Chen Muwu was not afraid that Daoding would look down on the "new material" plexiglass he proposed, nor was he afraid that the British Royal Air Force would steal this technology and patent from him.
After all, in addition to Dowding, he also had another potential buyer, the Duke of York that Huxley just mentioned.
Following the tradition of the royal family, Prince Albert enlisted as a soldier when he was young and entered the Royal Navy.
Logically speaking, a prince's military service should be like Zhao Mengsheng in "Wreaths Under the Mountain", just a formality.
But he didn't expect that a few years after he joined the army, a war broke out in Europe.
Prince Edward was also serving in the British army at the time, but as the British crown prince and future heir to the throne, no one dared to let Prince Edward visit the front line in person.
But as the second eldest son of the king's family, Prince Albert immediately became the unlucky guy whose grandma did not care for his uncle. No one cared about his life and death as much as they cared about his eldest brother.
Albert participated in the most intense Battle of Jutland in World War I. I wonder if he had met Blackett, who also participated in this naval battle.
In this way, Prince Albert became the first British monarch to participate in a war on the front line in nearly a hundred years after William IV.
Later he transferred from the Royal Navy to the Royal Air Force, learned aircraft piloting skills, and was promoted to squadron leader.
After leaving the army and being created Duke of York by his father, King George V, he began to assume more royal responsibilities, visiting coal mines, factories and railways for his father, earning the nickname "The Prince of Industry".
Chen Muwu thought that it would be better to do business with the Royal Air Force than directly with the Royal Family.
The crown prince of Sweden directly connected him with the Wallenberg family, the richest family in Sweden.
Although the British prince is the second oldest, he can't stand up to the great empire and the resources in his hands should not be any worse than Gustav's.
If General Dowding is not interested in plexiglass, then he can go directly to the Duke of York to talk.
The Duke of York also served in the air force and was also interested in industry.
Moreover, Huxley just said that the Duke of York often used Chen Muwu's name at private parties to brag to their group of Oxford graduates.
Is this bragging in vain? If you have infringed on your name rights, you have to let go.
…
With Doyle's introduction, Chen Muwu finally recognized the dozen or so people present today.
As for the lecture on parallel universes, Chen Muwu spoke for less than half an hour in total.
He only talked about physics and didn't mention a word about ghosts.
Next was the question-and-answer session from the audience. The questions asked were all very amateurish, and some of them had even appeared in the lecture just now.
It can be seen that except for a few fanatics like Doyle, most of these people are not so serious about ghosts and gods.
They seemed to just use this ghost club as a social place to discharge their excess energy.
After the meal, someone went to the next room to play a few rounds of mahjong.
Although he knew that the stakes of these people must be very high, Chen Muwu would definitely not participate because his level was very limited, and he missed an opportunity to win money for the school.
Chen Muwu didn't want to go, so naturally Doyle, as the person who invited him to give the lecture, couldn't go either.
Still unwilling to give up, he continued to discuss the issue of parallel universes with Chen Muwu: "Dr. Chen, your lecture tonight is very exciting. But I want to confirm again that we are communicating with other people in another parallel universe. Do you think it really can’t be achieved?”
"Instead of believing that we can communicate with them, it is better to believe that there are real UFOs in this world."
Chen Muwu complained softly.
Doyle asked in confusion: "UFO? What is that?"
It's over, are you talking too much again?
But Chen Muwu couldn't find another explanation for this abbreviation for a while, so he had to tell the truth to Doyle: "Sir Doyle, do you believe in the existence of aliens?
"UFO, Unidentified Flying Object, UFO. It is recorded in ancient books both in China and Europe. People can occasionally see some weird things in the sky during the day or evening, and they cannot tell what they are. .
"They are not like birds, not like clouds, not like kites, airships or airplanes.
“I think these things may be the means of transportation for aliens, and they may be riding this kind of UFO to visit our earth.
"This is exactly a setting in a science fiction piece I'm currently imagining."
"Dr. Chen, you mean, science fiction...?"
"Yes, Sir, exactly. As the most famous detective writer in the UK, I wonder if you have read the George Chen series recently?"
“Of course, that book was really well written, and it was the first time I saw a Chinese as the protagonist’s detective.
"And it is a coincidence that the Chinese genius is also named Chen. I think this is the author's way of paying tribute to Dr. Chen after reading all your glorious deeds in the newspaper.
"But why did you suddenly mention that book? Or are you, Dr. Chen, the author behind it?"
"As expected of a writer who can create the great literary image of Sherlock Holmes, you guessed it right, Sir, I am the author of George Chen.
"All of this happened by accident. I had a few friends at Cambridge University who opened a publishing house after graduation, which was Penguin Press.
“But because it is a new publishing house, I can’t find authors to cooperate with, so I can only try to ask friends and classmates around me for manuscripts.
"I heard about this incident by chance, so I submitted an article with the idea of giving it a try. I didn't expect that it passed all the screenings, and I didn't expect that it would be liked by a large number of readers, and it would become an instant hit in the UK. red.
"The situation is like this. Now the entire publishing house relies on my few books for revenue, but I don't have any good ideas recently, so I just thought of not writing detectives first and trying science fiction creation."
Chen Muwu thought that in this case, he might as well just have a showdown with Doyle. He also thought of another new idea.
"Oh my God!" After hearing this answer, Doyle exclaimed, "Dr. Chen, you hide it really deep! Not only me, but other famous detective writers in the UK are also very impressed by the George Chen series of books. interest.
“But rather than guessing how George Chen solved the puzzle at the last moment, everyone is more interested in who the author of this set of books, Mr. York, is.
"If you hadn't told me today, I would never have imagined that it was you behind George Chen."
Now that the final report had been made, Chen Muwu directly sent an invitation to Doyle to write a manuscript.
"Sir, only God knows about this matter and you know it and I know it. Please don't tell others.
"Also, I have a heartfelt request. You have always been my idol, and Sherlock Holmes is also my favorite literary image.
"I hope you can create a linkage between Sherlock Holmes and George Chen, as a way to help promote my George Chen.
"I guarantee you that if you write such an article, Penguin will never treat you unfairly in terms of compensation.
"At the same time, I will also add parallel universes to future research topics. If I have the opportunity, I will conduct an in-depth study on the feasibility of communication between us and another universe."
Chen Muwu knew that Doyle was not short of money at all thanks to the royalties from the Sherlock Holmes series.
No matter how much money Penguin Press offers, if he doesn't want to write it, he won't write it.
That's why Chen Muwu coaxed Doyle somewhat unconscionably, saying that he would study parallel universes, hoping that he could create a linkage work between Sherlock Holmes and George Chen.
If there is Doyle's endorsement, then the influence of Fu Manchu, written by the clown Luo Heigu, in Europe and the United States will not be the opponent of George Chen.
"This is a good suggestion. I don't have any problem, it's just..."
"Just what?"
Chen Muwu asked eagerly, he didn't want to hear the news of rejection.
"...Dr. Chen, do you still lack money for your research on parallel universes? If not, just let me know. I will go to the United States to give a lecture tour, which should be enough to provide you with research funds!"
He really made me cry to death.
He deceived Doyle, and Doyle deceived the Americans.
The Americans probably never imagined that they came to the UK under the banner of spiritualism in order to defraud British fools like Doyle out of their money.
Unexpectedly, Doyle was able to defraud more money from their fellow Americans.
"Okay, Sir Doyle, I will start with you if necessary. I will contact Penguin Publishing in the next few days and ask them to send professionals to communicate with you on related issues."
"No problem, Dr. Chen, then I wish us a happy cooperation in advance!"
…
After attending this banquet-style lecture, in addition to receiving the long-discussed remuneration of 1,000 pounds, Chen Muwu also met many unexpected celebrities, found a possible channel for doing business with the Royal Air Force, and also received Doyle, the author of Sherlock Holmes, endorsed George Chen, and his trip was really fruitful.
After arriving in London, Chen Muwu had already met young Marcus from Sweden and had given lectures to everyone in the Ghost Club. Next, he should return to the David-Faraday experiment as soon as possible.
However, he didn't go there to study the established magnetic effects of superconductors. Instead, he wanted to quickly get a sample of organic glass out and make some money to spend.
(End of chapter)
