Well in Cambridge over the past couple of days it has been pretty windy - the back-end of an Atlantic hurricane (well, post-tropical depression) is off the west coast of Ireland and so we've received a bit of the brunt. Most of the actual gale-force winds are off the coasts of Ireland and Wales, but it's still been blustery here. The problem with this is that Cambridge has a lot of trees - some old, some new, and most with some form of hard fruit on them.
Most probably know the tale of Newton's "eureka!" moment, when he was sitting under a tree and an apple fell on his head, causing him to realise that gravity was a fundamental force that could be described using his second law of motion (F=ma, or in this case F=mg). You can see the tree and its story in the Cambridge University Botanical Gardens, just east (and a little south) of the Engineering Department on Trumpington Street. This story may or may not be true, but today I realised that I'm in no doubt as to whether or not Sir Newton received a blow to the head from a falling tree seed.
Cycling in to work this morning was more like going through a military obstacle course - weaving in between the fallen chestnuts on the floor (and some other green spiky objects which I wasn't sure about - I don't know my trees!) and at the same time trying to avoid falling nuts and branches. Probably the worst part is the wind kicking up little bits of dust and leaves into your eyes. All in all, a pretty rough ride compared to the usual peace in the flat lands of Cambridgeshire!
As I got back to college I head a loud "thunk" as a chestnut fell out of the tree and hit a Volvo parked just next to where I was. I couldn't help but wonder if someone else more fated than I received a bump to the noggin today, and whether or not that would push them to some scientific epiphany!
