| NASA's Dryden Research Aircraft |
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The Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC),
located inside Edwards Air Force Base, is an
aeronautical research center operated by
NASA. On March 26, 1976 it was named in honor
of the late Hugh L. Dryden, a prominent
aeronautical engineer who at the time of his
death in 1965 was NASA's deputy
administrator. First known as the National
Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Muroc
Flight Test Unit, the DFRC has also been
known as the High-Speed Flight Research
Station (1949) and the High-Speed Flight
Station (1954).
Dryden is NASA's premier site for
aeronautical research and operates some of
the most advanced aircraft in the world. It
is also the home of the Shuttle Carrier
Aircraft (SCA), a modified Boeing 747
designed to carry a Space Shuttle orbiter
back to Kennedy Space Center if one lands at
Edwards. Kevin Petersen is currently the
Center's Director.
Until 2004, Dryden operated the oldest B-52
Stratofortress bomber, a B-52B model (tail
number 008) which had been converted to drop
test aircraft, dubbed 'Balls 8.' It dropped a
large number of supersonic test vehicles,
ranging from the X-15 to its last research
program, the hypersonic X-43A, powered by a
Pegasus rocket. It was also the last B-52B
still flying, but had the fewest flight hours
of any existing B-52 bomber. The aircraft was
retired and will eventually find a permanent
home at the North Gate of Edwards; a fitting
location for an aircraft that was arguably
the greatest contributor to aerospace and
flight test development.
Tags : NASA dryden research aircraft airplane aviation helicopter b-52 x-1 xb-70 crash cool amazing john parr van halen |
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Affichage : 2483
Durée : 515 s |
| John Dryden 'A Song for St. Cecilia's Day, 1687 |
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A Song for St. Cecilia's Day, 1687
by John Dryden
( video portrait )
read by Jan Francis
FROM harmony, from heavenly harmony,
This universal frame began:
When nature underneath a heap
Of jarring atoms lay,
And could not heave her head,
The tuneful voice was heard from high,
'Arise, ye more than dead!'
Then cold, and hot, and moist, and dry,
In order to their stations leap,
And Music's power obey.
From harmony, from heavenly harmony,
This universal frame began:
From harmony to harmony
Through all the compass of the notes it ran,
The diapason closing full in Man.
What passion cannot Music raise and quell?
When Jubal struck the chorded shell,
His listening brethren stood around,
And, wondering, on their faces fell
To worship that celestial sound:
Less than a God they thought there could not
dwell
Within the hollow of that shell,
That spoke so sweetly, and so well.
What passion cannot Music raise and quell?
The trumpet's loud clangour
Excites us to arms,
With shrill notes of anger,
And mortal alarms.
The double double double beat
Of the thundering drum
Cries Hark! the foes come;
Charge, charge, 'tis too late to retreat!
The soft complaining flute,
In dying notes, discovers
The woes of hopeless lovers,
Whose dirge is whisper'd by the warbling
lute.
Sharp violins proclaim
Their jealous pangs and desperation,
Fury, frantic indignation,
Depth of pains, and height of passion,
For the fair, disdainful dame.
But O, what art can teach,
What human voice can reach,
The sacred organ's praise?
Notes inspiring holy love,
Notes that wing their heavenly ways
To mend the choirs above.
Orpheus could lead the savage race;
And trees unrooted left their place,
Sequacious of the lyre;
But bright Cecilia rais'd the wonder higher:
When to her organ vocal breath was given,
An angel heard, and straight appear'd
Mistaking Earth for Heaven.
Audio created by Robert Nichol
AudioProductions
all rights reserved
Tags : JohnDryden ASongforstCecilia'sDay poem RNaudioproductions humanities social scie language perform |
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Affichage : 348
Durée : 176 s |
| A Dryden Poem and Handel Concerto |
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IN PRAISE OF MUSIC ...
I realize I'm a bit early [or late] to be
honoring St. Cecilia's Day (patron saint of
music, martyred on November 22), but recently
I have become energized through the power and
beauty of this incredible art Cecilia's
spirit embodies. Oh, "what joy" to share
this extra dimension in creativity! As
described by the English poet, John Dryden
(1631-1700), in his 1687 Song for St.
Cecilia's Day ... "What passion cannot music
raise and quell!" I always wondered if
Dryden meant this to be voiced as a question
or as an rhetorical exclamation. In the
video which follows, I repeat the line,
inflecting both intentions. However one
chooses to say the words, music's "passion"
is contagious and compelling. Here is my
"concert reading" of John Dryden's poem used
as the libretto for Handel's 1739 "Ode to St.
Cecilia," followed by my playing of an
excerpt from Handel's Organ Concerto #5.
Tags : John Dryden Saint Cecilia Handel Organ Concerto #5 Bob Swift |
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Affichage : 2126
Durée : 332 s |
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