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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Barnes Wallis
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(1887–1979, kt 1968) Aviation designer and inventor. He designed the successful airship R-100, taken out of service after the disaster of the *R-101, and it was the geodesic principles (he called them 'geodetics') of his rigid airship frame which led to his fabric-covered *Wellington bomber in World War II. His greatest stroke of genius was in devising the bombs of the *Dam Busters, which bounced on the water and were given a reverse spin, forcing them down the surface of the dam to be exploded at the most effective depth by a pressure device.
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