The Power of Culture…or what does the Space Shuttle has in common with ancient Rome’s engineers..

Railway tracks• The space between two

tracks in the US is 4 feet and 8,5 inches – a rather strange number…

Why this particular space? • Because the US railway was constructed in the same way that

it was constructed in Britain by British engineers who migrated to America. They thought that it would be a good idea to use the same locomotives as the ones used in Great Britain…

• And why then, did the British made their locomotives in this way? • Because the first railway tracks were constructed by the same

engineers that constructed the metro – and they used this specific space.

Why that specific space? • Because the metro was basically constructed by the same

people that made carriages, using the same tools and methods.

And why carriages have this specific space? • Because everywhere in Europe and in England, the roads were

full of gutters for the carriage wheels and therefore a different space would damage all the time the wheels.

And why gutters have that specific space between them?• Because the first big roads in Europe were

constructed by the Romans with the intent of moving easily their legions. The first carriages were the war carriages of Romans and they had two horses, side by side. The distance between the horses was calculated in such a way that each horse could ride without causing problem to the other.

• In order to ensure the stability of the carriage, the wheels were not aligned with the traces of horses while at the same time the wheels were not too far from each other so as to avoid accidents when two carriages would meet on the road.

So…What all these have to do with the Space Shuttle…?

Well...• If you see the Shuttle on its launch pad you can easily spot the

two fuel tanks boosters on each side of the major fuel booster.

• Thiokol, the manufacturing company is located in Utah. They would prefer to build those boosters bigger and larger – but the booster are transported via railway to the launching site

• The railway connection between the Thiokol factory in Utal and Cape Canaveral, goes through a tunnel at the Rocky Mountains. Because this is an old tunnel.. …• Its space is about 4 feet and 8,5

inches…• Enough for a Roman carriage of

two horses to pass or for a Shuttle booster for that matter..