• Question: what do you like about boats?

    Asked by bradley to Alex, Chris, Harriet, Jed, Ken on 14 Mar 2012.
    • Photo: Alexander Zacheshigriva

      Alexander Zacheshigriva answered on 14 Mar 2012:

      Oh. It is difficult to explain. I love the seas and rivers. I think they are beautiful and full of adventure. But we can not walk on them so we need boats to do that. I think boats often look really elegant as they cut through the waves. As an engineer I like that boats and ships are quite a one-off products and hence you have to be creative. There is no mathematical equation that tells you what the boat should look like. You have to use your intuitive to come up with the original idea and then use maths to work out the detail. Just a small example: if you want a boat for four people to cross the atlantic. You can go for a single hull or twin hull or trimaran. No one design is better outright. The problem is open ended and as an engineer you have to decide what way you will go.

    • Photo: Ken Gibbs

      Ken Gibbs answered on 14 Mar 2012:

      @bradley: It saves me from having to swim because I get cold in the water.

    • Photo: Jed Ramsay

      Jed Ramsay answered on 14 Mar 2012:

      Personally I haven’t got a big love of boats – although I do work with them quite a lot. They are quite relaxing to spend a day on though… but when you have to work as well it’s not quite the same!

      Give me a fast car over a boat anyday!

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