Falkirk Wheel
Opened in 2002, this boat lift connects the Forth-Clyde Canal with the Union Canal. Instead of a flight of locks to negotiate the height difference, this landmark structure was proposed. It raises one or two canal boats 24m. The boats float in 250,000L of water in each pod. Because they are counterbalanced (a computer adds and removes water from each pod to ensure this is the case) only a small amount of energy is required to complete a rotation (equivalent to boiling 8 kettles of water, they say).
Great Britain, the dominant industrial and maritime power of the 19th century, played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the ear... ... read more 
