Dr William Whewell | John Prescott | International Apostrophe Day | University vice-chancellors | Musk and Trump
Re pylons (Letters, 12 August), as an admirer of these vital lifelines with their graceful catenaries, I often recall the words of Dr William Whewell (1794-1866), in his Elementary Treatise on Mechanics: “Hence no force however great can stretch a cord however fine into an horizontal line which is accurately straight: there will always be a bending downwards.”
Ian Forman
Bishopthorpe, North Yorkshire
• Your report (English councils poised to get powers to buy greenbelt land without overpaying, 12 August) brought to mind the words of the MP John Prescott in a 1998 interview: “The green belt is a Labour achievement – and we mean to build on it.”
Anne J Palmer
Shillington, Hertfordshire
