When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

Chapter 1049 Leonardo and His Graduate Student (Part 1)

In February 1455, the sunlight slanted through the glass windows, casting long strips of light into the lecture hall of the Faculty of Engineering at St. John's University.

Almost half a year has passed since the end of the Sixth Grand Council, and if there is any difference...

That is, in the past six months, almost every week there have been seven or eight scholar families, a dozen or so merchant families, and hundreds of craftsmen apprentices moving in.

Adding them up bit by bit, nearly two hundred people move into the Holy Relic Court every week.

In the past six months, the Holy Mechanism has seen a settlement increase of nearly five thousand people.

The total population of the Holy Regiment is now approaching 160,000, and even the dock town of Newport near the Newborn Bridge has a population of nearly 10,000.

The reason so many people relocated was not only due to natural population inflow, but also because the project of collating the Gospels attracted a large number of scholars and monks.

This led to a surge in population in the research district university area on the north shore of St. Regis.

Furthermore, the introduction of a policy by St. John's University that allows newly hired teachers to bring their own students to enroll has further exacerbated the overcrowding of students at the university.

It is said that starting next year, the government will require candidates to take exams when recruiting administrative monks.

However, all of this had nothing to do with Leonardo DiCaprio, who was still studying the "Celestial Scroll" and the top-secret "ether clock" technology.

Occasionally, someone would take him out of the Machine Palace and persuade him to teach the students.

It was only at times like this that Leonardo would remember that he was supposed to be the dean of the "Santa Catherine University College of Engineering"?

Standing behind the podium, Leonardo's fingertips tapped the table.

It was a wooden table with copper rails inlaid on it, with gears of different sizes, levers, and boards of different materials on it.

"Gentlemen." His voice was not loud, but it instantly silenced the nearly one hundred young faces below.

Before you stepped through this door, you might have thought that mechanical engineers and blacksmiths were no different.

But if you still think that way in the future, then you're a complete idiot!

He picked up a gear, turned it in the sunlight, and the shadow of the teeth cast flowing arcs on the wall: "What is machinery? Order! It is the order that turns chaotic forces into useful work."

These new students are all top students from various high schools and mentors, so they naturally won't be noisy.

Upon hearing Leonardo's explanation, the tips of their quill pens and charcoal pencils immediately began to scratch and rustle on the paper.

After taking notes on Leonardo's key points, a curly-haired boy in the front row couldn't help but raise his hand: "Dean, what is that force?"

Leonardo laughed, picked up the pulley system on the wooden table, with a bronze weight attached to one end of the rope: "Look."

He released his grip, and the weight sank, causing the oak block on the other end to slowly rise.

"Force is what makes stones roll and windmills turn."

Just as a strong wind can blow off a roof, it can also be tamed by a windmill and become the power source for grinding flour.

This is the science of motion—how to direct force in the direction you want it to go.

A low murmur arose from the back row. Leonardo picked up a round ruler with markings and drew a curve on the blackboard.

"We understand what you've said, but how do we research these areas of knowledge?"

His knuckles tapped the inflection point of the curve: "This is the last thing I want to say. You should know that the mechanical engineers of our Holy Mechanism are different from those of other places."

Reason and experience guide our Holy Way Sect in practicing good deeds, and also guide our mechanical design.

Reason will tell you about the principle of leverage, but experience will tell you whether your understanding of the principle is right or wrong...

As Leonardo walked out of the lecture hall, the February wind blew in, carrying fine snowflakes.

He tightened the scarf around his neck, glanced back at the noisy classroom, and could still hear bursts of laughter.

These students are still too inexperienced.

I rolled up the lecture notes, tucked them under my arm, and walked along the cobblestone path toward the rows of research institutes behind the university.

That was where his graduate students lived, and it was also the liveliest place at St. John's University.

The snow at the edge of the grassy area hadn't completely melted, revealing the dark green soil underneath.

A dozen or so students dressed in coarse cloth overalls were busy around a mechanical device that was about half a person's height.

Wrenches, screwdrivers, and forging hammers pounded against the iron hoops, the click-clack of brass gears mingling with the hum of a clockwork engine. It was the prototype of a small crane, with a hundred-pound iron block hanging from the end of its boom.

A short-haired girl was squatting next to the base, measuring the gear spacing with calipers, muttering to herself, "Why does it bite so hard?"

For the first time, a slight smile appeared on Leonardo's face. He approached and paused to look at him for a moment.

The pouting girl straightened up, about to call for help, when she spotted Leonardo DiCaprio.

She hurriedly bowed: "Professor Leonard, I'm testing a new pawl design, based on the parameters in your paper last year..."

"These aren't my parameters, they're the force parameters." He waved his hand, pointing his fingertip to the connection point of the boom. "The oak isn't strong enough; just replace it with wrought iron."

The materials list I wrote back then was because wrought iron was expensive, but now the price has dropped, and it's completely affordable.

Tables are inanimate, but people are alive. Don't blindly follow everything just because I wrote it.

"Oh, I see." The girl's eyes lit up, and she immediately called to her companion, "Get a hot plate, quick!"

"Alright, I have something to do, so I'll be going now." Halfway there, Leonardo turned around again. "Also, Kuswania, don't be late for the group meeting the day after tomorrow like last time."

Kuswania stuck out her tongue: "It's the middle of winter, it's hard to wash your hair..."

Leonardo wanted to say, "Can't you be like your seniors and not wash your hair all winter?"

Thinking about it later, she was his only female graduate student, and since he didn't know her, he decided to let it go.

A few steps further on, you'll see another group of students gathered around a hanging frame.

Round lead balls were dropped from the same height, striking the wooden boards, iron plates, and laminated cardboard placed side by side.

With each impact, students could be seen recording their observations on cardboard, which were then compiled into a line graph.

Currently, St. John's University tends to delve deeper into the fundamental properties of matter, such as compressive and tensile strength.

As for the Dragon Language Alchemy University on the other side, it is more famous for its spiritual properties related to matter.

However, what's even more famous than these is the constant billowing green smoke and explosions at Dragon Language Alchemy University.

They chat and laugh in wheelchairs, but no one comes and goes.

But Leonardo still has to go to the Dragon Language Alchemy University from time to time to get some new materials from them.

It must be said that these alchemists are quite skilled; they often manage to create materials that even dwarves cannot.

It is very expensive and can often only be used on prototypes.

The clock tower chimed ten times, the ticking of the brass pendulum mingling with the clicking of the mechanical movement.

Leonardo looked up and saw a huge gear set embedded in the side of the clock tower.

Through the glass casing, you can see the internal transmission structure, which is a timekeeping device he designed himself ten years ago.

Today, it has not only been transformed from blueprints into a physical object, but has also become one of the landmarks of St. John's University.

After turning a corner, they arrived at a small courtyard surrounded by a wall. Leonardo took out the key, but twisted it with an extremely small and light wrist.

The door was slowly opened, and he tiptoed in, crossed the cobblestone ground of the courtyard, and walked along the long corridor.

Arriving at the door of a research lab, he took a deep breath and rushed inside.

Five graduate students were gathered around a square table, facing the door, one of them with a broad smile on his face.

Seeing the door open, his smile remained unchanged, and he moved from stillness to movement, as if he were coming from somewhere else.

He picked up the wrench from the windowsill, then walked back to his desk with a big smile, keeping his head down and not saying a word.

After noticing the actions of the research student, the other research students either drank water or picked up books, and soon scattered in all directions.

Only the tall, thin graduate student, who had his back to the door, remained seated in his original spot. He finally finished shuffling his cards: "Hey, where is everyone?"

The room was completely silent until a hand with bulging veins pressed down on his shoulder.

He instinctively turned his head in the direction of the palm and saw Leonardo's ashen but smiling face.

(End of this chapter)