The Femto Forum in association with Femto Forum members ip.ccess, picoChip and Ubiquisys are delighted to have the opportunity to sponsor the Cellular 25 special auction.

We have three items for you to bid for – you can bid as a table or as an individual – all proceeds go directly to the Science Museum and we can accept cash, a cheque or a credit card as payment (or can raise a post event invoice)

The items are:

The Hidden Museum Tour

The origins of the patent system go back to the fifteenth century; the Patent Office itself was set up in 1852 to act as the United Kingdom’s sole office for the granting of patents for inventions. The Designs Registry, which was set up in 1839, became part of the Patent Office in 1875. The patent office was lampooned by Dickens (the office of circumlocution) but has left a lasting legacy. During the 18th and 19th centuries inventors were encouraged to submit early built examples of their work to provide the basis for intellectual protection. The result is an almost unique collection of engineering exhibits which the Science Museum took over in 1909. Many of these priceless icons of invention remain in long term store at the Science Museum Blythe Road store in Hammersmith and are rarely seen by the public.
The Hidden Museum Tour can accommodate up to ten people and will be hosted by the Science Museum’s curator of communications, John Liffen and Tilly Blyth, curator of computing at a future date to be agreed.
Meet at Blythe Road at 2.00, guided tour, followed by tea and ancient biscuits, finishing at 5.00

The Brewery Tour

James Joule was a brewer and so was Marconi’s mum (heiress to the Jameson Irish whisky fortune).

Telecommunications engineering has always had a symbiotic relationship with the brewing industry.

In Hammersmith we are lucky to have on our door step one of the finest breweries in Britain (and arguably in Europe), Fuller Smith Turner, the home of London Pride.

Beer has been brewed on Fuller's Chiswick site for over 350 years - as far back as the era of Oliver Cromwell. From the original brewery in the gardens of Bedford House on Chiswick Mall, the business expanded and thrived until the early part of the nineteenth century. Money problems forced the owners, who were then Douglas and Henry Thompson and Philip Wood, to seek a partner.

John Fuller, of Neston Park, Wiltshire was approached to see if he would inject the required amount of money. In 1829 he joined the enterprise, but the partnership proved a difficult one and in 1841 Douglas Thompson fled to France and the partnership was dissolved.

It soon became apparent that it was impossible for one man with no brewing experience to run a brewery of that size alone, so in 1845 John Fuller's son, John Bird Fuller, was joined by Henry Smith from the Romford Brewery of Ind & Smith and his brother-in-law, Head Brewer John Turner, thereby forming Fuller Smith & Turner, as it is still known today.

The brewery tour is for ten people – the best thing to do is to meet at the Mawson’s Arms adjacent to the brewery for an absorbent lunch and a light ale or two, you will then be taken for a guided tour of the old and new brewery followed by a leisurely 45 minutes in the tasting hall.

It will then be about 5.00 and time to head out to sample the delights of other Hammersmith and Chiswick hostelries.

Note it is generally not a good idea to drive or cycle home after this event.

The Femto Cake

When you bid for this item you get a magnificent cake but you may need to share this with your friends and other tables...PLUS

The Vodafone Access Gateway
But you ALSO get a very fine femtocell to take home - a Vodafone Access Gateway. We’d like to thank gracious donors & fellow Femto Forum members and Vodafone for this item.

As you eat the cake remember... 

A piece of cake
It’s that easy to set up a femtocell at home or in a small office.

A slice of cake
As well as making customers happier, femtocells can help reduce costs and provide new revenue opportunities.

Let them eat cake
Femtocells deliver premium call quality and high-speed mobile data..
We are delighted to be sponsors for this auction. Please dig deep for a worthwhile cause.

About the new gallery – The Making of Modern Communications

The Science Museum is planning a major rebuild project which will visually and physically link the existing The Making of the Modern World Gallery, the venue for our networking drinks, with a new gallery on the first floor, The Making of Modern Science, a repurposing of the existing computing and maths exhibits, visually and physically linked to a second new gallery on the second floor, The Making of Modern Communications which will be visually and physically linked to the Flight Gallery where we are having dinner. The Flight Gallery will be linked to a new roof top which will house astronomical exhibits and a new café.

The Making of Modern Communications will be inspirationally educational, designed to inform and inspire a new generation of telecommunication engineers.

The Science Museum is keen to encourage industry partnerships to help shape the new gallery.

The contact point at the Science Museum is sue.fisher@nmsi.ac.uk, Director of Development. Tel: 01904 686 277