The Susceptibility Bridge

Two policemen are dragging a bicycle out of Lake Geneva and on to the walkway.

Ouf! says policeman one.

Alors! says the other. A qui est ce velo mouillé?

It's my son's bicycle! says Em, running forward with Oscar. Thank the nice policemen, Oscar!

Thank you, policemen, says Oscar.

Bien, but a fine will pertain to this recovery, says policeman one.

.......

Bugger, says Em, I don't feel like finishing the Big Bang now. Come on, Oscar.

Aww, says Oscar.

Never mind 'aww', says Em. Say goodbye to Terence.

Farewell, blood brother, says Oscar.

Where am I going? asks Terence.

It's all for the best, says David. You need to get that bird home to Ferney.

Call it Oscar, says Oscar.

OSCAR! says Terence.

Ee! ee! croaks the baby-crane-parrot.

And then: Cacghh! It coughs up something nasty.

Look at that, says Vello. It spat up something nasty. Perhaps that was the trouble.

.........

Vello, David and Terence are on their way back to Ferney.

Terence sits on the back rack behind David, holding his helmet, in which squats the lucky wee crane.

Croo-croo-croo, says Terence.

Quark-quark-quark, says the lucky wee crane.

I can't call him Oscar, says Terence. Oscar's my blood brother.

I quite see that, says David. I would feel just the same.

How about Arouet? says Vello. It rhymes with parrouet.

But Terence doesn't like Arouet. He has decided on 'BANG'.

...........

While they cycle the three kilometres to Ferney, let us focus on Gaius.

Gaius is still in Utrecht.

Gaius has been given the run of the Paleomagnetic Lab at Fort Hoofddjik.

The Fort is housed in a historical bunker in the Utrecht University Gardens, and boasts a variety of instruments used to investigate the magnetism of earth rocks ( and other material ).

The lab has a DC-Squid magnetometer, the first ever made

An RF-Squid magnetometer

Two JRSA spinner magnetometers

A Bartington susceptometer and sensor

A susceptibility bridge

A Micro MAG

A Franz isodynamic magnetic separator....

In the past week, Gaius has twiddled many magnetometer knobs and made copious notes in his notebook. He has tinkered productively with the susceptibility bridge, and read the Micro MAG.

He is ready to leave now. There is only one problem.