Just joined and from Scotland. We can all thank another Scotsman for keeping us out of the mud:
Extract from Wikipedia:
John Loudon McAdam (21 September 1756 – 26 November 1836) was a
Scottish engineer and road-builder. He invented a new process, "
macadamisation", for building roads with a smooth hard surface that would be more durable and less muddy than
soil-based tracks.
Modern road construction still reflects McAdam's influence. Of subsequent improvements, the most significant was the introduction of
tar (originally
coal tar) to bind the road surface's stones together – "
tarmac" (for Tar Macadam) – followed later by the use of hot-laid tarred
aggregate or tar-sprayed chippings to create better
road metalling. More recently,
oil-based
asphalt laid on
reinforced concrete has become a major road surface, but its use of granite or
limestone chippings still recalls McAdam's innovation.
Ian