On Lights and Light

As we walked past Vienna's glowing Cafe Central one evening...

I noticed these illuminated glass blocks in the sidewalk that provide daylight to the cellar below...

which reminds me of the great idea shipbuilders had in the mid-1800s. They would embed glass prisms into the decks of ships to provide a scattered light to lower decks. I'm thinking someday I'll put a deck prism into the roof of my backyard shed to get light into the space without electricity. Click HERE for photos and the full story about deck prisms and why a prism is more effective than a glass block. If you'd like, you can also order a reproduction (they happen to be on sale now). A friend of mine has one on his office desk. It makes quite a hefty paperweight and conversation piece.