LE VAISSEAU SUR LA COLLINE (The ship on the hill)

The University of Algiers is 50 years old. It is an organisation grouping together four faculties. While disciplines such as law and literature are taught in the traditional way, the same cannot be said for other fields, such as science, which uses modern techniques. They were studied in a wide variety of places, because the … Continued

DU SEL, DU CALCAIRE, DU COKE (Salt, limestone, coke)

Colour film, B/W screening element. Film showing the various stages in the manufacture of polyvinyl chloride from its basic compounds: salt, limestone, coke and electricity. This new material is used in textiles, leather goods and upholstery, interior fittings and also in industry: manufacture of sheaths for electrical cables, packaging products, microgroove discs, etc.

PROFONDEUR 4050 (Depth 4050)

Diving to great depths was only possible following extensive experiments conducted by Professor Picard with the Batyscaphe off Dakar. The first experiment showed the FNRS II Batyscaphe reaching a depth of 1,500 metres in a non-embarked dive and, despite being watertight, having suffered enormously from the swell. Two years later, the Bathyscaphe FNRS III, built … Continued

PRESTIGE DE LA QUALITÉ (Prestige of quality)

Every heartbeat sends out regenerated blood that nourishes living cells and sustains life. Every day, countless pumps, veritable “metallic hearts” whose rhythm sets the pace of modern industrial life, transport not only water but a wide variety of fluids. Through its many examples, this film shows that modern industry can meet every demand in this … Continued

MONSIEUR ET MADAME CURIE (Mr and Mrs Curie)

Pierre and Marie Curie’s work, which led to the discovery of radium and radioactivity, began with a photographic plate that was inexplicably obscured. The greatest discovery of the century was above all the work of a couple of genius researchers, who owed their success to a tenacious will, more than to the paltry means at … Continued

CONQUERING THE COLD

Original title : La Conquête du Froid For thousands of years, hostile to man and beast alike, the cold was nothing more than a natural scourge linked to the eternal return of winter. In the course of the last century, the liquefaction of certain gases made it possible to produce artificial cold, the useful and … Continued

COLOMB BECHAR, DOOR OF THE SKY

Original title : Colomb Béchar, porte du ciel Although the name Colomb Béchar conjures up images of a sun-drenched city in the sands, anyone visiting for the first time is immediately caught by the fresh spell of this oasis, whose contrast with the nearby desert seems so immense that it perpetually renews the idea of … Continued

THE PARIS METROPOLITAN RAILWAY

Original title : Le Chemin de fer métropolitain de Paris There are two versions of this film. The first dates from 1934 and lasts 15′. The second is from 1948 and lasts 13′. It’s a reduced version with a reworked commentary and different music. “The metro was born in 1900 with the Universal Exhibition, thus … Continued

HARD WHEAT, SEMOLINA AND FANTASY

Original title : Blé dur, semoule et fantaisie From Olympus to the present day, pasta has often been the stuff of tales and legends, and the stuff of history. Even today, their role in modern life deserves to be highlighted, particularly the complex organisation that, from the harvest in Algeria, transports durum wheat to silos … Continued