The Logic Off Topic list

>Dennis Gunn wrote:
>>   While I worked in a patent law firm in the 80's I prosecuted and
>>   successfully obtained a patent for an invention that consisted of no
>>   more than a piled stone jetty completely encircling a body of water.
>>   Can you guess what it did?

I remember seeing something like this off the coast of St. Malo, 
France. It was a swimming pool (and also included a diving board). 
The jetty wasn't in place to keep out jellyfish or sharks. Rather, 
the purpose was to keep the pool filled with water when the tide went 
out. The water in that area was generally pretty shallow, and perhaps 
the area within the jetty was also dug out a bit. When the tide was 
in, the water washed over the top of the pool and filled it up.

I hope they weren't infringing on your patent, but it looked as if 
this pool had been there forever.

Lee Blaske