I came across something that may shed some light
on the discussion of relative orientation of cells in
adjacent frames.

Given the statements quoted below, I am forced to wonder
if the entire "positioning" discussion is best viewed as
the beekeeping version of Jonathan Swift's description of
the Big-Endian/Little-Endian wars in Gulliver's Travels.

Those who have not read Swift in decades can read here
http://www.jaffebros.com/lee/gulliver/dict/b.html#bigend
and here
http://www.jaffebros.com/lee/gulliver/bk1/chap1-7.html


The following is quoted from "ABC & XYZ of Bee Culture",
40th Edition (1990), starting on page 105:

  "COMB, NATURAL -

  ...In all species of honey bees, the tops are either
  peaked or flat; the bees build comb with both orientations.

  In the same natural nest, while the cells within a comb will
  be the same, each comb may have a different orientation.

          [Read the line above twice!]

  Apparently, the strength of a comb is not affected by the
  orientation of its cells.  Manufactured comb foundation is
  usually made with the sides horizontal and the peak upward;
  the older bee literature contain much controversy about which
  orientation is better.  Those who argued for one orientation
  against the other did not ask the bees their preference.
  One Englishman who examined natural comb in natural nests
  found the following:

    - Combs with vertical tops and bottoms - 131
    - Combs with horizontal sides - 123
    - Combs with both orientations - 1
    - Combs that were intermediate - 13

  Huber, the famous Swiss naturalist, noted that the cells attached
  to the top of the hive were often pentagons and not hexagons.
  (For further discussion see Morse, R. A. 'Cell orientation and comb
  strength in honeybee colonies', Gleanings in Bee Culture 111:10,
  14, 16, 18-19  1983)..."

[I guess that would be the November 1983 issue.]


        jim  (who detests all soft-boiled eggs equally)