Fresnals / solar navigator

http://www.solarnavigator.net/history/fresnel_lens.htm

Augustin-Jean Fresnel
(1788-1827)

Augustin-Jean Fresnel was a nineteenth century French physicist, most often remembered for the invention of unique compound lenses designed to produce parallel beams of light, which are still used widely in lighthouses. Born in Broglie, France on May 10, 1788, Fresnel was the son of an architect and received a strict, religious upbringing. His parents were Jansenists, a sect of Roman Catholics that believed only a small, predestined group would receive salvation and that the multitudes could not change their fate through their actions on Earth.(!)
from http://science.howstuffworks.com/framed.htm?parent=question244.htm&url=http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/optics/timeline/people/fresnel.html