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  • Author Author: cstanton
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The ancient 'computer' that simply shouldn't exist - The Antikythera Mechanism

cstanton

If you like archaeology, ancient history and the greeks, this may take your interest. The first is more of an introduction to the mechanism found on a ship by the BBC, and the second is a very detailed, academic look into it:

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  • I'm not sure you would find anybody today that had the knowledge and the skill needed to build one of these, even with all the fancy tools and accumulated knowledge available today.

    It would take a dedicated team with a bunch of different skills and many months to design and build one of these.

  • in reply to dougw

    Not one for Project 14 then ? Slight smile

    Brief demonstration of the 53 tooth gear being made old-school in this documentary:

    Antikythera Mechanism. The 2'000 Year Old Computer. BBC, 2012
    https://youtu.be/3T1n7RjCMfQ?t=1438
    (approx. 24min into the video)

    "...about half an hour to make that..." at the time according to Michael Wright.

    ...50... 51... 52... fifty-oh-darn-it...   1...2...

    Mechanisms and linkages appear to be a bit of a dying art these days and today's attitude appears to be more of a stick a servo or stepper motor on it and control it with a microcontroller. Forty years ago and I recall about every hobbyist project had at least one mechanical linkage involved and rarely required batteries.

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  • in reply to dougw

    Not one for Project 14 then ? Slight smile

    Brief demonstration of the 53 tooth gear being made old-school in this documentary:

    Antikythera Mechanism. The 2'000 Year Old Computer. BBC, 2012
    https://youtu.be/3T1n7RjCMfQ?t=1438
    (approx. 24min into the video)

    "...about half an hour to make that..." at the time according to Michael Wright.

    ...50... 51... 52... fifty-oh-darn-it...   1...2...

    Mechanisms and linkages appear to be a bit of a dying art these days and today's attitude appears to be more of a stick a servo or stepper motor on it and control it with a microcontroller. Forty years ago and I recall about every hobbyist project had at least one mechanical linkage involved and rarely required batteries.

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