From The Guardian: Scientists may have solved ancient mystery of 'first computer'

[abqtommy]

I love this stuff. Just goes to show that everything old is new again!

NOTE: UCL in the article refers to University College London

From article:

From the moment it was discovered more than a century ago, scholars have puzzled over the Antikythera mechanism, a remarkable and baffling astronomical calculator that survives from the ancient world.

The hand-powered, 2,000-year-old device displayed the motion of the universe, predicting the movement of the five known planets, the phases of the moon and the solar and lunar eclipses. But quite how it achieved such impressive feats has proved fiendishly hard to untangle.

Now researchers at UCL believe they have solved the mystery – at least in part – and have set about reconstructing the device, gearwheels and all, to test whether their proposal works. If they can build a replica with modern machinery, they aim to do the same with techniques from antiquity.

“We believe that our reconstruction fits all the evidence that scientists have gleaned from the extant remains to date,” said Adam Wojcik, a materials scientist at UCL. While other scholars have made reconstructions in the past, the fact that two-thirds of the mechanism are missing has made it hard to know for sure how it worked.

Much more text and photos at link:

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/mar/12/scientists-move-closer-to-solving-mystery-of-antikythera-mechanism

[Hugin]

1. Worth a big KnR...

I've wondered, too.

Along with how much of the device was surviving when it was found.

[tblue37]

2. K&R & thanks. nt

[Blues Heron]

3. another vid from a replica maker - clickspring

&list=PLZioPDnFPNsHnyxfygxA0to4RXv4_jDU2

[lagomorph777]

6. That's the guy who's building a replica, using ancient techniques.

[hunter]

7. Clickspring is building his model...

"...with the intention of establishing the nature of the tools, techniques and technology used to create it."

http://www.clickspringprojects.com/

It's astonishing how much effort went into the original mechanism. This would have been a very expensive device, something made for an extraordinarily wealthy person, nation-state, or religious community.

Clickspring is using modern materials and equipment for some things, such as propane torches and standard metal stock, but the tools and methods he uses would have been familiar to the original makers of the mechanism.

Here's a video that shows how he hardens his files:

[marble falls]

21. Lost a couple of hours watching those. Thanks!

[soothsayer]

4. So cool

[lagomorph777]

5. If this is the first you've heard of the Antikythera Mechanism, prepare to have your mind blown.

It's an astounding piece of technology, 2,000 years old.

There are numerous scientists intensely studying it.
There's a dedicated Youtuber building a replica, using ancient techniques.

[berni_mccoy]

8. So... they found the Aelithiometer

https://hisdarkmaterials.fandom.com/wiki/Alethiometer

[mitch96]

9. I've read that it also ticked off when the Olympics would be held... nt

[KS Toronado]

10. If mechanism is 2000 yrs old, then why prior to Columbus did people think/know the world was flat?

Have Qpublicans been around that long?

[BobTheSubgenius]

13. That the Flat Earth hypothesis was widespread is more or less a myth.

I once even read that a supposed belief in it was used to mock a purportedly learned person.

[William Seger]

14. Only uneducated people and Bible literalists believed the world was flat

So, yeah, such people have been around a lot longer than Qpublicans.

[sarisataka]

15. People knew the world was round since ancient Greek times

as I understand, the question was what the circumference actually was. Many had the correct distance and thought ships would run out of supplies before they could reach Asia- being mostly unaware of North and South America. Others thought the circumference was less and the journey could be made. Columbus fell into the second group, therefore he believed the land he arrived at was near India

[lagomorph777]

19. Columbus was a skilled navigator. He knew the Earth's diameter, and he knew America existed.

He had knowledge passed down from Vikings and Templars. His ships had Templar crosses on the sails.

He lied about the diameter to conceal the true nature of his voyage.

[sarisataka]

20. Makes sense, what I had related

was something I heard long ago and I may have forgotten the part where Mr. Columbus was being deceptive to his backers

[lagomorph777]

18. They didn't. The ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Mesopotamians all measured the Earth's diameter.

They got it fairly close, too.

[SoonerPride]

11. kick and rec

this is cool

thank you

[ananda]

12. Kewl. I've always wondered about this device.

Thanks

[crickets]

16. Fascinating. I love this kind of thing. nt

[Noodleboy13]

17. This totally helps me solve the problem of Steampunk Interplanetery Travel

You have a giant antikythera mechanism functioning as your nav computer. You set up the computer, turn the crank a bunch, take the information it spits out and flip a bunch of switches on some sparking Tesla Technology, wait for the voltage dial to get to right place, throw the main switch and Zap! your airship disappears and reappears on Reptilicus, home of the lizard people.

I was seriously thinking about this last night.

peace,
Noodleboy

[marble falls]

22. Was that the "first" computer or the beta?