An Ancient Computer Surprises Scientists

NYTimes http://tinyurl.com/yjn7yl

Also heard on NPR
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...toryId=6556419

--
Rick Evans
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Rick Evans wrote:
NYTimes http://tinyurl.com/yjn7yl

Also heard on NPR
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...toryId=6556419



This device called the Antikythera Mechanism has been the subject of an
hour long program on the Discovery Channel. It's composition and
function are a complete mystery.

Dave N

David G. Nagel wrote:
This device called the Antikythera Mechanism has been the subject of an
hour long program on the Discovery Channel. It's composition and
function are a complete mystery.

It's a bit of an exaggeration to say that the composition and function
are a *complete* mystery. There's lots to find out still about the
Antikythera Mechanism, including stuff we may never find out, for one
reason or another. But we know that it was essentially the last metal
geared mechanism for about a millennium, and that it was some kind of
orrery. The devil, of course, is in the details.

More has been found out about the Antikythera Mechanism, which (as I
think the article probably states) will start to be disseminated over
the next few days.

--
Brian Tung
The Astronomy Corner at http://astro.isi.edu/
Unofficial C5+ Home Page at http://astro.isi.edu/c5plus/
The PleiadAtlas Home Page at http://astro.isi.edu/pleiadatlas/
My Own Personal FAQ (SAA) at http://astro.isi.edu/reference/faq.html

(Brian Tung) wrote:

David G. Nagel wrote:
This device called the Antikythera Mechanism has been the subject of an
hour long program on the Discovery Channel. It's composition and
function are a complete mystery.

It's a bit of an exaggeration to say that the composition and function
are a *complete* mystery. There's lots to find out still about the
Antikythera Mechanism, including stuff we may never find out, for one
reason or another. But we know that it was essentially the last metal
geared mechanism for about a millennium, and that it was some kind of
orrery. The devil, of course, is in the details.

More has been found out about the Antikythera Mechanism, which (as I
think the article probably states) will start to be disseminated over
the next few days.

There was an article in "Nature" aboutit yesterday - but I think the
web version may require you to be a subscriber:

http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/...eM0HjB0BGqh0E8


Eugene L Griessel

It is difficult to soar like an eagle when you work with turkeys.

In article ,
Eugene Griessel wrote:

It's a bit of an exaggeration to say that the composition and function
are a *complete* mystery.

To say the least.

There was an article in "Nature" aboutit yesterday - but I think the
web version may require you to be a subscriber:

http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/...eM0HjB0BGqh0E8

You can download the paper as a PDF document from:

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal...ature05357.pdf

(or at least I can; I suppose it's possible that I can only get it
because my university subscribes).

-- Richard
--
"Consideration shall be given to the need for as many as 32 characters
in some alphabets" - X3.4, 1963.

Richard Tobin wrote:

In article ,
Eugene Griessel wrote:

It's a bit of an exaggeration to say that the composition and function
are a *complete* mystery.

To say the least.

There was an article in "Nature" aboutit yesterday - but I think the
web version may require you to be a subscriber:

http://ealerts.nature.com/cgi-bin24/...eM0HjB0BGqh0E8

You can download the paper as a PDF document from:

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal...ature05357.pdf

(or at least I can; I suppose it's possible that I can only get it
because my university subscribes).

You can, but they want $30 for it if you are not a subscriber. Seems a
bit steep!
The paper copy of the journal is much less.

Regards,
Martin Brown

11/31/2006
What is dark energy? What is dark matter?

These are questions that have been astounding scientists and physicists
alike for years, creating guess work and asking questions of each other
creating what we call science fiction from their discoveries.

I believe what they have or are witnessing is what I call: "The Shadow
dark matter effect".

That is when a moon or asteroid gets trapped in what appears to be an
orbit directly in front of a star; and in its wake caught up in the
gravitional field is trapped matter from meteor debris or dust clouds
and even gases which we see as dark clouds or matter. Almost all of
these appear on the dark side of a planetary object or even what they
call a black hole and I call a red star at the end of its life
and. We see this effect without hands on knowledge and we give them
masterful names.

Here is a simple experiment for all of you disbelievers like myself.
The next time you start your car in the cold weather under a street
light, making sure the exhaust is in the dark or shadow of the vehicle
what do you see when you look at the exhaust fumes, what dose it look
like? Is there any resemblance to dark energy or dark matter to you?




Brian Tung wrote:
David G. Nagel wrote:
This device called the Antikythera Mechanism has been the subject of an
hour long program on the Discovery Channel. It's composition and
function are a complete mystery.

It's a bit of an exaggeration to say that the composition and function
are a *complete* mystery. There's lots to find out still about the
Antikythera Mechanism, including stuff we may never find out, for one
reason or another. But we know that it was essentially the last metal
geared mechanism for about a millennium, and that it was some kind of
orrery. The devil, of course, is in the details.

More has been found out about the Antikythera Mechanism, which (as I
think the article probably states) will start to be disseminated over
the next few days.

--
Brian Tung
The Astronomy Corner at http://astro.isi.edu/
Unofficial C5+ Home Page at http://astro.isi.edu/c5plus/
The PleiadAtlas Home Page at http://astro.isi.edu/pleiadatlas/
My Own Personal FAQ (SAA) at http://astro.isi.edu/reference/faq.html

esmartguy [sic] wrote:

11/31/2006
What is dark energy? What is dark matter?

...

I believe what they have or are witnessing is what I call: "The Shadow
dark matter effect".

That is when a moon or asteroid gets trapped in what appears to be an
orbit directly in front of a star...

My own observations -- and I'm told that others have made the same
observations and arrived at the same conclusion -- show that "orbit"
means to travel in a certain path /around/ a star rather than to hover
in front of the star. I'm also told that this orbit can usually be
described via a few equations realized by one Isaac Newton.

Here is a simple experiment for all of you disbelievers like myself.
The next time you start your car in the cold weather under a street
light, making sure the exhaust is in the dark or shadow of the vehicle
what do you see when you look at the exhaust fumes, what dose it look
like? Is there any resemblance to dark energy or dark matter to you?

I'm with you here. I /had/ a vehicle that ran on dark energy that was
distilled from dark matter, but I replaced it with one that runs on
light energy http://www.davidillig.com/starcar.shtml.

You are the icing on the cake. The Christmas fruitcake. Not only do I
smell a Nobel in Physics coming your way, but you could win November's
genius the month competition.

Davoud

--
usenet *at* davidillig dawt com

Davoud wrote:
esmartguy [sic] wrote:

11/31/2006
What is dark energy? What is dark matter?

...

I believe what they have or are witnessing is what I call: "The Shadow
dark matter effect".

That is when a moon or asteroid gets trapped in what appears to be an
orbit directly in front of a star...

My own observations -- and I'm told that others have made the same
observations and arrived at the same conclusion -- show that "orbit"
means to travel in a certain path /around/ a star rather than to hover
in front of the star. I'm also told that this orbit can usually be
described via a few equations realized by one Isaac Newton.

Here is a simple experiment for all of you disbelievers like myself.
The next time you start your car in the cold weather under a street
light, making sure the exhaust is in the dark or shadow of the vehicle
what do you see when you look at the exhaust fumes, what dose it look
like? Is there any resemblance to dark energy or dark matter to you?

I'm with you here. I /had/ a vehicle that ran on dark energy that was
distilled from dark matter, but I replaced it with one that runs on
light energy http://www.davidillig.com/starcar.shtml.

You are the icing on the cake. The Christmas fruitcake. Not only do I
smell a Nobel in Physics coming your way, but you could win November's
genius the month competition.

Davoud

--
usenet *at* davidillig dawt com
Davoud,

Actually, I smell Shawn. I don't see the words "heliocentric," "PGP,"
or "Ed" anywhere in the message, which takes out three Christmas
fruitcakes I know of (lesser known, for good reason, than the three
wise men.)

Erik
socalsw

DG
Subject: An Ancient Computer Surprises Scientists
DG
From: "David G. Nagel"
DG
Date: Wed, 29 Nov 2006 17:48:42 -0600
DG
DG This device called the Antikythera Mechanism has been the subject of an
DG hour long program on the Discovery Channel. It's composition and
DG function are a complete mystery.

It is not a complete mystery, but it has many mysteries left to
unravel. This device was described in several articlws over the past
couple decades. I first learned of it by an article in SciAmm a long
time ago.
From the mechnical point of view, what ever the stronomy in it is,
this machine is one hell of a marvel. Gearing really didn't mature
until the industrial revolution. Before then we used vogs, discs or
wheels with pegs or grooves around the edge. A true gear has specialy
shaped teeth, the 'involute', to reduce slidng friction between meshed
gears.
Apart from the theorietical develop of gears, there is the
practical matter of actually making them. I have no idea have this was
done in Greek times, there being so far only this Antikythera example.
I hazard, if the discs are thn enough, the teeth could have been
dinked out one by one on a jig that indexed by a set angle to the
next point on the circumference. Then each tooth was filed smooth to
final shape.
From pictures of the device published from time to time, the
tolerances inside the cage would have been very tight. Specially if it
was made for astronomy simulation, where the machine was good enough
to predict eclipses.

---
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