Tuesday, December 2, 2014

More About The Antikythera Mechanism

A correspondent writes in about the Antikythera mechanism,

The recently-discovered Antikythera used several strands of science and technology, including astronomy, metallurgy, tool-making, mathematics (especially geometry) and mechanics. It is a fair representation of the level of science and technology in the area during that time. Naked-eye astronomy dates back hundreds of thousands of years. Its development was driven by the problem of finding one's way back from the hunt after chasing an animal for 20 miles, killing it, dressing it and finding the way back to camp by watching the sun and stars. Starting about ten-thousand years ago, the development of astronomy was driven by the problem of when to plant seeds. and knowing when the harvest would be. Back when most men hunted, most men had a fund of knowledge about naked-eye astronomy. Then it decayed. There are more Antikytheras awaiting discovery.

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