Archimedes and the 2000-year-old computer

New Scientist ^ | Dec. 12, 2008 | Jo Marchant

[decimon]

MARCELLUS and his men blockaded Syracuse, in Sicily, for two years. The Roman general expected to conquer the Greek city state easily, but the ingenious siege towers and catapults designed by Archimedes helped to keep his troops at bay.

Then, in 212 BC, the Syracusans neglected their defences during a festival to the goddess Artemis, and the Romans finally breached the city walls. Marcellus wanted Archimedes alive, but it wasn't to be. According to ancient historians, Archimedes was killed in the chaos; by one account a soldier ran him through with a sword as he was in the middle of a mathematical proof.

One of Archimedes's creations was saved, though. The general took back to Rome a mechanical bronze sphere that showed the motions of the sun, moon and planets as seen from Earth.

[decimon]

Sicilian mob ping

[Young Werther]

Sicilian mob ping

You get an E- in you history knowledge. The Romans were to blame!

At that time Sicily was a colony of Greece and Archimedes was Greek!

Further, the soldier who who ran Archimedes through was no other than Georgi Wubae Bushimenta!

Go to the back of the class and reread your Roman Elegies!

[decimon]

A bit deep in the grappa today?

[JoeProBono]

[decimon]

Your Vega?

[JoeProBono]

"Your Vega?"

Yup

[Secret Agent Man]

Why do this to a Vega?

[Spktyr]

It’s not like the Vega was going to be useful for anything else.....

[JoeProBono]

"Why do this to a Vega? "

OK

[count-your-change]

Interesting article.
A little known fact is that this computer used a system called Windowinium, that's why the computer is still waiting for the programs to respond.

[decimon]

A little known fact is that this computer used a system called Windowinium...And prone to BSOD (Bronze Screech Of Death).

[SunkenCiv]

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[count-your-change]

EXCELLENT!!!!

[Paine in the Neck]

bump

[Salamander]

http://www.mondovista.com/crichton.html

[Polybius]

You get an E- in you history knowledge. The Romans were to blame! At that time Sicily was a colony of Greece and Archimedes was Greek!

Well, actually, Syracuse was no "colony". It was the most powerful, independent, Greek city-state in Sicily.

During the Peloponnesian War, Athens tried to make Syracuse a "colony" and the results were disastrous for Athens.

[stayathomemom]

I wonder if the spiral on the back has anything to do with the 76 year period of Halley's comet?

[668 - Neighbor of the Beast]

Ooh! First car to be named after a star...

[jas3]

I wonder if the spiral on the back has anything to do with the 76 year period of Halley's comet?

Probably not: Callippic Cycle

From the Wikipedia article:

In astronomy and calendar studies, the Callippic cycle (or Calippic) is a particular approximate common multiple of the year (specifically the tropical year) and the synodic month, that was proposed by Callippus in 330 BC. It is a period of 76 years, as an improvement on the 19-year Metonic cycle.

A century before Callippus, Meton invented the cycle of 19 years that counted 6,940 days, which exceeds 235 lunations by almost a third of a day, and 19 tropical years by four tenths of a day. It implicitly gave the solar year a length of 6940/19 = 365 + 1/4 + 1/76 days = 365 d 6 h 18 min 56 s. But Callippus knew that the length of the year was more closely 365 + 1/4 day (= 365d 6h 00m 00s), so he multiplied the 19-year cycle by 4 to reach an integer number of days, and then dropped 1 day from the last 19-year cycle. Thus he constructed a cycle of 76 years that contains 940 lunations and 27,759 days, and has been called the Callippic after him.