4 ms·

A reminder that simple inventions are still possible.

by devenson 1y ago

malnourish 1y ago
Simple invention made possible by sophisticated precision manufacturing.
- Retr0id 1y ago
  You could simulate this in software, or even reason about it on paper.
- GuB-42 1y ago
  I think it is a very underestimated aspect of how "simple" inventions came out so late. An interesting one is the bicycle. The bicycle we all know (safety bicycle) is deceivingly advanced technology, with pneumatic tires, metal tube frame, chain and sprocket, etc... there is no way it could have been done much earlier. It needs precision manufacturing as well as strong and lightweight materials for such a "simple" idea to make sense. It also works for science, for example, general relativity would have never been discovered if it wasn't for precise measurements as the problem with Newtonian gravity would have never been apparent. And precise measurement requires precise instrument, which require precise manufacturing, which require good materials, etc... For this pyramid, not only the physical part required advanced manufacturing, but they did a computer search for the shape, and a computer is the ultimate precision manufacturing, we are working at the atom level here!
  - adriand 1y ago
    It's funny, I was wondering about the exact example of a bicycle a few days ago and ended up having a conversation with Claude about it (which, incidentally, made the same point you did). It struck me as remarkable (and still does) that this method of locomotion was always physically possible and yet was not discovered/invented until so recently. On its face, it seems like the most important invention that makes the bicycle possible is the wheel, which has been around for 6,000 years!
  - eszed 1y ago
    To support your point, and pre-empt some obvious objections: - I've ridden a bike with a bamboo frame - it worked fine, but I don't think it was very durable. - I've seen a video of a belt- (rather than chain-) driven bike - the builder did not recommend. You maybe get there a couple of decades sooner with a bamboo penny-farthing, but whatever you build relies on smooth roads and light-weight wheels. You don't get all of the tech and infrastructure lining up until late-nineteenth c. Europe.
    - ludicrousdispla 1y ago
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chukudu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chukudu https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-africa-41806781 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-africa-41806781

A reminder that simple inventions are still possible.

malnourish 1y ago

Simple invention made possible by sophisticated precision manufacturing.

Retr0id 1y ago
You could simulate this in software, or even reason about it on paper.
GuB-42 1y ago
I think it is a very underestimated aspect of how "simple" inventions came out so late. An interesting one is the bicycle. The bicycle we all know (safety bicycle) is deceivingly advanced technology, with pneumatic tires, metal tube frame, chain and sprocket, etc... there is no way it could have been done much earlier. It needs precision manufacturing as well as strong and lightweight materials for such a "simple" idea to make sense. It also works for science, for example, general relativity would have never been discovered if it wasn't for precise measurements as the problem with Newtonian gravity would have never been apparent. And precise measurement requires precise instrument, which require precise manufacturing, which require good materials, etc... For this pyramid, not only the physical part required advanced manufacturing, but they did a computer search for the shape, and a computer is the ultimate precision manufacturing, we are working at the atom level here!
- adriand 1y ago
  It's funny, I was wondering about the exact example of a bicycle a few days ago and ended up having a conversation with Claude about it (which, incidentally, made the same point you did). It struck me as remarkable (and still does) that this method of locomotion was always physically possible and yet was not discovered/invented until so recently. On its face, it seems like the most important invention that makes the bicycle possible is the wheel, which has been around for 6,000 years!
- eszed 1y ago
  To support your point, and pre-empt some obvious objections: - I've ridden a bike with a bamboo frame - it worked fine, but I don't think it was very durable. - I've seen a video of a belt- (rather than chain-) driven bike - the builder did not recommend. You maybe get there a couple of decades sooner with a bamboo penny-farthing, but whatever you build relies on smooth roads and light-weight wheels. You don't get all of the tech and infrastructure lining up until late-nineteenth c. Europe.
  - ludicrousdispla 1y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chukudu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chukudu https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-africa-41806781 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-africa-41806781