4 ms·

Lego Turing Machine

33 points by kqr2 18y ago

deleted 18y ago
[deleted]
- jyothi 18y ago
  The funny part is - Order the Turing Machine today and you'll also receive... - Infinite tape* - Infinite storage* - Unlimited computability* *Subject to availability
  - jodrellblank 18y ago
    The funny part is that real companies really get away with that obviously impossible lie (with caveat) so commonly that it works as a parody.
pkrumins 18y ago
I didn't like that it did not show some small computation like counting of 1 bits or any other trivial computation.
mct 18y ago
I've spent some time pondering various methods of constructing a physical Turing Machine off and on for a couple years now, ever since I was introduced to them through mjd's Perl Quiz of the Week (http://perl.plover.com/qotw/r/024 http://perl.plover.com/qotw/r/024). However, all of my designs were deliberately non-electronic in nature. Personally, I find electromagnets, motors, and relays to all be aesthetically acceptable in this pursuit, but using a microprocessor to build a physical Turing Machine just somehow strikes me as... unappealing.
- jodrellblank 18y ago
  You say that as if microprocessors aren't physical...
  - deleted 18y ago
    [deleted]
  - RiderOfGiraffes 18y ago
    I suspect "mechanical" would be a better word. Microprocessors are mysterious black[1] boxen, whereas relays, etc, are macro-sized and can be made at home by hand. [1] For some definition of "black".
    - mct 18y ago
      I suspect "mechanical" would be a better word Yes, exactly. Thank you.
edgeztv 18y ago
Interesting fact about TMs - while their computibility is equivalent to computers, the Big-O time for common algorithms is (possibly much) slower. Many O(n) tasks on computers with RAM are O(n^2) on a TM. The only commonality with computers in terms of time complexity is the Polynomial vs. Non-polynomial boundary. The same is true for any model of computation. Despite this equivalence, it's orders of magnitude harder to program a TM than the ugliest assembly language you've ever seen. This is one architecture that desperately needs a compiler :)
- kqr2 18y ago
  Turing Machine Compiler: http://www.breakingrobots.net/projects/tmc/ http://www.breakingrobots.net/projects/tmc/
vivekkhurana 18y ago
I love this one... So can we say now that 'computing is a child's play' ?
sspencer 18y ago
The A-team theme really changed this from the "Whoa, cool!" category to the rarefied "People need to see this NOW!" class. Awesome use of an NXT.

Lego Turing Machine

33 points by kqr2 18y ago

deleted 18y ago

[deleted]

jyothi 18y ago
The funny part is - Order the Turing Machine today and you'll also receive... - Infinite tape* - Infinite storage* - Unlimited computability* *Subject to availability
- jodrellblank 18y ago
  The funny part is that real companies really get away with that obviously impossible lie (with caveat) so commonly that it works as a parody.

pkrumins 18y ago

I didn't like that it did not show some small computation like counting of 1 bits or any other trivial computation.

mct 18y ago

I've spent some time pondering various methods of constructing a physical Turing Machine off and on for a couple years now, ever since I was introduced to them through mjd's Perl Quiz of the Week (http://perl.plover.com/qotw/r/024 http://perl.plover.com/qotw/r/024). However, all of my designs were deliberately non-electronic in nature. Personally, I find electromagnets, motors, and relays to all be aesthetically acceptable in this pursuit, but using a microprocessor to build a physical Turing Machine just somehow strikes me as... unappealing.

jodrellblank 18y ago
You say that as if microprocessors aren't physical...
- deleted 18y ago
  [deleted]
- RiderOfGiraffes 18y ago
  I suspect "mechanical" would be a better word. Microprocessors are mysterious black[1] boxen, whereas relays, etc, are macro-sized and can be made at home by hand. [1] For some definition of "black".
  - mct 18y ago
    I suspect "mechanical" would be a better word Yes, exactly. Thank you.

edgeztv 18y ago

Interesting fact about TMs - while their computibility is equivalent to computers, the Big-O time for common algorithms is (possibly much) slower. Many O(n) tasks on computers with RAM are O(n^2) on a TM. The only commonality with computers in terms of time complexity is the Polynomial vs. Non-polynomial boundary. The same is true for any model of computation. Despite this equivalence, it's orders of magnitude harder to program a TM than the ugliest assembly language you've ever seen. This is one architecture that desperately needs a compiler :)

kqr2 18y ago
Turing Machine Compiler: http://www.breakingrobots.net/projects/tmc/ http://www.breakingrobots.net/projects/tmc/

vivekkhurana 18y ago

I love this one... So can we say now that 'computing is a child's play' ?

sspencer 18y ago

The A-team theme really changed this from the "Whoa, cool!" category to the rarefied "People need to see this NOW!" class. Awesome use of an NXT.