The Babbage Engine

Computer History Museum ^ | 2008

[Professional Engineer]

harles Babbage (1791-1871), computer pioneer, designed the first automatic computing engines. He invented computers but failed to build them. The first complete Babbage Engine was completed in London in 2002, 153 years after it was designed. Difference Engine No. 2, built faithfully to the original drawings, consists of 8,000 parts, weighs five tons, and measures 11 feet long.

[sionnsar]

Thanks to Professional Engineer for the ping.

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[Covenantor]

Great post!

Viewing the page and video brought to mind to very good books using Babbages concepts.

The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce

Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson

[null and void]

IBM atomic abacus:

[null and void]

*GROAN*!!!

[null and void]

Ahhhhhh, Step-by-step switchers...

#2 Cross-Bar just wasn’t as much fun...

[Jack of all Trades]

Mark for later

My Son was just reading about Babbage last night.

[MHGinTN]

What an interesting picture! Are the bumps individual atoms? How are the spaces moved or atoms moved to create spaces?

[dayglored]

"Wow, can you imagine a Beowulf Cluster of these things...???"

(Obligatory Slashdot reference)

[Professional Engineer]

I’ll have to check if it’s the same one, I have a sci-fi book titled The Difference Engine

[Professional Engineer]

A glorious sound.

[chesty_puller]

Ahhhhhh, Step-by-step switchers

You and I come from the same world.

[Yardstick]

Wow! Really beautiful machine.

[dayglored]

> Yeah, but does it run Linux?

Oops, forgot to include you in my comment #28 (another obligatory Slashdot reference)...

[null and void]

Are the bumps individual atoms?

Yes

How are the spaces moved or atoms moved to create spaces?

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic - Arthur C. Clarke

More seriously, with an Atomic Force Microscope...

[null and void]

You and I come from the same world.

Same planet, different worlds...

[woofie]

I have a 1936 Wurlitzer Jukebox and I see a lot of similarities between the 2 mechanisms...

[woofie]

And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
[6] And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.
[7] And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.
[8] And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

[SunkenCiv]

I’ve got *millions* of those, and I *will* tell them. ;’) But for now, I will leaf it alone.

[AFreeBird]

B4L8r

[brityank]

Quite a story; thanks for the link.

[Babbage] was a prolific inventor, mathematician, scientist, reforming critic of the scientific establishment and political economist. He pioneered lighthouse signalling, invented the ophthalmoscope, proposed 'black box' recorders for monitoring the conditions preceding railway catastrophes, advocated decimal currency, proposed the use of tidal power once coal reserves were exhausted, designed a cow-catcher for the front end of railway locomotives, failsafe quick release couplings for railway carriages, multi-colored theatre lighting, an altimeter, a seismic detector, a tugboat for winching vessels upstream, a 'hydrofoil' and an arcade game for members of the public to challenge in a game of tic-tac-toe. His interests included lock picking, ciphers, chess, submarine propulsion, armaments, and diving bells.

Seems he has more credit than just computing.