I can also tie this into current events if you squint just a little bit at it. You see, Lego is a product of Denmark. Given the issues that the country is currently having with whacked out muslims, (is there any other kind?), I figure Lego is tangentially topical.
That tie-in is a major stretch, since it is 'Mentos Cool'(TM), we're good to go. :-)
Very cool- thanks for the post.
BTW mechanical computers didn't die out with Babbage. Every office in the US had mechanical adding machines not very many years ago- they could add, subtract and multiply.
The main guns on the Iowa class battleships are directed by mechanical ballistic computers.
WWII US subs had mechanical fire control computers linked to the periscopes and on-deck binoculars through a Torpedo Bearing Transmitter (TBT) system. Compute the enemy's course and speed, Triangulate their position, enter the sub's course and speed, turn the crank, and it plots the bearing and range for the torpedo shot. Pretty nifty, eh?
You must not live with siblings. Younger, rug cruising, siblings destroy Lego creations because it's fun; older siblings destroy Lego creations to see if they can upset you, and, because it's fun. How do you propose to keep the difference engine in one piece, because you know, friends destroy Lego creations because... it's fun.
ping