Machine Thinking

Apple engineer Andrew Carol pieced together 1,500 piece Lego Technic blocks to build a faithful-in-function replica of the Greek Antikythera Mechanism. Though built in ancient times (150-100 BC) it’s thought to be of comparable sophistication to 19th century Swiss clocks.

Discovered in a ancient shipwreck in 1901, it took researches decades to discover its intended purpose – as an astronomical calculator capable of predicting eclipses, the positions of the sun and moon, other planets and significant stars. It’s widely considered the first known mechanical computer.

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Hans Rosling illustrates the rise of wealth and lengthening of lives in this fantastic animation.

In his TED talk a few years ago, he did many similarly facinating animations.

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