The “computer” of 2,000 years ago fascinates us for decades. A new study points out that it might have not served at all

125 years ago, divers who were collecting sponges in the Aegean Sea, in front of the island of Anticitera, They gave with remains of an old shipwreck. Among jewels, coins and ceramic remains, there was something that caught the attention: a copper fragment of something that seemed to be a gear. It was a compendium of gears that seemed to be part of something much bigger and was baptized as’Anticitera mechanism‘.

For decades it was an ignored curiosity in the archives of the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, until the researcher Derek de Solla He recovered it, studied and determined that it was an advanced Greek “computer” built at some point between 200 and 100 AC after many theories, a group of Argentine researchers have put the anti -life mechanism to see how the first computer in history behaves ..

And the conclusion is that … it was nothing more than an ingenious toy.

First computer

For decades, this mechanism fascinated us due not only to its antiquity, but because ignorance about its function allowed the elaboration of all kinds of hypothesis. However, it was Solla who studied more in depth at the beginning, creating physical simulations about the complete state of the mechanism.

Thus, and according to the researcher, the anticitera mechanism was a piece corresponding to a more complex object, composed of at least thirty bronze gears placed strategically in a wooden box with approximate dimensions of 340 x 180 x 90 millimeters. It was activated by a crank that allowed to move the gears and perform its function.

Which? Well … predict astronomical positions. According to Derek’s studies, the anticitera mechanism was a planetary computer, a very cool name to describe a “computer” that allowed predicting astronomical positions, lunar phases, eclipses and, therefore, calculating cycles of the 354 -day lunar calendar or dates for sports games, among others

Through different discs, it showed the astronomical data and, supposedly, was designed to reproduce the irregular movement of the moon in its rotation thanks to specialized gears that compensated the anomalies in its trajectory. And, after that first finding, we found more and more pieces of the mechanism, which has allowed us to get an idea of ​​how it was.

It was evident that it was A very advanced machine for its timebut it is also clear that it had a number of limitations. The first: however advanced Greek astronomers were, the mechanism embodied knowledge to date, so comparing it with subsequent techniques and tools is meaningless. The position of some planets is very diverted with respect to modern measurements, for example.

This is logical and It does not remove merit To the device, but there were two factors that limited their precision: the mechanics itself and the manufacture of the gears. Due to wear, copper teeth could be increasingly inaccurate and, in addition, as they were manufactured by hand and not in series in a assembly chain, any deviation in the gears would affect their accuracy in the calculations.

And that is what previous studies reported, such as those of Mike Edmundsbeing one of the few who has been able to directly investigate the device and lead the equipment that is responsible for your analysis.

Testing

Now, some Argentine researchers from the National University of Mar de Plata, have simulated by computer the anti -litera mechanism and their conclusion is … that it was useless. Esteban Guillermo Szigeth and Gustavo Francisco Arenas are those researchers, and have shared their conclusions in Arxiv.

For their simulation, they were based on previous studies that already took into account the influence of irregular triangular teeth and the consequences of physical inaccuracies in its construction. When performing it, they realized that the triangular teeth did not seem to have a negative impact on the functioning of the mechanism, but of traffic jams in the gears when turning the crank.

That, they point out, would have made it very not very practical in scientific use, practically impracticable, reducing the mechanism to an “ingenious toy.” Now, they also claim that it is the result of a simulation about what they know about the device that It was found in 1900 And that it is possible that, taking into account the necessary skill for its construction, the irregular space between the gears could be a fruit of corrosion, and not something deliberate in its design.

The researchers propose a series of improvements for the gears that would avoid this defect found, but also comment that it must be “cautious to assume that the measurements perfectly reflect their original values” due to what is commented: someone took too many discomfort to build that and it is unlikely that there would be something so complex, but not functional.

That is why they also point out that more must be investigatedeven developing more refined techniques, to better understand the real precision and functionality of an anti -litera mechanism that still has room to fascinate us. On the fact that it was found among the remains of a wreck, the answer is much simpler: surely It was part of the loot for some Roman emperor, probably Julio César.

Therefore, the anticitera mechanism remains a source of speculation and fascination due to the tremendous merit of its construction more than 2,000 years ago, but study after study, the conclusion is that the easiest thing is that it served little. Even so, researchers point out that its construction was a technological milestone. And that is something that nobody has questioned.

Images | GRB16, Zde, Tony Freeth, David Higgon, Aris Dacanalis, Lindsay Macdonald, Myrto Georgakopoulou, Adam Wojcik, Mike Peel, GTS-TG

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