Stephen Hawking Unveils "Time Eater" Clock 198
gyrogeerloose writes "Stephen Hawking unveiled an unsettling clock in Cambridge on Friday. Designed by John Taylor — a British horologist and inventor whose thermostatic switch is incorporated in millions of electric appliances worldwide — the clock was conceived as a tribute to another British inventor, John Harrison. Harrison invented the grasshopper escapement in the early 18th Century, which resulted in extremely accurate mechanical time keeping and was instrumental in solving the Longitude Problem. Taylor's clock, which in entirely mechanical in operation but has no hands, uses a fearsome-looking 'demon grasshopper' as its escapement. 'I... wanted to depict that time is a destroyer — once a minute is gone you can't get it back' Taylor said. 'That's why my grasshopper is not a Disney character. He is a ferocious beast that over the seconds has his tongue lolling out, his jaws opening, then on the 59th second he gulps down time.' It also (purposely) only tells correct time once every five minutes. An excellent video of the clock in action, with an explanation of its workings by its inventor, is available on YouTube."
STEVEN?? (Score:2, Informative)
who is it (Score:4, Informative)
Steven Hawking? or Stephen Hawking??? I've never heard of a Steven Hawking
Re:Awesome (Score:1, Informative)
Hollywood could make a whole movies based just on that monster and the "time-eater" concept.
Somewhat done. [imdb.com]
Re:Relativity (Score:5, Informative)
Re:who is it (Score:4, Informative)
Your guarantee... (Score:2, Informative)
There's nothing in the article to indicate what it uses as a timebase, except a comment about an "electric motor." AC line frequency, the same as my bedroom alarm clock? European line frequency can vary by seconds per day [utwente.nl].
Exactly what was your "guarantee," because I think you owe me.
Re:Your guarantee... (Score:5, Informative)
"There's nothing in the article to indicate what it uses as a timebase, except a comment about an "electric motor." AC line frequency, the same as my bedroom alarm clock?"
The base is the grasshopper escapement, the entire point of the clock, what it commemorates, and what the article is all about. The motor is used to wind the clock's spring, which is released from tension at a steady rate by the swinging of the escapement.
And because you didn't RTFA in your effort to be a smart-ass, you've come out looking like a dumb-ass for not understanding the concept of a pendulum clock. This right here is an indicator of why the "technology" tag is appropriate for this: people here (such as yourself) don't know how it works.
Re:Technology? (Score:4, Informative)
Just because it's been blinged up doesn't make the underlying mechanical mechanism any less impressive. Who says science can't be beautiful?
Yes, the LEDs are blue - but what other colour would you combine with gold? The bank of LEDs just provide a constant light source; the light show at the front (which could be mistaken for electronics) is achieved using vernier slits and lenses - that's genius.
Re:Awesome (Score:5, Informative)
But it says that it doesn't have hands - it has LEDs all around it... I think that's pretty much the same thing, no?
Sort of. The inventor is still accurate in saying that it doesn't have hands though ;) (& if you get too close to that grasshopper neither will you!)
The bit I find interesting is the mechanism for the LEDs. Because of my way of thinking I had assumed that the LEDs would be controlled programmatically. It is actually a clever entirely mechanical implementation using vernier slits (3:42 in the Youtube video). I find it fascinating. I'll admit to having never heard of them so it has that whole "woah!" appeal for me.
Besides, I'm not into bling but this thing is ostentatiously cool and doesn't IMHO look half bad. I'd love to own one if it wasn't so loud as to annoy the neighbors. Oh and if it wasn't one of a kind and I had that kind of money to hand of course.
Some people don't seem to like it and that's fair enough. All the same I find it altogether novel.
Re:beautiful but (Score:1, Informative)
Just because it's been blinged up doesn't make the underlying mechanical mechanism any less impressive. Who says science can't be beautiful? The bank of LEDs just provide a constant light source; the light show at the front (which could be mistaken for electronics) is achieved using vernier slits and lenses - that's genius.
-Ozbird http://slashdot.org/~ozbird [slashdot.org] (I've been naughty and pulled this to the top, but the ill-informed comments drove me to it) Only really seeing it in person will let you appreciate how much there is too this, and how much psudo-randomness and unexpected behaviour has been incorporated. Realising that what looks like a computer generated light show is mechanically produced is incredible.
Like a fool... (Score:2, Informative)
Escapement timepieces without pendulums are common (e.g. most any mechanical wristwatch, which uses a balance wheel), people have corrected pendulums with atomic sources (typically using magnetics to delay or accelerate the pendulum).
It is actually you who are playing the smart ass, since you're obviously unaware of the full range of timekeeping mechanisms.
Re:LEDs (Score:4, Informative)
He blew it. He sould at least have used a carbon-arc and hundreds of mirrors and lenses.
Would you find solace in the fact that the LEDs are always illuminated, and only let light through when slits in a wheel align?
Re:one every five minutes?? (Score:3, Informative)
The clock only tells the correct time once every 5 minutes. The rest of the time it can run fast, slow, pause, etc. You can see this in the video near the beginning where it slows down very drastically, or near the end when it chimes the hour and is just going back and forth a few times before advancing.
John Harrison: Greatest Unsung Hero Ever (Score:3, Informative)
John Harrison's story chronicled in "Longitude" is the story of the greatest unsung hero of science and engineering since the Renaissance. Working on his own for nearly 50 years and in the face of fanatical opposition of the Board of Longitude Society he singlehandedly invented modern chronongraphy and all the particular horological advancements required up through the invention of electronic time pieces. To that end he solved the longitude problem which directly lead to British Naval supremacy as well as all commercial shipping and the advent of safe ocean passage without loss of life or cargo.
Re:Hawking Is a Time Travel-Believing Crackpot (Score:3, Informative)
Excuse me. I think you may have lost your train of thought here. I would suggest you check your meds.
General relativity does not consider - neither allow nor permit "time travel." To suppose it does so would be to presume that some specific mathematical theory could encompass and deny evey possible interpretation of that term, which would be ridiculous - in the definition of "made an object of ridicule".
Did you know that you can get a Phd in underwater basketweaving? Our current education system is broken and measuring what is true or not based on which degrees are offered or what grants you can get regarding the subject is perhaps naive.
Re:Technology? (Score:3, Informative)
I guess I am ambitious because on my last case, I replaced the green LEDs with ultra-bright blue ones. In my defense, I also replaced the springs under the power and reset switches with some screen door closer parts, so the average 5 year old lacks the strength to push the buttons that are now so attractive since I put in those bright blue LEDs.