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Mystery of Ancient Calculator Finally Cracked

jcaruso writes, "It's been more than 100 years since the discovery of the 2,000-year-old Antikythera Mechanism, but researchers are only now figuring out how it works." From the article: "Since its discovery in 1902, the Antikythera Mechanism — with its intricate and baffling system of about 30 geared wheels — has been an enigma... During the last 50 years, researchers have identified various astronomical and calendar functions, including gears that mimic the movement of the sun and moon. But it has taken some of the most advanced technology of the 21st century to decipher during the past year the most advanced technology of the 1st century B.C."

13 of 241 comments (clear)

  1. The question on everyones lips... by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 5, Funny

    Did it run Linux?

    --
    liqbase :: faster than paper
    1. Re:The question on everyones lips... by edwardpickman · · Score: 5, Funny
      Did it run Linux?

      It was designed by the famous Roman programmer Linicus Torivicus.

    2. Re:The question on everyones lips... by s20451 · · Score: 5, Funny

      Imagine a Beowulf cluster of those!

      Somewhat hard, given that it predates Beowulf by at least 600 years.

      --
      Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
    3. Re:The question on everyones lips... by kfg · · Score: 5, Funny

      No one knows. Driver issues. Blame the manufacturer.

      KFG

    4. Re:The question on everyones lips... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Correct. Back then, they were called Hydra clusters, for obvious reasons.

    5. Re:The question on everyones lips... by theeddie55 · · Score: 5, Funny

      Linux? No, it ran windows, that's why it's taken so much time to try to figure it out.

    6. Re:The question on everyones lips... by ozmanjusri · · Score: 5, Funny
      Did it run Linux?

      The Antikythera mechanism is *not* user friendly, and until it is Antikythera will stay with >1% marketshare.

      Take installation. Antikythera zealots are now saying "oh installing is so easy, just do hammer-dowel install package, or hit package": Yes, because hitting with "hammer" makes so much more sense to new users than double-whipping a slave that does "setups".

      Antikythera zealots are far too forgiving when judging the difficultly of Antikythera configuration issues and far too harsh when judging the difficulty of slave storage issues. Example comments:

      User: "How do I get Quake 0.03 to run in Antikythera?" Zealot: "Oh that's easy! If you have Redtoga, you have to smelt quake_3_rh_8_i686_010203_glibc.tin, then do chmod +x with a file.....

      --
      "I've got more toys than Teruhisa Kitahara."
  2. Just imagine... by Mish · · Score: 5, Funny

    But it has taken some of the most advanced technology of the 21st century to decipher during the past year the most advanced technology of the 1st century B.C."Maybe in 2000 years we'll have the technology to decode that sentence!

  3. Stargate plug by ultracool · · Score: 5, Funny

    They should have given it to SG1. Dr. Jackson would have figured it out in no time, and they would have used to save the Earth from a far more technologically advanced enemy.

  4. Re:Physical Perl by LearnToSpell · · Score: 5, Funny

    Remember folks, always read the article.

  5. Re:Like the Mormons' tablets... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's perfectly easy to understand. There are two possibilities.

    1. There's writing on it, but it can't be read with certainty. Instead of making guesses to its contents, the researchers are leaving their speculation to its purpose, which can be more easily deduced. This can be because of:

    1a. They actually can't read enough of it to gather the content of the message. (i.e. "Turn the ... as the wheel ... place the ... will appear at ... Made in Mexico")

    1b. They have a translation of some sort, but aren't sure that it is correct, and are waiting for confirmation.

    2. The researchers made the annoucement subject to a non-disclosure agreement. These agreements are fairly common when making announcements prior to the publication of an academic article. You can make you're annoucement of your findings, but can give specifics about your findings until the article has been published. Just wait until the article is published, and then read the translation yourself.

  6. Netcraft Confirms It... by Amazing+Quantum+Man · · Score: 5, Funny

    Netcraft confirms it... Antikythera Mechanisms are dying!

    --
    Fascism starts when the efficiency of the government becomes more important than the rights of the people.
  7. Re:Like the Mormons' tablets... by NoMaster · · Score: 5, Funny
    WTF ... so they figure all this out, and then they keep the writing secret? What's up with that.
    Because the bit they have recovered and translated so far reads "Disassembly or reverse-engineering for any purpose (including, but not limited to, for the purposes of interoperability or future compatibility) is prohibited by this licence".

    Basically, they've found the EULA. They're worried the BSA will sue them under the PMCA (Pre-Millenium Copyright Act)...

    --
    What part of "a well regulated militia" do you not understand?