Friday 11 May 2012

TV - Antikythera Mechanism - 11/05/12 [DAILY DOSE]


FRIDAY 11TH MAY 2012 - DAILY DOSE


Today's DAILY DOSE is quick mention of a great TV show on at the moment -
THE TWO-THOUSAND-YEAR-OLD COMPUTER.


This TV series is probing the secrets of a mysterious device found in what is believed to be a Roman shipwreck - nearly lost for thousands of years.


When the divers found the fragments of this device, they noticed small cogs and inscriptions in the rusted metal - vastly more intricate and complicated than any other contemporary artefact.

Due to the island near where the artefact was found, this is now known as the Antikythera Mechanism - one of the earliest mechanised calculation devices ever discovered.


Scientists, physicists, astronomers and mathematicians have spent years studying the fragments of the device - and through X-Ray imaging, 3D photography and other digital techniques they start to build some understanding of what the mechanism was for - and the findings are astounding.


It's on BBC 4 this week and next week -
so will be on the BBC iPlayer for the next fortnight.


Feel free to post comments or contributions to improve the experience!
Any images in this review are subject to relevant copyrights and are kindly provided by: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01hlkcq

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