Are You Able to Crack It? That Overlooked Netherlands Creation Which Forged our Modern World
One can find many contenders to claim the title of “planet’s greatest invention.” The wheel. The printing press. The combustion motor.
According to a new book, however, that honor should go to the automated sawmill conceived through Dutchman Corneliszoon van Uitgeest in 1593.
“Prior to automated sawing, constructing a simple trading ship necessitated approximately ten lumberjacks working for 90 days,” notes the author. “With wind-driven lumber mills, an identical quantity of cut lumber could be manufactured in less than seven days.”
Thanks to their rapid mechanical cutter, that converted logs to planks with virtually no human effort, Dutch builders were able to construct vessels more quickly than anyone else, which sparked a century of Netherlands naval, financial as well as artistic supremacy in Europe and the world.
The First True Industrial Device
The inventor's lumber mill, contends the writer, represented “humanity’s first true industrial apparatus.” A wind turbine rotated a wheel. One component converted the circular movement to vertical motion to power the saw. A separate mechanism transformed the rotary movement into a lateral movement advancing the timber to the cutter. A ratchet system shifted the log ahead one precise increment each stroke.
“Each element seemed modest by itself. The Dutchman’s brilliance lay in how to combine these parts in order that they operated within a precisely synchronized order, cutting with each downward motion and advancing with each upward motion. It was a remarkably clever use of basic parts.”
Which brings us to today’s challenge. I’d like for you to reimagine a key the fundamental concepts underpinning Corneliszoon’s machine.
Circular to Vertical
Construct a mechanism that turns rotary movement into vertical motion. Your available these items only: A spinning wheel. Two pegs. Two rods. A “guide”, that is a cylinder or sleeve through which one of the bars will fit perfectly. (Consider that it is possible to mount components on a stand, so that the parts don’t fall down.)
The solution returns later today UK with the answer.
In the interim, PLEASE NO HINTS. Instead, feel free to suggest (non obvious) contenders as the planet’s greatest invention.
