The World's Largest Computer in 1951

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around historical and technical aspects of significant machines and vehicles, including the ENIAC computer and the Russian Ekranoplan. Participants engage in a quiz-like format, posing questions and providing hints about various inventions, their specifications, and historical context.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant describes the ENIAC, detailing its size, weight, components, and power consumption, while noting its limited processing power compared to modern devices.
  • Another participant identifies the ENIAC as the machine described in the previous post.
  • Participants discuss a large vehicle that weighs 540 tons, can travel over land and water, and is hinted to be built in Russia, leading to speculation about its identity.
  • Some participants propose that the vehicle in question is the Russian Ekranoplan, explaining its design and operational principles related to ground effect.
  • There is a discussion about a vehicle that achieved over 188 miles per gallon, with participants speculating on its type and historical significance, including a mention of a Harley Davidson motorcycle from 1908.
  • One participant describes a crude device involving a wooden stand, a funnel, acid, and copper wire, prompting further questions about its purpose.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the identity of some machines, particularly the vehicle that achieved high fuel efficiency, as various guesses and clarifications are made. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the specifics of some inventions and their historical context.

Contextual Notes

Participants express uncertainty about the specifications and classifications of the vehicles discussed, particularly regarding the Ekranoplan's operational capabilities and the fuel efficiency claims of the motorcycle.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in the history of computing, engineering innovations, and the evolution of vehicle technology may find this discussion engaging.

  • #721
\alpha = \frac {e^2}{2 \epsilon _o hc} \approx \frac {1}{137}

The following link is not from any reputed scientific source, and hence must be taken as a pop-sci account, with a little glitter thrown in for fun. The historical facts in it, however, are accurate and hence make it very read-worthy.

http://www.137.com/137/
 
Computer science news on Phys.org
  • #722
zoobyshoe said:
This was the largest of its kind ever built at the time. It could produce 1600 horsepower, and was about 20 feet tall. What was it, and where was it first installed? Hint: centenial

Without googling, I would say

The Centennial celebrated American industrial power. Its most famous exhibit was the gigantic 1600-HP Corliss steam engine that powered Machinery Hall. The first piece of the Statue of Liberty -- the hand and torch -- had just arrived from France and was put on exhibit. But it paled against the machinery -- the fruit of American factories, the raw muscle of our industries.
http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi205.htm

But it's just a googleless guess. :rolleyes:
 
  • #723
zoobyshoe said:
This was the largest of its kind ever built at the time. It could produce 1600 horsepower, and was about 20 feet tall. What was it, and where was it first installed? Hint: centenial
If not for the "installed" bit, some WWII bomber might have fit the bill.
 
  • #724
Ivan Seeking said:
Without googling, I would say...
Just a minute while I google the answer...
...

...YES!
 
  • #725
Okay now wait a minute I got distracted... I still need to take a moment to think of a good googleproof question.

Better yet, I'll google for one! :biggrin:
 
  • #726
  • #727
Discovered in the mid 1800's:

"It is an up-faulted monoclinal gritty conglomerate [about] 5 miles long and 2 miles across..."

Now google that!
 
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  • #728
Ivan Seeking said:
Discovered in the mid 1800's:



Now google that!
Just want to double-check. That is really 'monoclinal', not a typo of 'monoclonal', right?

Anyhow, sounds like some kind of volcanic island or reef.
 
  • #729
I added the [about], don't know why. I guess its automatic.
 
  • #730
It is "monoclinal".
 
  • #731
Devil's tower
 
  • #732
Not Devil's Tower
 
  • #733
Ayres rock (red rock) Australia.
 
  • #734
'Monoclinal' must be the geogolists' adjectival form of the already happy adjective, 'monoclinic' (which is a crystal lattice structure familiar to physicists and materials scientists). Geologists suck !

<runs to escape barrage of rotten tomatoes, eggs and dolomite chunks>

Ayers Rock sounds like a winner...
 
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  • #735
Not Ayers rock.

Yes, I loved the language, which is why I chose to quote it. :biggrin:
 
  • #736
Gokul43201 said:
'Monoclinal' must be the geogolists' adjectival form of the already happy adjective, 'monoclinic' (which is a crystal lattice structure familiar to physicists and materials scientists).
Thanks for that clarification. I was figuring that monoclinal must mean 'flat'.

Gokul43201 said:
Ayers Rock sounds like a winner...
But he said that it was discovered in the 1800's. There were Aboriginies in Oz thousands of years before that.
 
  • #737
It's not Ayers rock, but I also take issue with the word "discovered".
 
  • #738
The sioux aquifer
 
  • #739
Not the sioux aquifer. The geography has gotten worse.
 
  • #740
Hell's Half Acre fault?
 
  • #741
hypnagogue said:
Hell's Half Acre fault?

Hey stranger!

No, but since I tried it first, I was waiting for that link to come up. :biggrin:
 
  • #742
I don't know why I was thinking volcanic. 'Upthrust' is more indicative of crustal shifts. So this is some honkin' huge chunk of pumice or something that is remote enough to have gone unnoticed until the 19th century.
 
  • #743
But we were doing quite well down under.
 
  • #744
...and monoclinal is a word that only a geologist could love.
 
  • #745
A direct clue: A world's record
 
  • #746
btw, this is not a clue, why doesn't this thread have a rating yet? It should I think. I voted for five stars. :approve:
 
  • #747
Kursk Magnetic Anomaly (a giant iron ore)...?

Daniel.
 
  • #748
Great Barrier Reef?
 
  • #749
Nope, nope.

Lets see if this kills it.

discovered June 3, 1858.
 
  • #750
brewnog said:
Great Barrier Reef?
First thing that I thought of, but that's organic, not geological.
 

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