What is the single most greatest machine mankind has ever built?

[EZO]

About that; today is day 3,652 of Opportunity's 90-day mission, happy tenth to Earth's most reliable wheeled vehicle that just happens to not be on Earth..

I wonder what criteria they used when they came up with the idea for a 90 day mission? :thinking:

 

[jtr1962]

About that; today is day 3,652 of Opportunity's 90-day mission, happy tenth to Earth's most reliable wheeled vehicle that just happens to not be on Earth..

That thing is more reliable than a lot of cars. This is all the more amazing because you can't exactly send a team of mechanics out to Mars to make repairs.

Semi off-topic but would anyone here want to live on Mars if we had a decent-sized colony there? I'm talking something like a domed city with at least a few hundred thousand inhabitants? I would seriously consider it. Not being a hot weather person, Mars would be somewhat nicer than Earth. Even the summers there at the equator aren't hotter than fall in most places on Earth. And then low gravity, plus thinner air in the domes with a higher oxygen content, would make for some speedy cycling (see this and scroll down to the bottom).

 

[jamie.91]

Whenever people talk about living on mars the first thing I think of it total recall lol 😜, people cutting off your oxygen and stuff, not for me I'm afraid.

 

[esldude]

Atlatl is my choice.

You had spears which were evolved pointy sticks. Edged weapons might be worth considering. It was the atlatl which required something akin to invention to looking deeper, to create something not otherwise existing in nature for purely human purposes. Once man got over that hump other ideas that weren't fully natural came more quickly and more often. The wheel, the bow and arrow, etc. etc.

 

[Solid Lifters]

Has anybody said 'TV remote controllers' yet?

 

[Monocrom]

Has anybody said 'TV remote controllers' yet?

Not really that great. Parents back in the day had children to get up and change the channel. Plus, there were only about 7 or 8 channels back then anyway.

 

[PhotonBoy]

I remember it well: clunk, clunk, cluck: "It's Howdy Doody Time!"

 

[orbital]

+

When you hear the Ford Cosworth 3Liter V8 Grand Prix motor, it gets ingrained in your soul
..it's a sound you cannot unhear ~~~

 

[Steve K]

I was going to say the same thing about a good afterburning jet engine...

 

[Mark620]

They are the lever, the wheel and axle, the pulley, the incline plane, the wedge and the screw.

The screw is an inclined plane wrapped around a cylinder....

 

[EZO]

The screw is an inclined plane wrapped around a cylinder....

This is quite true. Nevertheless, the screw and the inclined plane are considered separately as simple machines since they perform different functions.

 

[1nterceptor]

What is the greatest machine ever built? The bicycle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNuuT-nRer4

 

[Steve K]

Re: What is the greatest machine ever built? The bicycle.

Brompton, Dahon, or other brand? Folding bikes are an intriguing subculture of the bike world. It's almost a shame that I don't have a use for one... they look like fun.

 

[1nterceptor]

Re: What is the greatest machine ever built? The bicycle.

Brompton, Dahon, or other brand? Folding bikes are an intriguing subculture of the bike world. It's almost a shame that I don't have a use for one... they look like fun.

The one in the previous video is a Brompton S6L. I also have a Tobukaeru folding bike; a bit bigger than the B.
But with some disassembly; was able to fit it in a standard Samsonite luggage for my trip to China. And yes,
they are fun!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fi0156wPqe0

 

[StarHalo]

About that; today is day 3,652 of Opportunity's 90-day mission, happy tenth to Earth's most reliable wheeled vehicle that just happens to not be on Earth..

And as of today, the Mars Opportunity rover has traveled 26.219 miles, making it the first Earth interplanetary explorer to complete a marathon.