Are You Able to Solve This? That Overlooked Dutch Invention That Shaped the Modern World
There are numerous contenders for the designation as “world’s most significant invention.” The circular axle. The printing press. The steam engine.
According to a recent publication, however, that title should go to a mechanised sawmill invented by Dutch inventor Corneliszoon van Uitgeest in 1593.
“Before mechanised cutting, building a modest trading ship necessitated around 10 sawyers laboring over three months,” writes the author. “Using wind-driven sawmills, an identical quantity of cut lumber might be manufactured within a week.”
Thanks to this speedy automated saw, which converted timber to boards using virtually no human effort, the Dutch were able to construct ships faster compared to any other nation, which sparked a century of Dutch naval, economic as well as artistic dominance across Europe and the world.
The Original True Industrial Machine
The inventor's sawmill, contends the writer, was “mankind’s first authentic factory machine.” A wind turbine rotated a wheel. A single part transformed its rotary movement into vertical motion to power the cutting blade. Another component transformed that same spinning motion into a lateral motion feeding the log to the cutter. A ratchet system moved the log forward one precise increment each stroke.
“Every component was modest on its own. The Dutchman’s genius was to integrate them in order that the machine operated within a perfectly controlled sequence, cutting with each downward motion while advancing with each return stroke. This constituted an astonishingly clever use of basic components.”
A fact that brings us to the current puzzle. I’d like you to reimagine a key the basic ideas behind this historic machine.
Circular to Vertical
Construct a mechanism which converts circular motion to up-and-down action. Your available these items exclusively: A rotating disc. Two pegs. Two bars. A “sleeve”, which is a cylinder or housing through which one of the bars can slide perfectly. (Assume it is possible to mount components on a base, so the components do not collapse.)
I’ll be back at 5pm UK time with the answer.
In the interim, NO SPOILERS. Instead, please suggest (less celebrated) contenders as the planet’s most impactful invention.
