Subdeacon Joe Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 Before computers this is how scientists work out equations for satellite orbits at Systems Labs, California, 1957. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Riot Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 I wonder if that rail in front is for a ladder on rollers? At first I thought they were in a parking lot with a slight incline but then looking at the top of the board it appears tilted the opposite way. I think it’s just the way the photo was taken. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 There were reports that the maker of the world’s best chalk was going out of business and mathematicians worldwide were hoarding the supplies they could find. Searching today found that the company is still doing business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colorado Coffinmaker Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 Nope. You were right the first time Pat. They are out inna parking lot and the "rail" is a tire stop for cars. The angle of the dangle on all the ladders mimes the angles of the parking surface. And, they are actually working on the recipe for Col. Sanders Fried Chicken and McDonalds Secret Sauce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calamity Kris Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 2 hours ago, Colorado Coffinmaker said: Nope. You were right the first time Pat. They are out inna parking lot and the "rail" is a tire stop for cars. The angle of the dangle on all the ladders mimes the angles of the parking surface. I imagine this was done to prevent the possible leakage of classified materials. Since they couldn't bring the "Life" photographer in, they brought the board out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Bullweed Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 And it worked! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wallaby Jack, SASS #44062 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 What was that movie that was made about the mathematicians for the early manned space flights ? It had a bunch of coloured Ladies who were better than the computer and the breaking down of segregation in the space centre. ..... might have had Tom Hanks or some such as the lead male ...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Equanimous Phil Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 1 hour ago, Wallaby Jack, SASS #44062 said: What was that movie that was made about the mathematicians for the early manned space flights ? Hidden Figures with Kevin Costner and Taraji P. Henson as Katherine Johnson. I liked this movie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wallaby Jack, SASS #44062 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 17 minutes ago, Equanimous Phil said: Hidden Figures with Kevin Costner and Taraji P. Henson as Katherine Johnson. I liked this movie thank You very much, I like this movie too .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 They are developing the equations. That is still done by hand. Solving the equations is done by computer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irish ike, SASS #43615 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 And not an evil slide rule in sight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Gun Barney, SASS #2428 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 34 minutes ago, irish ike, SASS #43615 said: And not an evil slide rule in sight Slide rules aren't necessarily bad, only the ones that are wearing the black hats. I like to keep a couple in my desk to offer to unsuspecting interns that ask to borrow my calculator. The round one is dated 1960, I can't find dates on the classic plastic or wooden one. I keep a vernier caliper at my desk for when somebody wants to borrow my caliper too. Slides rules aren't evil, engineers are! A quick google and it looks like that model of wooden slide rule was made between '47 and '67. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdeacon Joe Posted December 29, 2021 Author Share Posted December 29, 2021 8 hours ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said: They are developing the equations. That is still done by hand. Solving the equations is done by computer. In 1957? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 18 minutes ago, Subdeacon Joe said: In 1957? The methods were being developed. that was done for the photo. Six mathematicians/physicists can’t actually work on a solution like that. Their egos would clash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgavin Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 I still have my Dad's slide rule from Annapolis. Dated 1937 and made from ivory. Not PC today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irish ike, SASS #43615 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 Doing the math for my structural engineering classes in college. I could get the answer but not where the decimal place was. When we could go to the library and rent a calculator the class got to be fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967 Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 1 hour ago, bgavin said: I still have my Dad's slide rule from Annapolis. Dated 1937 and made from ivory. Not PC today. Shhhhh..... Remember ~ it's illegal to possess such a thing in california.... Quote California Fish and Game Code section 2022 makes it illegal to sell, offer for sale, possess* with intent to sell, and import with intent to sell elephant ivory in California. It also increased penalties to up to $50,000 or twice the value of the goods, whichever is greater, and/or one year in prison. *They might claim to not believe you when you tell 'em ya ain't planning on selling it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calamity Kris Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 6 hours ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said: The methods were being developed. that was done for the photo. Six mathematicians/physicists can’t actually work on a solution like that. Their egos would clash. Sounds like you worked with my dad, a mathematician........................ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. James H. Callahan Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 On 12/28/2021 at 4:00 AM, Subdeacon Joe said: Before computers this is how scientists work out equations for satellite orbits at Systems Labs, California, 1957. Common core mathematicians working on the square root of 4. JHC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgavin Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 5 hours ago, Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967 said: Shhhhh..... Remember ~ it's illegal to possess such a thing in california.... Not if it is inherited family artifacts. Illegal to sell for certain. Mom had a goodly amount of ivory art from China from the 1920s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 On 12/29/2021 at 11:41 PM, bgavin said: Not if it is inherited family artifacts. Illegal to sell for certain. Mom had a goodly amount of ivory art from China from the 1920s. Thing is you have to prove it to THEIR satisfaction. In the PRoK you are guilty until you can prove beyond a shadow of a doubt and then some that you're innocent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgavin Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 Very true. However, unless you are offering it for sale... "they" never know about it. My Dad's slide rule from Annapolis, 1937 is ivory. No doubt illegal as above, but I have no plans to put it up for sale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go West Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 We got circular slide rules in physics class. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustin Checotah Posted January 4, 2022 Share Posted January 4, 2022 On 12/29/2021 at 1:50 PM, Crazy Gun Barney, SASS #2428 said: Slide rules aren't necessarily bad, only the ones that are wearing the black hats. I like to keep a couple in my desk to offer to unsuspecting interns that ask to borrow my calculator. The round one is dated 1960, I can't find dates on the classic plastic or wooden one. I keep a vernier caliper at my desk for when somebody wants to borrow my caliper too. Slides rules aren't evil, engineers are! A quick google and it looks like that model of wooden slide rule was made between '47 and '67. I have a few myself. The top one I bought to use in physics class in my senior year of high school. I also used it when I went to the Navy's nuclear power school. It has I think 24 scales and by the time I left Nuke school I could use 22 of them. Calculators at the time were getting smaller and cheaper but the Navy wanted us to use the slide rules. They would let us use calculators for homework but on the test, we had to use the slide rule. I remember doing homework once with my calculator and when I did a more complex problem on the calculator, I wasn't sure of the result that I got and checked it on the slide rule. The little one was one my father gave to the son of a friend for his high school math in 1966. The recipient gave it to me in 2006 or so when I was visiting him out in Oklahoma. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Null N. Void Posted January 4, 2022 Share Posted January 4, 2022 I went to Bainbridge for NPS and then to Ballston Spa for Prototype. I still have the slide rule I bought. Calculators were not allowed at that time. Once I was out of the Navy, I went to school for Mechanical Engineering and the slide rule was retired to a place of honor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted January 4, 2022 Share Posted January 4, 2022 My favorite in my collection is the CI-515-T. It was one of the first slide rules I added to my collection. It also took me years to finally find copies of the instruction manuals for the special scales on the back side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted January 4, 2022 Share Posted January 4, 2022 What got me started was this book Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Injun Ryder, SASS #36201L Posted January 4, 2022 Share Posted January 4, 2022 17 hours ago, Dustin Checotah said: They would let us use calculators for homework but on the test, we had to use the slide rule. I remember doing homework once with my calculator and when I did a more complex problem on the calculator, I wasn't sure of the result that I got and checked it on the slide rule. I took Heat Transfer in college during the slide rule days. My ex wife had the same text book when she took Heat Transfer seven years later. I still had my homework notebooks and she would check her work against mine. As she had used slide rules before, she accepted the accuracy of my answers and would submit her work at the same accuracy level. However, since calculators would calculate out to many more significant digits, the "new" answers in the text book would sometimes be off by 25% and the professor would not accept her answers. She had to turn to the answers determined by using a calculator. My profession was in Heat Transfer and I always described it as a black art. The original equations were derived from data using slide rule accuracy and would come somewhat close to real world situations. With the introduction of the increased "accuracy" of calculators and computers, these original equations could have an introduced error that could create situations that would not work. I could go on and on with stories of inoperable equipment designed by people who relied entirely on calculators and computers and did not take into account a common sense "feel" as to the accuracy of those results. Some of these instances accounted for millions in losses! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 3 hours ago, Sedalia Dave said: What got me started was this book. What book? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 44 minutes ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said: What book? Fixed it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustin Checotah Posted January 9, 2022 Share Posted January 9, 2022 On 1/4/2022 at 6:55 PM, Injun Ryder, SASS #36201L said: My profession was in Heat Transfer and I always described it as a black art. The original equations were derived from data using slide rule accuracy and would come somewhat close to real world situations. With the introduction of the increased "accuracy" of calculators and computers, these original equations could have an introduced error that could create situations that would not work. I could go on and on with stories of inoperable equipment designed by people who relied entirely on calculators and computers and did not take into account a common sense "feel" as to the accuracy of those results. Some of these instances accounted for millions in losses! Did they use computers to build the Hoover dam? Maybe they did and over built it, but last I heard it was still standing. nuclear prototype reactor that I trained on was calculated to last 60,000 EFPH, effective full power hours. It was going on 90,000 when I was there. They probably used slide rules to calculate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdeacon Joe Posted January 9, 2022 Author Share Posted January 9, 2022 By gum! I do love the anecdotes, history, and personal history that gets casually tossed out for our edification on some threads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watab kid Posted January 9, 2022 Share Posted January 9, 2022 i still have my versalog here somewhere , but then i may have my HP35 here somewhere as well , i was caught in the transition , it was not a fun place to be for some of us , i remember having to buy metric scales too because the profs said that transition was coming , i still have those too and im still waiting for that to happen , you can see why one my age might be skeptical ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted January 9, 2022 Share Posted January 9, 2022 5 hours ago, Dustin Checotah said: Did they use computers to build the Hoover dam? Maybe they did and over built it, but last I heard it was still standing. nuclear prototype reactor that I trained on was calculated to last 60,000 EFPH, effective full power hours. It was going on 90,000 when I was there. They probably used slide rules to calculate it. And got the decimal point wrong…. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wallaby Jack, SASS #44062 Posted January 9, 2022 Share Posted January 9, 2022 11 hours ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said: And got the decimal point wrong…. This was always my downfall ......... ............ fortunately the authorities allowed calculators ( basically an abacus ) by the time we got to our final exam ... (electrical trades) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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