2.009 Product Engineering Processes: Archimedes — True or not it seems to me that they’d want to shoot the sails not the bow.
Ancient Greek and Roman historians recorded that during the siege of Syracuse in 212 BC, Archimedes (a notably smart person) constructed a burning glass to set the Roman warships, anchored within bow and arrow range, afire. The story has been much debated and oft dismissed as myth.
TV’s MythBusters were not able to replicate the feat and “busted” the myth.
Intrigued by the idea and an intuitive belief that it could work, MIT’s 2.009ers decided to apply the early product development (sketch or soft modeling) process to the problem.
found by the Wizard
yeah, IF boats stood still and you could keep focus in one spot. There’s no way if the ship was on sea, with waves and crap, it’d never be able to hold a steady spot. even if there were NO waves, the ship would still be moving in one way or another. That’s bunk.
I am not surprised MythBusters failed it, they spend half the show telling what they did before the commercial again, just like all the shows on TLC, Discovery etc. Those shows are rather unwatchable even if you tivo them for just that reason. Peff! 60 minutes time, 20 minutes of show, 20 minutes of commercials, 20 minutes of repeats. If Americans are really that dumb we deserve what we get.
Now back on topic, I can envision this working, but I am willing to bet MIT can do it, where the Mythbuster guys failed.
The smartest guy on MythBusters is Buster.
Dear Sir, I can see the spartan standing tall waiting for Archimedes to instruct him. I can see the ships sails catch fire. Every word is true.
The old man loved both Sparta and Athens. He even made tin toys that could walk. All of rome feared his every step. I dare to say that I saw the Spartan smile. He was so proud to be by Archimedes side.
Not yet… not yet…
No Roman or Greek Historian stated that Archimedes used a burning mirror. Polybius, Livy and Plutarcch, the first the most rweliable and thorough historaian of the period. Galen said he used pyreia, an early version of Greek Fire, but he was the pre-eminent doctor of his time. Anthemius, the mechanikos of Santa Sophia in Constantinople (6th century) knows only of the story as a tale, he gave no reference. The 12th century Byzantines, Tzetzes and Zonaras, give garbled and exagerated accounts of the burning mirrors -for an devastating opinion of their reliability consult Edward Gibbon. There is no evidence that Archimedes used burning mirrors of any value whatsoever. Reading Polybius account of the initial assault on Syracuse demonstrates that Archimedes systematic deployment of the standard weapons of the period makes it obvious that Archimedes did not need any additional weapons. Archimedes would not have used a burning mirror If he wanted another weapon, fire, he would have used his accurate catapults to pitch primitive Greek Fire on to the shipsand the soldiers attacking by land. Greek Fire with 1000’s of kilocalories falling into the hold would have found ideal conditions to start a rapidly growing and continuing fire amonst the rowers. Any ship would be within range of the different catapults. Moreover, Greek Fire could not be extinguished by water.
Finally, the Roman ships were not statonary at a known distance, and the idea that s many would be within the angle of the sun and the mirror to hit many ships is ludicrous. They were soaking wet. It would be impossible to set the relatively tiny focus on any part of a ship for long enough to set it on fire. Even if it did, the tiny flame would either extinguish itself or be extinguished by a wave.
Archimedes did not, would and could not have used a burning mirror.