Albert Michelson’s Harmonic Analyzer celebrates a nineteenth century mechanical calculator that performed Fourier analysis by using gears, springs and levers to calculate with sines and cosines—an astonishing feat in an age before electronic computers. One hundred and fifty color photos reveal the analyzer’s beauty though full-page spreads, lush close-ups of its components, and archival photos of other Michelson-inspired analyzers. The book includes sample output from the machine and a reproduction of an 1898 journal article by Michelson, which first detailed the analyzer. The book is the official companion volume to the popular YouTube video series created by the authors.
Author(s): Bill Hammack, Steve Kranz, Bruce Carpenter
Publisher: Articulate Noise Books
Year: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 128
Epigram......Page 4
Contents......Page 5
Preface......Page 6
Introduction......Page 7
Visual Table of Contents......Page 9
Fourier Synthesis......Page 10
Fourier Analysis......Page 11
The Harmonic Analyzer......Page 12
Crank......Page 13
Cone Gear Set......Page 15
Cylinder Gear Set......Page 18
Rocker Arms......Page 20
Amplitude Bars......Page 22
Measuring Stick......Page 24
Springs and Levers......Page 26
Summing Lever......Page 28
Counter Spring......Page 29
Magnifying Lever......Page 30
Magnifying Wheel......Page 32
Platen......Page 34
Translational Gearing......Page 35
Pen Mechanism......Page 39
Pinion Gear......Page 40
Provenance......Page 42
Output from the machine......Page 44
Michelson’s 1898 paper......Page 52
Math Overview......Page 56
Eight Views of the Machine......Page 57
