Perpetual motion: The history of an obsession - Hardcover

Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0046210245 ISBN 13: 9780046210243

Publisher: Allen & Unwin, 1977

Synopsis

An illustrated overview of perpetualmotion machines and their inventors. The deceptively simple task of making a mechanism which would turn forever has fascinated many famous men and physicists throughout the centuries. In fact, the basic tenets of engineering grew from the failures of these perpetual motion machine designers. And, despite the naivete and even the blatant trickery of many inventors, there still exist a handful of mechanisms which defy explanation: * a vast canvascovered wheel which turned by itself was erected in the Tower of London * another wheel turned endlessly in Germany and was discussed by philosophers and scientists throughout Europe, including Sir Isaac Newton

About this title

About the Author

Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume is a qualified mechanical engineer who, after leaving the Royal Air Force, designed civil and military jets. A postwar pioneer of private flying, he later designed and produced small planes. He has written widely on aircraft instruction and received many international awards.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Make a machine which gives out more work than the energy you put into it, and you have perpetual motion. The basic tenets of engineering grew from the failures of perpetual motion. The deceptively simple task of making a mechanism which would turn forever fascinated many an inventor and, perhaps surprisingly to us today, a number of famous men and physicists applied themselves to the task.

Edition details

• Publisher: Allen & Unwin
• Publication date: 1977
• ISBN 10: 0046210245
• ISBN 13: 9780046210243
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240