Name: 改變我們對人類歷史認知的機器 - Max G. Levy (The machine that changed our understanding of human history - Max G. Levy)
Uploaded: 2026-02-12T21:33:36.000Z
Duration: 6 min 19 s

關係子句

In 1900, Greek divers stumbled upon a 2000 year old shipwreck whose contents would shake our understanding of the ancient world.

1900年，希臘潛水員發現了一艘有2000年歷史的沉船，裡面的東西徹底顛覆了我們對古代世界的認知。

Among the remains were fragments of mangled wood and corroded metal, which archaeologists soon realized contained an intricate series of gears resembling technology not believed believed to exist until centuries later.

在殘骸中，有破損的木頭和腐蝕的金屬碎片，考古學家很快就意識到，這些碎片包含了一系列精密的齒輪，其技術水準遠超當時的想像。

By the 1950s, scientists began to understand what they'd found.

到了1950年代，科學家們開始理解他們發現了什麼。

These fragments were part of a device that could calculate the movements of the sun, moon and planets.

這些碎片是一個可以計算太陽、月亮和行星運動的裝置的一部分。

Now known as the Antikythera mechanism, this instrument appears to be the oldest geared device ever discovered, and

這個裝置現在被稱為Antikythera mechanism，似乎是迄今為止發現的最古老的齒輪裝置，

Most modern devices, like your phone or laptop, are examples of digital computers.

大多數現代裝置，像是你的手機或筆記型電腦，都是digital computers的例子。

These systems store information in strings of zeros and ones that they can then convert into images on a screen or sounds in a speaker.

這些系統將資訊儲存在一連串的零和一中，然後可以將其轉換成螢幕上的圖像或喇叭裡的聲音。

But more generally, a computer refers to any device that stores information and can convert it from one format into another.

但更廣泛地來說，computer指的是任何儲存資訊並能將其從一種格式轉換成另一種格式的裝置。

And long before the rise of digital computing, human technology was dominated by analog computers.

在digital computing興起之前很久，人類科技一直由analog computers主導。

Rather than using binary bits, analog computers receive and store signals from the real world, such as light or mechanical motion, and

analog computers 並不像 binary bits 那樣儲存資訊，而是接收並儲存來自真實世界的訊號，像是光或機械運動，然後

convert that information into something like readable.

將這些資訊轉換成可以讀取的東西。

Think of how a vinyl record stores impressions of sound.

想想看黑膠唱片是如何儲存聲音的。

The recording device, a vinyl cutting system, writes mechanical analogues of the world.

錄音裝置，也就是黑膠切割系統，寫下了世界的機械類比。

The physical force of sound waves carves grooves into a disc, which a record player then reads back into sound.

聲音的物理力量會在唱片上刻出溝槽，然後唱盤再將其讀取回聲音。

The Antikythera is the first known example of of analog computing.

Antikythera mechanism 是我們所知 analog computing 的第一個例子。

Ancient Greek astronomers knew that celestial bodies zoom predictably around the solar system.

古希臘天文學家知道天體會在太陽系中規律地運行。

But to forecast events like solar eclipses, they'd need to perform calculations by hand.

但要預測日食等事件，他們必須手動進行計算。

This device likely made that process much easier.

這個裝置很可能讓這個過程變得容易許多。

Setting the dial to a specific day drove a series of gears to calculate that day's astronomical personality.

將錶盤設定到特定日期，就會帶動一系列齒輪來計算當天的天文週期。

Metallic hands pointed to the positions of the Sun, Moon, and

what seemed to be the five then known planets, relative to the 12 constellations of the zodiac.

當時已知的五大行星相對於黃道十二宮的位置。

And the Antikythera's features didn't end there.

Antikythera mechanism 的功能還不只這些。

Another gear system likely spun a colored sphere representing the lunar phase.

另一個齒輪系統很可能轉動了一個代表月相的有色球體。

On another face, One of the five dials revolved according to the Saros cycle, the approximately 6585.3 days it takes for the Sun, Moon, and

在另一個面上，其中一個錶盤依照沙羅週期旋轉，也就是大約 6585.3 天，太陽、月亮和

Earth to return to their exact relative positions.

地球會回到它們精確的相對位置。

There was even a dial that indicated the timing of ancient Greek festivals.

甚至還有一個錶盤能顯示古希臘節慶的時機。

For the Antikythera, computation lived in the connections between gears.

對 Antikythera mechanism 而言，計算就存在於齒輪之間的連結裡。

Each celestial body follows specific rules that govern its motion, positions and quirks, like changing speeds and the Moon's wobbly orbit.

每個天體都遵循著特定的規則，這些規則決定了它的運動、位置和一些小特性，像是速度的變化以及月亮不規則的軌道。

The fact that these ancient gears were precisely designed to compute not just one, but

這些古老的齒輪精確地設計來計算不只一個，

Many of these rules simultaneously has astounded researchers.

而是同時計算許多規則，這點讓研究人員驚嘆不已。

For example, the handshake between 13 gears automatically that recreated our moon's orbit was only seconds off from reality.

舉例來說，13 個齒輪之間的聯動自動重現了月球的軌道，其誤差僅有幾秒。

Analog computers like the Antikythera are in fact more efficient than digital computers.

像 Antikythera mechanism 這樣的 analog computers，實際上比 digital computers 更有效率。

For example, take a digital 4K movie represented by 100 billion binary digits.

舉個例子，一部 4K 的數位電影，由 1000 億個 binary bits 組成。

These bits are fundamentally devoid of an identity.

這些 bits 本身並沒有什麼意義。

They must be assembled by software on your TV or laptop and converted into the colors, motion and sound that simulate the real world.

它們必須透過電視或筆記型電腦上的軟體來組裝，並轉換成顏色、motion 和聲音，模擬真實世界。

While the exactness of binary code makes it reliable, digital logic requires abundance at the expense of efficiency.

雖然 binary code 的精確性讓它很可靠，但 digital logic 需要大量的資源，犧牲了效率。

And the output is always changing, just an approximation of reality.

而輸出結果總是變動的，只是現實的近似值。

相較之下，想像一個類比的秤。

When you step on this device, the force of your body weight presses down on a spring which rotates a dial to reveal a number.

當你站上這個裝置，你身體的重量會壓迫彈簧，旋轉刻度盤來顯示一個數字。

This computer converts mechanical force directly into numbers we can read.

這臺電腦直接將機械力轉換成我們可以讀取的數字。

It's a continuous input weighing 150 pounds moves the spring more than weighing 149 pounds does.

它的輸入是連續的，秤150磅和秤149磅，彈簧的移動幅度是不同的。

And by acting continuously rather than discreetly, many experts argue that analog computers are more real than digital ones.

而且，許多專家認為，類比電腦因為是連續運作而非離散運作，所以比數位電腦更真實。

This elegance of faithfully representing real information has renewed interest in analog tech and is even inspiring new technologies.

這種忠實呈現真實資訊的優雅，重新燃起了人們對類比技術的興趣，甚至啟發了新技術。

In the future, analog computing may improve the efficiency of digital systems, proving what's old can be new again.

未來，類比運算可能會提升數位系統的效率，證明舊的東西也能煥然一新。

Get ready for what the future of computing holds with Brilliant.

準備好迎接 Brilliant 為你帶來的運算未來。

Brilliant will help you master the fundamentals of this ever evolving technology with visual interactive courses on computer science and programming.

Brilliant 將透過互動式視覺課程，協助你掌握這項不斷演進的電腦科學與程式設計基礎。

Visit brilliant.orgeded for a free 30 day trial and 20% off an annual premium subscription.

立即前往 brilliant.orgeded 即可享有30天免費試用，以及年訂閱 premium 方案享八折優惠。