Electrons are for weaklings

December 14, 2004 2:27 PM

LEGO Logic Gates- It's like Babbage, but with bricks. All the gates except XOR are here, and he goes on to develop a clocked flip-flop. While practical mechanical computers may be out, even at the nanotechnological scale, nanomechanical memory may be in.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim (14 comments total)

The LEGO logic gates are neato. I must admit I was hoping he'd kick it up a notch and do something like binary addition at the end.
posted by driveler at 2:34 PM on December 14, 2004

Yes, this is the good stuff.
posted by Wolfdog at 2:40 PM on December 14, 2004

He says he has problems chaining too many gates together, and making an adder definitely requires that - look at the logic diagram of this 4-bit adder, for example.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 2:43 PM on December 14, 2004

[this is good]
posted by neckro23 at 2:50 PM on December 14, 2004

Don't forget the world's largest biomechanical NOT gate.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 2:56 PM on December 14, 2004

This is very cool. A great tool to help people learn this kind of logic, plus mechanical stuff like this is cool in general. A lot easier to see the logic in action rather than troubleshooting an old Norpak installation
posted by Eekacat at 3:04 PM on December 14, 2004

This is so awesome, thanks for posting it.
posted by kavasa at 4:47 PM on December 14, 2004

Having just completed four months of Computer Organization studies, with an emphasis on digital logic, I can't believe anyone would want to devote their own personal time to something like that.

My hat's off to him, he's a much bigger masochist than I am...
posted by SweetJesus at 5:04 PM on December 14, 2004

TheOnlyCoolTim, the longest chain of gates there is 4 long. He'd have to make a 4-way adder to do it, but that seems like it might be in the realm of possibility.
posted by aubilenon at 5:16 PM on December 14, 2004

Man, he totally cheated, using gears and stuff. That's not Lego, that's just Lego-branded machine parts. What would be cool would be if someone put together a set of rod-logic gates using only regular bricks, or maybe even tinkertoys. That'd be a pretty big pain in the ass, though.
posted by majcher at 5:16 PM on December 14, 2004

Tinkertoy computer?
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 5:48 PM on December 14, 2004

This guy also did a lego Rubik's Cube, the perfect match for the Lego Rubik's Cube solver masterpiece.
posted by denpo at 6:07 PM on December 14, 2004

Deja vu (verbatim, and verlinkim even) this morning on Slashdot....
posted by delapohl at 5:08 AM on December 15, 2004

Also see: Mechanical Pong

I've always had a thing for the mechanics of computing. If you're similarly interested, I highly recommend Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software. It's a great explanation of modern microprocessors that starts from the basics; wire, electricity, and telegraph-style switches. After all, we really haven't gotten any more advanced than that, just better at making things smaller. A great gift for someone who appreciates the beauty of simplicity.
posted by odinsdream at 7:40 AM on December 15, 2004