Machine with concrete
I’ve heard this piece, created by Arthur Ganson, described several times—and every single time it makes my head spin:
He showed a video of “Machine with Concrete.” On the left an electric motor drives a worm gear at 212 revolutions a minute. A sequence of twelve 50-to-1 gear reductions slows the rotation so far that the last gear, on the right, is set in concrete. It would take over two trillion years for that gear to rotate. “Intense activity on one end, quiet stillness on the other,” Ganson said. “It’s a duality I feel in my own being.”
Also, here’s a smile-bringer. The setting is the latest Long Now lecture, and…
During the Q&A, Alexander Rose asked the full-house audience how many of them of were makers of things. Ninety percent raised their hands in joy.
The video:
From a videography perspective, I think this is a little frustrating. I would have preferred a slow pan and pause at each of the gears from fastest to quietest, before arriving at the concrete. It’s really strange not to be able to see any of the in-between motions; to me is where those medium speed gears would be the site of not just sheer contrast but actual drama.
I agree. I had the beginnings of the same thought in my head as I was watching it, but you encapsulated it perfectly.
During the Q&A, Alexander Rose asked the full-house audience how many of them of were makers of things. Ninety percent raised their hands in joy.
That’s a pretty broad question though. I mean, does pie count?
Yes, I love this. And I’m so glad we have a reporter on the front lines of the SALT.
But the thing that blew my mind absolutely the most was that not a single comment on the YouTube page made me feel like I had a personal responsibility to end the human race. I had always thought that was an immutable law of YouTube…