The Secret Lives of Machines

So, today's a bit of a holiday and you may or may not be stuck at work. Why not put the time to good use and LEARN SOMETHING?

I've said I can never be bored if there's something I don't know. This series came out on the BBC* back in the early 90s and I'd catch it on the local PBS station. It's nothing like the "how it works" shows of today, but I also think that it has a certain charm. I mean, come on! 4:00 in and he's using a band-saw as a tape recorder. That's a guy who understands the principles behind what makes it work.

The same principle is what makes a hard-drive work.

More...

Here's an earlier one from the 80s.

All of this has changed, of course. We use LEDs and digital signals now. Still, it's nice to how it used to work.

Favorite line? "Defeated by local bees."



Moving out of the home, the series went to the office.

--Sent from my word processor--











*Chris points out--in the comments--that it was Channel 4 (of Darkplace fame) and not the BBC that first aired the show. This does not change where I first saw it, however.