History of Machines and Mechanisms

What if we conceptualize migration and the transmission of know-how through the metaphor of knitting? Imagine each knot, each step, and each stitch, intricately woven into an elastic web of skills and competencies. This network, formed one thread at a time, has the power to reshape both international production and markets. Through this lens, we gain a deeper understanding of how migration and the diffusion of techniques are interconnected and how they can transform entire industries. This research seeks to trace the origins and evolution of the production of silk and cotton stockings on looms. By examining the technological transfer processes that took place between Mediterranean countries during the early modern period, the study aims to dig into the ways in which knowledge was transmitted - both through human networks and material resources. It also explores how these networks were structured to facilitate the flow of expertise and how this know-how was integrated into local contexts upon arrival.
At the heart of this analysis is the study of technological transmission through the lens of embodied knowledge, specifically in the context of “successful” dissemination. This approach challenges traditional views by shifting the focus from the volume of labor migration to the specialization that defined it.
Through a qualitative analysis of families of stocking makers who migrated, this research highlights the significance of migrant networks and their interactions with local populations in facilitating industry-specific learning processes. Despite differences in materials and timelines, the cases of Italy and Catalonia reveal notable similarities, providing valuable insights into the shared dynamics of migration and the transmission of techniques.

This paper concerns an Ottoman officer and translator, Mehmet İzzet's mechanical books. His books are among the most comprehensive textbooks on mechanical education in the 19 th-century Ottomans. Therefore, understanding his book's contents will give the reader an insight into Ottoman mechanics education in secondary and high schools in the 19 th century. Mehmet İzzet has two books, Mebâdî-i Fenn-i Makine (Fundamental Machine Science) in two volumes and Fenn-i Mikanik (Mechanical Science) about mechanics and machine science. In this article, old Ottoman texts were examined cover to cover, and tables of contents not included in the original texts were created.

Príspevok sa venuje problematike trnavských mestských hodín, ktoré vznikli pred rokom 1533. Mechanické hodiny boli umiestnené vo vežičke mestskej radnice. Hodiny mali drevený ciferník a jednu ručičku a vežička nákladnú kovovú strešnú krytinu. V polovici 16. storočia mali hodiny aj figurálnu výzdobu. Jej súčasřou bola drevená figúra Samsona, ktorá zvonila. Koncom 16. storočia boli hodiny premiestnené na novo vybudovanú renesančnú mestskú vežu vybudovanú v centre mesta.

V neskorom stredoveku boli ďalšie mechanické hodiny umiestnené v interiéri trnavského farského Kostola sv. Mikuláša. Tieto hodiny vznikli pred rokom 1519.

This paper presents results of HeritageBot, a regional research project for developing a robotic platform to be used in Cultural Heritage frameworks. The design and a prototype of HBOT Platform for demo purposes is introduced with features of low-cost construction and user-oriented performance. The design requirements are presented for application in monitoring and working within frames for conservation of goods of Cultural Heritage with characteristics that are aimed for technological transfer and entrepreneurship plans.

This paper presents results of HeritageBot, a regional research project for developing a robotic platform to be used in Cultural Heritage frameworks. The design and a prototype of HBOT Platform for demo purposes is introduced with features of low-cost construction and user-oriented performance. The design requirements are presented for application in monitoring and working within frames for conservation of goods of Cultural Heritage with characteristics that are aimed for technological transfer and entrepreneurship plans.

The formula of the scintillation index fixated on bit error rate of Super Lorentz Gaussian beam in turbulent atmosphere is derivative by using the Huygens Fresnel Process to evaluate the average bit error rate. The scintillation index guides of a higher beam order engrossed Super Lorentz Gaussian beam flat and Cartesian coordinates are compared. The average signal-to-noise ratio is computed via the versus scintillation index and bit error rate by using the formula of log-normal dispersed intensity for the beam order and absorbed the Super Lorentz Gaussian beams (SLG) is propagated in the slant path, which display several factors such as source size, focal length and wavelength, for example, 0.8 and 1.55 μm. Absorbed beams are initiated to take significant compensations over higher order beams. According to the two desired wavelength distributions processed theoretically, the results of bit error rate estimation were started to the value of source size rises, the system is improved a...

This paper proposes a general formulation of the dynamic model of constrained, articulated limb of wheel-legged mobile robot. Dynamic model of the system has been formulated in terms of actuated joints using Euler-Lagrange formulation. Implicit kinematic model is used to provide dependences between articulated and unarticulated joint rates, velocities and accelerations used in the model. Based on dynamic model of the system a nonlinear controller has been proposed. Numerical model of the limb has been built in order to verify the validity of the control laws. Exemplary simulations have been presented to show asymptotic stability of control system.

Adriano Olivetti (1901-1960), the well-known intellectual and entrepreneur who created the factory which produced the typewriters and calculators that became icons of design and efficiency around the world, considered Saint Augustine's The City of God the first attempt to explore the concept of "Community". Following in Augustine's footsteps, Olivetti described The City of Men (1960), a systemic territorial, political, administrative, economic and cultural entity tailored to the needs of individuals, where people could fully realise their inner potential. He called this conceptual and concrete entity the "Community", sowing the seed that would lead to the moral and civil reconstruction of postwar Italy whose aim was to merge the country's productive-industrial and political-social worlds. This paper attempts to outline the development of Olivetti's thinking about "Community", from the functionality of production and urban spaces to their educational potential: thanks to the influence of personalist thinking, the material forces that created a productive-industrial/residential-social modernity were transformed into educational-spiritual forces at the service of people within the community. Adriano Olivetti (1901-1960), il noto intellettuale e imprenditore della fabbrica di macchine da scrivere e calcolatori elettronici, icone di design e di efficienza a livello mondiale, parte dalla Città di Dio di Sant'Agostino, che ritiene il primo trattato sulla "Comunità", per delineare la Città dell'uomo (1960) ovvero un'entità territoriale, politica, amministrativa, economica e culturale di tipo sistemico a servizio della persona e dove la persona esprime pienamente la propria interiorità. Tale entità concettuale e concreta prende il nome di "comunità" e si propone come nucleo portante di rifondazione morale e civile dell'Italia del secondo dopoguerra mirando a un'alleanza tra mondo produttivo-industriale e mondo politico-sociale. La presente ricerca intende delineare lo sviluppo del pensiero di Olivetti attorno al tema della "Comunità" dimostrandone l'evoluzione dalla funzionalità degli spazi produttivi e urbanistici alle potenzialità educative di quegli stessi spazi. Le forze materiali, che hanno dato vita alla modernità produttivo-industriale e abitativo-sociale, hanno assunto finalità educativo-spirituali poste al servizio della persona nella comunità grazie all'influenza del pensiero personalista.

The traditional twisting-rope Guqin tuning pegs has a history of at least 2,400 years. Over the long history, the top end of the pegs has evolved from a flat structure to a low-lying structure. What is the significance of this change? The author found from the perspective of force analysis that this seemingly simple structure can increase the friction moment by over 30%, achieving practical and significant mechanical benefits, and improving the problem of slipping and back-spinning of twisting-rope tuning pegs. It is a unique case of musical instrument improvement jointly created by ancient Chinese craftsmen and Guqin players in long-term practice.

This paper presents results of HeritageBot, a regional research project for developing a robotic platform to be used in Cultural Heritage frameworks. The design and a prototype of HBOT Platform for demo purposes is introduced with features of low-cost construction and user-oriented performance. The design requirements are presented for application in monitoring and working within frames for conservation of goods of Cultural Heritage with characteristics that are aimed for technological transfer and entrepreneurship plans.

La figura di Arturo Uccelli è una delle più singolari di sempre nel novero
degli studiosi di Leonardo. Ingegnere di professione, fu assai attivo
in iniziative editoriali di varia natura che spaziavano da quelle di settore
legate alla sua attività, a opere di divulgazione dei temi più vari, come ad esempio l’astronomia sumera e babilonese; in quanto poi giornalista fondò e diresse la rivista specialistica «Guida sanitaria della Lombardia». Ereditò dal padre la passione per Leonardo, passione che lo portò a studiare approfonditamente i suoi manoscritti, fino a convincersi che, completata la pubblicazione facsimile di ciò che restava dei suoi taccuini, fosse venuto il momento di rendere accessibile il suo pensiero anche a chi non fosse uno studioso.

According to History of Information (2003-2004), the first industrial robot was built by Unimation, the world’s first robot manufacturing company, founded in 1956 by Devol and Joseph Engelberger in  Danbury, Connecticut (U.S. Patent N°. 2,988,237).
Later on in 1966, while deciding to accelerate the internationalization of  Unimation Inc., in Asia,  Engelberger built a  partnership with Kawasaki  Aircraft in order to introduce  the industrial robot in Japan.
Since then, Kawasaki Heavy Industries (the predecessor of Kawasaki Aircraft) accelerated the intensive use of robot in the Japanese industries and help the country simultaneous become the Industrial power and the World Leading Robot Power of the 20th century. In fact, since the end of 50s, Japan did experience an economic miracle known as ‘ Japanese miracle’. Accordingly, De Chalmers Johnson (1982) found that over the whole postwar era, 1946 to 1976, the Japanese economy increased 55-fold.
By the end of the 70s, Japan accounted for about 10 percent of the world’s economic activity though occupying only 0.3 per cent of the world’s population. Furthermore, according to Yungao et al. (2019), background Japan's manufacturing industry developed rapidly after World War II. In the 1970s, industrial modernization was basically achieved. In the 1980s, it surpassed Europe, the United States and other industrial powers in the fields of automobiles and semiconductors, and became the world's second largest manufacturing country.
This above performance and the intensive use of robot in industries resulted from Japanese specificities and special context that took place in the country since the 50s. In fact, during the miracle, the manufacturing sector that did account for 30 % of the GNP at that time was facing serious labor shortage. Furthermore, the Japanese car manufacturers, which increased their production capacity in order to catch up full-scale motorization during the period of rapid economic growth, were struggling with securing workers for welding, one of Japan's " 3K" (Kitsui, or " hard";  Kitanai, or " dirty"; and kiken, or " dangerous") jobs.
As a result, the above context and circumstances accelerated the intensive use of industrial robot first in the automotive industry but later on in the whole industry.
Since then, while the industrial robot was introduced by US in Japan, they’ve known how to effectively use the Robot-driven Economy in order to improve their ‘ Price-based and Quality-based Competitive Advantage ’ .
However, beside the role of Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Automotive Industries,  the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) that replaced the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) and the Monozukuri  played an important role into the prosperity of Japan and adoption and spread of Robot-driven Economy of Japan. In fact, the major mission of METI was about wealth creation rather than wealth redistribution.
Since then, METI focused on an Export-oriented Agenda that brought an international perspective to the task of growing Japan’s presence on the world stage and opening doors to a prosperous future. Furthermore, thanks to METI, there has been the high-speed growth that began in 1955 and the adoption of the keynesianism that did play an important role into the Japanese miracle of the 1946 to 1976. Moreover, there has been an adoption of the ‘ Anything-but-politics ’ approach in order to transcend political boundaries. In addition, since the end of the 20th century, METI did help spread the concept of ‘ monozukuri’ that continued to accelerate the intensive use of robot into the Japanese economy.
Therefore, like the adoption of the Market-oriented State-centric capitalism that transformed the West from the 18th century to the mid-20th century (James Michael Walker, 2022), there has been a Japanese Market-oriented and State-centric capitalism embedded in the actions of METI driven by the ‘ Plan-oriented Market Economy System’ since the 1974.



As a result, thanks to METI, the strong  Japanese Export-oriented economy did help the country become ‘ Second Largest Economy’ of the World behind US from the 70s to the 2010s on the one hand and the pillar of the Easternization of the Globalization on the second hand.
By doing so, Japanese miracle and Easternization of the Globalization has started to be viewed as imitation of the western’s economic transformation. In fact, beside the introduction of industrial robot and the adoption of the  Market-oriented State-centric capitalism, James Michael Walker (2021), while focusing on the Capitalisation Effects of Urbanization, also showed how the positive correlation within Transportation infrastructure spending, agglomeration economies, innovation, trade and prosperity became the driving factors of the economic upgrading of Europe and US on the one hand and of the Europeanization and Americanization respectively from the 18th and 19th centuries for Europe and 20th century to now for the US on the second hand. Furthermore, he did show the strategic role played by the State-centric capitalism and the MNCs and Multinationalization process into this transformation.
Nevertheless, and fortunately, Japan has also known how to capture the maximum opportunities offered by the acceleration of the  Maturity stage of IT with its associated technologies such as Blockchains, Cloud computing, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR) and Automation on the one hand and the increasing the demand of and use of Robots in factories at the global level mainly in Asia and in most advanced nations of the North such as US and Germany on the second hand to expect becoming the World Leading Robot Power of the 21st century. In fact, the new World Robotics 2020 Industrial Robots by the IFR (2022) report shows a record of 2.7 million industrial robots operating in factories around the world-an increase of 12 %. Sales of new robots remain on a high level with 373, 000 units shipped globally in 2019. Furthermore, according to Milton Guerry, president of the IFR, the stock of industrial robots operating in factories around the world today marks the highest level in history.
However, at the sectorial and spatial levels, the use of robots and new installations has remained concentrated. Furthermore, they found that there’s a hyperdependence to Japan regarded to the supply of Robots.
Since then, in context of race to global leadership within US and China, Easternization of the Globalization, reconfiguration of the GVCs and reinforcement of the position of Asia as Top Destination of Outsourcing not only for the Intangible-light Tasks but for the Intangible-intensive Activities, US as a pioner of the Robot and Digital Revolutions has decided to become the New World Leading Robot Power of the 21st century in order to accelerate its reindustrialization and strengthen its global competitiveness and leadership.

Key Words : Labor shortage ; Industrial Robot ; Industrial Power ; World Leading Robot Power of 20th Century ; Japanese Miracle ; Robot-driven Economy ; Price-based and Quality-based Competitive Advantage ; Easternization of the Globalization ; Market-oriented State-centric Capitalism ; Plan-oriented Market Economy System ; Japanese Export-oriented Economy ; Monozukuri ; Maturity stage of IT ; World Leading Robot Power of the 21st century.

Sit-to-stand can be considered the most common daily-life activity and it can be defined as a change of posture, in which the base of support is transferred from the seat to the feet. It requires both voluntary movement of different body segments that contribute to the equilibrium and control during an important displacement of the Centre Of Gravity of the body. This activity can be considered of crucial importance for elderly and people with reduced mobility to achieve minimal independence in daily-life at home. In this study, we present and compare three design solutions for the support mechanisms to be used in assisting mechatronic devices. The reported solutions and considerations are supported by experimental activity, which was carried out during trials to track and record trajectories and the orientation of the trunk of the body during the sit-to-stand.

The growing pressure to increase productivity and production quality is one of the reasons for the growing interest in using automated production facilities, such as robots. In many enterprises, automated lines are introduced that partially or completely replace the human factor. The automotive industry was one of the first to start using automated robots and still is the one of the largest users of these devices. Flexibility and affordability enabled robots to become part of the industry’s automation strategy. In order to achieve the desired goals, it is necessary to modernize and automate workplaces or to create completely new concepts of grouping of machines and industrial robots. An increasing trend in the use of robotic technology has caused several factors that have changed significantly in the recent years in favor of automated workplaces. The main changes made by industrial robots to the fore are improving their technical parameters, high reliability, affordability, reduced ...

Adriano Olivetti (1901-1960), il noto intellettuale e imprenditore della fabbrica di macchine da scrivere e calcolatori elettronici, icone di design e di efficienza a livello mondiale, parte dalla Citt\ue0 di Dio di Sant\u2019Agostino, che ritiene il primo trattato sulla \u201cComunit\ue0\u201d, per delineare la Citt\ue0 dell\u2019uomo (1960) ovvero un\u2019entit\ue0 territoriale, politica, amministrativa, economica e culturale di tipo sistemico a servizio della persona e dove la persona esprime pienamente la propria interiorit\ue0. Tale entit\ue0 concettuale e concreta prende il nome di \u201ccomunit\ue0\u201d e si propone come nucleo portante di rifondazione morale e civile dell\u2019Italia del secondo dopoguerra mirando a un\u2019alleanza tra mondo produttivo-industriale e mondo politico-sociale. La presente ricerca intende delineare lo sviluppo del pensiero di Olivetti attorno al tema della \u201cComunit\ue0\u201d dimostrandone l\u2019evoluzione dalla funzionalit\ue0 degli spazi...

This paper presents results of HeritageBot, a regional research project for developing a robotic platform to be used in Cultural Heritage frameworks. The design and a prototype of HBOT Platform for demo purposes is introduced with features of low-cost construction and user-oriented performance. The design requirements are presented for application in monitoring and working within frames for conservation of goods of Cultural Heritage with characteristics that are aimed for technological transfer and entrepreneurship plans.

In this paper, the early decades of the history of industrial robots (from the 1950's to the beginning of the 1990's, approximately) will be described. The history of industrial robotics can be considered starting with Unimate, the first industrial robot designed and built by Devol and Engelberger. The subsequent evolutions of industrial robotics are described in the manuscript, taking into account both the technical and the economic point of view, until the beginning of the 1990's, when new kinematic structures (parallel robots) appeared, allowing high-speed operations.

Industrial robotics is a branch of robotics that gained paramount importance in the last century. The presence of robots totally revolutionized the industrial environment in just a few decades. In this paper, a brief history of industrial robotics in the 20th century will be presented, and a proposal for classifying the evolution of industrial robots into four generations is set forward. The characteristics of the robots belonging to each generation are mentioned, and the evolution of their features is described. The most significant milestones of the history of industrial robots, from the 1950's to the end of the century, are mentioned, together with a description of the most representative industrial robots that were designed and manufactured in those decades.

James Fleck took a combined MA/BSc degree with honours in Mathematics at the University of Edinburgh in 1974. After a spell in industry (in North Sea oil engineering and in a London Software House), he studied for an MSc. (1978) and PhD. at the University of Manchester, exarnining development in artificial in-teUigence. In 1980 he moved to the Technology Policy Unit at the University of Aston in Birmingham, where he directed a number of projects on the adoption and diffusion of industrial robots. In 1985 he moved to Edinburgh, where he is currently Lecturer in Production and Operations in the Department of Business Studies at Edinburgh University. He is also Principal Investigator on a project entitled: "the effective management of available expertise in artificial intelligence". His main research interests are the dynamics of scientific and technological development and the process of technological innovation, and he has written a number of papers and articles on these topics.

In this paper we have outlined the historical development of the IFToMM Permanent Commission for History of MMS (Mechanism and Machine Science) by also looking at the recently established field of History of MMS with technical perspectives. The activity of the PC for History of MMS has been overviewed thought facts and efforts of the many members over the time. Subjects of History of MMS have been presented by using published results of historical investigations with modern technical reformulation.

Robotics is a surprisingly old discipline, and robots have shaped industry and the various industrial revolutions for many decades. This paper covers topics relevant to the IES Technical Committee on Factory Automation, focusing in particular on the evolution of industrial robotics. After providing a historical perspective on the topic, the paper addresses current and future trends, revealing the close link between the progress in industrial robotics and the parallel evolution of industrial communication systems, which represent an enabling technology for modern industrial robotics.

Robotics is a surprisingly old discipline, and robots have shaped industry and the various industrial revolutions for many decades. This paper covers topics relevant to the IES Technical Committee on Factory Automation, focusing in particular on the evolution of industrial robotics. After providing a historical perspective on the topic, the paper addresses current and future trends, revealing the close link between the progress in industrial robotics and the parallel evolution of industrial communication systems, which represent an enabling technology for modern industrial robotics.

This paper presents results of HeritageBot, a regional research project for developing a robotic platform to be used in Cultural Heritage frameworks. The design and a prototype of HBOT Platform for demo purposes is introduced with features of low-cost construction and user-oriented performance. The design requirements are presented for application in monitoring and working within frames for conservation of goods of Cultural Heritage with characteristics that are aimed for technological transfer and entrepreneurship plans. 

From the outset Olivetti was perhaps the most international of Italian companies, steering clear of the Made in Italy rhetoric, and devoting itself instead to the search for external contributions from the world of business, design and communication. It was a result achieved with skill and attention to favourable conditions, mixing all the ideas that had been gathered since the very first years of its activity, thanks to the farsightedness of its management, made up mostly of a group of technical intellectuals. This generated a unique and unmistakable Olivettian, rather than Italian, style

The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein.

FME Transactions (2021) 49, 291-307 291 Received: January 2021, Accepted: March 2021 Correspondence to: Thomas G. Chondros PhD, University of Patras, School of Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics Department, 265 00 Patras, Greece. E-mail: chondros@upatras.gr doi: 10.5937/fme2102291C Thomas G. Chondros Associate Professor University of Patras Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics Department, 265 00 Patras Greece The Development of Mechanics and Engineering Design and Machine Theory since the Rennaissance

Au large des côtes de l'Italie, dans la mer ionienne, s'étend une île de forme allongée, étroite, verdoyante : l'île de Zakynthos (Ζάκυνθος), en français moderne Zante, autrefois dite Zacinthe 1 , dont l'origine mythique remonte à Homère. Fondée par le fils du roi Dardanos, Zakynthos, considéré comme le premier habitant de l'île (1600-1500 a.C), elle aurait fait partie des possessions territoriales d'Ulysse 2. Selon Virgile, les compagnons d'Énée firent étape sur cette île nemorosa et y bâtirent un temple à Vénus 3. Mais l'île recèle encore d'autres attraits insolites propres à séduire tout candidat à l'otium académique. En effet, c'est dans la capitale (du même nom que l'île), nichée au fond du golfe de Laganas, qu'auraient été enterrés à seize

This book series aims to establish a well defined forum for Monographs and Proceedings on the History of Mechanism and Machine Science (MMS). The series publishes works that give an overview of the historical developments, from the earliest times up to and including the recent past, of MMS in all its technical aspects.

The works on History of Mechanical Engineering, particularly on Mechanism and Machine Science (MMS), not only record and recognize past achievements and personalities but also inspires innovations for the development of mechanical engineering. This special issue of the journal shows a collection of papers that have been selected from those that have been presented after review at the 2015 Workshop on History of MMS of the Permanent Commission (PC) for History of MMS of IFToMM: International Federation for the Promotion of Mechanism and Machine Science. The workshop was held in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on 26-28 May 2015. The workshop series started in 2002 at Admont Abbey in Admont, Austria, and since then, it has been held every year when the Symposium History of Machines and Mechanisms (HMM) and IFToMM World Congress are not organized. The workshop is planned as an informal environment event for presenting unpublished materials and for discussing and promoting interest on historical subjects with technical contents. Therefore, a workshop is usually organized with an informal program, and presentation of papers can be considered in preparation for the HMM Symposium or journal articles. The HMM Symposium on History of Machines and Mechanism is the conference event of the IFToMM Permanent Commission for History of MMS PC as a forum for international participation with publication of proceedings. The Workshop series is a companion activity of the HMM Symposium that is held every four years. Both the events are devoted to technical aspects of historical developments of MMS. The last HMM Symposium was held in 2012 in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and the proceedings were published and made available by Springer. The past HMMS Workshops were organized and led by the following chairpersons:

In this paper we have outlined the historical development of the IFToMM Permanent Commission for History of MMS (Mechanism and Machine Science) by also looking at the recently established field of History of MMS with technical perspectives. The activity of the PC for History of MMS has been overviewed thought facts and efforts of the many members over the time. Subjects of History of MMS have been presented by using published results of historical investigations with modern technical reformulation.

In this paper the work on the Theory of Machines by Galilei is reviewed and interpreted. The small treatise Le Mecaniche can be considered of fundamental significance in the History of Mechanical Engineering since it was written for a first academic course on TMM, and it used modern concepts.

Technological developments can be considered part of Cultural Heritage that deserves to be preserved for historical records and memories to a large public. Such a preservation can be also useful from technical viewpoints both to track past evolutions and to understand future trends. In this paper both designs and approaches for mechanism design are illustrated as worthy of being considered elements of Cultural Heritage with both above mentioned values mainly but not only for engineers. Examples of mechanism inventions and design algorithms both for whole machines and mechanism components are reported to show how technical achievements are and can be considered for Cultural Heritage in a broad sense and application, not only for technical use.

Fragment książki "Literatura i maszyna" dotyczy początków tworzenia się w Polsce dyskursu o maszynie, a więc sytuacji, w której rozwój technologiczny zmuszał do opracowania stosownego słownika pojęć i terminów. Przedmiotem analizy są artykuły publikowane na łamach dwóch czasopism o tematyce technicznej "Przegląd Techniczny" oraz "Wszechświat".

Grâce à la dissection, une idée nouvelle du corps s’affirme à l’aube de la Renaissance : il s’agit d’un corps matériel et saisissable, qui trouve dans son nouveau statut les prémisses – philosophiques et esthétiques – de sa représentation. Néanmoins, loin de se réduire à un schéma fonctionnel, le corps anatomique se détermine dans le cadre d’une saisie symbolique qui le lie étroitement à la religion, à l’astronomie et à l’art. Par l’analyse d’un choix de textes, cet article se propose de revoir cette construction à la fois symbolique et scientifique et d’expliquer comment le corps se définit dans un réseau pragmatique, devenant une clefd’interprétation du monde.

Grâce à la dissection, une idée nouvelle du corps s’affirme à l’aube de la Renaissance : il s’agit d’un corps matériel et saisissable, qui trouve dans son nouveau statut les prémisses – philosophiques et esthétiques – de sa représentation. Néanmoins, loin de se réduire à un schéma fonctionnel, le corps anatomique se détermine dans le cadre d’une saisie symbolique qui le lie étroitement à la religion, à l’astronomie et à l’art. Par l’analyse d’un choix de textes, cet article se propose de revoir cette construction à la fois symbolique et scientifique et d’expliquer comment le corps se définit dans un réseau pragmatique, devenant une clefd’interprétation du monde.

Kacem Aït Salah Semlali.-Histoire de l'alchimie et des alchimistes au Maroc: Essai (Rabat: publié à compte d'auteur, 2015), 381p. Cet ouvrage nous convie à un voyage de plus de 1000 ans d'histoire intellectuelle du Maroc, à la découverte des savants, praticiens et intellectuels qui se sont illustrés dans le domaine composite de la chimie-alchimie, cette science et pratique qui constitue un fait majeur de la tradition scientifique et intellectuelle médiévale, et qui fournit à la chimie moderne son arrière plan historique et culturel.

Cultural relics play an important role as historical materials in the study of farming history, especially in the history of farm implements. How to make full use of the historical value of the farming cultural relics and identify some forged cultural relics (fakes) is an urgent mission for the current academic circles. Through the research of two cultural relics and a group of fake "cultural relics", this paper demonstrates the historical value of farm implements contained in the two real cultural relics, and reveals the tricks of the forged cultural relics. The pottery funnel of the Han Dynasty in the Museum of Huaibei City should be the grain hopper that holds and pours grain on the winnowing fan car (funerary ware). A group of portrait bricks named "Han Dynasty Farming Pictures" in the Qingdao Han Portrait Brick Museum have been transformed and copied the pictures of several existing cultural relics. So, we can draw a conclusion that they were forged by modern people. The Han stone relief of " Cattle Ploughing" in the Han Pictures Gallery of Xuzhou Han Culture Scenic Spot not only depicts one kind of plow moldboard with saddle shape, but also draws the only picture of "Digging with Lei Si" in the Han Dynasty so far, which is of great value to the study of the history of farm implements. The interpretation of the whole picture of "Digging with Lei Si" still needs to be further discussed.

The catoptromancy concerns all the techniques of divination by reflective surfaces. Yet, in his Perspective curieuse from 1638, Jean-François Nicéron regrets that, in some cases, the prodigious effects of the catoptrics are used in abusive way inside such practices. Based on mathematic principles of perspective, this illusionist art tries to give a significance to an informal representation, with the aim to reconstruct the deliberately distort image, by means of a phantomlike reflection. When, at the end of his Italian period, French painter Simon Vouet realizes a sanguine drawing, representing a catoptric device, he becomes the ambassador of this recent technical invention, fascinating curious personalities of that time. The painter deploys a group of eight satyrs performing accurate and revelatory gestures, such as indico and comput digitis. In that way, the characters explain the functioning of the machine and invite us to think about the mise en abyme of images and the effects of the mimesis phantastiké, revealing the true aspect of reality.

a communication montre le rôle d’André Vésale dans l’enseignement de l’anatomie humaine, en donnant aux faits observés une place privilégiée. Parmi d’autres innovations pédagogiques, il faut noter le souci d’adapter le protocole de la dissection au public concerné ; dans une dissection publique, devant des étudiants, Vésale peut passer sous silence des variantes morphologiques ou fonctionnelles qu’il juge trop rares pour être utiles à la connaissance générale du corps humain. Dans le De humani corporis fabrica (1543), ces variantes restent le plus souvent anecdotiques, appuyées sur le témoignage visuel de l’auteur ou des étudiants et amis. Des différences entre les descriptions dans les traités anciens et les faits anatomiques observés pendant la dissection ne sont pas de vraies variations anatomiques mais doivent être expliquées par le transfert du modèle animal à l’homme ou par des variantes lexicologiques, voire par des pratiques divinatoires ou occultes.

Dans cette étude nous présenterons l’« Automaton of a Friar » ou Moine Automate au Smithsonian National Museum of American History, à Washington, D.C. Pour parler de cet artefact nous diviserons notre travail en trois parties. En premier lieu, nous en décrirons les aspects matériaux ; puis, nous en raconterons sa « biographie d’objet, » pour utiliser le terme de Gosden et Marshall . Enfin, nous analyserons les automata à la Renaissance dans l’optique de la philosophie naturelle.

The tilt hammer 碓 is one of ancient machines for hulling and pounding grain and other things. In the Yuan Dynasty, Wang Zhen's Nong Shu (Agricultural Book) recorded that tilt hammer is a kind of pestling machine made of stone and another change from mortar and pestle 1 . The pestle mainly depends on the strength of the hands and the gravity of the pestle itself, so it has a low efficiency. Later, the treadle-operated tilt hammer was invented and given the name of Jian Dui 践碓 (in Chinese Jian 践 means to tread). In the changing years of two Han Dynasties(around the beginning years of A.D.), the philosopher Huan Tan 桓谭 wrote the following words in his book Xin Lun 新论, "The advantage of the treadle-operated tilt hammer is ten times as productive as the pestle by hands because it gets the help from the weight of the laborer" 2 . The treadleoperated hammer is the most widely used in history and was used in some rural areas in China. This paper tells the kind of higher efficiency of the tilt hammer in ancient China, which was driven by hydraulic power. It can be divided into three types: a battery of hydraulic tilt hammers, the spoon tilt hammer and the ship tilt hammer.

Several years ago, Li Gen-pan published three papers of The Origin and Development of Waterwheel and analyzed systematically the history of waterwheel in ancient China. His papers included many historical materials, so it came with some wrong analyses and interpretations on the materials. This paper further discusses some historical materials about scoop-wheel (Gua Che), well-sweep, noria (Tong Che), hydraulic tilt hammers and Chinese square-pallet chain-pump (Fan Che), irrigation scoop (Hu Dou), saqiya (Jing Che), noria for high lifts (Gao Zhuan Tong Che). Moreover, it deals with the technological transmission of Chinese square-pallet chain pump, noria and saqiya.