2000 years later, Archimedes’ “death ray” has just been awakened by a 13-year-old teenager. Immense power… in miniature form

JVTech News 2000 years later, Archimedes’ “death ray” has just been awakened by a 13-year-old teenager. Immense power… in miniature form

This 13-year-old schoolboy allows the return of a legendary legend: Archimedes’ death ray.

Archimedes’ death ray, a 2000-year-old concept, recently made headlines thanks to the initiative of a young Canadian college student, Brendan Senner. According to legend, the famous Greek inventor and mathematician Archimedes used mirrors to burn Roman ships during the siege of Syracuse between 214 and 212 BC. A concentrated ray of sunlight Called the “death ray”. Even if the story is epic, this feat has been around for a long time considered impossible, so in order of legend, of legend. Despite everything, young Brendan Senner decided to put the ancient theory to the test at a science fair.

Using heat lamps and concave mirrors to create a miniature version of a death ray, a middle school student observed that the target’s temperature rose significantly. Specifically, an infrared thermometer measured the temperature rise each time the sensor added a mirror. With a 100 watt bulb, the first mirror heated the target to about 7.78°C. Adding the second and third mirrors increased the temperature from 25.56°C to 26.67°C, while the fourth mirror increased it to 53.33°C.

Created by Brendan Sanner

Although he failed to ignite anything, his results showed that Archimedes’ notion may not be so unrealistic. According to Young, “If we scale up and have a powerful enough heat source, it’s absolutely possible.”

An experience that is part of a long history of endeavours

Brenden Senner’s experiment is not the first attempt to recreate Archimedes’ death ray. Indeed, this myth has attracted many researchers and enthusiasts over the centuries, starting with René Descartes who declared its impossibility in 1637. Among the notable efforts, we can cite. The television show “Mythbusters”, which tried to replicate the experiment three times without successOr an MIT professor who managed to set fire to a wooden boat in 2005.

However, as Brenden Senner points out, it is important to consider several factors that can affect the effectiveness of a death ray, such as Cloud cover, distance from shore and wood moisture. Moreover, historians and scientists have pointed out that Archimedes probably had Other more practical weapons and more effective against the Romans, such as steam cannons or incendiary mixtures.

In any case, Brenden Senner’s experience has revived interest in this legendary myth and demonstrated that, Even after 2000 years, Archimedes’ discoveries continue to inspire and fascinate the most curious minds. Let’s be clear: the scientific community does not believe that Archimedes ever succeeded in burning an entire fleet with mirrors. The legend certainly stems from the fact that mirrors may have been used to blind and confuse warring sailors.

Source: Business Insider