I?m a tool guy. I love tools of all sorts, be they software, hardware, shop tools, hand tools, or drafting tables. But I hold a special place in my heart for old tools, particularly those that performed a function in a simple and elegant way long-since forgotten in lieu of high technology. The slide rule is one such tool. My grandfather was a mechanical engineer and statistician, and a lifelong slide rule user. When I convinced him to give me one, I had no idea the obsession that would ensue.
Because it?s such a powerful and elegant tool, I?ve created an entire primer intended to explain the basic ideas that underpin this beautiful tool. I believe that the slide rule teaches the underlying concept of logarithms in a way that modern teaching techniques do not.
I’ve got an HTML version here, and a printable PDF version here.
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Adam O'Hern is an industrial design consultant specializing in visual brand languages, and has designed products ranging from laptops to power tools, classroom toys to bathroom fixtures, and robots to lint rollers. He has published with 3DWorld Magazine, CGTuts+, and Luxology, and works with Josh Mings of SolidSmack.com on EngineerVsDesigner.com. |
