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10-31-2012, 01:11 PM
Celebrating Leonardo Torres-Quevedo, Spanish inventor of the world’s first computer game
What does a cable car in Niagara Falls have to do with the world’s first chess-playing machine? Surprisingly, both were inventions of Spanish civil engineer Leonardo Torres-Quevedo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_Torres_y_Quevedo). Next week, as part of our ongoing effort (http://googlepolicyeurope.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Computing%20Heritage) to celebrate Europe’s computing heritage, we’re commemorating Torres-Quevedo’s legacy and his remarkable machine—"El Ajedrecista" (http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chessbase.com%2Fnewsprint.a sp%3Fnewsid%3D1799&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNFaAjqAokU1lSXFhu5gj_XFu0kktQ) (in English, "The Chess Player")—in partnership with the Telecommunication Engineering department of the Technical University of Madrid. (http://www.etsit.upm.es/)
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MWYKJ8xMJZg/UI-43tLlLuI/AAAAAAAAASA/0AYV3Dg_Q4c/s320/Leonardo_Torres_Quevedo.jpeg (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MWYKJ8xMJZg/UI-43tLlLuI/AAAAAAAAASA/0AYV3Dg_Q4c/s1600/Leonardo_Torres_Quevedo.jpeg)
Photo thanks to Wikimedia Commons
Torres-Quevedo’s inventions span many fields. He was the second in the world to demonstrate wireless remote control (http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wired.com%2Fthisdayintech%2 F2011%2F11%2F1107wireless-remote-control%2F&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGQWJO6JfJDZLRuryND9UAX37Se_g), beaten to the post only by Nikola (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla) Tesla (http://theoatmeal.com/comics/tesla). His designs for airships (http://www.torresquevedo.org/LTQ10/images/7th_International_AirshipConvention_71192.pdf) were used by both the French and British during WWI. He was a global leader in cable car design, creating the “Spanish aero car (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whirlpool_Aero_Car)” over the Niagara Whirlpool which, nearly a century on (http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=FA0C17FC3A5812738DDDAF0A94DB405B868DF1D3), remains a tourist attraction. However, his most remarkable achievements were in the field of automation, developing machines that are antecedents to what we **w call computers and robots.
Torres-Quevedo’s ambitions were bold. As Scientific American proclaimed in 1915 (http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XwUiAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA296&dq=%22Torres+and+his+remarkable+automatic+devices% 22&hl=en&ei=oBhxTvGkNrS80AHrxoysCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=%22Torres%20and%20his%20remarkable%20automatic%2 0devices%22&f=false): “He would substitute machinery for the human mind.” In the 1890s, Torres-Quevedo built a ****** of mechanical devices (http://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/30460/1/doc1.pdf) that solved algebraic equations. In 1920 he wowed a Paris audience with an electromechanical arithmometer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arithmometer) with a typewriter attachment. You simply typed a formula—say, “24x48”—and the machine would calculate and automatically type the answer “=1152” in reply.
But El Ajedrecista, an algorithmically powered machine that could play an end-game of chess against a human opponent completely automatically, is his most **table creation. Although it’s a far cry from Deep Blue (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Blue_(chess_computer)), El Ajedrecista can lay claim to being the world’s first (analog) computer game.
.
Photos thanks to Museo Torres Quevedo (http://www.madrimasd.org/cienciaysociedad/museos/integrantes/museos/museosuniversitarios/mupm/torres_quevedo_upm/descripcionfondo.asp?pest=1)
The machine didn’t just calculate its moves—it had mechanical arms that physically moved its pieces, in the form of electrical jacks, across a grid. In later models the arm mechanism was replaced by magnets, and play took place on a more ordinary-looking chess board. You couldn’t cheat the machine as it could spot illegal moves; and you couldn’t win, as the game always started at a point (machine’s King and Rook versus human’s King) from which the machine could never lose (http://www.wikihow.com/Mate-With-King-and-Rook-Vs-King).
In ho**r of El Ajedrecista’s 100th birthday, we’re working with the Telecommunication Engineering department of the Technical University of Madrid (http://www.etsit.upm.es/) to stage a conference commemorating Torres-Quevedo’s legacy. The conference, taking place on **vember 7, will feature lectures and panel discussions, as well as an exhibition of Torres-Quevedo’s devices—including El Ajedrecista itself. Attendance is free—if you want to join us, request an invitation ([email protected]).
Posted by Lynette Webb, Senior Manager, External Relations https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/10861780-8741788896845556557?l=googleblog.blogspot.com
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/MKuf/~4/5EwIiXLUJbQ
What does a cable car in Niagara Falls have to do with the world’s first chess-playing machine? Surprisingly, both were inventions of Spanish civil engineer Leonardo Torres-Quevedo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_Torres_y_Quevedo). Next week, as part of our ongoing effort (http://googlepolicyeurope.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Computing%20Heritage) to celebrate Europe’s computing heritage, we’re commemorating Torres-Quevedo’s legacy and his remarkable machine—"El Ajedrecista" (http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chessbase.com%2Fnewsprint.a sp%3Fnewsid%3D1799&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNFaAjqAokU1lSXFhu5gj_XFu0kktQ) (in English, "The Chess Player")—in partnership with the Telecommunication Engineering department of the Technical University of Madrid. (http://www.etsit.upm.es/)
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MWYKJ8xMJZg/UI-43tLlLuI/AAAAAAAAASA/0AYV3Dg_Q4c/s320/Leonardo_Torres_Quevedo.jpeg (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MWYKJ8xMJZg/UI-43tLlLuI/AAAAAAAAASA/0AYV3Dg_Q4c/s1600/Leonardo_Torres_Quevedo.jpeg)
Photo thanks to Wikimedia Commons
Torres-Quevedo’s inventions span many fields. He was the second in the world to demonstrate wireless remote control (http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wired.com%2Fthisdayintech%2 F2011%2F11%2F1107wireless-remote-control%2F&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGQWJO6JfJDZLRuryND9UAX37Se_g), beaten to the post only by Nikola (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla) Tesla (http://theoatmeal.com/comics/tesla). His designs for airships (http://www.torresquevedo.org/LTQ10/images/7th_International_AirshipConvention_71192.pdf) were used by both the French and British during WWI. He was a global leader in cable car design, creating the “Spanish aero car (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whirlpool_Aero_Car)” over the Niagara Whirlpool which, nearly a century on (http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=FA0C17FC3A5812738DDDAF0A94DB405B868DF1D3), remains a tourist attraction. However, his most remarkable achievements were in the field of automation, developing machines that are antecedents to what we **w call computers and robots.
Torres-Quevedo’s ambitions were bold. As Scientific American proclaimed in 1915 (http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XwUiAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA296&dq=%22Torres+and+his+remarkable+automatic+devices% 22&hl=en&ei=oBhxTvGkNrS80AHrxoysCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=%22Torres%20and%20his%20remarkable%20automatic%2 0devices%22&f=false): “He would substitute machinery for the human mind.” In the 1890s, Torres-Quevedo built a ****** of mechanical devices (http://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/30460/1/doc1.pdf) that solved algebraic equations. In 1920 he wowed a Paris audience with an electromechanical arithmometer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arithmometer) with a typewriter attachment. You simply typed a formula—say, “24x48”—and the machine would calculate and automatically type the answer “=1152” in reply.
But El Ajedrecista, an algorithmically powered machine that could play an end-game of chess against a human opponent completely automatically, is his most **table creation. Although it’s a far cry from Deep Blue (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Blue_(chess_computer)), El Ajedrecista can lay claim to being the world’s first (analog) computer game.
.
Photos thanks to Museo Torres Quevedo (http://www.madrimasd.org/cienciaysociedad/museos/integrantes/museos/museosuniversitarios/mupm/torres_quevedo_upm/descripcionfondo.asp?pest=1)
The machine didn’t just calculate its moves—it had mechanical arms that physically moved its pieces, in the form of electrical jacks, across a grid. In later models the arm mechanism was replaced by magnets, and play took place on a more ordinary-looking chess board. You couldn’t cheat the machine as it could spot illegal moves; and you couldn’t win, as the game always started at a point (machine’s King and Rook versus human’s King) from which the machine could never lose (http://www.wikihow.com/Mate-With-King-and-Rook-Vs-King).
In ho**r of El Ajedrecista’s 100th birthday, we’re working with the Telecommunication Engineering department of the Technical University of Madrid (http://www.etsit.upm.es/) to stage a conference commemorating Torres-Quevedo’s legacy. The conference, taking place on **vember 7, will feature lectures and panel discussions, as well as an exhibition of Torres-Quevedo’s devices—including El Ajedrecista itself. Attendance is free—if you want to join us, request an invitation ([email protected]).
Posted by Lynette Webb, Senior Manager, External Relations https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/10861780-8741788896845556557?l=googleblog.blogspot.com
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/blogspot/MKuf/~4/5EwIiXLUJbQ