A thousand years before Isaac Asimov set down his Three Laws of Robotics, real and imagined automata appeared in European courts, liturgies, and literary texts. Medieval robots took such forms as ...talking statues, mechanical animals, and silent metal guardians; some served to entertain or instruct while others performed disciplinary or surveillance functions. Variously ascribed to artisanal genius, inexplicable cosmic forces, or demonic powers, these marvelous fabrications raised fundamental questions about knowledge, nature, and divine purpose in the Middle Ages.
Medieval Robotsrecovers the forgotten history of fantastical, aspirational, and terrifying machines that especially captivated Europe in imagination and reality between the ninth and fourteenth centuries. E. R. Truitt traces the different forms of self-moving or self-sustaining manufactured objects from their earliest appearances in the Latin West through centuries of mechanical and literary invention. Chronicled in romances and song as well as histories and encyclopedias, medieval automata were powerful cultural objects that probed the limits of natural philosophy, illuminated and challenged definitions of life and death, and epitomized the transformative and threatening potential of foreign knowledge and culture. This original and wide-ranging study reveals the convergence of science, technology, and imagination in medieval culture and demonstrates the striking similarities between medieval and modern robotic and cybernetic visions.
Non-conventional machining process for instance, wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM) of titanium alloys is gaining attention due to non-contact nature of this process. To deepen the ...understanding in this area, this study investigates surface generation, kerf width, discharge gap, material removal rate and wire degradation during WEDM of Ti6Al4V alloy. Pulse on time (4–10 μs), flushing pressure (7–18 MPa) and wire tension (800–1700 gf) were varied and resulting influences on output parameters were analysed. It was found that, machined surfaces consist of multi-layered recast layer with the presence of cracks, holes as well as traces of materials from electrode wire. The composition and roughness of the machined surface varies slightly with respect to machining condition without following any trend. In addition, deformation and morphology of deformed wire electrode after the WEDM process was also reported in this study.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
EUROTHERM 20249th European Thermal Sciences ConferenceBled, Slovenia, June 10 - 13, 2024This Conference Volume contains the papers presented at the Ninth European Thermal Sciences Conference ...(EUROTHERM 2024) held at Bled, Slovenia, from June 10 - 13, 2024, and accepted for proceedings published in the IOP Journal of Physics: Conference Series.The conference was chaired by Prof Božidar Šarler, University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Slovenia, and co-chaired by Prof Laura Vanoli, Department of Engineering, Parthenope University of Naples, Italy.List of Editors, Scientific Advisory Board and Organising Committee are available in this Pdf.
All papers published in this volume have been reviewed through processes administered by the Editors. Reviews were conducted by expert referees to the professional and scientific standards expected ...of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing.• Type of peer review: Single Anonymous• Conference submission management system: Morressier• Number of submissions received: 251• Number of submissions sent for review: 253• Number of submissions accepted: 243• Acceptance Rate (Submissions Accepted / Submissions Received × 100): 96.8• Average number of reviews per paper: 1.01• Total number of reviewers involved: 55• Contact person for queries:Name: Božidar ŠarlerEmail: bozidar.sarler@fs.uni-lj.siAffiliation: University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ljubljana, Slovenia
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