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One can find numerous contenders to claim the designation as “planet’s most significant invention.” The circular axle. The movable type. The combustion motor.

As per a recent publication, though, that honor should go to a mechanised sawmill invented through Dutchman Corneliszoon van Uitgeest during 1593.

“Prior to mechanised cutting, building a simple trading ship necessitated around 10 lumberjacks working for 90 days,” writes Jaime Dávila. “With wind-powered lumber mills, an identical quantity of processed timber might be produced within a week.”

Thanks to this speedy automated cutter, that converted timber into planks using almost no manual labor, the Dutch were able to construct ships more quickly compared to any other nation, an advantage that unleashed a century of Dutch maritime, economic and artistic dominance in Europe and the globe.

The First Genuine Industrial Device

The inventor's sawmill, argues the writer, represented “mankind’s first authentic factory machine.” A wind turbine turned a gear. A single part transformed its rotary movement into up-and-down motion to power the saw. Another component transformed that same spinning movement into a sideway’s movement advancing the log toward the blade. A geared mechanism shifted the wood forward one precise increment each stroke.

“Each element was modest on its own. Corneliszoon’s genius lay in how to integrate them in order that the machine acted within a perfectly controlled order, cutting with each descending stroke and moving with each return stroke. It was a remarkably intelligent application of basic parts.”

Which leads us to today’s challenge. I’d like for you to reinvent a key the fundamental ideas underpinning Corneliszoon’s invention.

Round and Up

Construct a machine which converts rotary movement into up-and-down action. You have these items exclusively: A spinning wheel. Two pins. Two rods. A “sleeve”, that is a tube or housing into which a single the rods can slide perfectly. (Consider that you can mount components on a stand, so that the parts don’t fall down.)

I’ll be back later today UK featuring the answer.

In the interim, NO SPOILERS. Rather, feel free to suggest (less celebrated) candidates as the world’s greatest creation.