North Coast Imports, Inc.

Jim Seller's made this amazing box full of gorgeously-machined art-widgets as a gift for a friend. It doesn't actually do anything, except make people feel really good looking at the craftsmanship and love involved. Jim wanted to make something in the style of a 19th century scientific instrument. He calls it the ETD (Earth Tremor Detector). [via Makezine ]

My good friend is an industrial scientist - he just sent me an email with the following quote: The clock, not the steam engine, is the key-machine of the modern industrial age. Lewis Mumford (1895-1990) He wanted a horologist's view on the statement. I immediately thought of how modern industry is so inextricably geared towards efficiency.  The quote brought to mind Fritz Lang's movie Metropolis... I thought of New York's subway system and automated assembly lines and factories all timed to work much like a clock. The clock is of course not an 'invention' of the modern industrial age though. To me, the horological development that would have made the clock so important to the modern work force and efficiency planning is the minute hand - which is credited to appear at about 1475.   But then again, if you consider the importance of travel (which leads to discovery and trade) then you can't overlook the impact of John Harrison's work in developing a clock acc...