Conventional wisdom in our society and schools is that the slide rule is obsolete and the hand held calculator and computer is the best way to perform mathematical calculations. This is in fact a huge load of bullshit.
Many of you may not even know what a slide rule is. Nearly all of you will not know how to operate one. Hamlet said it best " Oh that it has come to this!"
A slide rule is an analogue computer based on moving a set of scales past two or more stationary scales. The center scale is the one that moves and the outer scales are fixed. They were also called "slip sticks". A clear cursor with a red line marking fits over all the scales and is used to read the values. A slide rule performs multiplication and division but not addition and subtraction. There are also other functions like trigonometry and square roots.
Lets refresh our understanding of analogue vs digital. If you own a watch and it has hands on it your watch has an analogue display. If it shows numbers only its a digital display. If you have an old fashioned barometer that's an analogue display and if you have a new style barometer with a number print out its a digital display. Hand held calculators and computers are digital devices. Generally speaking if you have a digital display you have an entire range of values and your indicator is moving between points in this display. If you have a digital display you have just one point in time displayed.
It is interesting to note that while humans can use digital devices we are actually analogue beings.
The phone is a digital and analogue device. We speak into it in analogue speech and the circuitry in the phone system converts our speech into a digital signal which is then converted back into analogue at the other end!
The main points here are that humans are analogue beings and that computers are digital devices. Now lets get back to the slide rule.
Slide rules are normally ruler type devices of either 5" or 10" in length and there are also circular slide rules. You can normally obtain answers on a slide rule to three decimal places. Although the slide rule will give you the answer YOU need to keep track of the decimal place. So 2X2 on the slide rule will give you 4.,40, 400, etc. This is not a difficult task.
The first slide rule devices began appearing back in 1630 but it was not until the 1930's that the slide rule began being used in engineering and science with more use in the 1940's 50's and 60's. In the early 70's the hand held calculator was invented and by the end of the 70's slide rules were on the way out. So the slide rule was only in general use for about thirty or forty years.
The human brain must deal with millions or even billions of perceptions every day and there needs to be a way of reducing the events occurring around us so that we can exist and go about our business. There is a natural mechanism at work that simplifies perceptions and generally makes everything less complicated. This is fine for some things but it does not work as well for complicated things. Simple perceptions are good and bad, cold and hot, friendly and hostile, rough and soft, old and new, good and bad and the list goes on and on.
In the case of slide rules the human brain perceived them this way. Compared to hand held calculators there were old not new, slow not fast and not as accurate. In fact our brains completely mis-interpreted the data.
Humans are capable of analyzing things. This occurs when we practice science or consider a problem in depth looking for the best answer. Unfortunately it would appear that not much analysis was done by those setting the curriculum in our schools or by those using computing devices in the work place. Here is what they missed.
- A slide rule requires no batteries and is human powered. It can operate anywhere even in the rain or underwater or in space.
- At a glance you can see an entire range of values something you cannot do on a calculator.
- You can use a slide rule as a ruler.
- You can place a 5" slide rule into your pocket.
- You can place a 10" slide rule into your pocket but that is probably a bad idea.
- As most of your input numbers are no more than three decimal places your answer will be significant. A calculator will give you an answer that has several more decimal places than your input numbers making the answer silly. That is you cannot take two numbers to three decimal places divide them and end up with an accurate answer to six decimal places. Yet this is exactly what a digital calculator will do.
- perhaps most importantly a slide rule maintains an awareness of the mathematical process in the mind of the user compared to poking numbers into a calculator "black box" and having no idea how the answer is generated.
- and your slide rule will look good and last indefinitely with only reasonable care.
On the personal level this is an easy fix. Simply acquire a couple of slide rules! A five inch pocket slide rule and a 10 incher should do you fine. They don't make them anymore but you still should be able to acquire them at a reasonable price on ebay and at garage sales. Then do some research on them starting with the article on wikipedia.
I am not saying you should toss your calculators into the garbage or never use them again. I am simply saying that there are occasions when the slide rule is still superior to the calculator or computer and that it therefore they should continue to be used! Even the average person will be able to find good uses for them and should carry a small slide rule for everyday use leaving the 10 incher in the office or at home. Keeping the 10 incher in your pocket will only generate all sorts of silly jokes which will demean the value of your slide rule and bring unnecessary ridicule to your sad self.
On the society level this is not an easy fix. There is too much momentum in society away from the slide rule to hand held calculators and computers. This is despite the abysmal math knowledge our young calculator toting students have today. Nobody is making slide rules anymore so no firm is actively advertising them. (There are several small businesses which continue to service market demand by providing new old stock or used working slide rules.) Curriculums are difficult to change because too many folks have vested interests in keeping the status qou. I am certainly not the only one who understands these issues -there are a few of us slide rule people around who do recognize the continued usefulness of these devices. Here are four sites for you where you can learn more and acquire a slide rule for your personal use.
- I checked around to see if there was any new interest in slide rules and found an interesting site in Canada called Sphere Research out of Kelowna BC. Their site looks at what might be included in a modern slide rule if production were to be started up again. Some excellent thoughts there! Well done!
- Some great information on dates and models at the International Slide Rule Museum This is an information rich site. Well done!
- I also found a site where you can still buy what appears to be new old stock Pickett slide rules plus manuals and at a very fair price given the condition. As these rules are no longer being manufactured this would appear to be a finite source of them however its an opportunity! Check out the Pickett Slide Rules site.
- Eric's Slide Rule Site Eric is a slide rule collector and his site has excellent information on it with some excellent links. Well done Eric!
In summary, Expunging side rules from Canadian society is a fine example of bullshit. You can reverse this simply by researching and acquiring one for your own use. The effort required to learn how to operate the slide rule is minimal especially for multiplication and division. Some of the rules used in engineering and science are more complex but with a bit more effort you can master them too! Even the complex ones still have the scales for multiplication and division so if you wish you can just use them. If nothing else you will intimidate or at least amuse your work mates when you yard out your slide rule and start calculating in front of them quickly having an answer to a problem before they can even reach their keyboards. Ha!
And thanks to those who recognize the continuing value of slide rules both for their collector value and continuing use. That make it easier for the rest of us to research and acquire one of these wonderful devices! Thankfully the Borg has not assimilated all of us yet and resistance is far from futile!
Please slide me back to the main index eh!
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The nice thing about being retired -other that the fact you are older, is that nobody bugs you anymore. So you can pretty much do what you want to. I decided to experiment with websites and the internet as it has been an interest of mine for the last 14 years. To date we have approximately 30 websites. All are interesting and some are more interesting than others. All offer good deals on merchandise and services and most offer free information that will save you money and grief and help increase your enjoyment of life. I hope you enjoy them!
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