New insights on ancient astronomical computing machine

New York Times : Raised from a shipwreck in 1901, the Antikythera mechanism has long puzzled scientists regarding its origins and maker. The clocklike device, with its numerous bronze gears and dials, appears to have been used to predict astronomical positions and eclipses. Hence it has sometimes been called the world’s first analog computer. Now Christián Carman of the National University of Quilmes in Argentina and James Evans of the University of Puget Sound in Washington have used the device’s eclipse predictor to more accurately date when the device was built. Based on the new information, they say the device was probably constructed around 205 BC, some 50–100 years earlier than previously believed. Although scientists have speculated that the Antikythera mechanism may be linked to the famed ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes, Evans said too little is known about ancient Greek astronomy to ascertain who could have come up with such a device.