I've seen a few documentaries on this device (though not sure if I've seen this one yet... just started watching), and I find it absolutely amazing. It always makes me wonder just how much technology has been developed and lost (and how many times this has happened) due to events like the burnings of the library of Alexandria (for example) and others we may not even know have happened. The fact that this device is more intricate and more accurately "machined" (for lack of a better term) than was thought possible for its age just proves we don't know just how far back some of what we consider to be modern developments go.
Fantastic documentary and great story! It starts off slow and teases you a bit, but it culminates nicely.<p>I'd love to see documentaries of this quality tell the stories of computer science's rich history in the early 20th century. I've often wondered what if someone like Ken Burns would weave it into a series that most people actually find interesting.
The video on the Lego implementation explains the mechanics of it: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLPVCJjTNgk" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLPVCJjTNgk</a>
Although a device of far less sophistication, I am also fascinated by an ancient Athenian sortition device, the kleroterion (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kleroterion" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kleroterion</a>). It is perhaps one of the earliest examples we have a random number generator.