Gods, I’d try so hard to figure out how to explain how to make a basic diode… Like how do you explain silicon to people who have no reason to believe you and don’t know that air is a soup of a bunch of different gasses, and from there doping it with the elements on each side of it?
I’d probably just stick to electromechanics. Any time after the invention of permanent iron magnets I can do a lot of cool stuff.
Because yeah it’s not enough to say it. Try explaining the periodic table to Trajan and you’re going to sound like the time cube guy. You have to demonstrate the veracity of each step. If anything, the best place to start might be the scientific method.
The scientific method itself would be massively useful. It’s amazing how long it took humanity to get there, and how much it changed things. Even in the 1700s astronomy and astrology were basically both considered equally important fields of study. The queen of England had important advisors who took the alignment of celestial bodies into account when deciding policy.
What I think would be the most useful thing to know how to build isn’t electromechanics, it’s just plain mechanics.
In WWII US warships calculated firing solutions using purely mechanical, analog computers. If you knew how to build a shaft, a gear, a cam and a differential you could do pretty astounding calculations. Even just knowing how to build and use a slide rule would be pretty mind blowing for a lot of people in ancient times. Or you could just be the guy who invented zero.
Gods, I’d try so hard to figure out how to explain how to make a basic diode… Like how do you explain silicon to people who have no reason to believe you and don’t know that air is a soup of a bunch of different gasses, and from there doping it with the elements on each side of it?
I’d probably just stick to electromechanics. Any time after the invention of permanent iron magnets I can do a lot of cool stuff.
Because yeah it’s not enough to say it. Try explaining the periodic table to Trajan and you’re going to sound like the time cube guy. You have to demonstrate the veracity of each step. If anything, the best place to start might be the scientific method.
The scientific method itself would be massively useful. It’s amazing how long it took humanity to get there, and how much it changed things. Even in the 1700s astronomy and astrology were basically both considered equally important fields of study. The queen of England had important advisors who took the alignment of celestial bodies into account when deciding policy.
What I think would be the most useful thing to know how to build isn’t electromechanics, it’s just plain mechanics.
In WWII US warships calculated firing solutions using purely mechanical, analog computers. If you knew how to build a shaft, a gear, a cam and a differential you could do pretty astounding calculations. Even just knowing how to build and use a slide rule would be pretty mind blowing for a lot of people in ancient times. Or you could just be the guy who invented zero.