Incredible Attempts at Perpetual Motion: A Look at History's Failed Machines

🕒Perpetual motion machines have been pursued for centuries but have always failed due to the laws of physics.

⛏️Early attempts at perpetual motion machines were driven by curiosity and invention, but later attempts became more pragmatic, aiming for renewable energy sources.

🔋The Beverly Clock, while not a true perpetual motion machine, has been running continuously for 158 years thanks to changes in temperature.

🏭The Crookes Radiometer appears to continuously spin inside a vacuum but actually requires external forces like air molecules.

🔔The Oxford Electric Bell has been ringing for 182 years, but its battery composition remains a mystery.

Why have perpetual motion machines always failed?

—Perpetual motion machines violate the laws of thermodynamics, particularly the conservation of energy.

What is the closest we have come to a perpetual motion machine?

—The Beverly Clock, which has been running for 158 years, comes closest to perpetual motion but still depends on changes in temperature.

Do perpetual motion machines have any practical applications?

—While perpetual motion machines have captured the curiosity of many, they have no practical applications due to their impossibility.

Are there any benefits to studying perpetual motion machines?

—Studying perpetual motion machines can lead to a better understanding of the laws of physics and increase creativity and innovation.

Why is the battery composition of the Oxford Electric Bell not known?

—The battery is coated in molten sulfur, making it impossible to see the inner workings without damaging the world's longest running experiment.

00:00Introduction to the concept of perpetual motion machines and their impossibility.

02:52Exploration of the Beverly Clock and its ability to run continuously for 158 years due to changes in temperature.

06:22Discussion of the Crookes Radiometer and how it appears to spin continuously in a vacuum but relies on external forces like air molecules.

08:32Explanation of the Oxford Electric Bell and its 182 years of continuous ringing, despite the unknown composition of its battery.

10:39Closing remarks emphasizing the impossibility of perpetual motion machines and the value of studying them for scientific understanding and creativity.