Tide-predicting machine

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/tide-predicting-machine

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the inventor?Sir William Thomson (Lord Kelvin)
2. What is the year of first machine?1873
3. How did the tide-predicting machine help ships?It gave sailors a safe map of water depths, so they could avoid running aground and load or unload cargo at the right times.
4. Who built the first tide-predicting machine and when?Sir William Thomson, later known as Lord Kelvin, built the first one in 1873.

Analog Computer: A computer that uses physical phenomena, like mechanical motion, to perform calculations.
Harmonic Analysis: A mathematical technique used to break down complex waves into simpler, fundamental wave components.
Tidal Constituent: A predictable, sinusoidal component of the tide, representing a specific astronomical or geophysical influence.
Spring Tides: Exceptionally high high tides and low low tides occurring during new and full moons.