Logic gates using toys

[vonGleichenT]

I'm way to dumb to understand this video.

[TheNah89]

Minecraft!



[rpg8778]

using those marble things do you think you could make a computer using logic gates like you do in minecraft with redstone logic gates?

[Altinget]

There are 10 kinds of people: Those who understand binary and those who don't

[cobraman1976]

great video!

[CrymsonNite2]

marbles made way more sense than dominos

[sk8erboi521]

But will it Blend?

[milittman]

@sk8erboi521 I'm not sure what you mean. Will what blend what?

[flarn2006]

@milittman google "will it blend". it's kind of a meme where people post that as a comment.

[TheNewbSpawn]

@milittman Just YouTube 'Will It Blend? iPhone 4' or something.

[TheBeyBladeNation]

lol sounds like its well explained but i need it less complicated lol

[Ichvyenichalster]

@TheBeyBladeNation I guarantee you can't get less complicated then this explanation.

[TheBeyBladeNation]

dont guarantee with out a Warranty because im not buying it

[Ichvyenichalster]

@TheBeyBladeNation Que? If this is that difficult then learn logic using minecraft XD

[TheBeyBladeNation]

@Ichvyenichalster yea well what if i said thats the exact freaking reason im here XD

[timedstroyer]

there are 10 different people in this world, people that understand binary, and those who dont ;)

[Bernstein229]

That is not a "NOT" logic gate. The only reason is turns up the opposite is because of the position they are in. If it were a true NOT gate it would always stop the current of dominoes when pushed, and always create a current of dominoes when not pushed. And the only way to do that is if you had a CLK. I've tried building domino logic gates but I haven't found a solution for that one.

[milittman]

@Bernstein229 I disagree. Given that I used position to encode 0 vs. 1, switching the position most definitely *is* a true NOT gate. I agree that it doesn't replicate what electronics do, but that wasn't my goal.

[gudenaurock]

Make an XOR gate.

[Skullshadow99]

HOLY COW!!! Who knew toys had maths Lol!

[ZaffaroTV]

Now make a binary calculator out of domino logic gates!

[Zentro705]

@ZaffaroTV assuming the average of about 15 dominoes falling per second per path, a simple 4 bit (only does math from zero to 15) calculator would take about 2 hours to compute an answer. But with using that few dominoes, there's bound to be an error from one of them missing. It would be more reliable, but even slower, if more dominoes could be used to make smoother turns.

[IKillerPieI]

@ZaffaroTV Think it has been done with K'Nex

[Kuploosh]

@ZaffaroTV Actually, I have done this before. I made a full adder out of dominoes, and it was pretty cool, but not really worth the time setting it all up since you have to rebuild it each time.

[TheNewbSpawn]

@ZaffaroTV I believe you would call that an ALU.

[noobler9]

my brain.... ow. learning hurts so good that's cool

[hansw15]

thats not lego

[mlittman]

fixed, thanks

[SkyHermit]

creative !!

[phillipdogyface]

my brain...

[Vire70]

Very cool. IBM segment was pretty cool as well. I remember seeing this done once using Lego NXT, someone built a very basic 'computer' using functions like this. 

[stefy1995]

cool

[OscarOBerry]

1+1=2 not 1

[mlittman]

1 plus 1 is 2, 1 or 1 is 1.

[CrazyMonkey124]

@mlittman In this case 1+1=10

[mlittman]

I don't think there's addition in the video, actually.

[CrazyMonkey124]

@mlittman I don't quite remember, but unless you have a half adder or a fully adder, nope.

[Zentro705]

@mlittman dont mind them, they're either trolls or idiots.

[grandexandi]

@mlittman wait what

[zeratul575]

@OscarOBerry ah love binary

fucks with math teachers

i love computers

1 and 1 = 3

1 + 1 = 2

[GlintTheStrong]

@zeratul575 1 and 1 would equal 3 if you were looking at the binary number 11. But last I checked, this was not binary math, but logic gates.

[SamsEditReel]

@OscarOBerry picard

[Ichvyenichalster]

@OscarOBerry Haha dude this isn't an addition video, it's a logic gate video.

[jeromsavestheworld]

@OscarOBerry he is talking about an or gate. not a calculator

[musicalmike235]

@OscarOBerry actually, in boolean algebra, the + sign is used to represent "OR", 1 OR 1 = 1, therefore 1 + 1 = 1.

[TheNewbSpawn]

@musicalmike235 On the contrary, a '|' symbol is used to denote "OR". Additionally, '!' is used for "NOT" and '&' for "AND".

[elimellyxoxo]

@OscarOBerry Too many negative votes on this comment.....sad.

[IIAOPSW]

I couldn't help but notice that your marble OR gate has "waste heat." that is, one of the marbles always ends up unused at the bottom. I defy you to build a marble Toffoli gate. that would be epic

[newcoolvid27]

There are 2 types of domino logic gates: analogue and digital. This uses the digital form.

[jhatzee]

ibm research yeah!

[SIM2402]

best way to make an xor gate is with four nand gates

[u20047]

great idea

[BubuSnow93]

Boleean rule

[domyaska]

clear explanation!! thank you vey much!!!! great idea!!!!

[themohhhs]

nice idea

[joebebus]

This stuff is great! I combined a NOT gate with a OR gate to make a NOR gate. And a NOR gate can make any other gate... I could have some fun now ;)

[newcoolvid27]

Wow! Nanoscopic dominoes!

[pashaahsj]

yea man same here,

if i ever had a mind... you just blew it =D

[KarySanger]

can u make a multiplexer =P

[highmetal1984]

Trouble is you have to take into account quantum effects at that level, it's not as simple as it makes it look!

[GHTheLionhearted1]

....You just blew my fuckin' mind.

[alreadytaken334]

I think stuff like this is really cool, but it's impractical as hell. Still fun though.

What we need is more of that molecular level computing.

[ShootAtGameOver]

Maybe Mr. Littman doesn't know anything about XOR gates. I suppose his interest is about only TOYS:) So try to use barbie girls for XOR gates. No way-this will help you>>>

[douro20]

How about Exclusive OR, whose state is 1 if and only if one and only one of its inputs is 1.

[mlittman]

it would take a bunch more bricks, but a xor b = (not(a) and b) or (a and not(b)). So, xor can be made by gluing together the pieces in the video.

[Breakyerself]

@douro20 Any and all logic gates can be made from NAND. He already demonstrated NAND.

[knabbers]

that is really cool mustve taken ages to find ways to do that =] 5 stars

[syrop26]

Gosh, this video is brilliant!

[weylin6]

do XOR

[mlittman]

a xor b is just (a or b) and not (a and b), so with a bunch more legos, all the pieces we described should fit together just fine!

[BrendanTSugrue]

I second that.

[MMMMTOASTY]

great, now all I can think of is 0 and 1.

[austy108642]

Wow :). Makes me want to take my Digital Electronics class in high school again.

[IllegalMavamaarten]

cool xD

[perli55]

very cool

[pohoy1]

well i just wasted 2:37 of my life

[nerf1212]

yup mine to.

[ienjoytaffy]

lol

[PWOPLW]

Cool demonstration. Make a CLA adder! ^.^

[Ellandroadboy]

wat?????????

[Filomatia]

Cool! But it has a problem: allows to input 1 and 0 simutaniously to the same variable.

[mlittman]

True, but I'm not sure it's a problem. We'd just build the "keyboard" to only transmit one signal. (Consider that standard electronics have similar problems like allowing a meaningless voltage.)

[GTXT1025]

i cannot und?????

[ALAPAT1]

how would you do a xor gate?

[mlittman]

a xor b = (a and not b) or (not a and b)... so, it would be a lot bigger, but it can be made out of the same pieces.

[hiperativo77]

awesome !!!!

[SparkamusPryme]

I see.

Now I can finally build the world's slowest computer.

[RyanPridgeon]

Good luck doing feedback loops with something you have to repair after each use.

[OmegaB33f]

lol

[codydery]

??????????

[mlittman]

Logic gates are the basis of digital computer circuits. I was trying to show my students that these gates, though usually made out of electricity, can be constructed out of physical objects as well.

[ToBeBlackStar]

很不错

[b0bb0bs0n]

how would you do an AND gate?

[warlord90210]

Hmm... a heavier block that takes 2 to knock over

[crusier10]

From a teacher, that was an excellent simple demonstration of how circuits work. I'll be sure to include this in my next unit on computers!

[pandaman0529]

those legos are so cool

[shakadragom]

i don't get how computers work with binary system, like what makes the computer know that i want to type "W"? A sequence of 0's and 1's? An eletrical signal made by the voltage of 1 and 0?

[mlittman]

In a computer, W is represented by a sequence of 8 bits, specifically, 01010111. It is common to represent a 1 using 5 volts and a 0 using 0 volts.

I don't image these facts really help, but they answer your specific questions, anyway. In my intro course, I try to explain things in a lot more detail.

[Coastergeekperson04]

I'm guessing you think it sucks because your are not interested. If you see a video and know you are not interested, don't watch it, because it will be a waste of YOUR time and you'll just make a negative comment anyways.

[SciGuy16]

Also, if you think this video sucks, I suggest checking your spelling!

[shatteredllama]

in the demo starting at 0:53, where the 0/1 input function is showed, if you reverse the order of the inputs the or gate will output zero and one simultaneously.

[mlittman]

You're right, there is a timing dependency. (Of course, real circuits have such dependencies as well!)

[jman3267]

Thank you for this demonstration, I needed to know this for a game/mod called garrys mod, in the game the most useful add-on is called wire mod that uses logic gates. I had trouble understanding how they work but this video helped me figure out how they work.

[firstfold]

My video response is a computer folded from rectagles of cardstock (paper) with no glue

Dco

[TheLogicJunkie]

WOW. I LOVE this video.

Have you ever read Charles Petzold's book, "Code"? It's conceptually brilliant, on the level of this video.

[mlittman]

I have a copy on my desk and the cover is very clever. I haven't had a chance to read it yet. Thanks for the recommendation!

[TheLogicJunkie]

Oh, wow, you definitely won't be disappointed when you do!

It's so good, I think he ought to make a primary textbook out of it, complete with a lab manual, for teachers to use to teach beginning computer science!

It's the best book on computer science/engineering I've ever read, because it has everything distilled down to total comprehensibility, in one place.

[Coastergeekperson04]

This is a perfect presentation for anyone who wants to learn about logic gates. Though I had trouble seeing how the marble OR gate works.

[brdavis5]

That's a nice description, although the pain of setting up all the dominos has got to be inhibiting. I've had some success with using marble-trigger flip-flops (I've got a YouTube video up of one design), but the asynchronous nature makes things a little difficult. What is the marble toy (brand name) that you use? Again, really nicely done.

[mlittman]

Thanks! The marble chutes link with legos. They are called Block N Roll, I think. I can send a link if you email me your address. (My name is Michael Littman.)

[brdavis5]

I was able to find them by googling the name - thank you! If they had a flip-flop (I'm surprised they don't) this could be a very interesting addition. In the LEGO community we sometimes run something called the Great Ball Contraption (or GBC), which coordinates dozens of separate modules, but not as easily as this could allow. Wish LEGO would make something similar.

[mlittman]

They have something called an alternator, which I used in my design. I'm not sure what you mean by a flip flop.

[brdavis5]

That's probably what I mean - I just didn't see it in their list of elements.

[Alexeon]

Hahaha, so cool!

[vermeergirl]

Thanks... I think the dominoes example is really good. First time i've really understood the mechanism of a logic gate, beyond its outputs.

[richardn413]

That's quite ingenious... a good way to put something so confusing!

[BeachofDreams]

Do you happen to teach formal logic (i.e. philosophy classes)?

[BeachofDreams]

Actually, disregard this question. I just looked on your website. However, your courses sound interesting.

[mlittman]

thanks! I taught some logic in the "introduction to discrete structures" class. We analyzed the constitution and thought we found a bug. :-)

[BeachofDreams]

You 'thought' you found a bug? I would've thought their existence was obvious...

(btw, I found your video by way of the NewScientist article that linked to it, if you didn't know).

[wscardua]

so you should've written something like:

pivotLJW, you don't have a girlfriend. so sad.

[tempfldlx]

awesome

[stormshaman]

If society weren't so anti-intellectual, that wouldn't be true. In fact I suspect you to be anti-intellectual, since you denigrate the poster of this clever video.

[anticomi]

cool/geeky

[Cpryd001]

That's neat. Kind of wish this video was known to my previous math class.

During my computer math class, when we discussed logic gates, we had to do it manually on paper. I picked it up pretty fast, but the puzzled looks on many of the faces around the room was pretty astonishing.

[mlittman]

I made the video for an intro CS class I teach. I still get many puzzled looks. :-)

[liamboyd555]

I think this is a really good idea. After all the abacus is still around after a good few centuries. Its amazing how many old ideas can be reused to make better new ideas. I would be interested to see if this kind of logic could be implemented in synthetic biology (look for videos on Drew Endy). Since this kind of logic can only be used once, perhaps if based on proteins it might be reusable.

[pivotLJW]

ok cool dude

[pivotLJW]

thats cool dude go and show it to your girlfrieend

[mlittman]

Thanks. My "girlfriend" helped me make the two kids who helped with the video. :-)

[zzzdude9]

What about Xor gates??!?!!?

[mlittman]

Ah, we can make an xor out of two ands, two nots, and an or!

[mlittman]

Ok, folks, I blocked that fellow who was making anti-semitic comments. If you are interested in commenting on the video, please do!

[messibouti99]

FUCK U

[matthew871]

I don't know. But I have an IBM X31 sitting next ot me, and I'm typing this on a nice IBM keyboard, and I[m reading this on an IBM ThinkVision which is nice. It was an anti-semitic comment.

[shizzit124]

go fuck yourself

[hjw5774]

impressive. i like the domino OR gate (especially the way you have the '1' pathway knocking out a domino on the '0' pathway to stop it. clever)

[mlittman]

thanks!

[Botekbiz]

Ecelent

[Bejk]

Excellent movie

[northofthed]

wow

[jay6456]

im confused

[mlittman]

How so? Are you familiar with Boolean logic?

[BMXcomedy]

what is booblean logic

[mlittman]

I assume BoobLean logic is related to boobs. But, Boolean logic is the simple system of mathematics that lies at the root of modern computer design. I'm just saying that the video makes more sense if you have some familiarity with and/or/not and such.

[TehGuitarMan]

LOL1!11!OENM

[FourHammers]

i dont understand

[mlittman]

Logic gates are the basis of digital computer circuits. I was trying to show my students that these gates, though usually made out of electricity, can be constructed out of physical objects as well.