How the Ancient Egyptians (Should Have) Built the Pyramids 202
KentuckyFC writes The Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt is constructed from 2.4 million limestone blocks, most about 2.5 tonnes but some weighing in at up to 80 tonnes, mostly sourced from local limestone quarries. That raises a famous question. How did the ancient Egyptians move these huge blocks into place? There is no shortage of theories but now a team of physicists has come up with another that is remarkably simple--convert the square cross section of the blocks into dodecadrons making them easy to roll. The team has tested the idea on a 30 kg scaled block the shape of a square prism. They modified the square cross-section by strapping three wooden rods to each long face, creating a dodecahedral profile. Finally, they attached a rope to the top of the block and measured the force necessary to set it rolling. The team say a full-sized block could be modified with poles the size of ships masts and that a work crew of around 50 men could move a block with a mass of 2.5 tonnes at the speed of 0.5 metres per second. The result suggests that this kind of block modification is a serious contender for the method the Egyptians actually used to construct the pyramids, say the researchers.
Re:So, is there any shred of EVIDENCE? (Score:5, Funny)
Well, this method comes from physicists. So one can assume that whatever they used, it was perfectly spherical.
Problem solved.
Wrong (Score:4, Funny)
The Egyptians did not move those blocks into place. They did like those companies we know and admire, they made plans and outsourced the backbreaking work to unscrupulous partners in countries where labor is cheap and workers safety is not a priority. And then pretended they were not aware of the abysmal work conditions in the pyramid factories.
I'm pretty sure that if someone was to raise the pyramid there would be a Made in China label at the bottom.
Re:Corroborating Hieroglyphics? (Score:4, Funny)
Everyone knows aliens built the pyramids.
Slave labor is still the best explanation (Score:5, Funny)
Surely the physicists should have just made their grad students move them?
A little late (Score:5, Funny)
Isn't this suggestion for a design modification just a little late?
Re:Corroborating Hieroglyphics? (Score:5, Funny)
Well, yes and no. The aliens did build it, but they used cheap human labor for the grunt work. Sure, they could have just moved the giant blocks with their minds, but aliens are so lazy.
Re:Corroborating Hieroglyphics? (Score:3, Funny)
I don't see what the big deal is. You can store up to 64 blocks of any kind of stone in each inventory slot. It is trivially easy for one person to carry lots of these around. And to stack them.
Re:Stupid theory... (Score:5, Funny)
", the pyramid gets less wide towards the top. "
That's what I've been doing wrong!