I was just doing some Random Thinking, and realized that someone on this
group might actually know this, or where to find it...
A few millinia ago, before the wheel, people came up with carts that slid
on poles, pretty hampered by friction. The wheel was a huge step forward,
but you still had sliding friction between the hub and the axle. They must
have burnt up a lot of axles in those days. Eventually they came up with
better bearing surfaces, but the obvious big improvement was the huge
reduction in sliding friction provided by some sort of rolling bearing.
My question is: when did rolling bearings first appear? Do we have any
evidence about this?
That army that first had them on their chariot wheels must kicked butt for
a while.
OK, back to my cave...
- Lee
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