Humans Shrunk 100 Times

Chapter 157: "Clockwork"

"Of course, forget about it. I said it from the beginning. Although abilities defy common sense, they still have their own internal rules. As long as we continue to summarize, one day, we can use abilities to rebuild our world, just like we used physics and chemistry in the past."

Tang Jing's words always carried some ambiguity.

Of course, even in the apocalypse, the hypnotic brainwashing of positive energy still had a certain positive meaning.

At least at this moment, everyone was full of hope for the future.

Apart from foam plastics, Chen Mu was most interested in that mouse.

To be honest, this mouse didn't quite fit the style of the other items, and it seemed to be broken and discarded in a box, treated as spare parts.

However, the boys were interested in the mouse purely because it brought back memories of computer games. In reality, there was nothing particularly novel about it from a material standpoint.

Instead, Tang Jing was quite interested in the two measuring tapes.

Flat square plastic casing, with a steel tape measure inside that could be pulled out and automatically retracted. It was estimated that all the boys had played with this thing as a weapon.

Many of them probably even cut their hands with it.

"What special function does this have?"

Chen Mu saw Tang Jing staring at the large measuring tape and asked curiously.

"In terms of craftsmanship, we are already relatively mature, but in the industrialization process, there is still a crucial element missing."

"What is it?"

"Energy."

"Ah."

Although this statement was true, Chen Mu didn't understand how looking at a measuring tape made her think of energy.

"Such as oil and natural gas?"

"Close, but we can't use those things for the time being."

"What does this have to do with the measuring tape?" Chen Mu was puzzled.

"The function of energy is nothing more than providing heat and power, especially the latter. That's why the invention of the steam engine was able to greatly propel the industrial revolution."

Tang Jing sighed, "Unfortunately, we don't have abilities in this aspect for now."

"Providing energy and power?"

"Yes."

"Doesn't the squad leader count?"

"Heating iron pieces and making explosives are indeed good sources of energy, but currently, it's challenging to use them as power. What we lack the most is this aspect. Otherwise, at least the elevator won't need to bother Lu Shanshan and the others, and in the future, the cranes on the shelves will also need power to operate."

"Is it feasible to use iron pieces to heat water and then make a simple steam engine?" He Ying asked.

"In theory, it's feasible, and with Chen Mu's current precision in abilities, as long as he disassembles it step by step, he can completely build a steam engine suitable for our use."

"So, why not do that?"

"It's not that simple," Tang Jing sighed. "Do you remember what I said before? Machines of the past, when scaled down proportionally, may not still be usable. This is especially true for things like steam engines. It's not that they definitely won't function, but even if they do, their effectiveness would be very limited."

"Why is that?"

"Because we can't provide it with a continuous source of energy. Let me give you the simplest example: a steam locomotive from the past could carry enough coal to run for thousands of kilometers, but a toy-sized train like ours, with its limited coal storage, do you think it can still run for thousands of kilometers?"

"We can build a steam engine, and it's feasible to use the squad leader's ability to heat water, but the duration is a significant issue at our scale. In the end, ordinary combustion has a minimum threshold that limits our ability to infinitely cut fuel to achieve the idea of prolonging the burning time."

Chen Mu was starting to find it a bit difficult to follow, but he understood the general idea.

"In simple terms, our biggest problem is energy storage."

"Yes, it's easy to start a fire, but to make the energy generated by that fire output steadily and consistently is what we are pursuing," Tang Jing concluded.

"So, what does this have to do with the measuring tape?"

"Because I thought of an ancient and straightforward method of energy storage."

Chen Mu was puzzled at first, but following Tang Jing's gaze towards the direction of the measuring tape, after a few seconds, he suddenly understood.

"A spring?"

"Exactly," Tang Jing smiled. "When it comes to a continuous and small amount of energy output, the first thing I think of is a mechanical watch."

"A few turns can make it run for several days."

"Yes," Tang Jing smiled.

"Why didn't I think of that earlier?" Chen Mu slapped his own head.

Creating a clockwork device, whether for elevators or crane lifts on shelves, is indeed a good choice for power.

Of course, Wei Dalei himself is a massive power source, but as a human, he can't stay in one place forever.

Having Old Wei power the clockwork is, in fact, an excellent way of storing power, isn't it?

Tang Jing chuckled, "Even if we thought of it earlier, it wouldn't help much. The ideal material for a clockwork spring is carbon steel, but all we have now is stainless steel. Although we can make it with stainless steel, the efficiency would be much lower."

"What about this measuring tape?"

"The material of a steel measuring tape is similar to that of a clockwork, which is why I had this idea."

"Then let's start working on it right away."

"Don't rush. While it's a good idea in theory, there are still many challenges in implementing it."

Tang Jing explained, "If it's just a child's clockwork toy car, it wouldn't matter much. What we need is a steady and continuous power output, but the force of a clockwork is strongest at the beginning and gradually diminishes. Therefore, we have to continuously adjust the torque lever, just like the internal structure of a mechanical watch."

"That sounds complicated." Chen Mu, who was a part-processing worker, felt a bit hesitant.

"It is indeed challenging. Just the gears, big and small, will keep you busy for a while. Moreover, the precision requirements for these parts are extremely high. If there's a slight deviation, the entire device will become useless."

...

With the idea of making it as soon as possible to use it as soon as possible, Chen Mu began working on making the clockwork that afternoon.

First, he collaborated with Wei Dalei to take a measuring tape down from the shelf and then disassembled it to retrieve the steel tape inside.

After he finished making it.

The next day, Tang Jing brought a piece of paper with a mechanical blueprint of a clockwork device drawn on it, clearly marked with all the dimensions of the various small parts.

This blueprint almost filled the entire notebook, densely packed with all the dimensions of the tiny components.

It was hard to imagine that this was the result of just one day's work.

With the blueprint in hand, Tang Jing no longer needed to draw on the ground or walls to communicate with Chen Mu.

After completing the first, simplest, and experimental clockwork device, everyone rushed over to try it out. It was a very basic clockwork spring, encased in a simple plastic shell, but it was quite large, almost as tall as two humans combined.

It had a hole for winding and was equipped with a butterfly-shaped handle.

Everyone took turns trying it out.

The unexpected result was that out of the seventeen people in the Awakening Squad, apart from Wei Dalei, not a single person could wind it.

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