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The weekly memory quiz

A dial returns, a beater turns, a triangle closes

Edition 2026-10-25

Week of 2026-10-25

Five quick questions, no timer and no sign-up. Start with what you recognize; each answer opens a little more of the story.

1. When did the rotary dial described in the 1925 patent send its pulses? While the caller wound it forward During its return after release Only when the receiver was replaced

The return movement engages the interrupter mechanism. Winding the dial prepares the movement; releasing it starts the controlled signaling. Read the story and sources.

2. What supplied that dial’s return movement? A spring wound by the caller An electric motor in the handset Air pressure in the finger holes

Turning the finger wheel winds a spring. The spring then drives the wheel back toward its starting position. Read the story and sources.

3. What job did the governor perform in that dial mechanism? It chose the next telephone number It made the bell ring It regulated the speed of the pulses

The spring supplies movement, while the governor controls its pace so that the automatic switching equipment can receive the impulses. Read the story and sources.

4. In the 1966 teaching example, a 32-tooth eggbeater gear drives an eight-tooth gear. How many turns does the smaller gear make per crank turn? Two Four Eight

32 divided by 8 is 4. This is the documented teaching example, not a specification for every hand-cranked mixer. Read the story and sources.

5. Why did Pajeau’s Tinkertoy design need progressively longer rods? To join diagonal spans in its triangle system To make every joint turn freely To replace the wooden hubs

A diagonal can become a side of the next, larger triangle. The compatible spans include the hubs as well as the rods. Read the story and sources.

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