The gridiron pendulum was an improved clock pendulum invented by British clockmaker John Harrison around 1726. It didn't change its effective length with temperature, so its period of swing stayed constant with changes in ambient temperature. It consisted of alternating brass and iron rods arranged so that their different thermal expansions (or contractions) counteracted each other.
Read more about Gridiron Pendulum: How It Works, Disadvantages
Famous quotes containing the word pendulum:
“During the first World War women in the United States had a chance to try their capacities in wider fields of executive leadership in industry. Must we always wait for war to give us opportunity? And must the pendulum always swing back in the busy world of work and workers during times of peace?”
—Mary Barnett Gilson (1877–?)