Aeolipyles

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A device designed to demonstrate the principles of steam propulsion using a rotating spindle and the force of steam
2. An apparatus that illustrates steam power by using pressurized vapor to create rotational motion
3. A mechanical tool that showcases the effects of steam energy through the movement of a spindle driven by steam pressure

Etymology: "Aeolipyles" is simply the plural of "aeolipyle," so the history belongs to the singular. The name comes from Aeolus, the keeper of the winds in Greek myth, and "pyle," from Greek "pylē," meaning gateway, so the word together suggests a gate for the winds. The device it names is the aeolipile, a hollow sphere with bent nozzles that spins when steam jets out of it, a demonstration of the reaction force behind steam propulsion. Its best-known ancestor is the one described by the Greek engineer Hero of Alexandria in the first century CE, which is where the ancient connection to Aeolus, the wind god, is most fitting.

Synonyms: steam engines, aeolipiles