Phillips Machine in the Science Museum, London The Phillips Machine, also known as the MONIAC (Monetary National Income Analogue Computer), Phillips Hydraulic Computer and the Financephalograph, is an

analogue computer An analog computer or analogue computer is a type of computation machine (computer) that uses physical phenomena such as electrical, mechanical, or hydraulic quantities behaving according to the mathematical principles in question (''analog s ...

which uses

fluidic logic Fluidics, or fluidic logic, is the use of a fluid to perform analog or digital operations similar to those performed with electronics. The physical basis of fluidics is pneumatics and hydraulics, based on the theoretical foundation of fluid d ...

to model the workings of an economy. The name "MONIAC" is suggested by associating

money Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are: m ...

and

ENIAC ENIAC (; Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) was the first Computer programming, programmable, Electronics, electronic, general-purpose digital computer, completed in 1945. Other computers had some of these features, but ENIAC was ...

, an early electronic

digital computer A computer is a machine that can be programmed to automatically carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (''computation''). Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as ''programs'', wh ...

. It was created in 1949 by the

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

economist Bill Phillips to model the national economic processes of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, while Phillips was a student at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

(LSE). While designed as a teaching tool, it was discovered to be quite accurate, and thus an effective economic simulator. At least twelve machines were built, donated to or purchased by various organisations around the world. , several are in working order.

History

Phillips scrounged materials to create his prototype computer, including bits and pieces of war surplus parts from old Lancaster bombers. The first MONIAC was created in his landlady's garage in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

at a cost of £400 (). According to the Anna Corkhill:

Phillips discussed the idea with Walter Newlyn, a junior academic at Leeds University who had studied with Phillips at the LSE, and proceeded to build a prototype (with Newlyn’s assistance) over one summer in a garage in Croydon. Newlyn persuaded the head of department at Leeds to advance £100 towards building the prototype. Newlyn helped as a craftsman’s mate—sanding and gluing together pieces of acrylic and supplementing Phillips’ economic knowledge.

Phillips first demonstrated the machine to leading economists at the

(LSE), of which Phillips was a student, in 1949. It was very well received and Phillips was soon offered a teaching position at the LSE. The machine had been designed as a teaching aid but was also discovered to be an effective economic simulator. When the machine was created, electronic digital computers that could run complex economic simulations were unavailable. In 1949, the few computers in existence were restricted to government and military use and their lack of adequate visual displays made them unable to illustrate the operation of complex models. Observing the machine in operation made it much easier for students to understand the interrelated processes of a national economy. The range of organisations that acquired a machine showed that it was used in both capacities.

Design

The machine's dashboard The machine is approximately high, wide and almost deep, and consisted of a series of transparent plastic tanks and pipes which were fastened to a wooden board. Each tank represented some aspect of the UK national

economy An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...

and the flow of money around the economy was illustrated by coloured water. At the top of the board was a large tank called the treasury. Water (representing money) flowed from the treasury to other tanks representing the various ways in which a country could spend its money. For example, there were tanks for health and education. To increase spending on health care a tap could be opened to drain water from the treasury to the tank which represented health spending. Water then ran further down the model to other tanks, representing other interactions in the economy. Water could be pumped back to the treasury from some of the tanks to represent

tax A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...

ation. Changes in tax rates were modeled by increasing or decreasing pumping speeds.

Savings Wealth is the abundance of valuable financial assets or physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the originating Old English word , which is from an ...

reduce the funds available to consumers and

investment Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...

income increases those funds. The machine showed it by draining water (savings) from the expenditure stream and by injecting water (investment income) into that stream. When the savings flow exceeds the investment flow, the level of water in the savings and investment tank (the surplus-balances tank) would rise to reflect the accumulated balance. When the investment flow exceeds the savings flow for any length of time, the surplus-balances tank would run dry. Import and export were represented by water draining from the model and by additional water being poured into the model. The flow of the water was automatically controlled through a series of floats, counterweights, electrodes, and cords. When the level of water reached a certain level in a tank, pumps and drains would be activated. To their surprise, Phillips and his associate Walter Newlyn found that machine could be calibrated to an accuracy of 2%. The flow of water between the tanks was determined by economic principles and the settings for various parameters. Different economic parameters, such as tax rates and investment rates, could be entered by setting the valves which controlled the flow of water about the computer. Users could experiment with different settings and note their effects. The machine's ability to model the subtle interaction of a number of variables made it a powerful tool for its time. When a set of parameters resulted in a viable economy the model would stabilise and the results could be read from scales. The output from the computer could also be sent to a rudimentary

plotter A plotter is a machine that produces vector graphics drawings. Plotters draw lines on paper using a pen, or in some applications, use a knife to cut a material like Polyvinyl chloride, vinyl or leather. In the latter case, they are sometimes k ...

Locations

It is thought that twelve to fourteen machines were built: * The prototype was given to the Economics Department at the

University of Leeds The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...

, where it is on exhibition in the reception of the university's Business School. Copies went to three other British universities. * Other computers went to the

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

and Roosevelt College in the United States and

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state of Victoria. Its ...

in Australia. The

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...

and the Central Bank of

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

are believed to have bought machines. * A machine owned by

Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...

is located in the Faculty Of Economics and is available for inspection. * A machine from the LSE was given to the

Science Museum A science museum is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, Industry (manufacturing), industry and Outline of industrial ...

in London and, after conservation, was placed on public display in the museum's mathematics galleries. * A machine owned by the LSE was donated to the

New Zealand Institute of Economic Research The New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) is the largest independent think tank in New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () ...

Wellington, New Zealand Wellington is Capital of New Zealand, the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the List of cities in New Zealand, third-largest city ...

. This machine formed part of the New Zealand Exhibition at the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale ( ; ) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy. There are two main components of the festival, known as the Art Biennale () and the Venice Biennale of Architecture, Architecture Biennale (), ...

in 2003. The machine was set to model the New Zealand economy. In 2007 this machine was restored and placed on permanent display in the

Reserve Bank of New Zealand The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) () is the central bank of New Zealand. It was established in 1934 and is currently constituted under the ''Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act 2021''. The current acting governor of the Reserve Bank, Christian ...

Museum. * A working machine is at the Faculty of Economics at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in the

. This machine was restored by Allan McRobie of the Cambridge University Engineering Department, who holds an annual demonstration to students. * A replica of the machine at the central bank of Guatemala was created for a 2005-6 exhibition entitled "Tropical Economies" at the Wattis Institute of the

California College of the Arts The California College of the Arts (CCA) is a private art school in San Francisco, California. It was founded in Berkeley, California in 1907 and moved to a historic estate in Oakland, California in 1922. In 1996, it opened a second campus in ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. * The machine at The University of Melbourne, Australia, is on permanent display in the lobby of the Giblin Eunson Library (Ground Floor, Business and Economics Building, 111 Barry st, Carlton, Melbourne). The faculty has sought those interested in restoring the machine. * Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) has owned a machine since 1953. It was a gift from the City of Rotterdam for EUR's 40th anniversary. It is located in the THEIL building. * Clausthal University of Technology in the faculty of economic sciences. *

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam The (abbreviated as ''VU Amsterdam'' or simply ''VU'' when in context) is a public university, public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in ...

had a machine built in 1951 by their instrument makers, modeled after the original. It was called the ECOCIRC (Economic Flow Circulator Demonstrator). It is located on the 8th floor of the Main Building.

Popular culture

The

Terry Pratchett Sir Terence David John Pratchett (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English author, humorist, and Satire, satirist, best known for the ''Discworld'' series of 41 comic fantasy novels published between 1983 and 2015, and for the Apocalyp ...

novel ''

Making Money ''Making Money'' is a fantasy novel by British writer Terry Pratchett, part of his ''Discworld'' series, first published in the UK on 20 September 2007. It is the second novel featuring Moist von Lipwig, and involves the Ankh-Morpork mint ...

'' contains a similar device as a major plot point. However, after the device is fully perfected, it magically becomes directly coupled to the economy it was intended to simulate, with the result that the machine cannot then be adjusted without causing a change in the actual economy (in parodic resemblance to Goodhart's law). Economist Kate Raworth's book Donut Economics critiques the use of an electric pump as the power source, claiming that because its power consumption was not considered, it left out an important component out of the economic model it was portraying: "Donut Economics" by Katie Raworth , url=https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=9euWCwAAQBAJ

"This is where Bill Phillips’s MONIAC machine was fundamentally flawed. While brilliantly demonstrating the economy’s circular flow of income, it completely overlooked its throughflow of energy. To make his hydraulic computer start up, Phillips had to flip a switch on the back of it to turn on its electric pump. Like any real economy it relied upon an external source of energy to make it run, but neither Phillips nor his contemporaries spotted that the machine’s power source was a critical part of what made the model work. That lesson from the MONIAC applies to all of macroeconomics: the role of energy deserves a far more prominent place in economic theories that hope to explain what drives economic activity."

References

External links

*
BBC Radio Four programme 'Water on the brain'.

NZIER's Moniac Machine

Money Flows: Bill Phillips' Financephalograph

* *
A great disappearing act: the electronic analogue computer

Catalogue of the AWH Phillips papers
at th

of the

. *
Video of the Phillips Machine in operation
Allan McRobie demonstrates the Phillips Machine at Cambridge University and performs calculations. (A lecture given in 2010). * Contains detailed diagrams of the Machine workings
The Phillips Machine
Article includes links to videos of the machine in operation. *
LSE Photo of Phillips with the machine

Bill Phillips Lecture
by Alan Bollard, 16 July 2008
Philips Machine Simulator

Phillips Economic Model
on display in the Science Museum, London {{Use dmy dates, date=August 2015 1940s computers Analog computers Computer-related introductions in 1949 Early British computers Economics models Mechanical computers New Zealand design Hydraulics Economy of the United Kingdom