Electronic Circuit Analogy Quiz
April 1973 Popular Electronics

April 1973 Popular Electronics Table of Contents Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics. See articles from Popular Electronics, published October 1954 - April 1985. All copyrights are hereby acknowledged.

In this challenge by Popular Electronics' quizmaster Robert Balin, you have to match each electronic circuit on the left with its mechanical analog on the right. Mechanical equivalent "H" can be a bit tricky depending on whether you consider the material that gets through the sieve or what gets trapped in it, or for that matter whether you consider wavelength or frequency. Personally, I think he has the analogy backwards.

A list of all the quizzes I have posted is listed below.

Electronic Circuit Analogy Quiz

By Robert P. Balin

Electronic circuits perform functions that are similar in many respects to those of common mechanical devices. For example, a rectifier circuit produces unidirectional current while a ratchet and pawl produce unidirectional motion. If you can see an analogy between them, you probably have a good understanding of their operating principles. 

To test your ability to identify analogies, try to match the electronic circuits (1 to 8) on the left below to the related mechanical devices (A to H) which are depicted on the right below.

Answers below, No peeking.

Quizzes from vintage electronics magazines such as Popular Electronics, Electronics-World, QST, and Radio News were published over the years - some really simple and others not so simple. Robert P. Balin created most of the quizzes for Popular Electronics. This is a listing of all I have posted thus far.

1. High-pass filter   ----   H. Flour sieve

2. AGC keyer circuit   ----   E. Lock and key

3. Clipper circuit   ----   C. Hedge clippers

4. Brightness control   ----   G. Venetian blinds

5. Wave trap   ----   D. Drain trap

6. Clamping circuit   ----   A. C-clamp

7. Regulator circuit   ----   B. Centrifugal governor

8. Oscillator circuit   ----   F. Metronome

Posted October 6, 2017