29 Jul
2026
29 Jul
'26
1:58 p.m.
IIRC the Feranti Pegassus computer which graced the London Science Museum until about 10
years ago was blackballed and moved into storage as some electrical distribution
switchgear (fuses ?) "contained asbestos".
https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co62559/ferranti-pegas…
A sad end, but I guess it failed the can the "acompanying adults" explain it
test ...
Martin
-----Original Message-----
From: Paul Koning via cctalk [mailto:cctalk@classiccmp.org]
Sent: 29 July 2026 21:17
To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org
Cc: Carey Schug <carey.schug(a)gmail.com>om>; Paul Koning <paulkoning(a)comcast.net>
Subject: [cctalk] Re: DEC and Asbestos
On Jul 29, 2026, at 12:12 PM, Carey Schug via cctalk
<cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> wrote:
i wondered, and ai confirmed, that vacuum tube computers likely
contained asbestos, but suggested in the vacuum tubes, so probably not
available unless there was destruction of vacuum tubes involved.
I don't believe that. I have never seen and can't imagine a vacuum tube with
asbestos. What you will find in many small vacuum tubes is mica -- typical receiver tubes
(which is what you'd see in a computer) have the elements mounted between two small
sheets of mica. But asbestor is porous and fibrous, there isn't any use for that in
tubes I can think of.
Just another AI hallucination.
paul