Italian engineer Agostino Ramelli created a book back in 1588, humbly entitled, The various and ingenious machines of Captain Agostino Ramelli. Maybe someone titled it for him. The Smithonian praises it, pointing out its influence on later engineers.

Of a reading machine design, Ramelli said, “This is a beautiful and ingenious machine, very useful and convenient for anyone who takes pleasure in study, especially those who are indisposed and tormented by gout. . . . Moveover, it has another fine convenience in that it occupies very little space in the place where it is set.”

Perhaps these words inspired students at Rochester Institute of Technology to build a couple of these book wheels using European beech and white oak and hand-cut gears.

“The actual construction may not have been worth the time with 16th-century techniques,” Ian Kurtz said, “I think Agostino was more so showing his understanding of how gear systems worked.” (via Atlas Obscura)