By combining 49 of them he’s put together a soda bicarb diode steering circuit for a 7-segment display capable of showing the digits 0 to 9. He takes the idea for his diode from electrolytic ...

The video below shows the display being put through its paces, and when the clock rate ramps up, the rhythmic pulsations of the relays driving the seven-segment flip displays is hypnotizing.

seven-segment display (Image courtesy of LXD, Inc.) In their natural state, liquid crystals line up with the orientation "rubbed" into the front and rear glass panels. The rubbings are microscopic ...