SECRETS AND INVENTIONS OF TIMEKEEPING

Secrets and Inventions of Timekeeping

Abstract

In this research we try to discover the insight of “Secrets and Inventions of Timekeeping” in a holistic perspective. The key heart of the study is on “Timekeeping” and its relation with “Inventions and Secrets”. The research also examines various characteristics of “Timekeeping” and tries to measure its effect. Lastly the research illustrates a variety of factors which are responsible for “Invention of Timekeeping” and tries to describe the overall effect of it.

Table of Contents

Introduction1

Discussion and Analysis1

Timekeeping: Christian Perspectives4

Conclusion7

Secrets and Inventions of Timekeeping

Introduction

Our concept of the passage of TIME is based on the regular rising and setting of the Sun each day, in other words the rotation of the Earth, which provides a ready-made framework by which to regulate events in our lives. The Earth, however, is not a good timekeeper; its rotation rate is irregular and slowing because of the effects of tidal braking. This did not become apparent, however, until the early 20th century, when the free pendulum clock was developed, which was accurate to within a second a year. Subsequent quartz crystal-controlled clocks and atomic clocks confirmed the small, but significant, variations in the Earth's rate of rotation.

Our need for, and use of, accurate time is expanding. For everyday life, today's watches and clocks are sufficient, but for other applications, more accurate methods are needed. Telecommunications systems rely on being able to measure precisely small intervals of time in order to ensure that data transmitted down telephone lines is sent at the correct rate. This has become ever more imperative with the all-pervasive Internet and the increasing use of electronic means of communication such as e-mails.

Discussion and Analysis

The first crude methods of accounting for the passage of time involved measuring the length of the shadow cast by a stick placed upright in the ground. Early mechanical clocks appeared during the 15th and 16th centuries and it was then that the system of splitting the day up into hours of equal length came into regular use. The invention of the pendulum clock in the 17th century provided a more accurate means of timekeeping. During the 18th century, clocks were perfected that were accurate enough to be used at sea to help determine longitude and also for scientific purposes. Even with these man-made methods of accounting for time, the basic way of measuring its passing was still the rotation of the Earth, and clocks were adjusted accordingly to keep in step with it.

The ancient Egyptians marked the beginning of the Nile's flood season, and, hence, of their agricultural cycle, by the dawn (heliacal) rising of the star Sirius. However, in general, sophisticated calendars arose not out of agricultural necessity but from the desire to fix religious ceremonies with respect to celestial events, such as the solstices or phases of the moon. Ancient Mesopotamian societies employed calendars based on lunar phases, which are essentially useless for agricultural purposes, instead of the solar ...