What is the importance for an ordinary citizen to have an indication
of EOT nearby a clock that indicates civil time? He does not know
what this is and if he wants to know the time as a sundial indicates,
he has to calculate and he should also bring in account the time
difference by the difference in longitude and the summertime.
Would it not be better to design a clock that indicates immediately
the 'sundial time'?
Willy LEENDERS
Hasselt in Flanders (Belgium)
www.wijzerweb.be
Op 4-aug-08, om 11:06 heeft Frank King het volgende geschreven:
Dear All,
Next to a sundial it is quite common to see
a representation of the Equation of Time.
One reason for this is so that people can
note the time shown on the dial and then
calculate the time that should be shown on
a clock.
There is an implicit assumption that clock
time is what the user really wants to know
and that sundial time is somehow inferior.
In Italy they think the other way round...
Take a look at:
http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/users/fhk1/EofT.jpg
Here you will see an ordinary public clock
showing 12:51 and immediately below the
clock is a second clock with a single hand
that indicates the EQUAZIONE DEL TEMPO. In
the photograph it shows -6 minutes.
Here people can note the time on the clock and
calculate the time that should be shown on a
sundial!
The implicit assumption is that sundial time
is what the user really wants to know and that
clock time is somehow inferior.
Bravo to the Italians!
The photograph was taken on 1 August when the
Equation of Time was indeed about -6 minutes.
The main clock was showing Central European
Summer Time.
I do not know of a public (outdoor) clock in
the U.K. that shows the Equation of Time and
wonder how much demand there would be for
such a facililty?
For completeness: the photograph was taken
in Piazza Dante in Naples.
Frank King
Cambridge, U.K.
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