From: "Pat Naughtin" Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2004 10:45 AM > 4 The month is the relatively un-uniform interval of time it takes for the > Moon to revolve around the Earth, and it has proven to be fairly difficult > to use as a regulator of human time.
I don't agree with this at all. The moon has regulated human time for millenia, and is pretty uniform. As for the rest of your e-mail, check out my page at http://decimaltime.hynes.net/time.html#1 John > Dear Brent, > > One can't help but be influenced by the constant dripping of the time > people's pressure to change time measurements from the old irrational > Babylonian time framework we are currently be-saddled with, and the search > for more rational methods. > > It seems to me that there are several quite immovable constraints in any > discussion about time units. They are: > > 1 The SI unit of time is the second, and because so many other units are > based on its definition, it is too hard to change, and there is no > likelihood of its being changed by the CGPM. > 2 The day is the more or less uniform interval of time it takes for the > Earth to turn on its axis. > 3 The year is the more or less uniform interval of time it takes for the > Earth to revolve around the Sun. > 4 The month is the relatively un-uniform interval of time it takes for the > Moon to revolve around the Earth, and it has proven to be fairly difficult > to use as a regulator of human time. > > Other time units (such as the minute, hour, week, and fortnight) are purely > arbitrary and these are all currently set as multiples of the SI second. As > these are arbitrary, they are the units that could be altered in the > interests of a more rational system, but, as I suggested earlier, it is > probably not possible to alter the SI second, and the year and month are > completely out of our control. > > If we keep the SI second at its present value and decimalise time units we > could get: > > 1 second = 1 SI second no change > 1 day = 86400 SI seconds approximately correct > > 1 milliday = 86.4 s 1 new minute a bit longer than an old minute > 1 centiday = 864 seconds about a quarter of an old hour > 1 deciday = 8640 seconds a little under 2 1/2 hours > > This arrangement would give rise to the following relationships > > 1 milliday = 86.4 seconds exactly > > 10 millidays = 1 centiday = 864 s exactly > 10 centidays = 1 deciday = 8640 s exactly > 10 decidays = 1 day = 86400 s exactly. > > That should release enough pigeons for the cats, so I'll leave my thoughts > on decimal weeks, fortnights, and months until another day. > > > By the way, thanks for that url -- I really enjoyed watching the 'little > hand', and I recalled a line from my father, 'I love hard work -- I can sit > and watch it all day!' > > Cheers, > > Pat Naughtin LCAMS > Geelong, Australia > > Pat Naughtin is the editor of the free online newsletter, 'Metrication > matters'. You can subscribe by sending an email containing the words > subscribe Metrication matters to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > -- > > on 25/3/04 11:28 AM, Brent AU at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > > With all the past silly talk about 'metric time' in this newsgroup, I thought > > those who are insterested in the status quo may like to go to this url for a > > bit of fun: > > > > http://www.yugop.com/ver3/stuff/03/fla.html > > <http://www.yugop.com/ver3/stuff/03/fla.html> > > > > PS. Before metric time is ever seriously considered, the USA should be > > customary with the metric system, as the rest of the world is, or are doing. > > > >
