[LEAPSECS] leap seconds schedule prior to 1972
Steffen Nurpmeso
steffen at sdaoden.eu
Tue Apr 12 14:39:34 EDT 2016
i wrote:
|Warner Losh <imp at bsdimp.com> wrote:
||On Mon, Apr 11, 2016 at 8:17 AM, John Sauter <[1]John_Sauter at systemey\
||escomputerstore.com[/1]> wrote:
||I have proposed a schedule of leap seconds prior to 1972 based on the
||Earth's rotation rate, which was deduced from ancient observations of
||the Sun and Moon. The complete paper is available on my web site, at
|
||[2]https://www.systemeyescomputerstore.com/proleptic_UTC.pdf[/2].
|
||I both love and hate this.
||I love it because the rules are clear and mechanical. This means
||that it can be implemented relatively easily in code. I'd prefer simpler
||rules, but it's a lot better than the 'surprise' model we have today. It
||also show just how crazy leap seconds are given the crazy number
||
|| [2] https://www.systemeyescomputerstore.com/proleptic_UTC.pdf
||
||of leap seconds needed (see years -1000's for example).
||I hate it because nobody did it. It's a complete artificial construct
||that's different from modern UTC. Modern UTC isn't so neat. There's
|A world where men and women come together in front of large clocks
|just to see the two inconspicuous and innocent numbers 6 and 0.
|Without raising an arm, at least not promptly.
|And scientists and engineers know how to.
|Yesterday there was Stonehenge, today we know a bit better.
That is: the aspect of social impact can simply not be
overestimated in my opinion. Even if that sounds disconcerting.
One example: here in Hesse we have a tradition of drinking apple
cider («Äppelwoi», auch «Stöffche» (from «Stoff», say Junk). That
became uncool in the last almost two decades; the traditional way
uses glass bottles for delivery, «Bembel»s and special glasses for
drinking («Geripptes»). Uncool.
So a few years ago young hipsters from the «Odenwald» founded
a new company that did something like «pimp my Äppelwoi», and they
named that company «Bembel-with-care». They use tins, mostly,
i guess. It is a huge commercial success.
The social impact of the name «Bembel-with-care» however is that
the entire region is *polluted* with empty tins of that company!
*Polluted*!
--steffen
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