A To Z Challenge: Horology And How Your Computer May Be Going To Spaz

  © Copyright Peter Trimming and licensed for
reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

Horology is the science of measuring time and the study of making timepieces. Humans have been working at the definition and measurement of time for thousands of years; as early as 3100 BCE the Egyptians had developed a 365-day calendar based on the appearance of the star Sirius in the sky and around 3500 BCE they had developed obelisks that acted as sundials. Technology has come a very long way since large angular pillars stuck in the ground, and our current idea of a "clock"--a steady mechanism capable of standing on its own--began to emerge in 1656 when Christiaan Huygens developed the first pendulum clock.

Taking another rather large leap forward in time, today's computers (whether PC or Apple or what have you) are running on what's known as Unix Time. (The name "Unix" comes from the fact it was a dominant operating system back when computing was just getting started.) It's based on a 32-bit number and has been counting every second since January 1, 1970.

Once the number reaches 2,147,483,764, however, there's a bit of a problem: When a 32-bit number reaches this value, it can no longer count upwards. Because of this, computers using Unix Time will revert to December 13, 1901 once time hits January 19, 2038, i.e. devices will believe it's the 1900s when it's actually the mid-2000s. The solution? Switch to 64-bit systems, which will run out of values in the year 292,277,026,596.

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Sources:
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/horology
http://www.horology.com/vir-lib-horology.htm
http://www.nist.gov/pml/general/time/index.cfm
http://www.unixtimestamp.com/index.php

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Is your computer a 32-bit? Do you think there will be any major problems in 2038, or do you think all the important devices will have been replaced with 64-bit by then?


-----The Golden Eagle

The National Wormhole Day Blog Hop

The National Wormhole Day Blog Hop is hosted by Stephen Tremp, Laura Eno, and L.G. Smith. Like the recent Back to the Future blogfest, it's based on time travel--though this time it's a person traveling through time, not a shoe box! It sounded like fun, so I signed up.

About the blogfest (from Stephen's blog):

What would you do or where would you go if you could traverse a wormhole through space or time just once? One safe round trip passage. Would you go back in time and talk some sense into a younger you? Go five years into the future and bring back the Wall Street Journal? See just how the heck the Great Pyramids of Giza were really built? View what the other side of the universe looks like? Kill Hitler?

I love speculating about the future; I am a huge fan of stories that cast human society forward hundreds or thousands of years. Therefore, I'd choose traveling through time to year 3001, just to see what it looks like--because while 2001 didn't turn out to be the milestone predicted I'm sure 3001 will be entirely different from today, either for better or for worse. Hopefully the better.

And (since this is for fun and I don't want to think about all the possible breakdowns of spacetime if time travel occurred) I'm pretty sure I'd try sticking around in the future for a while before cashing in on the second part of the "safe round trip". You know, move into a space colony, experience all the cool technology, eat amazing food, be amused by the historians who think Windows was the pinnacle of engineering a millennium before. The usual things one would do a thousand years after they were born.

What would you do if you ended up in the future? Where would you go if you could travel through time?

-----The Golden Eagle

Time To Begin Worrying About NaNoWriMo: An IWSG Post

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh. From his blog:

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic.

I'm sure most of you writers know about NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) where the goal is to write 50,000 words in a month, or about 1,613 words per day. I've done it for two years in a row and have every intention of participating in 2012, but now the questions are: What the heck do I write about for those 50k words? And when am I going to find the time to write for hours every day for a month?

As for the first, I have a few story ideas. For one I've written half a detailed (and maybe even decent) plot outline for, and the others are vague-ish notions floating around in my head. Not the most pressing, since I can always write about marauding squid or psychedelic ninjas or whatever if I'm absolutely desperate.

But for the first time in a two-year NaNo history, I'm worrying about time. I'm sure you know what I mean: Getting the most important or unchangeable things done and then discovering the day's almost over, or feeling like you do stuff all day and finding out at the end only half the list's been crossed off. I'm already having trouble keeping up with the blogosphere, and I'm not even writing as much as I did last year during non-NaNo season.

I think I'll be able to swing it so I have time to write. But something will clearly have to go, and I really don't want it to be The Eagle's Aerial Perspective for the entirety of November.

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo or thinking about participating? Doubtful if you'll be able to find the time to write everyday and reach the 50k goal, or do you already have a schedule down?


-----The Golden Eagle

Random Things

Quinn at Seeing, Dreaming . . . Writing awarded me! Thank you so much, Quinn!

It is the Versatile Blogger Award, and the rules are to list 7 things about yourself and pass it on to 7 other bloggers.

Now, I've already received this award before and answered the questions, but I've decided to list another 7 things about myself as the Random Things from the title. Hopefully I won't bore you to death.

1. I don't write emotions fluidly. At least, I don't when it comes to the characters I'm currently working with. The emotions that I type out just don't feel right now of the time . . . or they're too important or they seem false. (Do you have this problem?)

2. NaNoWriMo, I am going to get you! I passed the 10,000 mark yesterday, but I know compared to some you that's not much! I've seen numbers in the 20,000-40,000+ range. Wow. Those are a lot of words, people! Keep it going!

And for a bonus, this is me right now:

(Meter HERE)

3. You know that post, "How To: Beaming Someone Up Into A Spaceship"? I've got something like that planned for tomorrow, too; I'm interested in seeing how it's going to go over.

4. Don't forget to switch your clocks this Saturday night! Daylight Savings Time. I don't like DST much. Too much hassle, and not all countries observe it. (If you want a really good site that tells you all about DST, go HERE. I love those nodes.)

5. So the Republicans took over the House of Representatives. I'm ecstatic, everyone. Extremely happy with the direction the government is taking.

*sighs* I can't really say I'd be ecstatic with the Democrats, either. No one really wants bipartisanship where they're not trying to destroy the other's agenda and no one really wants to collaborate. At least, they seem pretty darn stubborn to make things as difficult as possible.

6. I have 180 Followers! 180! That's . . . awesome, everyone. Thank you, all of you, for following! :)

7. I'll be sure to check out you fellow Crusaders soon! I signed up for the Writer's Platform-Building Crusade yesterday, (see below post) and I have to get started on that list. :)


So. Now that all is said and done: Thank you for awarding me once again, Quinn! (You really should go check out his blog. Go on. *nudges* Come back once you've followed.)

Now, for those I am going to award . . . I'm going to do what the lovely Jules (you should go check out her blog as well, everyone) decided to do, and award the followers in the first 5 rows on the Follower gadget. (If you see yourself there and get shoved back by newer followers when you come back later . . . well, consider yourself awarded anyway. :))

Have a great Friday, everyone!


-----The Golden Eagle