Time

[Blanket]

The math of how the system is worked out wilnae be given to each individual.
You'd be given somethin' simple, initially.
For example: "your new minute will now be 37 seconds long instead of 60 seconds" or w/e.

I like simple The idea of adjusting to something I don't understand terrifies me! But if it's shown/taught in a manner that's simple is just fine to me.

[trogdor1316]

Haven't read the whole thread, so I don't know if anyone's mentioned this, but it could easily be that when the Mayans predicted the end of the world in 2012, they really meant not an apocolypse, but perhaps a sort of new world order, or a zodiac-related "end of days" as described in the book "Angels and Demons."

[Rodri]

The 28 day, 13 month callendar works to a point but has some short comings.
There is the matter of the extra day and a quater to be taken into account.
Having a 'day of renewal' at the end of/start of the year makes some sense, but there is still that pesky little quarter of a day every year. What happens with that?
My favourite solution would be an extra holiday at New Year every four years. But what are these days? Are they days out of time, with no date attached to them?

I might just add my views on the origins of the callendar we now use.

The reason we use the callendar we now have is because it suits the European seasonal cycle. Spring, Summer Autumn, Winter become a bit of a joke when you move into the tropics and when you go into the Southern Hemisphere the whole callendar gets tipped on it's head. New Year is based upon the Winter Solstice (northern hemisphere) which is a time of renewal, a time when the hours of daylight stop growing shorter and begin to grow longer.
It is not precise, which is why Pagan cultures had an extended period of 12 days of celebration, within which the variation of the solstice would fall each year.

Dominant cultures impose their systems on those they dominate. The early Christian church tried to overcome the dominant Pagan cultures of Europe and used the method of overlaying Pagan festivals with Christian festivals, then trying to bring Pagan beliefs into disrepute as they grew stronger.
Eventually the original pagan beliefs were forgotten but traces remain in our callendars and Christian festivals.
The important measures for the Pagans were the Winter and Summer solstice and the Spring and Autumn equinoxes. Much effort was put into calculating the exact timing of these events and festivals or rites were held to mark their passage.

Alterations were made to better suit the Christian church which was now dominant throughout Europe and when the Europeans started to build their empires throughout the world they simply forced their callendar onto the peoples of the lands they conquered. Eventually almost all cultures have adopted our callendar as a matter of convenience. There are still some that follow a different callendar, but very few.

The creation of the 24 hour day is pretty much as you describe and was at the time a fairly neat solution. It also suited the mechanics of early clock makers. The earliest mechanical clocks had just one hand on a circular dial, just to measure the hours, usually to mark the time for church ceremonies. It's not very scientific and is the product of a different age, but for most people it gives a way to mark the passage of time and divide up their days.

As for the world ending in 2012?
I prefer to subscribe to the Ben Elton theory of the end of the world.
I quote: "The world will end with a whimper, not a bang."

[abracax]

Bump!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Milonius]

Unnecessary bumpz0rz!