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  From: David Drury <idavid@smug.adelaide.edu.au>
  To  : mike andrew <mikero@norfolk.nf>
  Date: Fri, 5 Nov 1999 11:02:00 +1030 (CST)

Re: Daylight Savings Time

Hi,

> Our current calendar was settled in western europe in AD 513 during an
> alchoholics convention. Apart from lousy beer, a lot of wine, and much 
> wenching, the honorable monks bounced and juggled a few numbers around and
> came up with a solution that in fact leaves Christ's birthdate 3 years
> PRIOR to AD1.  Even Xmas day is technically wrong, i don't remember the actual
> number (think Jan 3rd).

Well actually I believe it is about 12 years out. it is definitly wrong.
The date of December 25th is actually a convenient Roman festival date, 4
days after Solstice, and it was the roman emperors trying to please both
religions in the Roman empire. The actual date is actually mid year some
time. You can work it out due to the fact that Shepards were watching
their flocks by night, and a few other clues in the story.

> Second, the Gregorian calendar which we now temporarily subscribe to was so 
> stuffed up they had to plug the errors by inserting two extra months in the
> year (which is why oct, nov december) are decimal months on the Julian
> calendar. It's hard enough for me to figure out why SEPTember isn't the seventh
> month of the year when it says it is. 

Also they were out by missing leap years,and so to correct it, pope
gregory actually took about 100 (I think) days out of some year. That was
a real problem for some people then. "The church is stealing our time !"
The gregorian calendar is actually necesary over the julian if you want
your years to have your seasons match up (the only reason we need to
measure years like that at all, otherwise it could be purely arbitary).

There's probably much more reliable and informative information on the
'net or in an encyclopedia for those really interested. The story of time
measurement is interesting.

Insidently, our numbering system and calenders actually go back to
babylon, where they thought there were 360 days in the year, and hence we
have 360 degrees in a circle (apart from the fact its a conveniently
dividable number)


> In any case everyone cheats like hell, atomic clocks are sped up and slowed
> down by a second or two, twice a year to account for the earth's wobble. Yes,
> folks, it is possible to travel thru time. Such is the craziness of humankind
> that we have men in little white overcoats who spend their waking hours
> counting ticks on the atomic clock so that they can untick it by one when they
> think its a 'good idea'. Now, what was that song about counting holes in
> Lancashire?

Now I know how many holes it takes to fill the albert hall. Aparantly all
that song is based on News reports of the time !

Actually the cheats are reasonable. it is far easier to follow the rules
of the gregorian calender, and correct for the odd second now and then,
than have to break those rusle and ad or remove a day every few millenia.
Just look at the problem Y2K has caused with the 29th of Feburary. Can you
immagine going through that with the world again ?

Basically tho, I agree with the sentiment here, if it weren't for some
(potential) computer glitches, 2000 will just be another year for me. Now
if I wanted to I could open the argument about 2000 vs 2001 being the
start of the new millenium :P

cya

-- 
David Drury

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