If you take a look, clocks play a major role in our lives and we tend to usually forget about them. But first, what are clocks? They are the devices used to verify, indicate, keep or measure time. They are some of the oldest human inventions ever, originating in ancient times with the invention of sundials, using the rays from the sun, turning into water clocks, which work on the rate of drops per time period. These were some of the earliest ones which later developed into analog and digital clocks.
The electric clocks, that we are familiar with came into being in the 20th century but were patented in the 1840s. They work on many, tiny delicate pieces intricately placed that work simultaneously for the clock to work. The precision for calculating time was increased by the introduction of atomic clocks in 1949 to almost 10-9 seconds per day. This clock works mainly on the principle of decaying radioactive material.
Clocks in Old Days
There are 2 main types of clocks; analog and digital. The Analogue having 3 arms; the largest measuring seconds, the medium-sized measuring the minutes, and the smallest one measuring the hours. This type of clock is mainly used on wristwatches and small and large wall clocks. The digital clock works the same but instead of having arms it just shows numbers representing the hours, minutes, and seconds. They are placed to be hours on the extreme left side and seconds on the right side. Two letters may or may not be present denoting the time of the day. AM stands for ante meridiem meaning before midday and PM stands for post meridiem meaning past midday.
Different Kinds of Clocks
These clocks have proven to be very significant in our day-to-day lives and can be seen almost everywhere. They are found on our arms as wristwatches, found on the wall as wall clocks, and larger ones are found in railway stations or other important buildings. They are also found on almost all digital computing devices like your mobile phones or computers as numbers indicating the time. These clocks also work as alarm devices that basically wake you up in the morning, facing intense beatings in the process. Putting aside the harsh torture it has to face, there is no denying that they are very beneficial to us.
Another useful use of clocks is using them as a timer. This basically controls a device according to time. From algorithms to bombs their possibilities of application are infinite. They can be used to control a certain action that software does at a certain time, like work productive apps. They basically block all the distracting apps on your phone at a certain time of the day. Or being used as a time bomb, in which it basically ignites the gunpowder in the container at a certain time.
There is no denying that clocks have played a very significant role in our lives and it’s time we showed it some importance.
