Can anyone define what time is?
Well, time has many meanings. To put it simply, it is the ongoing sequence of events taking place. It is the past, present, and future. Everyone knows this. To calculate time we divide the distance by speed. Well that is the physics definition. But generally, time is measured using clocks.
Let me tell you about how timekeeping evolved.
The Sundial
As centuries have passed, many devices have been invented to measure time. Each of them better than its predecessor. In earlier times, a sundial was used. As the position of the sun changes across the sky, the angle and the length of the shadows also change. For example, at noon the shadow will be the shortest and it will almost be right under us. But this technique was useless to predict time whenever the sky was cloudy and it rained. So they are ineffective unless the Sun shining.
The Water Clock
Then came the water clock. A water clock uses the flow of water to measure the time. There are many variations to this device. One particular and typical method was that a vessel with lines on its interior for measurements, was filled with water. And the water was allowed to seep through the hole at the bottom. So the markings show how much water has gone out and how much time has passed. But the problem here was it was very hard to maintain a constant flow of water and the readings were not accurate sometimes.
The Hourglass ->Pendulum ->Wall Clock
Let us look at the hourglass. The sand or liquid on the upper section of a true hourglass will come down to the botton in an hour. However, for the hourglass to work properly, it must be placed on a flat surface and it is only for a short duration of time for about an hour.
Next comes the pendulum clock. Which we used to call and still call the grandfather clock. This device was far more accurate than any of the ones that came before it. It uses the swinging weight as its timekeeping element. But the time shown by this depends on various factors like local gravity and temperature.
Following this, the wall clock. This is the device used by almost everyone to tell time. It is simple to use and is available in various designs, shapes and sizes. It is very convenient.
Watch ->Digital Watch ->Smart Watch
Next into the picture is a watch. See, it has evolved so much that now we wear watches as an accessory now. It has moved from the wall to the wrist. It has all the features of a wall clock. But it is portable and small in size. So its convenient to carry it around. It is self-explanatory.
To make things even more easier, digital clocks have been invented. A normal wall clock is called an analog clock. This means that the time is indicated by the position of the hands. On the contrary, a digital clock directly displays time.
New and innovative technologies keep coming into the market everyday right?
Now the Smart Watch enters into the scene. There are a wide range of smart watches too. It is just like a minicomputer in the form of watch. But for this you need to have a smart phone on which you download the app that comes with the smartwatch.
Such as Watch from Apple. You can do all sorts of things like setting remainders, monitoring your heartrate, tracking your activity and many more cool features.
Now that was a long walk down the history. Right now, we have stopped at a smart watch. But who knows? Something even more innovative and advanced might come up in the future.
