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On Time: A History of Western Timekeeping
An approachable, accessible history of timekeeping and the impact of the increasing precision and accuracy of time on humanity.
Western culture has been obsessed with regulating society by the precise, accurate measurement of time since the Middle Ages. In On Time, Ken Mondschein explores the paired development of concepts and technologies of timekeeping with human thought. Without clocks, he argues, the modern world as we know it would not exist. From the astronomical timekeeping of the ancient world to the tower clocks of the Middle Ages to the seagoing chronometer, the quartz watch, and the atomic clock, greater precision and accuracy have had profound effects on human society—which, in turn, has driven the quest for further precision and accuracy. This quest toward automation—which gave rise to the Gregorian calendar, the factory clock, and even the near-disastrous Y2K bug—has led to profound social repercussions and driven the creation of the modern scientific mindset.
Surveying the evolution of the clock from prehistory to the twenty-first century, Mondschein explains how both the technology and the philosophy behind Western timekeeping regimes came to take over the entire world. On Time is a story of thinkers, philosophers, and scientists, and of the thousand decisions that continue to shape our daily lives.
Western culture has been obsessed with regulating society by the precise, accurate measurement of time since the Middle Ages. In On Time, Ken Mondschein explores the paired development of concepts and technologies of timekeeping with human thought. Without clocks, he argues, the modern world as we know it would not exist. From the astronomical timekeeping of the ancient world to the tower clocks of the Middle Ages to the seagoing chronometer, the quartz watch, and the atomic clock, greater precision and accuracy have had profound effects on human society—which, in turn, has driven the quest for further precision and accuracy. This quest toward automation—which gave rise to the Gregorian calendar, the factory clock, and even the near-disastrous Y2K bug—has led to profound social repercussions and driven the creation of the modern scientific mindset.
Surveying the evolution of the clock from prehistory to the twenty-first century, Mondschein explains how both the technology and the philosophy behind Western timekeeping regimes came to take over the entire world. On Time is a story of thinkers, philosophers, and scientists, and of the thousand decisions that continue to shape our daily lives.
256 pages, Paperback
Published September 15, 2020
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About the author
Kenneth C. Mondschein
28 books4 followersKenneth C. Mondschein has a Ph.D in history from Fordham University (defense passed December 18, 2009). His expertise is in Western history from antiquity to the present, with a specializations in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, global expansion and colonization, and the history of science and technology. He also holds a Master of Arts in History from Boston University.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 12, 2023
Ever wonder what it is that makes our society tick? Look no further than Ken Mondschein's excellent historical narrative of how we synchronized our world. Mondschein's "On Time" satisfied a matter of great curiosity for me. I began to wonder not only how we ended up with the advanced timekeeping technology that we have today, but I wanted to know what philosophical, economic, political, religious factors drove our advancements and subsequently how those advancements changed the very forces that lead to them.
January 13, 2021
I found this book to be an enjoyable read that is packed full of information pertaining to the basics of the history of Western timekeeping. As far as judging a book by its cover, this book’s title was perfect for its contents.
March 11, 2021
Professor Mondschein presents a thorough survey of timekeeping from a European perspective. He touches on Asian and Pre-Columbian American timekeeping, but the focus of his study is European culture, and its antecedents.
The reader will learn about time measured from the sun, from the moon, from the stars, and from atoms. He discusses, sundials, water clocks, mechanical clocks, how the day is divided and for what purposes. The reader will learn that there is more than one way to measure the length of a day. The development of the seven-day week, is discussed. He examines different kinds of calendars and the problems they entail. We learn how a year is measured, the workings of an astrolabe, and an atomic clock, and the fact that a sundial is not as simple as it would appear.
I found this book enjoyable. The author has a style that is comfortable to read without feeling unprofessional. Most of the material presented I could understand without any trouble, but to be honest, some of the mathematics was beyond me. To be fair, timekeeping is much more complex than it would appear to the untrained eye, and some of the math and mechanics necessary for accurate and precise measurements is necessarily complex. I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to understand why time is measured the way it is.
The reader will learn about time measured from the sun, from the moon, from the stars, and from atoms. He discusses, sundials, water clocks, mechanical clocks, how the day is divided and for what purposes. The reader will learn that there is more than one way to measure the length of a day. The development of the seven-day week, is discussed. He examines different kinds of calendars and the problems they entail. We learn how a year is measured, the workings of an astrolabe, and an atomic clock, and the fact that a sundial is not as simple as it would appear.
I found this book enjoyable. The author has a style that is comfortable to read without feeling unprofessional. Most of the material presented I could understand without any trouble, but to be honest, some of the mathematics was beyond me. To be fair, timekeeping is much more complex than it would appear to the untrained eye, and some of the math and mechanics necessary for accurate and precise measurements is necessarily complex. I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to understand why time is measured the way it is.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews