From sundials to atomic clocks, time marches on...

The measurement of time with the use of a clock is an artificial method developed by man. Prior to the invention of clocks and other methods of marking hours, people weren’t too concerned with the passage of time. They began work at dawn and worked until it was too dark to see.

Devices for telling time began in ancient times with the invention of sundials. They didn’t measure time as we do today – sundials measured solar time. Constructed correctly, their measurements equate quite closely with those of modern day clocks. Incense sticks and candles that burned at fairly predictable rates were also used at various times, as were hourglasses.

Water clocks, based on the regulated flow of water, were also in use and date back to at least 4000 BC. The Greeks and Romans later added gears to their water clocks. Astronomical clocks were popular around 1366. They measured time, but in reference to celestial movements.

The first recorded clock using springs to drive its workings was constructed around 1511. It now resides in the German National Museum. The utilization of springs in the clock-making process presented one major concern for early clockmakers – how to make the spring maintain a regular, measured motion. The pendulum-driven clock presented a major breakthrough in timekeeping. The motion of the pendulum made for greater accuracy and the grandfather clock was born.

The first electric clock was developed and patented in 1840. It used a mainspring that was wound with an electric motor or electro-magnet. Prior to the development of electronics in the 20th century, clocks all had faces with an hour hand and a second hand. Technological advances led to the development of clocks that required no hands to tell time and no gears or clockwork at all. Modern technology has now given us analog and digital clocks that operate with electricity or on batter power.

An auditory clock was also designed for use by the blind and those with low-vision. The time can be spoken in the user’s native language. Some use the tried and true method of chiming the hour with the appropriate number of bells or chimes.

The world now has atomic clocks, and many of us use them even if we’re not aware of it. The idea of an atomic clock was actually conceived in 1879, but it wasn’t until 1955 that the first atomic clock was built. Since then, rubidium and caesium clocks have been constructed. Caesium clocks have the advantage of being smaller than rubidium clocks.

Developers have even constructed a clock that utilizes a single atom of mercury. It’s achieved an accuracy rate of one second in 400 million years. Research on clocks that use light are expected to be even more accurate.

Currently, atomic clocks offer the best accuracy. However, with the ever-increasing need for accuracy, there’s no way of knowing what the future of our timepieces will be or how they will evolve. One thing is certain – the instruments we use to measure will continue to become smaller to meet the demands of people on the go.