In ancient times observing the sun s position served as mankind s way of telling the time. Subjective as this time telling method was, a device geared to tell the time in a graduated way was eventually invented; the sundial. During the day, a vertical pole positioned in the middle of a calibrated dial served as the main time-telling method. The shadow casted on the dial provided people a fairly accurate reading of time, taking away subjective readings of time, from simply estimating time through the sun s position.
By the fourteenth century, the invention of the mechanical clock paved the way for modern watches, as we know them to be. An intricate series of wheels, gears and levers ran the firsts of mechanical clocks. Falling weights balanced with a pendulum served as its power source.
Come the eighteenth century, small and more sealed clocks were made, which were far more convenient for home use. From there on, pocket watches came to be, heavily utilized in the railways. Train operators and railway workers, heavily depended on time estimates and synchronization. The successful operation of train procedures, avoidance of train wrecks, all these depended on a carefully organized system of timings and procedures, which pocket watches aided the responsible personnel with. The pocket watch eventually became part of a railroad employee s standard uniform, emphasizing just how important having one was.
Pocket watches operated on a mainspring system. A wound up spring served as a pocket watch s source of power. Consistent winding up was necessary for the successful operation of the watch. They came in two types. The open faced, and the non-open faced. Non-open faced pocket watches look similar to a ladies compact. Circular, with a cover to protect the watch s face. Open faced simply didn t have a cover.
From here on, wrist watches came about, but were not that easily accepted, as wrist watches were first considered an item for ladies, and were even labeled as wristlets. It wasn t until during the war, when soldiers saw the inconvenience in having to pull out their pocket watches, to check their timepieces, when a fresher view towards wrist watches was born. Attack strategies, distance estimation, and strike coordination depended on a synchronized structure which time provided. Wrist watches proved to be quite convenient for soldiers, considering that in the battlefield, there is no room for wasted time.
Eventually, wrist watches took the place of pocket watches, as newer, more accurate watches came to be.
Today, electronic watches (battery powered), self-winding watches, automatic quartz watches, kinetic movement watches, thermal watches and solar powered watches are readily available to the general public.
As now essential devices (like Personal Digital Assistants, Cellular Phones, and personal beepers) are now boasting watch (time telling) features, watches have somewhat become more of an item of modern culture, rather than an item of function.
This doesn t mean people no longer need watches. It simply means that a brighter, better for watches now lie ahead.
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Watches: Providing Time Throughout History
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