Why not 40 seconds? And whomever thought of that, who gave them the authority to proclaim it?
2007-04-04 02:22:17 · 10 answers · asked by NONAME 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Other - Science
Quite a few of the answers written are awful! There are a few, though, that are right. The Babylonians were probably the first to come up with this idea. Visit this site from wiki. There is a bit explaining what's up with 60 and 24. Hope this helps!
The site is:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylonian#Mathematics
2007-04-04 03:20:00 · answer #1 · answered by Danny_b 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Again if people study history even a little you would know.
Ten has not always been the bases of our number system. Six was the bases for quite some time back in history.
There are many examples of this system still remaining. Degrees 360 and time are the most comon.
We can use any number as a base other than zero. your computer uses the base 01, everything is sent using only these two digets. You use them exactly the way you use the ten numbers. Nine also has been used as the base.
Just who gets credit for the second I don't know at this time and a quick search did not find it.
It will surprise you if you do some reading that the ten base is not as old as most think it is.
Many nations had no word for zero until very reacent. Did you ever ask why the japanese use the word the same as we do, Zero. Yes zero in japan is zero. Brought there by the west.
Where I am now the SOON or zero was not used until about 1900.
Nearly everyplace that has a zero uses the same one and that is a circle. Representing empty. Nothing inside. A hole .
Such things are a way of getting a little insight of what once was.
2007-04-04 10:09:30 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
The Earth rotates once every day. That means it makes one revolution of 360 degrees in twenty-four hours. The Earth, therefore moves across a fifteen degree arc of rotation each hour (360/24=15).
The hour is further divided into 60 minutes, so 15 degrees divided by 60 minutes equals one-quarter of a degree.
Going back in history, the early mathematicians and astronomers were able to measure these times and angles. They found, simply, that the smallest unit, 60 seconds, was the easiest to divide by many other numbers. They arbitrarily chose 60 seconds per minute as the standard of time. That's all it was!
2007-04-04 09:43:25 · answer #3 · answered by NJGuy 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The first record of a second hand on a clock is about 1560, on a clock now in the Fremersdorf collection. However, this clock could not have been accurate, and the second hand was probably for indicating that the clock was working.
They decided that because there were 60 minutes in an hour, there should be 60 seconds in a minute.
2007-04-04 09:37:33 · answer #4 · answered by eric l 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The whole 60 and 24 thing came from the Babylonians. They counted in 12's and 60's and used it for their time keeping and it just followd through to modern times.
2007-04-04 09:49:43 · answer #5 · answered by Gene 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
God and Satan held a poker game for all the angels. Whomever won got to choose how many seconds in a minute. The angel that won second place got to gargle the combined mayonnaise of Satan and God. He then spat it into the throbbing uterus of the virgin Mary and hence we have Jesus and a minute that is made up of 60 seconds.
2007-04-04 09:32:21 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 5⤋
That would be the same person who decided how long a second lasts anyway.....
2007-04-04 09:25:35 · answer #7 · answered by lou b 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
father time
2007-04-04 09:25:00 · answer #8 · answered by just me #1 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Be true to your heart.
2007-04-04 09:25:25 · answer #9 · answered by Derek 3 · 0⤊ 3⤋
I did... big whoop, wanna fight about.
2007-04-04 09:25:41 · answer #10 · answered by J-Rod on the Radio 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋