Clock

The need for humans to track time has been around from time immemorial. Starting from tracking the sun at different times of the day to ancient scientists inventing the sundial. The clocks of today have been developed to keep time with an accuracy of millionths of a second.

The clock gets its name from a Latin word 'cloca' meaning 'bell'. The calendar preceded the clock as a devise to primarily monitor the passing days of a year and the years as well. By the 17th century clocks were invented to fulfill the need to mark the passing of much smaller periods of time such as hours. By the middle of the 17th century clocks were keeping accurate time down to the second. Today the atomic clocks are used to keep time down to a millionth of a second's accuracy. These clocks, known as chronometers, are primarily used in scientific research and industries.

Kinds of Clocks

Smaller clocks that are portable in nature are called watches. Watches can be decorative and can also be built into any thing conceivable. Television sets, radios, microwave ovens and washing machines. In fact any conceivable electronic appliance or instrument comes with a built in clock to facilitate switching on the appliance or switching it off.

The Earliest Clocks

The earliest reasonably accurate clocks are believed to be the 13th century tower clocks that were probably developed for and perhaps even by, monks in Northern Italy. These monks needed to announce the canonical hours between times of prayer.

Four Major Types Of Clocks

Analog clocks may be mechanical or have a quartz movement. A clock face is the part of an analog clock that tells time through the use of a fixed numbered dial or dials and moving hand or hands.

Digital clocks use electronic methods of keeping time. A digital clock typically displays a numerical hour range of 0-23, or 1-12 (with an indication of AM or PM) using an LCD or LED display, although digital versions of analog-style faces exist.

Auditory Clocks are used for convenience, distance, telephony or blindness. Auditory clocks present the time as sounds. The form is either spoken natural language, such as "The time is twelve thirty-five", or as auditory codes such as a number of sequential bell rings on the hour represents the hour of the day like.

Braille Clocks were invented for the blind and preceded the auditory clocks. These were clocks with a special dial that the blind were trained to red by touching the dial with their fingertips.

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