Why it is good to wear a watch

[fireballs619]

It is always a good idea to wear a wristwatch. Why, you ask, should I in the electronic age? Consider the following; You are suddenly transported back in time 1000 years, with nothing but what you are wearing. Survival is going to be vital in the first few days, but your watch can help with menial tasks, such as boiling water. Then, you can begin to thrive. You should first teach the locals the base ten, Arabic numeral system, using the numerals on your watch as an example. Once they have an understanding of this new mathematical system, you can begin to better their lives. You can, using your mathematical knowledge, become the best mason in the land. You could direct the construction of cathedrals and castles. But that is not all. Using a simple process, you can accurately find north using your watch. This skill would be vital for naval merchants, and they would beg you to navigate for them. Eventually, the king of the area would ask you to navigate for his navy's fleets on a military campaign. If the conquest is successful, you will be rewarded with a parcel of land. Using your talents, and your watch, this town would become a mecca for mathematics and science. Your word would be scientific law, your postulates would be theorems. You could advance medicine of the time to the point where the plague would be avoided. You could start the Renaissance 500 years early, all for the glory of your country. Your watch is basically modern civilization on your wrist. It also helps to keep track of the time.

DISCLAIMER: Fireballs619 is in no way responsible for accusations of witchcraft and devilry directed towards you by the locals of the time in result of of your attempt at any of the above. Attempt at your own risk.

 

[Carmen A]

That's the reason why I wear only Russian watches, which do not need batteries

Just got to remember to wind them up every so often...

 

[Pyromaniac605]

How would you go about teaching base 10 with a watch?

 

[FSXHD]

It would be more like base 13 with the 12 digits on the clock

 

[fireballs619]

you would have examples of the numerals, and the order in which they appear. Also, an example of what it is like when you repeat, ie going from 9 to 10 (you reuse digits). It was humor guys. There aren't twelve digits on a clock. There are twelve numbers, however.

 

[Izack]

I'm worried about how a wristwatch would help advance medicine.

Also, is the wristwatch really representative of the modern era, a time where small chips of semiconductors do the work of many mathematicians, and people routinely fling themselves through the air comfortable in metal tubes eating peanuts? And besides, the Antikythera Mechanism comes to mind... :shifty:

And furthermore, if any of you do find yourselves in this situation, please, please popularise base 12!

 

[fireballs619]

I would say bring back a calculator, but when it runs out of batteries, you're in a pickle. The Antikythera Mechanism is acutally quite different than a watch. While a watch might not represent all we have accomplished, it can represent a mighty lot. The medicine thing was basically just when people start believe anything you say. The point I was trying to get across here is that many of the small pieces of technology that we have nowadays and take for granted would be world changing a millenium ago.

 

[Carmen A]

They had calculators in ancient times and they didn't need batteries :3

[ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abacus"]Abacus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]

 

[Grover]

and they built castles and other impressive buildings, you'd have some work to do to be the "best mason in the land"

 

[Carmen A]

Yes, while they lacked power tools and engine power (for heavy machinery), they made use of sheer numbers and ingenuity! I wouldn't call siege machinery "primitive", for instance. A lot of medieval engineering went into weapons technology.