4 ms·

A decent, short book on the historical story behind H4 (and the rest of Mr. Harrison’s time-keepers) is “Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved t

A decent, short book on the historical story behind H4 (and the rest of Mr. Harrison’s time-keepers) is “Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time” by Dava Sobel. It goes into the longitude competition, the people involved, and how Harrison was able to (eventually) win with his timekeepers.

technothrasher 2y ago
Yes, Sobel's book is a great introductory read that gives a nice overview of the events. "The Marine Chronometer, Its History and Development", by Rupert Gould is a good one to continue reading the technical story of the chronometers themselves, from Harrison's time up through the early 20th century.
throw0101d 2y ago
> “Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time” by Dava Sobel. Good two-part mini-series that's based on the book (Jeremy Irons, Michael Gambon): * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longitude_(TV_series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longitude_(TV_series)
ethbr1 2y ago
Read it after a previous recommendation on HN, and it's one of the most interesting and effectively-written books I've ever read. Sobel did a great job in editing down the history to an engrossing tale, even if you're not the type of person who would normally be interested in marine chronography. Made me appreciate the differences between the before-clock and after-clock worlds.
- pbrowne011 2y ago
  Another related set of differences to appreciate is between before-GMT and after-GMT worlds. Before standardized time, it was very difficult to coordinate. Most US towns would have their own local time (think church steeples ringing out the hours), and there were 80+ different time standards across the country. In Massachusetts, for example, there were differences between Boston time and Worcester time, two cities that are ~45 miles apart. Trains had trouble coordinating: if you're using the same sets of tracks, it's essential that you have a very good idea of where trains are going to be. Unfortunately, there were many collisions between trains as a result of mismatched times between the conductors and stations. [1] In 1849, William Bond (owner of William Bond & Sons’ Boston) partnered with Harvard to offer the first standardized time from Harvard College Observatory. Time standardization between railroads, which started as a voluntary agreement, became mandatory after the Valley Falls collision. [2] As use of the telegraph spread, time standardization began to spread as well. The idea of a train conductor holding a pocket watch has become quaint now, but it used to be the difference between life and death for passengers. Part of the cause of the Valley Falls collision (and several others) was a train conductor with a faulty pocket watch. Another interesting rabbit hole to go down is the standardization of the prime meridian, why Greenwich was chosen [3] (hence Greenwich Mean Time [4]), and why the French were so upset about this (part of the reason time today is called UTC). Part of the reason GMT is the standard has to do with what Sobel discusses at the end of the book [5]: Nevil Maskelyne, the primary antagonist, published The Nautical Almanac, which was for many years the primary reference of sailors across the globe when determining time. All measurements for that book were taken from Greenwich; hence, when governments went to standardize a prime meridian, Greenwich was the obvious choice. Harvard’s Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments has a fun collection of clocks that illustrate the challenges related to this. [6] It's a small but underrated museum when looking at places to go in Cambridge. [1] https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/11/americas-first-time-zone/ https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/11/americas-firs... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valley_Falls_train_collision https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valley_Falls_train_collision [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_meridian#Prime_meridian_at_Greenwich https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_meridian#Prime_meridian_... [4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwich_Mean_Time https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwich_Mean_Time [5] I don't remember if Sobel discussed this or not in the book [6] https://chsi.harvard.edu/ https://chsi.harvard.edu/

technothrasher 2y ago

Yes, Sobel's book is a great introductory read that gives a nice overview of the events. "The Marine Chronometer, Its History and Development", by Rupert Gould is a good one to continue reading the technical story of the chronometers themselves, from Harrison's time up through the early 20th century.

throw0101d 2y ago

> “Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time” by Dava Sobel. Good two-part mini-series that's based on the book (Jeremy Irons, Michael Gambon): * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longitude_(TV_series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longitude_(TV_series)

ethbr1 2y ago

Read it after a previous recommendation on HN, and it's one of the most interesting and effectively-written books I've ever read. Sobel did a great job in editing down the history to an engrossing tale, even if you're not the type of person who would normally be interested in marine chronography. Made me appreciate the differences between the before-clock and after-clock worlds.

pbrowne011 2y ago
Another related set of differences to appreciate is between before-GMT and after-GMT worlds. Before standardized time, it was very difficult to coordinate. Most US towns would have their own local time (think church steeples ringing out the hours), and there were 80+ different time standards across the country. In Massachusetts, for example, there were differences between Boston time and Worcester time, two cities that are ~45 miles apart. Trains had trouble coordinating: if you're using the same sets of tracks, it's essential that you have a very good idea of where trains are going to be. Unfortunately, there were many collisions between trains as a result of mismatched times between the conductors and stations. [1] In 1849, William Bond (owner of William Bond & Sons’ Boston) partnered with Harvard to offer the first standardized time from Harvard College Observatory. Time standardization between railroads, which started as a voluntary agreement, became mandatory after the Valley Falls collision. [2] As use of the telegraph spread, time standardization began to spread as well. The idea of a train conductor holding a pocket watch has become quaint now, but it used to be the difference between life and death for passengers. Part of the cause of the Valley Falls collision (and several others) was a train conductor with a faulty pocket watch. Another interesting rabbit hole to go down is the standardization of the prime meridian, why Greenwich was chosen [3] (hence Greenwich Mean Time [4]), and why the French were so upset about this (part of the reason time today is called UTC). Part of the reason GMT is the standard has to do with what Sobel discusses at the end of the book [5]: Nevil Maskelyne, the primary antagonist, published The Nautical Almanac, which was for many years the primary reference of sailors across the globe when determining time. All measurements for that book were taken from Greenwich; hence, when governments went to standardize a prime meridian, Greenwich was the obvious choice. Harvard’s Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments has a fun collection of clocks that illustrate the challenges related to this. [6] It's a small but underrated museum when looking at places to go in Cambridge. [1] https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/11/americas-first-time-zone/ https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/11/americas-firs... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valley_Falls_train_collision https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valley_Falls_train_collision [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_meridian#Prime_meridian_at_Greenwich https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_meridian#Prime_meridian_... [4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwich_Mean_Time https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenwich_Mean_Time [5] I don't remember if Sobel discussed this or not in the book [6] https://chsi.harvard.edu/ https://chsi.harvard.edu/