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the 30-hour day
Tue, 03/17/2009 - 05:33
For some reason, at some point, not sure how long ago but within the last several years (probably after having seen something about an experiment where subjects were removed from all time cues), I got it in my head that I would probably function better if my days were 30 hours long instead of only 24. I'd be awake for a total of 20, and asleep for 10 (but not necessarily all at once).
Later I thought about it again and decided to do a little math. It turns out that a year would include 292.2 30-hour days (as opposed to 365.25 24-hour days), so a calendar would be simple to construct -- with every 5th year being a leap year, instead of every 4th. I set the notion aside for quite a while, and have since revisited the math (and posted about it in a couple of places, in case you were thinking you'd heard about this before) a few times.
Tonight, I find myself going over the math yet again. It just tugs at me...
No reason to give up 7-day weeks, or 12 months, or the names attached to days and months. However there end up being 24 days in most months and 25 in 4 of them, instead of 4 months being a day shorter than the rest (except February) -- unless we make all months 24 days long and have a 3-or-4-day break at the end of each year and beginning of the next. The less controversial option would be to add a day each to September, April, June, and November, and take one away from February (except on leap years).
There is symmetry here, in that a 30-day month of 24-hour days is 720 hours, and so is a 24-day month of 30-hour days -- but 720 hours is still 10.5 hours away from being 1/12 of a year.
Living with 30-hour days would not only require a new calendar, but of course a new clock. Here I would suggest that the day be left whole (beginning at 00:00 and ending at 29:59).
Another way to adapt, I suppose, would be to redefine an 'hour' to be a period lasting 75 minutes instead of 60 -- but this creates too many problems.
Why have I thought about a 30-hour day this much? Not sure, but it may have something to do with my pondering what "the end of time" meant, and wondering if perhaps the Earth's rotation might somehow be slowed down. If that happens, and days suddenly become exactly 6 hours longer, I'll be somewhat prepared. Just don't ask me what could cause that, or if it's even possible.
I find it much more likely that "the end of time" may refer to the end of the Mayan calendar along with a new perception of timespace itself. I can see us calibrating a new calendar in the following years, with Year Zero beginning at the Winter Solstice of 2012 (December 21st)...
While writing this I've considered the possibility that I have lived on a planet with 30-hour days in past lives. Hmmm... For whatever reason, I do find myself out-of-sync, often staying up very late and generally keeping odd hours...
__________________
"Ere many generations pass, our machinery will be driven by power obtainable at any point in the universe. It is a mere question of time when men will succeed in attaching their machinery to the very wheelwork of nature." - Nikola Tesla 
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 01:53
#2
I can't function in a 24
I can't function in a 24 hour day Fil and like the concept of the 30. I keep odd hours, odd schedules myself. I don't follow set ritual time patterns either. When I'm tired I go to sleep and I often regard sleep as a waste of time when I can be "doing" other things but until my body physically advances in this life or another I need sleep. I'm definitely not a morning type person or even a day person. I'm a creature of the night getting most of my energy, focus in the hours of darkness. Maybe some vampire in me? somewhere, LOL. Humor aside. I've always felt optimal health wise when I just followed my normal circadian rhythm. Earlier this year I tried getting up to an alarm. UGGH! I was productive getting my emails and computer stuff done as it was quiet in the house and no TV on. I wasn't getting out the door to work any sooner than if I got up my normal 9 a.m. time. In fact I tried to make myself a morning person, something I'm not. I was falling asleep at the computer by 9:30 p.m. and getting up 6 a.m. Soon my health went downhill. I was filled with aches, pains and general feeling of ill health. It took me about a month or so to reset my natural rhythm back to my normal night owl schedule. My health problems now clearing up and aches, pains going away.
My normal getting to bed time has been between 2-3 a.m. being later even if I allowed it. My normal get up time is 9 a.m. on workdays and 10-11 a.m. weekends. I feel like I'm wasting the day if I sleep too much. Sometimes a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon suffices nicely. IF I were to follow my true rhythm it would be close to comprising 30 hours. I find that I'm at optimal performance for writing, thinking during the late night hours and more often than not have to cut it short cutting trains of important thought. My later thinking is if I only had another 4-5 hours in a day I could get everything done. Let's see doing the math 24+4 or 5 equates to 28-29 hours. A 30 hour day is quite doable. Instead of getting all your sleep in one shot you go in increments. Two increments of 5 hours sleep would equate to a total of 10 hours a 30 hour day. That's twice what I average now in a 24 one!!! but I'd get twice as much accomplished. I still haven't figured that out. Let's see how a 30 hour day would work on the 30 hour clock. First of all I despise having to write a.m. and/or p.m. and the word o'clock. Hey I'm a slacker, I'm lazy in some things. I still go by military time or more appropriately known as Zulu time being the 24 clock. Most people aren't comfortable with the 24 hour clock. ME?? it's all I go by. Back to the 30 hour clock. When would the official designation of the 30 hour cross over to the O hour? Midnight?, O600?
I like the concept of the New Year starting on the Winter Solstice as the Mayan calendar ending on the winter solstice in December 2012. In Pagan custom the New Year starts on Samhain/All Hallows Eve, also known as Halloween. The winter Solstice the Sun is reborn as it's at its southern most point in the southern hemisphere and begins its track back north. Amazing how Christianity took the rebirth of the sun in Pagan customs to birth of the Son (Jesus) on December 25. I like the idea of the New Year starting on the Winter Solstice when the sun begins its return.
Actually I think the 30 hour day is quite feasible. I do look forward to a time in whatever life I'm in, hope this one where I dispose of my watch as time will be irrelevant anymore. I almost run my life on that schedule now. I'll be there tomorrow when I get there type attitude, sometime in the morning or afternoon, I'll call when I'm on my way.
Good write up Fil. We have had the calendar changed before over time. I think it was the Romans that made the official designation of Midnight starting the new day for the sake of business record keeping. Personally I liked the Jewish faith observing the start of the new day at Sunset. I followed that for some years and it worked nicely.
I need to look over all these posts, some good stuff here.
Kev
Key Largo Fl
Thu, 09/03/2009 - 01:42
#3
I find it a different post,as
I find it a different post,as someone said above ,"Polyphasic Sleep:Have you heard of it? You don't actually change the hours in the day, you just change your sleep cycle to reclaim more of the 24 hours that already exist. I haven't tried it, and it seems like something that would be hard to get used to. You sleep in 90 minute blocks throughout the day . Thought it might be something you'd like to explore."I didnt know about it before...Actually i was surfing net to get data related to the projects of ccna exam quetsions , mcts 70-528 , test king certification exams and in the meantime came here...Well how u manage 20 hours?
Have you heard of it? You don't actually change the hours in the day, you just change your sleep cycle to reclaim more of the 24 hours that already exist. I haven't tried it, and it seems like something that would be hard to get used to. You sleep in 90 minute blocks throughout the day . Thought it might be something you'd like to explore.
~G
"Circumstances don't matter, ONLY state of being matters!