Your post raises an interesting topic. The relation between the sun, a
compass and an analogue watch (or clock) is an equation. If you have any two
of these three items, the third can be determined.

For example, if you can see the sun, and you are wearing an analogue watch,
you can determine true North. Or, if you have a compass, and you can see the
sun, you can determine what time it is.

Remember, that it is a watch or clock that is used to determine longitude
also. First, you set your watch to midday exactly as the sun reaches the
highest point in the sky (Note: your watch is now set to sidereal time and
not mean time).

Next, sail (for simplicity) due East. Next day, when the sun is at its
highest, see what the time is on your watch. Let's say its 11 o'clock. Then
you have travelled 15 degrees East of where you started (remembering that
360 degrees of longitude divided by 24 hours is 15 degrees per hour).

No navigator would be seen without his/her analogue watch!

Finally, a question: There is a time zone in the world which is set to UTC.
And there are 12 times zones which are ahead of UTC (+1, +2, etc) (and, yes,
some partial hour variations too). And there's 12 timezones which are less
than UTC (-1, -2, etc). That adds up to 25 time zones. Yet there's only 24
hours in a day! What's going on? (Hint: the timezone at my location holds
the answer)

Mark.
Auckland, New Zealand, which is currently UTC + 13 hours.




"uncle arnie" &mex. wrote in message
...
Thanks, you gave me the origin of this as well as the meaning by this
post.

I imagine we could also do some other terms too.

On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 12:14 pm, Al Patrick posted
to
rec.radio.shortwave: %MM

Ace,

I knew YOU knew. I wasn't too sure about the party asking the original
question. ;-)

Al

=========

dxAce wrote:

Al Patrick wrote:


The "Quarter of" / "Quarter till" and "Quarter past" / "Quarter
after"
that dxAce and Keyboard in the Wilderness have mentioned refer to a
"Quarter" of an hour.


Well... yes, that's exactly what 15 minutes is!



dxAce wrote:


uncle arnie wrote:



I've never heard this before. What does "quarter of 10" mean? Is
this
before 10 or after 10? I thought it was my hearing until this was
repeated. "quarter to" and "quarter after", rarely "quarter past"
are
all
usual ways of saying this around here. Though digital clocks make it
"ten fifteen". I think this must be a regionalism or slang for
somewhere in the USA (?).

I also hear "zulu" said instead of UTC (or the old GMT).


Quarter of 10 means 15 minutes to 10.

Zulu is used the same as UTC and GMT. Zulu is more of a military term.

dxAce
Michigan
USA