Arnold.Gill%QueensU.CA@qucdn.queensu.ca (08/04/89)
I have been exploring the UNIX system on our MIPS, and was playing around
with the `cal' routine. Upon reading the manual, I found that the special
case stated in the manual, namely that in September, 1752 11 days were dropped
from the calendar is absolutely garbage!!
Calendar reform did not occur as late as 1752, even in Britain and the
US. Rather, calendar reform occurred nearly two centuries earlier when Pope
Gregory decreed that throughout Christendom, the day following October 4, 1582
would be October 15. That's why we call our current calendar Gregorian! If
you wish references to look this up, might I suggest the Astronomical Almanac,
published jointly by the US Naval Observatory and the Royal Greenwich
Observatory. When counting Julian days in astronomical software, century
counts are listed evenly back to 1600, i.e. 11 days are NOT missing in the
18th century!
Obviously, there was no astronomer around when this particular program
was written. :-) (Astronomers seem to be the only people who really need to
keep an accurate track of time over centuries.) I would suggest that this
little quirk be fixed up in some future release - it should really be a
trivial task.
If anyone has comments on this issue, e-mail me directly - I do not read
this particular forum.
On a side note, I would be interested in getting hold of the C source for
the following supposedly standard UNIX routines - which seem to be missing
from our MIPS: (un)pack, (un)compress, whereis. Thank you. Again, if you
could e-mail these to me directly.
Arnold Gill
Queen's University at Kingston
BITNET: gilla@qucdn
INTERNET: Arnold.Gill@QueensU.CAflee@shire.cs.psu.edu (Felix Lee) (08/05/89)
Yes, the Gregorian calendar was decreed in the sixteenth century. The Germanic states did not adopt it until the seventeenth century. England and its colonies did not adopt it until the eighteenth century. A side effect of the Protestant Reform. Papal Bulls are binding only to Roman Catholics. Calendars and dates are not particularly straightforward. Muslim, Jewish, and Chinese calendars are still in common use. And consider curiosities, such as the French Revolutionary calendar. For modern astronomical purposes, it's as well to calculate Julian day number using the Gregorian calendar as decreed. -- Felix Lee flee@shire.cs.psu.edu *!psuvax1!flee
root@yclept.chi.il.us (Root) (08/07/89)
In article <20492@adm.BRL.MIL> Arnold.Gill%QueensU.CA@qucdn.queensu.ca writes: > > I have been exploring the UNIX system on our MIPS, and was playing around >with the `cal' routine. Upon reading the manual, I found that the special >case stated in the manual, namely that in September, 1752 11 days were dropped >from the calendar is absolutely garbage!! > > Calendar reform did not occur as late as 1752, even in Britain and the >US. Rather, calendar reform occurred nearly two centuries earlier when Pope >Gregory decreed that throughout Christendom, the day following October 4, 1582 >would be October 15. That's why we call our current calendar Gregorian! If >you wish references to look this up, might I suggest the Astronomical Almanac, >published jointly by the US Naval Observatory and the Royal Greenwich >Observatory. When counting Julian days in astronomical software, century >counts are listed evenly back to 1600, i.e. 11 days are NOT missing in the >18th century! > ... > >Arnold Gill >Queen's University at Kingston >BITNET: gilla@qucdn >INTERNET: Arnold.Gill@QueensU.CA I will use your chosen reference source. From page 414 of the 1961 edition of the "Explanatory Supplement to the Astronomical Ephemeris and the American Ephemeris and Nautical Almanac," I quote: "List of dates of adoption of the Gregorian calendar" ... American colonies 1752 September 3/14, at the same time as Great Britain ... Great Britain 1752 September 3/14, by Act of Parliament passed 1751 March 18; at the same time, the beginning of the year was changed from March 25 to January 1, commencing with the year 1752. <<The reference used was Ginzel, F. K. Handbuch der mathematischen und technichen Chronologie, vol III, pages 266-270, Leipzig, 1914.>> I have been mentioned in Scientific American as having some knowledge in calendar systems. Because of my interest in calendar systems, I have these materials at hand. Randolph J. Herber, @ home: {att|amdahl|clout|mcdchg|laidbak|obdient|wheaton}!yclept!rjh, rjh@yclept.chi.il.us
rbj@dsys.ncsl.nist.gov (Root Boy Jim) (08/09/89)
? From: Felix Lee <flee@shire.cs.psu.edu> ? ... Chinese calendars are still in common use. My office mate is a citizen of PRC. I wished him a Happy Chinese New Year and asked him what year it was. Interestingly, he didn't know. Seems they use western dates. It's 1989. And they change it in January. ? Felix Lee flee@shire.cs.psu.edu *!psuvax1!flee Root Boy Jim Have GNU, Will Travel.