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Admin moved page How did timekeeping devices develop? to How did timekeeping devices develop
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[[File:Sundial-egypt.jpg|thumbthumbnail|250px|left|Figure 1. The oldest sundial found, although these objects are probably more ancient, derives from Egypt from the 2nd millennium BCE.]]
The basic units we use to save time have not significantly evolved, showing their ancient historical roots. Timekeeping developed in early recorded history, with different societies using their natural surroundings and devices they created to help keep track of time. The keeping of time was essential to early agriculture, particularly in irrigation, where timing access to water was necessary. Increasingly, timekeeping was not just conducted by the select few by much of society.
==Early Timekeeping Devices==
[[File:Salisbury Cathedral clock-1060x450.jpg|thumbthumbnail|left|250px|Figure 2. Perhaps the oldest known working clock is the clock in Salsbury cathedral, which dates to the late 14th century. ]]
Some of the earliest timekeeping devices involved the use of water, or what were called water clocks or <i>clepsydrae</i> as called by the Greeks. This involved either using outflow of water or inflow. Effectively, as water drained out or filled in, the rate was seen as relatively constant based on marking on containers that would then tell how much time had passed as the water drained or filled in. Such devices were known to have existed in many of the earliest complex societies in Eurasia, including in Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Indus, China, and likely other regions, including ancient Greece and Rome.
==Recent Developments==
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Wristwatches developed to be more common only by the late 19th century. During the early days of aviation, wristwatches became critical as it was easier to tell time using one's wrist. During the Boer War, soldiers began to wear wristwatches in order to better coordinate troop movements using time. Having a watch in a coat would potentially expose the soldier as they reached for their pockets. Although wristwatches were available as fashion items, often as part of bracelets for ladies, they now became more part of men 's fashion. By 1900, wristwatches became even more fashionable among men and began to compete with pocket watches.
Navigation devices would even be worn as part of wristwatches. Wilsdorf & Davis, a company in England, began to create specifically made wristwatches which had stronger frames and held better than other wristwatches, which were often not very different from pocket watches prior to their developments. The company would eventually become Rolex, and they helped to popularize the idea of fashionable wristwatches among men. The widespread use of wristwatches in World War I also increased the market for wristwatches in the wider public.<ref>For more on how wristwatches became popular, see: Kahlert, H., Mühe, R., & Brunner, G. L. (2005). <i>Wristwatches: history of a century’s development</i>. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Pub.</ref>
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[[Category:History of Science and TechnonlogyTechnology]]
