Term Paper Categories
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Sundials
| Term Paper Title |
Sundials |
| # of Words |
532 |
| # of Pages (250 words per page double spaced) |
2.13 |
Sundials
A sundial is the oldest device known for the measurement of time. It is based on
the idea that a shadow will move from one side to another as the sun moves from the east
to the west. It is probably the first scientific instrument created by man. The sundial is
believed to have been used in Babylon as early as 2000 B.C. There are many sundials
around the world. Some thousands of years old, and some huge in stature. A sundial is
much like pottery and each one is given a unique character by its maker. Sundials are
mentioned in everything from ancient Greek writings to Shakespeare’s plays.
The earliest description of a sundial comes from Berossus, a Chaldean astronomer
who lived about 300 B.C. His sundial was a hollow half-sphere, or dome, set with its
edge flat. A small bead was fixed at the center acting as the gnomon. Another believed
to be a simple sundial are the stones at Stonehedge. There are many notable sundials in
the world; however, some of the more famous and modern ones include the following
ones. One of the largest ones built, the sundial in Jaipur, India, covers an acre of ground
and has a gnomon over a hundred feet high. It was completed in 1742. One of the
simpler sundials includes the vertical sundial at Kochi castle in Japan. It was built during
the Edo era from 1603-1867. It consisted of only wood and string and went unnoticed by
many. In 1578, a German instrument builder Christopher Schlisser, built a dial known as
the Dial of Ahaz. It was built in an attempt to recreate an Old Testamen...Read entire document
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