Time After Time

Time. What is time? Why is time such a loaded word? I learned one very intriguing piece of information today that completely alters the view of time that I have carried with me since I was grown enough to understand that Punky Brewster ran for a half hour every day. I know you would think that this epiphany probably occurred in Greenwich during our class visit to the prime meridian. However, you would be dead wrong. Honestly, I didn't find the prime meridian to be so terribly exciting. Actually, I'm pretty sure that I spent more time trying to find somewhere to sit out of the persistent rain than focusing on the significance of the piece of metal in the ground that represents 0 degrees and the start of the time zones.

So when did this most exciting concept hit me? Well, to be brutally honest, it was more my flatmate Kaitlin's idea than mine. After arriving back at our flat from the Greenwich excursion, she wondered aloud about the origin of the prime meridian and whether it was some snobby British gent who demanded that the prime meridian be placed in England, specifically Greenwich. This statement had my mind reeling and being the researcher that I am, I jumped onto the Internet immediately to find the answer. What I found was rather astonishing. It turns out, according to Wikipedia, that there have been many prime meridians over the years, not just in Greenwich, but it was US President Chester A. Arthur who organized a conference to decide where the prime meridian belonged. The attendees chose Greenwich partially because the Royal Observatory is perched there, but also because so many people already saw it as the location of this very significant landmark. While all of this is very interesting, my favorite part of the story is at the end. After the conference, most people accepted Greenwich as the prime meridian and began to place it on maps. All except the French that is, who continued to use the Paris prime meridian for generations.

I'm starving, who's for some freedom fries?