My random questions:
1. Does anyone know who was the genius that decided that 12 PM should come after 11 AM?
2. By what authority did that genius change the whole world's understanding that 12 comes after 11?
3. Therefore if it was necessary to dumb down even our timekeeping should it not have at least been decided that after 11 AM the next hour would be denominated 12 AM ?
4. Has the world become so dumb that nobody knows that PM stands for Post Meridian (After Noon), and AM stands for Ante Meridian (Before Noon)? These terms have been used in the English language since 1563. After noon cannot logically happen at noon but a millisecond later. Some might argue that at 12.01 it is definitely afternoon and so it is, and always has been, but 12 cannot possibly be PM.
5. Surely if PM and AM were so difficult to understand, and alternative abbreviations were deemed necessary, could we not have used the slightly less ridiculous MD (Midday, formerly known as noon) and MN (Midnight, formerly known as midnight.)? At least 12 could then still come after 11 without being hindered by the illogical and mathematically incorrect AM and PM.
Finally, an authority: The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language states "By convention, 12 AM denotes midnight and 12 PM denotes noon. Because of the potential for confusion, it is advisable to use 12 noon and 12 midnight."
Walter
1. Does anyone know who was the genius that decided that 12 PM should come after 11 AM?
2. By what authority did that genius change the whole world's understanding that 12 comes after 11?
3. Therefore if it was necessary to dumb down even our timekeeping should it not have at least been decided that after 11 AM the next hour would be denominated 12 AM ?
4. Has the world become so dumb that nobody knows that PM stands for Post Meridian (After Noon), and AM stands for Ante Meridian (Before Noon)? These terms have been used in the English language since 1563. After noon cannot logically happen at noon but a millisecond later. Some might argue that at 12.01 it is definitely afternoon and so it is, and always has been, but 12 cannot possibly be PM.
5. Surely if PM and AM were so difficult to understand, and alternative abbreviations were deemed necessary, could we not have used the slightly less ridiculous MD (Midday, formerly known as noon) and MN (Midnight, formerly known as midnight.)? At least 12 could then still come after 11 without being hindered by the illogical and mathematically incorrect AM and PM.
Finally, an authority: The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language states "By convention, 12 AM denotes midnight and 12 PM denotes noon. Because of the potential for confusion, it is advisable to use 12 noon and 12 midnight."
Walter
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