Why Do We Really Use The 12-Hour Clock?
Is the train at 02:00 in the morning or afternoon?
We use the 12-hour clock frequently in our daily lives. We have grown accustomed to it over time. But the odd fact about it is that it is quite confusing to use. We all experienced difficulty in using it when we were taught the 12-hour clock system as children. Did we forget its challenges as we grew up? Or do the challenges of the 12-hour clock system go quietly unnoticed in our society every day? When was the last time you got confused between 12:00 during daytime and 12:00 during nighttime?
Most recently, I heard a story from my parents that they showed up 12 hours late for a train. The train had long left. They had booked the train that had departed at 02:00 in the morning and thought it was for 02:00 in the afternoon. The train ticket did not indicate this difference clearly enough (at least according to my parents). Sure, we have invented the concept of a.m. (ante meridiem from Latin) and p.m. (post meridiem) to distinguish between day and night. But isn’t it simply easier to have a 24-hour time clock (cycling from 00:00 hours to 24:00 hours)? All these questions are circling around in my head. If you’ve been bitten by this bug as well, join me in this brief journey to answer some of these questions about the 12-hour clock.
