In a matter of time: When does new decade begin?
He wears no flowing robe or beard, carries no scythe, nor hour glass. Here’s Dr. John Zimmerman, in jeans, sneakers and a sweatshirt printed with the Greek letter ?.
The man wearing the “Pi-Lingual” slogan is the go-to guy at Washington & Jefferson College when a reporter asks a question dealing with Father Time:
“When does a new decade begin?”
If you were counting on the answer being midnight or 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, count again.
On your fingers.
Zimmerman, 62, a professor who has a passion for the history of mathematics, described his reasoning:
Hold up both hands. Begin counting with the left pinky finger as one. Include the thumbs as numbers five and six, and end with the right pinky finger.
“We don’t start counting with zero, we start counting with one,” Zimmerman said.
“The concept of, ‘How many?’ goes way back. How many people are in my tribe? How many spears do we need to take on our next hunting trip?
“2020 will be the last year of the second decade of the 21st Century. The first day of third decade will Jan. 1, 2021.”
Why even bother asking the question?
“We care for the calendar because historians need a precise way to record history. And we all have to agree. If we can’t agree when something begins or ends, that’s a problem.”
Then a bit of confusion enters the picture. Zimmerman is not one to live in the past, so when we start jotting down 2020 or typing it, he’s not going to make the argument that we’re still in the teens, or that 20-year-olds are still teenagers.
“It’s okay to say we’re starting the ’20s,” when the ball drops in Times Square, Eastern Standard Time, Zimmerman opined.
Keep in mind, however, that calendars vary from culture to culture.
Judaism records the year 2019-20 that began this past September as 5780. Muslims are in the midst of 1441. The Chinese New Year doesn’t begin until Jan. 25.
“Calendars are deeply rooted in culture,” Zimmerman said, because they represent “the sense of time, the passage of time and marking out the special events in our lives.
“It’s kind of like your car odometer when the numbers change. It reminds you your car is getting older.”