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by AtomicOrbital 2696 days ago
In traditional Japan the custom was each day had 12 hours of daylight and 12 of night time so to accommodate this the length of hours shifted day by day ... Masahiro was inspired by an ancient clock which implemented this idea such that he decided to craft by hand a watch to perform this as well ... incredible master and some impressive video documentary taboot
2 comments
KyleBrandt 2696 days ago
The time system was one of the real interesting things from the documentary to me. This Seiko page explains the time system well: https://museum.seiko.co.jp/en/knowledge/wadokei/huteijihou/

12 hour day (what is 24 hours in modern time). Daytime is always 6 hours and night time is always 6 hours. The absolute length of the hours changes with the seasons.

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mikekchar 2696 days ago
There's an android app for it even: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.aragaer.jtt/

I just started using it recently and I really like it. My mood is very much affected by exposure to daylight and it really helps to plan my day around the sun, rather than arbitrary numbers on a clock.

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stevekemp 2696 days ago
That sounds similar to the Ethiopean time-system:

* https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-01-30/if-you-have-meeting-e...

"Because Ethiopia is close to the Equator, daylight is pretty consistent throughout the year. So many Ethiopians use a 12-hour clock, with one cycle of 1 to 12 — from dawn to dusk — and the other cycle from dusk to dawn. "

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