Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 09

It's time to talk about the Leap Second. Yes, there's a Leap Second in just a few hours from now (as I post this podcast). What's a Leap Second? Why do we have them? Do we really need them?

Download Episode 09 right here...
AtomicPodcast09.mp3
(Running time 21:15 with STEREO sound!)

Also, check out these links for a more nitty-gritty discussion of these issues.

Markus Kuhn's essay on the Leap Second

The NIST entry on Leap Years and Leap Seconds

Another summary of these issues from TimeandDate.com

The home page of the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service... the folks in charge of determining when Leap Seconds happen.

Yet Another Bonus Video for December 2008

Here's a second "bonus video" podcast for December 2008. This time you'll see three almost-identical Oregon Scientific "atomic" projection alarm clocks setting themselves to the correct time automatically. Can three clocks be perfectly synchronized? You be the judge.

Download the video here...
OregonProjectors.m4v

...or enjoy the widescreen YouTube version.

Another Podcast Bonus Video (December 2008)

Download this new video here...
MegaClocks.m4v

It's a concise demonstration of how two Junghans Mega Clocks set themselves to the right time using WWVB. Here's the YouTube version...

Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 08

Download episode 8 right here.
AtomicPodcast08.mp3
(Running time 25:47, monophonic)

In this episode, I'll tell you about the Geochron and its official, digital version, the World Watch software for Windows systems. There are other versions of this, including something you can briefly view at www.time.gov. But I have the most experience with World Watch, so I spend a lot of time talking about this.

Also, I mention a little something about astronomy again. It's a term you may have heard and it's "Analemma." Here's a web site devoted to this astronomical phenomenon... http://www.analemma.com/Pages/framesPage.html

So sit back and enjoy a little "talking shop" when it comes to really nifty timepieces.

Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 07

Download the new episode here...
AtomicPodcast07.mp3
(Running Time 35:13, Monophonic)

In this episode, I mentioned BRG Precision in Kansas. Here's their main web page, where you can drool over their wide selection of industrial-style systems and large-digit clocks.
http://www.brgprecision.com/

...and check out their Ebay store here...
http://stores.ebay.com/BRG-Precision

Then take a look at Klockit's radio controlled clock movement with a built-in battery pack for extended life between battery changes...
Atomic_Clock_Movement_Battery_Pack.html

Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 06

Welcome to episode 6. Download the episode here.

AtomicPodcast06.mp3
(Running time: 40:02, File Size: 37 mb, STEREO SOUND this time!)

In this episode, I'll tell you about some of my favorite brands of radio controlled clocks. Here are some links to the companies that I talked about in this podcast...

Oregon Scientific

LaCrosse Technology

Klockit

Casio Watches

And here's a web store that sells a lot of this stuff from a variety of manufacturers...
http://www.radiocontrolledclock.com/

Finally, I need to show you the Oregon Scientific radio controlled clock (with a time projector) that I talked about on this podcast.

October 2008 Bonus Video Podcast

Here's a special, bonus video podcast. Normally, I don't expect to do video podcasts. But I just couldn't resist this idea.

A Simple Radio Controlled Clock Demonstration
(Running time, 14:45. File Size, 123mb, Stereo Audio, MPEG4 video optimized for iTunes and iPod. 640x480 resolution.)

Enjoy!

Here's the lower-quality YouTube version...



...and the conclusion...

The Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 05

Welcome to episode 5, my special episode about Daylight Saving Time. Download the episode here...

AtomicPodcast05.mp3
Running time: 36:34, File Size: 16.8 mb, Monophonic.

Just a few notes:

Remember that the most proper way to refer to Daylight Saving Time is just that. It is not "Daylight Savings Time" nor "Daylight Saving's Time," although many folks probably refer to it by those variations.

For more about Daylight Saving Time, try these links...

The National Institute of Standards and Technology page about Daylight Saving Time. Short and to the point.

The Wikipedia article about Daylight Saving Time. Not as short nor to the point, but if you want a lot of information, try it out.

Another spin on Daylight Saving Time from a California government-run web site.

A Help page from Microsoft to assist Windows users to make sure their systems are ready to make the proper changes for Daylight Saving Time.

This is an activist-type web page proposing a permanent end to Daylight Saving Time. Furthermore, they have a very interesting idea about changing the Time Zone layout of the Continental United States. I'm not saying that this is the best thing to do. I just think it's interesting and I'd never heard of this idea before seeing this web site.

Remember these official show notes at http://atomicelmer.blogspot.com and you can expect at least two more episodes of the Atomic Timekeeping Podcast in November. Happy Halloween, everyone!

The next episode is on the way!

Hello, everyone. I just wanted to acknowledge all of the new listeners and thank all of you for checking out this blog and the Atomic Timekeeping Podcast. Also, I wanted to announce that I'll be posting the next episode (Episode Five) on Thursday, October 30 at 5:00PM Eastern "daylight" Time. So please check this site again for that all-new episode, my "Daylight Saving Time Special."

Another quick note: I realize that my podcasts might seem very specific to the United States but I think I've done a reasonable job of acknowledging this. I do not intend to ignore international interests when it comes to atomic timekeeping, so I hope that international listeners will continue to check this blog.

And, finally, I plan to eventually settle on a pattern of releasing a new episode of this podcast on the 15th and the 30th of each month (except for February, of course). But, with the upcoming "holiday shopping season," I think I will have to do extra podcasts in the month of November. I hope that a lot of our loved ones will be receiving timekeeping gifts this year!

The Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 04

Here's Episode 4 of the Atomic Timekeeping Podcast. In this episode, I'll talk about "other sources" of atomic time. I've told you about WWV on your shortwave radio. I've told you about radio controlled clocks that you can have in your home, in your office, or on your wrist. But that's not all.

Your comptuer can be set to automatically synchronize with the most accurate clocks on earth. And that can allow a lot of portable devices like iPods and PDAs to be set to the right time too. Plus, if you have a GPS receiver, the very concept by which it works is based on atomic timekeeping. Learn more in Episode 4.

Download Episode 4 right here...

AtomicTimekeepingPodcast04.mp3
Running time: 26:00, File Size: 12mb, Monophonic.


And, in case you haven't tried this link, visit the NIST web site for the official U.S. time...

http://www.time.gov/



Now, just a little "housekeeping" here. The date and time settings in your Windows XP system look like this:

...and here's the date and time preference screen on a Mac OS-X system.

The Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 03

It's time for Episode Three of the Atomic Timekeeping Podcast. In this episide, we'll talk about radio controlled clocks which can automatically receive the most precise time information from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. These clocks can then set themselves to the correct time and you, the user, can be confident that your clock is correct. Even the changes associated with Daylight Saving Time are taken care of automatically.

You can download episode three by right-clicking the following link and choosing "save target as..."

AtomicTimekeepingPodcast03.mp3

Running time: 18:07, File Size: 8.7mb, Monophonic.

...or subscribe to my podcast with iTunes

Add to iTunes

The Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 02

Here's episode two of the Atomic Timekeeping Podcast. In this episode, I'll tell you about advances in timekeeping technology which have resulted in the development of clocks which are more accurate than the Earth itself! Feel free to download the episode by right-clicking on the following link and choosing "save target as."

AtomicTimekeepingPodcast02.mp3

Running time: 14:31, File Size: 6.7mb, Monophonic.

...or subscribe to my podcast with iTunes

Add to iTunes

The Atomic Timekeeping Podcast Episode 01

Here it is, the first episode of the Atomic Timekeeping Podcast. It's about 20 minutes and monophonic (so that you can download faster and it will only take up half as much space on your hard drive as a stereo file). For anyone interested in the most accurate clocks ever made, here's a podcast for you.

Just right-click on the link below and choose "save target as" to place this in the location of your choice on your computer.

AtomicTimekeepingPodcast01.mp3

Episode 01. Running Time 20:46. File Size 8.4mb. Monophonic.

Today's Initial Blog

I will soon begin a podcast related to timekeeping and, most specifically, to radio controlled clocks which set themselves using an atomic clock as a master reference.