[LEAPSECS] Leap seconds decision deferred until 2015

Richard B. Langley lang at unb.ca
Thu Jan 19 16:07:20 EST 2012


It seems Canada switched sides! No mention of China's stand in the
article.

-- Richard

On 19-Jan-12, at 2:51 PM, Daniel R. Tobias wrote:


>

> On Thu, January 19, 2012 9:03 am, Tony Finch wrote:

>> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16625614

>

> I knew it... it's enough of a "hot button" issue among the handful of

> people who care about it that nobody wants to commit to actually

> taking

> any action, so it will just keep bouncing around between study

> committees

> indefinitely. Maybe 100 years from now they'll still be debating it.

>

> That's what happens when you've got something that polarizes the

> interested parties sharply, with one subset strongly favoring change,

> another subset strongly favoring the status quo, and the vast masses

> outside these groups not particularly caring one way or the other,

> so that

> there will never be enough massive outside pressure to force the

> governing

> bodies to take action instead of calling for yet another committee.

>

> It's not like this is an issue that will lead to people marching on

> the

> capitol, rallying under the Washington Monument to hear a charismatic

> speaker saying he has a dream of no more leap seconds (or of leap

> seconds

> forever), or holding tea parties or occupation encampments to press

> for

> one side or the other on this issue. These sorts of mass movements

> can

> sometimes force action when the politicians would rather just keep

> batting

> the hot potatoes around, but they're not going to develop here.

>

>

> --

> Dan

> Dan's Web Tips: http://webtips.dan.info/

> Dan's Mail Format Site: http://mailformat.dan.info/

> Dan's Domain Name Site: http://domains.dan.info/

>

>

> _______________________________________________

> LEAPSECS mailing list

> LEAPSECS at leapsecond.com

> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/leapsecs


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

| Richard B. Langley E-mail:

lang at unb.ca |

| Geodetic Research Laboratory Web: http://www.unb.ca/GGE/

|

| Dept. of Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering Phone: +1 506

453-5142 |

| University of New Brunswick Fax: +1 506

453-4943 |

| Fredericton, N.B., Canada E3B

5A3 |

| Fredericton? Where's that? See: http://

www.fredericton.ca/ |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------



More information about the LEAPSECS mailing list