[LEAPSECS] alternative to smearing

[John Sauter]

On Tue, 2017-01-03 at 14:53 -0500, Michael Rothwell wrote:
> 
> 
> On Tue, Jan 3, 2017 at 2:18 PM, John Sauter <John_Sauter at systemeyesco
> mputerstore.com> wrote:
> > On Tue, 2017-01-03 at 13:28 -0500, Michael Rothwell wrote:
> > >
> > > This was probably covered elsewhere, and I apologize if I missed
> > it,
> > > but I have a question:
> > > Why are you in such favor of leap seconds?
> > >  
> > > -- 
> > > Michael Rothwell
> > > michael at rothwell.us
> > > (828) 649-ROTH
> > 
> > I regard leap seconds as a reasonable compromise between the needs
> > of
> > civil time and of science.  Civil time needs a clock that tracks
> > the
> > days and the seasons.  Science requires a clock that measures time
> > in
> > precise intervals.  UTC provides both, using leap seconds to keep
> > atomic time synchronized with the rotation of the Earth.
> > 
> > Some people who are inconvenienced by leap seconds are pushing for
> > their removal.  The effect of removing leap seconds will be to
> > burden
> > future users of civil time, who will see their clock no longer
> > tracking
> > the rotation of the Earth, and have to do something about it.  I
> > feel
> > it is unethical to burden a future generation for our convenience,
> > since that future generation has no voice in today's decisions.
> > 
> > The inconveniences of leap seconds can be overcome by fixing the
> > software that doesn't handle them correctly.  Doing that is a big
> > job,
> > bigger than fixing the software that didn't handle the year 2000
> > correctly.  We don't need to fix all the software today, we can
> > chip
> > away at it, and encourage newly written software to handle time
> > correctly.
> 
> 
> I think you are hopelessly naive. :)
> 
> How many years (or centuries) would it take for the lack of leap
> seconds to become a problem? 
> 
>  
> >     John Sauter (John_Sauter at systemeyescomputerstore.com)
> > 
> > --
> > PGP fingerprint E24A D25B E5FE 4914 A603  49EC 7030 3EA1 9A0B 511E
> > 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Michael Rothwell
> michael at rothwell.us
> (828) 649-ROTH

It doesn't matter how many years or centuries it takes for the lack of
leap seconds to become a problem.  It only matters that it does,
eventually, become a problem only for people who are now unborn.
    John Sauter (John_Sauter at systemeyescomputerstore.com)

-- 
PGP fingerprint E24A D25B E5FE 4914 A603  49EC 7030 3EA1 9A0B 511E
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