Binary Clocks: Reading Time The Geek Way

Have you ever wondered what binary clocks are and how you read one? This article will give you some insight into what they are and how to read one.

Firstly what is a binary clock? A binary clock is a certain type of clock that displays sexagesimal time. Sexagesimal time is a numeral system which has sixty as its root. The origin on this system came from the 3rd millennium BC, over the years it was passed down over time and is still used today in more readable clocks such as digital and analog, which is rarely used these days. The number 60 was used because it was the smallest number that can be divisible by all the numbers from 1 to 6.

How do you read a binary clock? Well firstly the clock is split into 3 different sections. These three sections contain 2 columns or lines of lights. Each section has a purpose the first one tells you the hours, the second one tells you the minutes and the third one tells you the seconds. Hours, minutes, seconds. Now since each section has 2 columns, the first column represents 10s whilst the second represents 1s. Every column has between 2 to 4 lights. These represent a power of two when reading them.

If you look at a diagram of these columns, up the side you will read some numbers this is read from the bottom up, the numbers are 1, 2, 4 and 8. Now lets do an example. Now imagine the hours column, first light, first column at the bottom is on. Next to that light would lay the 1. And since this is the hours and the first column represents 10 then this means that it is 10 hours. For another example if you have a light next to that light in the second column on, that light would lay next to the 1 also in a diagram, so all you have to do is add the 1 from 10s column and the 1 from the 1s column and that makes 11 so you get 11 hours.

This is the same for all the columns including the minutes and the seconds. If you take your time and read each column for what they are remember 10s for the first column of each section and 1s for the second column then you will be able to work it out by adding the numbers 1,2, 4,8. This may be confusing but if you make a diagram you will find you will get it in no time.