Because that means the person is old and can’t count from 10 to 9 and change 1/4 to 3/4?
Comment on Just speak normally
Greyghoster@aussie.zone 6 months ago
You probably grew up in the era of digital clocks and watches. If you used an analog watch you would know why it was easier to say a quarter to 10. 😁
schmidtster@lemmy.world 6 months ago
Greyghoster@aussie.zone 6 months ago
No it means that they grew up using a 12 hour, 60 minute circular time system. Habits form when you learn stuff and can last a lifetime.
schmidtster@lemmy.world 6 months ago
Most people I know would say 9 and 3/4 instead of 1/4 to 10 when looking at an analog clock. We were taught to mentally do some minor math, same habits, just better I guess.
Greyghoster@aussie.zone 6 months ago
Just different and from a different school of thought. If you consider the convenience of conveying how close the time is to the hour, it’s actually a quick shorthand. I can see you don’t like it however it’s just the way people think of time. It’s not like they can’t do the math because if they have a digital clock they have to convert 9:45 into a quarter to 10. It’s the way they think about time.
BackOnMyBS@lemmy.world 6 months ago
For me, it’s because when I look at an analog clock, it’s easier to see that there’s a quarter of the cycle left on the minute hand than to convert 9 to 45 mins. So if someone asks me for the time and I looked at an analog clock, I would be more likely to respond with the relative position of the minute hand than with the exact minutes. If I am looking at a digital clock, then I will read exactly what the clock says.
Stalinwolf@lemmy.ca 6 months ago
This is the correct explanation. Having grown up in a house full of analog clocks and preferring them still today, it’s hard for me to understand the difficulty so many people have using analog, or why it’s hard to interpret the logic used in conveying it. But it really is just a matter of immersion and perspective. People who prefer analog appear to perceive time in fractions and circular cycles. Half to/past, quarter to/past, etc. are how we actually view and perceive the day.
BackOnMyBS@lemmy.world 6 months ago
It’s more than just a number.
I like the way you explained it. This is whole it feels when I interpret time from an analog clock.
Emerald@lemmy.world 6 months ago
BackOnMyBS@lemmy.world 6 months ago
I love this guy’s humor and presentation. It’s so peculiar and original to me.
BirdyBoogleBop@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 months ago
To make me show up 30 minutes late because I misheard it as quarter past 10?
Way easier to just say and understand 9:45 with whatever clock you use.