M.R. James (1862-1936) is widely considered to be one of the greatest ghost story writers in the English language. James’ stories are characterised by their subtle, understated horror, their attention to historical detail, and their emphasis on the psychological effects of the supernatural on his characters. His work has influenced generations of horror writers, including H.P. Lovecraft, Ramsey Campbell, and …
The adoption of a single time standard in 1884 brought timekeeping into a new era of simultaneous communication. (This is the ninth post of Time and Clocks, the thread that follows Time and Calendars.) The Greenwich Observatory The Royal Observatory at Greenwich, London was established in 1675 by King Charles II and from those first years it has remained a …
The last 150 years or so have seen the rapid acceleration of technological advance mirrored by the production of ever more accurate clocks. (This is the eighth post of Time and Clocks, the thread that follows Time and Calendars.) Master and Slave Clocks The discovery of electricity was inevitably harnessed by clockmakers. The electric master and slave clocks in the …
Until the middle of the seventeenth century, clocks did not need a minute or seconds hand because they were only accurate to the hour. (This is the seventh post of Time and Clocks, the thread that follows Time and Calendars.) In 1582 CE, in the early years of the scientific revolution of European civilisation Galileo is thought to have studied …