Article writing

The New York Times Magazine
WHO MADE THAT?
Who Made That Quartz Clock?

Figure 1 For the New York Times
By Student Name
August 28, 2019

The quartz clock was developed by Warren Marrison and J.W. Horton in the year 1927. The invention of the quartz clock was an improvement to the pendulum clock that had earlier been invented in 1583 by Galileo Galilei. Unlike the pendulum clock, the quartz clock was designed to be powered by a battery to shift gears at intervals and indicate elapsed time through quartz crystals. Quartz clock is recognized as a milestone in timekeeping. “Since ancient times, man has had a deep interest in timekeeping to enhance cooperation with other members in society,” says Warren.

Development of human civilization has led to increased awareness about time. To facilitate this, quartz clocks and watches have largely been adopted as an effective way of keeping track of time. Quartz watches are actually part of the several items invented to promote human civilization. This has enabled planning and execution of events at specific periods and intervals. Almost everything and activities undertaken daily are based on time.

According to Katzir, “The quartz clock is much better since it is not affected by gravitational forces thus reports accurate time across different regions in the world.” The quartz crystal is designed to regulate an electronic oscillator in the clock. Each oscillation indicates an hour which is equivalent to 60 minutes or 3600 seconds. The units of measurements are displayed in form of numerals to enhance easy interpretation of time.

Worldwide production of the quartz clock was, however, launched by Japan’s Seiko in 1969. By the 1980s, production of quartz clocks had had greatly increased in the markets. Human civilization demanded more of the time keeping gadgets. “The increased demand led to the introduction of hand-wrist quartz watches,” says Williams. The quartz oscillation system has widely been adopted as the world’s technology for timekeeping purposes.

Quartz clocks and watches are still largely used in the current world. “Manufacturers such as the Rolex company have invested so much on the production and supply of the quartz watches to markets across the world,” says Donzé. Not only are the clocks and watches used for timekeeping purposes but also as part of an individual’s wardrobe.

In the digital era, the quartz clocks and watches have incorporated into various devices such as phones and laptops. The designs have gradually been improved over time but the quartz oscillation have remained unchanged. According to Andrewes, “human beings rely on the accuracy of quartz clocks and watches to plan their daily schedules and go about day to day activities.” In each day that passes, every individual relies on the quartz timekeeping system even without knowing.


References
Andrewes, W. J. (2018). A Chronicle of Timekeeping. Scientific American, 27, 50-57.
Donzé, P. Y. (2018). The Swiss Watch Industry. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Business and Management.
Katzir, S. (2016). Pursuing frequency standards and control: the invention of quartz clock technologies. Annals of science, 73(1), 1-39.
Williams, J. B. (2017). Distributing Time: Clocks and Watches. In The Electronics Revolution (pp. 118-125). Springer, Cham.