Check nearby libraries
Buy this book
In 1950 at age eight, prompted by an issue of Life magazine marking the century's midpoint, Stephen Jay Gould started thinking about the approaching turn of the millennium. In this beautiful inquiry into time and its milestones, he shares his interest and insights with his readers. Refreshingly reasoned, erudite, and absorbing, the book asks and answers the three major questions that define the approaching calendrical event.
First, what exactly is this concept of a millennium and how has its meaning shifted? How did the name for a future thousand-year reign of Christ on earth get transferred to the passage of a secular period of a thousand years in current human history?
When does the new millennium begin: January 1, 2000, or January 1, 2001? (Although seemingly trivial, the debate over this issue tells an intriguing story about the cultural history of the twentieth century.) Finally, why must our calendars be so complex, leading to our search for arbitrary regularity, including a fascination with millennia?
Check nearby libraries
Buy this book
Previews available in: English French
Subjects
Calendar, Social aspects, Social aspects of Calendar, Two thousand, A.D., Tijdrekening, Calendrier, An 2000, Aspect social, Derde millennium, An deux mille, Vingt et unième siècle, Millennium, New York Times reviewed, Millennium (Eschatology), Psychological aspects, Chronology, Religious aspects, Vingt-et-unieme siecle, Previsions, Millenarisme, Chronologie historique, TempsTimes
2000Showing 7 featured editions. View all 13 editions?
Book Details
Edition Notes
Includes index.
Classifications
External Links
The Physical Object
ID Numbers
Source records
OpenLibraries-Trent-MARCs recordmarc_openlibraries_phillipsacademy MARC record
marc_openlibraries_sanfranciscopubliclibrary MARC record
Library of Congress MARC record
Internet Archive item record
Promise Item
marc_columbia MARC record
marc_nuls MARC record
marc_columbia MARC record
Work Description
L'ecrivain scientifique tente ici de comprendre comment un simple probleme de calendrier a pu donner lieu a tant d'elucubrations irrationnelles. Il est question "de la perception des nombres ronds, du soleil et de la lune, de l'age de la terre et de la naissance de Jesus-Christ", pour apprecier le retour cyclique des vieilles questions irresolues que provoquera immanquablement l'an 2000.
Links outside Open Library
Community Reviews (0)
Feedback?History
- Created April 1, 2008
- 15 revisions
Wikipedia citation
×CloseCopy and paste this code into your Wikipedia page. Need help?
July 12, 2024 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
March 8, 2023 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
December 22, 2022 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
December 4, 2022 | Edited by ImportBot | import existing book |
April 1, 2008 | Created by an anonymous user | Imported from Scriblio MARC record |