FW: Time zone: the next generation

[Ken Pizzini]

On Thu, Mar 03, 2005 at 03:24:40PM -0500, Olson, Arthur David (NIH/NCI) wrote:
>From: kennykb at crd.ge.com [mailto:kennykb at crd.ge.com]
>Sent: Thursday, March 03, 2005 3:22 PM
>
>     - It appears unnecessary to control skipping the year zero.  I have
>       not encountered any locale where there is such a beast; in all cases,
>       it appears that the year 1 B.C.E. is followed by the year 1 C.E.

Astronomers, IIRC, use a calendar with a year zero -- it removes
a gratuitous anomaly from calculations.  Regardless, for calendars
where there is a BCE-CE type distinction, there is no year zero; in
calendars where there is a year zero (e.g., "proleptic Gregorian"),
the years preceeding year zero continue algebraically, starting
with year -1.

       (modern)  (classic)
      Gregorian  Gregorian  Astro.
     2005 CE     AD 2005     2005
        2 CE        AD 2        2
        1 CE        AD 1        1
        1 BCE       1 BC        0
        2 BCE       2 BC       -1
     4004 BCE    4004 BC    -4003


		--Ken Pizzini