Dialling
Encyclopedia
Dialling or dialing usually means to make a telephone call by operating its rotary dial
.
dialis = "daily", because a sundial
throws a shadow
related to the time of day. It was also used to describe the gear
in a medieval clock
which turned once per day.
The word dialling originally referred to the creation of the mathematics required to create a sundial
face to tell time
based on the position of the sun. Those skilled in the art were referred to as dialists or gnomonists; taken from the word gnomon
(a device using a shadow as an indicator).
The mathematician William Oughtred
published a book, Easy Method of Mathematical Dialling, around 1600. Samuel Walker
(1716–1782) was a Yorkshire mathematician and diallist. In his later years, Thomas Jefferson
was known to practice dialling as a mental exercise. Professor of astronomy
at Gresham College
(London, UK), Samuel Foster
(d. 1652), developed reflex dialling, which describes a device of his own invention: a sundial capable of reflecting a spot of light onto the ceiling of a room.
Rotary dial
The rotary dial is a device mounted on or in a telephone or switchboard that is designed to send electrical pulses, known as pulse dialing, corresponding to the number dialed. The early form of the rotary dial used lugs on a finger plate instead of holes. Almon Brown Strowger filed the first patent...
.
Etymology
The word, dial, comes from the LatinLatin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
dialis = "daily", because a sundial
Sundial
A sundial is a device that measures time by the position of the Sun. In common designs such as the horizontal sundial, the sun casts a shadow from its style onto a surface marked with lines indicating the hours of the day. The style is the time-telling edge of the gnomon, often a thin rod or a...
throws a shadow
Shadow
A shadow is an area where direct light from a light source cannot reach due to obstruction by an object. It occupies all of the space behind an opaque object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, or reverse projection of the object blocking the...
related to the time of day. It was also used to describe the gear
Gear
A gear is a rotating machine part having cut teeth, or cogs, which mesh with another toothed part in order to transmit torque. Two or more gears working in tandem are called a transmission and can produce a mechanical advantage through a gear ratio and thus may be considered a simple machine....
in a medieval clock
Clock
A clock is an instrument used to indicate, keep, and co-ordinate time. The word clock is derived ultimately from the Celtic words clagan and clocca meaning "bell". A silent instrument missing such a mechanism has traditionally been known as a timepiece...
which turned once per day.
The word dialling originally referred to the creation of the mathematics required to create a sundial
Sundial
A sundial is a device that measures time by the position of the Sun. In common designs such as the horizontal sundial, the sun casts a shadow from its style onto a surface marked with lines indicating the hours of the day. The style is the time-telling edge of the gnomon, often a thin rod or a...
face to tell time
Solar time
Solar time is a reckoning of the passage of time based on the Sun's position in the sky. The fundamental unit of solar time is the day. Two types of solar time are apparent solar time and mean solar time .-Introduction:...
based on the position of the sun. Those skilled in the art were referred to as dialists or gnomonists; taken from the word gnomon
Gnomon
The gnomon is the part of a sundial that casts the shadow. Gnomon is an ancient Greek word meaning "indicator", "one who discerns," or "that which reveals."It has come to be used for a variety of purposes in mathematics and other fields....
(a device using a shadow as an indicator).
The mathematician William Oughtred
William Oughtred
William Oughtred was an English mathematician.After John Napier invented logarithms, and Edmund Gunter created the logarithmic scales upon which slide rules are based, it was Oughtred who first used two such scales sliding by one another to perform direct multiplication and division; and he is...
published a book, Easy Method of Mathematical Dialling, around 1600. Samuel Walker
Samuel Walker
Sir Samuel Walker, 1st Baronet PC, QC was an Irish Liberal politician and lawyer.Born at Gore Port Finea County Westmeath, he was educated at Portarlington School and Trinity College, Dublin before being called to the bar in 1855. In 1872, he was made a Queen's Counsel, and eleven years later he...
(1716–1782) was a Yorkshire mathematician and diallist. In his later years, Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
was known to practice dialling as a mental exercise. Professor of astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
at Gresham College
Gresham College
Gresham College is an institution of higher learning located at Barnard's Inn Hall off Holborn in central London, England. It was founded in 1597 under the will of Sir Thomas Gresham and today it hosts over 140 free public lectures every year within the City of London.-History:Sir Thomas Gresham,...
(London, UK), Samuel Foster
Samuel Foster
Samuel Foster was an English mathematician and astronomer. He made several observations of eclipses, both of the sun and moon, at Gresham College and in other places; and he was known particularly for inventing and improving planetary instruments...
(d. 1652), developed reflex dialling, which describes a device of his own invention: a sundial capable of reflecting a spot of light onto the ceiling of a room.