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When we think of measuring time, it’s generally rather discrete. Perhaps you’re setting a timer for the bread in the oven, or just looking at your watch (or clock) to see when the next Zoom call is. Well, what if we took a longer view of time – a really long view? That’s what the CW&T “Time Since Launch” wants us to do.
So, what is the CW&T “Time Since Launch” – other than something that looks like a super-cool prop from a sci-fi film (or late-80s action flick explosive, your call)? It’s a timing device, albeit one with a very specific purpose. Once you pull the pin (shown above with the keychain split-ring on it) it starts counting up, inexorably up.
For how long? Well, presuming you swap the batteries (the lithiums it ships with should get you close to 20 years of run time) regularly, it’ll keep counting for 2,473 years. That’s right – years. And make no mistake – once you pull the pin, the counter just goes – and it never stops, and can’t be reset.
So, in terms of it being a practical clock, that’s not the CW&T “Time Since Launch” at all – not even a little bit. What it is for is getting you to take a step back and look at your relationship with time (even with as fuzzy as that’s been this year), as well as marking significant events in your life. For me, I think I’ll be pulling the pin at the stroke of midnight on December 31, to have a permanent record of when 2020 is officially over.
If you want to get one of these interesting sci-fi gadgets in your life, they run $199 – seems pricey, but for something that will outlive you? I mean, the components seems solid – aluminum endcaps, borosilicate glass, solid-state electronics, and all that – so it should last a good long time. Display-wise, use the pin as a kickstand, or you can get an optional wall mount (which does look pretty cool), or fire something up in your 3D printer.
Oh, and for anyone in the NYC area? You can select “local delivery” and get your own “Time Since Launch” for same-day delivery – perfect for marking your own end-of-year celebrations, or whatever it is. Time is flexible and fluid, but it never stops. cwandt.com
Oh, and if you want to try the concept out digitally, you can head over to timesincelaunch.com and get the same effect, in a less physical form.
So changing the batteries after twenty years does not stop the time running? That is very good.
One starting point could be a big earthquake in California, hopefully that never happens.
That’s the theory! Must be a small capacitor in there somewhere that’s holding the charge.