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Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

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Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#1
Would it be another work day, weekend, or something else?

What would it be called? Where would it fit nicely in the week?

Sun Moon Tyr Wodan Thor Freya Saturn

How would this change things in the modern world?

Is there actually an optimum number of days in the week or is it just random?

Re: Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#3
Well for one thing, the Beatles song of the same name would be valid.

> Sun Moon Tyr Wodan Thor Freya Saturn

Balderday works pretty nice. Or maybe Jupiter though jupiday sounds silly.

Personally, I would prefer a longer day instead. More sleep, more time after work. 30 hours? maybe 36 hours? Though I imagine employers would simply demand we work 20+ hours a day.

Re: Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#4
This is unironically the best post in HN history.

All these jabronies crying about not liking technology anymore or whatever and this guy is asking the real questions.

Obviously I think you want another weekend day between Sunday and Monday. Do your chores, recover from NFL Sunday, etc. and Sunday becomes Saturday 2.0. Maybe you call it Doneday because it’s a day for getting things done.

I had this idea during the pandemic that we should reset the calendar back a year so we got another 2020 but without the pandemic. And all your bills/etc. were already paid since you’d already paid your January 2020 electric bill.

Re: Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#5
Huh, now THAT adresses a real need: An off-work day between Saturday (aka "catch up with chores you had to neglect because you were working") and "have to dread/mentally prepare for the upcoming work week"-Sunday!

I'd call it "Funday", actually: A day for pure, unalloyed relaxation. Everyone would have time to visit friends and hang out with family.

Re: Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#7
post #6

optimum number is obviously decimal: 10 days a week, 10 month a year, 20 hours a day

Obviously that should be 10 hours a day, 10kiloseconds an hour. A hectosecond would be the equivalent of a minute. That would require different length of a second to match the Earth's rotation, so we'll have to give it an annoyingly similar name like "secind".

Re: Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#8
post #6

optimum number is obviously decimal: 10 days a week, 10 month a year, 20 hours a day

Obviously that should be 10 hours a day, 10kiloseconds an hour. A hectosecond would be the equivalent of a minute. That would require different length of a second to match the Earth's rotation, so we'll have to give it an annoyingly similar name like "secind".

I'm badly remembering, but this idea was in a Sean Williams novel, perhaps "Echoes of Earth", and maybe its actually units of distance, it's probably been used by other SF writers too.

Re: Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#9
post #6

optimum number is obviously decimal: 10 days a week, 10 month a year, 20 hours a day

Obviously that should be 10 hours a day, 10kiloseconds an hour. A hectosecond would be the equivalent of a minute. That would require different length of a second to match the Earth's rotation, so we'll have to give it an annoyingly similar name like "secind".

i was being cautious, but yes - 10 hours a day and much much more annoyances to finally achieve the perfect decimal metric system

Re: Ask HN: What if there was an 8th day of the week?

#10

Well for one thing, the Beatles song of the same name would be valid. > Sun Moon Tyr Wodan Thor Freya Saturn Balderday works pretty nice. Or maybe Jupiter though jupiday sounds silly. Personally, I would prefer a longer day instead. More sleep, more time after work. 30 hours? maybe 36 hours? Though I imagine employers would simply demand we work 20+ hours a day.

Agreed, though there's would be the inconvenience of having to update the Earth's rotation to take the new day length into account :P
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