Mesopotamian Moment in the Driveway

Ian, waiting for his school bus this morning, looked up and around, and remarked:

"Daddy, you know you could use shadows to tell time."

I introduced to him the innovation known as the sun dial, and he was very impressed. He asked if they're still around; I said yes - probably in city plazas and the like. He asked, "Could they build a really big one?" I said I think there must be some...

But what impressed me was that he had, apparently entirely on his own, that ancient Egyptian/Sumerian/somewhere-in-Mesopotamia moment of seeing this concrete application of sunlight for human life.

(October 17, 2011)