When does the decade begin and end anyway?

1630Boston

Based on another coin related thread here https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1030511/end-of-the-decade-post-your-coins-purchased-this-decade#latest

As January 1, 2020, approaches, everyone is reflecting about the past decade and the new one that awaits. "Best of the decade" lists are everywhere. #10YearChallenges are all over social media. And people are eagerly gearing up to celebrate the end of the 2010s.

But there's a slight problem.
We might be celebrating a year too early, at least according to some people.
The question of when exactly the current decade ends and the new one begins seems to come up every time the year on the calendar moves from ending in 9 to ending in 0. It came up in 1989. And in 1999. Then again in 2009.

The US Naval Observatory, the agency that maintains the country's master clock, tackled this question in 1999 as people debated when the new millennium would begin. According to the astronomical dating system through which it measures time, the observatory stated that the new millennium would begin on January 1, 2001.

Which means, according to the Farmers' Almanac, that the end of this decade is December 31, 2020, not December 31, 2019.

more here https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/21/us/when-does-the-decade-end-begin-trnd/index.html

post your thoughts and a coin

BryceM

The 20s clearly start tomorrow so, in the minds of most people, it begins then. Technically..... well, who cares?

ricko

If people would simply recognize that 1 begins the count and 10 is the terminal point of 'decade', it would be common knowledge....However, like common sense, it is not so common.... Cheers, RickO

CCGGG

A CNN article... Enough said.....

Jimnight

In my household the decade begins and ends when my wife says so.

PerryHall

The vast majority of people consider the new decade to begin tomorrow when the odometer turns over from 19 to 20 at midnight.

291fifth

The "teens" end today. The decade officially ends on Dec. 31, 2020.

bigjpst

@ricko said:
If people would simply recognize that 1 begins the count and 10 is the terminal point of 'decade', it would be common knowledge....However, like common sense, it is not so common.... Cheers, RickO

Wait. I clearly remember playing hide and seek as a kid and counting 0..1..2...3..4... ..haha.
Everybody didn’t do that?
Just kidding of course.
But I am going to spend this decade(no matter when it starts) making sure important things are recognized. Like which direction the toilet paper is supposed To go on the roll.

ElmerFusterpuck

@CCGGG said:
A CNN article... Enough said.....

Wow, that was weak. I guess if the link was in your bubble, all would be fine, right?

Like @BryceM already said, the roaring 20's start tomorrow, so let's party like it's 2019, the end of the teens and tweens.

1630Boston

I was going to say that @ElmerFusterpuck , CNN really has nothing to do with the thought process, there are many other discussions on this subject that I could have linked to.

Happy New Year no matter what decade we are in, leaving or entering.

MFeld

@CCGGG said:
A CNN article... Enough said.....

So the non-CNN authorities and sources cited in the article don’t count?

Enough not said.

Hemispherical

@bigjpst said:

@ricko said:
If people would simply recognize that 1 begins the count and 10 is the terminal point of 'decade', it would be common knowledge....However, like common sense, it is not so common.... Cheers, RickO

Wait. I clearly remember playing hide and seek as a kid and counting 0..1..2...3..4... ..haha.
Everybody didn’t do that?
Just kidding of course.
But I am going to spend this decade(no matter when it starts) making sure important things are recognized. Like which direction the toilet paper is supposed To go on the roll.

Over, of course.

ricko

@bigjpst .... Right...Let's get back to important issues - such as cent vs. penny, how high is up and where does the fire go when it goes out? Cheers, RickO

mustangmanbob

99.73% of people say the decade ends at midnight.

This is the UNITED STATES !!!!!

We the people have spoken !!!!!!

If you try to destroy the will of the people through espousing totalitarian hegmonistic blather about it not ending for another year, it is merely the final vestiges of the neoclassical decadent bourgeois hob nailed boots on the throats of the proletariat who will rise up in unified voice and overthrow the yoke of trans global imperialism.

TurtleCat

If someone means when does the decade end counting from the first year of this calendar system it’s 12/31/2020. But the definition of a decade is simply 10 years and there’s no requirement to say a decade must correspond to how many years have elapsed since year 1 (as there is no year 0). So in contemporary terms a decade will always be ending with a 9, so today.

The difference is between a decade and which decade of the calendar system. Both can co-exist quite nicely.

BStrauss3

It's all bunk anyway... the year 1 was determined well after the fact, in the 400s...

jmlanzaf

Given that later research determined that Christ was born in 4 B.C., then 2026 would be the end of the 203rd decade. [If you weren't confused enough.]

Insider2

@CCGGG said:
A CNN article... Enough said.....

Every so often there is some truth that slips into a CNN report as they "dumb-down" our nation.

BTW, the question of when a decade ends is a common one. The correct answer depends on TWO things. One of them is the quality of a person's education.

This I can say. If the folks who keep time for the USA say it is a year from now, WHO CARES? Why do we need clocks anyway? Let the ignorant and unwashed say the time is anything they wish!

Oh, the same goes for when the decade ends. Now, can you figure out the SECOND thing?

Paradisefound

The year of the Rat is coming up and the washed here say "The decade ends with 2020 IF you count it from the beginning of 2011"

Paradisefound

Rat or Mouse anyone?

ElmerFusterpuck

@Insider2 said:

@CCGGG said:
A CNN article... Enough said.....

Every so often there is some truth that slips into a CNN report as they "dumb-down" our nation.

BTW, the question of when a decade ends is a common one. The correct answer depends on TWO things. One of them is the quality of a person's education.

This I can say. If the folks who keep time for the USA say it is a year from now, WHO CARES? Why do we need clocks anyway? Let the ignorant and unwashed say the time is anything they wish!

Oh, the same goes for when the decade ends. Now, can you figure out the SECOND thing?

FFS. Enough said....

keets

every decade ends at the end of the 10th year and not at the beginning of the 10th year, a point that seems to confuse almost everyone.

the problem arises because of how we count two things, AGE and TIME.
--- age starts at zero(0) so that when anything starts, like a child's life, the time is counted until the first year is completed from 0 until 1 and so on.
--- time is counted differently, we don't start with year zero(0) and count to 1, we start at 1 and count upwards.

right now we are in the 9th year of the decade, the 10th year is 2020. the confusion arises because of how the base 10 system of counting works. it is is a peculiar thing that wreaks havoc with the average persons way of thinking.

look at it like this --- when Christ was born He started at age zero(0) and moved along each year, however, the day He was born started Time as 1AD and moved along each year. when He turned one year old it started year two and so on.

trust me, I'm right on this and those who think otherwise are stubbornly wrong.

Paradisefound

..... but when I was born I already 9 months old

CaptHenway

To the OP: Yes.

Insider2

@Paradisefound said:
..... but when I was born I already 9 months old.

...and surely a blessing to your family and us! Happy New Year!

BAJJERFAN

@bigjpst said:

@ricko said:
If people would simply recognize that 1 begins the count and 10 is the terminal point of 'decade', it would be common knowledge....However, like common sense, it is not so common.... Cheers, RickO

Wait. I clearly remember playing hide and seek as a kid and counting 0..1..2...3..4... ..haha.
Everybody didn’t do that?
Just kidding of course.
But I am going to spend this decade(no matter when it starts) making sure important things are recognized. Like which direction the toilet paper is supposed To go on the roll.

The direction that TP comes off of the roll is more important, no?

ctf_error_coins

Because of the date ending in 20, we will be in the roaring Twenties.

Technically tho, we are still in the first decade of this century.

https://youtu.be/3svvCj4yhYc

Coinscratch

Any predictions for 2020? Now, that I have been schooled in time. Y2K didn't care or matter. Do the aborigines where watches? I think not.

Insider2

Do they collect coins, or eat rats? Who cares! Added for PC: ...as long as they are happy and healthy. LOL.

Baley

@BryceM said:
The 20s clearly start tomorrow so, in the minds of most people, it begins then. Technically..... well, who cares?

Agree, This subject is kind of like "What year do Modern coins start?" , "Is Pluto a planet or not?" and "How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?"

My answer is, "You tell me, champ!"

Baley

@ErrorsOnCoins said:

Technically tho, we are still in the first decade of this century.

>
Although, that can't be right!
😉

oih82w8

As long as the year is referred to "Twenty-Twenty" and not "Two Thousand and Twenty", I will be fine with it.

However, the Farmers Almanac states;

"As you think about New Year's resolutions, here's one we should all make together: resolve to insist that decades begin with the year ending in the numeral 1 and finish with a 0"

https://www.farmersalmanac.com/new-decade-2020-or-2021-100900?fbclid=IwAR1T94Fz16nD-Ij475deCqqiOLepAerx0kUAsPSkitslXqGB7KMKrCK6Rc8

ctf_error_coins

@Baley said:

@ErrorsOnCoins said:

Technically tho, we are still in the first decade of this century.

>
Although, that can't be right!
😉

oops, mind fart!

Second decade, duh

Insider2

@Baley said:

@BryceM said:
The 20s clearly start tomorrow so, in the minds of most people, it begins then. Technically..... well, who cares?

Agree, This subject is kind of like "What year do Modern coins start?" , "Is Pluto a planet or not?" and "How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?"

My answer is, "You tell me, champ!"

How about this coming from a "Chump." One of your examples is a CHANGING target date and without an "official" designation by some authoritative organization it would depend on age. The "angel thing" is a totally unknowable question and not even a good example as many folks don't believe they exist. The passage of time does. However, your example of Pluto is excellent. In the end, that one depends on the knowledge of each respondent just as the question being discussed here does also.

Many very knowledgeable folks (including astronomers) offer different opinions about Pluto. In the end, only one is correct. I cannot comment about Pluto at this time. I do side with the long held, established belief of properly educated folks along with the Farmer's and our government institution.

.

Walkerfan

I think the new decade begins at 12:00 AM on January 1, 2020.

oih82w8

@Paradisefound said:
..... but when I was born I already 9 months old

"I must confess, I was born at a very early age"
Groucho Marx

ctf_error_coins

Start at Zero and count to ten on your fingers.

How many fingers did you count (assuming you did not have that ax accident)?

Ten Fingers right?

What does the number Ten end with, a zero right?

0 ends the decade.

keets

some people just insist on being right while they're stuck on stubborn stupid.

0 ends the decade. --- I wholeheartedly agree, except that it's at the end of whatever the year is that ends in "0" and not the beginning. like I said in my post above, this is a point which causes confusion in most people's minds and it can be hard to get past.

JBK

I think everyone is correct,

If you go back to the proverbial beginning of time (the calendar, anyway), the first decade ended after ten years, which would have been December 31, 0010.

However, a decade is 10 years, so you can start the clock (or the calendar) at any point. The decade of the teens then could end on December 31, 2019.

1630Boston

Always the diplomat @jbk
Happy New Year

JBK

@Paradisefound said:
..... but when I was born I already 9 months old

Here's something to think about: a pregnancy lasts for about 280 days or 40 weeks. 40 weeks divided by 4 equals 10 months.

We have always known a pregnancy to last 9 months, but who set that timeframe?

Sort of like a year being 52 weeks, but also 12 months, We think of months being 4 weeks long but of course only one is, and even that one goes longer every four years.

Baley

@Insider2 said:

@Baley said:

@BryceM said:
The 20s clearly start tomorrow so, in the minds of most people, it begins then. Technically..... well, who cares?

Agree, This subject is kind of like "What year do Modern coins start?" , "Is Pluto a planet or not?" and "How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?"

My answer is, "You tell me, champ!"

How about this coming from a "Chump." One of your examples is a CHANGING target date and without an "official" designation by some authoritative organization it would depend on age. The "angel thing" is a totally unknowable question and not even a good example as many folks don't believe they exist. The passage of time does. However, your example of Pluto is excellent. In the end, that one depends on the knowledge of each respondent just as the question being discussed here does also.

Many very knowledgeable folks (including astronomers) offer different opinions about Pluto. In the end, only one is correct. I cannot comment about Pluto at this time. I do side with the long held, established belief of properly educated folks along with the Farmer's and our government institution.

.

My comment was more about the people spending their precious life energy debating the subjects...
thanks for illustrating the point so well!

JBK

@oih82w8 said:

@Paradisefound said:
..... but when I was born I already 9 months old

"I must confess, I was born at a very early age"
Groucho Marx

My grandfather used to say that he knew a man who could remember the day he was born. He recalls it being very dark and slimy and then someone slapped him.

jabba

No I’m not going to listen to your mind tricks it ends tonight

Insider2

@ErrorsOnCoins said:
Start at Zero and count to ten on your fingers.

How many fingers did you count (assuming you did not have that ax accident)?

Ten Fingers right?

What does the number Ten end with, a zero right?

0 ends the decade.

ROTF Howling!!! I knew it! Since I know your background and that of the teacher "educating" the children of unsuspecting parents, there could be no other answer from either of you. Thank you, thank you!
What I posted above has been confirmed.

@JBK said: "I think everyone is correct,"

DITTO! You both get a "Participation Award Ribbon!" So sad.