Question #335b3
1 Answer
The degrees in a circle are an approximation of the days in a year.
Explanation:
Ancient Sumerians and Babylonians did not use decimal (base 10) counting systems. Sumerians used a base 12 counting system, and a year can be conveniently divided into 12 segments. Each segment corresponded to the amount of time for the moon to complete one cycle of phases, or approximately 30 days.
Of course, the Sumerians recognized that there were 365 days in a year, but 365 is not cleanly divisible by 12. However, one year is a cycle, and cycles can be modeled using circles. For convenience, the circle was approximated so that each degree corresponds to approximately one day, but the total arc of a circle is divisible by 12.
Later, the Babylonians, who used a base 60 counting system, adopted the Sumerian's system, but further divided each degree into 60 minutes, and each minute into 60 seconds.
