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How to Convert the Duration of Time to a Decimal

Time is a ubiquitous concept made measurable by human calculations. Ancient peoples first began dividing time into regular units based on the movement of the stars and sun. Mechanical clocks originated in the 13th century and gave birth to the phrase "o'clock" in reference to stating the time. Our current means of time-keeping uses the base-60 system, which is distinct from the base-10 nature of the decimal system. You can convert one to the other using a few basic calculations.

Instructions

- 1
  Determine the base unit of measurement you want to represent in decimals: seconds, minutes, hours, years, etc.
- 2
  Figure out the duration of time you want to convert; for example, 100 minutes within a week.
- 3
  Calculate the total number of minutes in a week. One week has seven days, each day has 24 hours, and each hour has 60 minutes, so the total is 10,080 minutes in one week.
- 4
  Divide the value of time duration, in this case, 100 minutes, by the total to determine the decimal value. For example, 100 divided by 10,080 is .0099 weeks.

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