# Anno...What? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 16, 2016, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910 "2016-05-16T11:41:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b2d939/32.png) [@Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Arachnid_Laser_1)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/41 "2016-05-18T06:43:39Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > They didn’t start or end in any specific year. It was all gradual changes. I would like to direct you to [this extensively researched documentary](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOFC3h7oZPU) proving otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/42 "2016-05-18T14:09:23Z")
I’m surprised you didn’t cite this [even more extensively researched documentary](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0319262/) ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/43 "2016-05-18T14:33:07Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > Even without Christ, “Before Caesar” would not be an unreasonable marker. Given that Caesarean-based culture has pretty much dominated the civilization of the human species. Hum, dude ? At the time Caesar was busy getting 44 shades of murdered, China was already a gigantic empire some 1500 years old (or 200 if you want to start with the first actual Emperor). I’m just sayin’, why not “Before Qin Shi Huangdi” ? Where civilization’s concerned, the Chinese and India had Europe beat by a mile until the 18th century or so… ---
**Author:** ![Totenfeier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@Totenfeier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Totenfeier)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/44 "2016-05-18T14:40:31Z")
> [@Go\_Arachnid\_Laser](#): > > Let’s see- > > Earth does have some natural Ice Ages happening every so often that could be used as an objective measure. The Quaternary Glaciation being the latest. Sadly, the count is about a couple of millions of years long. > > So, how about separating the years in ages based on some highly influential development of the human race. For instance, From the invention of writing with the Jiahu symbols (6600 BC) to the development of the printing press (1440 AD) and from there to the development of the Internet (with the release of the WWW’s source code in 1993) > > So happy year 23 A.W.W.W, everyone. AWWW…, that’s so _cute_! I was beginning to mull over the idea of a Record of Ages myself, but hadn’t got anywhere with it. Kudos to you for posting it. (Now, that’s “kudos”, not Kodos the Executioner. Let’s not start anything with _him_!) ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/45 "2016-05-18T17:10:33Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Note that having a Year Zero does _not_ fix the cardinal/ordinal problem of century/millennium names. While the First Century AYZ could be considered to run from 0 to 99, the First Century BYZ still runs from -100 to -1. If anything, it adds confusion. We could have a positive year 0 and a negative year 0. Like doing limits from both sides, we could call them 0[sup]+[/sup] and 0[sup]-[/sup]. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/46 "2016-05-18T17:50:30Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > By that kind of illogic, we should celebrate a baby’s first birthday when he’s born. Waiting until he’s actually a year old is so stooooopid. :rolleyes: In China you are 1 year old the day you are born. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2016, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/47 "2016-05-18T18:12:19Z")
Let’s reset it for Muhammad’s birthday, mix things up a bit ---
**Author:** ![PoppaSan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/poppasan/32/189_2.png) [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2016, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/48 "2016-05-22T23:14:30Z")
Why does it have to be a specific event. Just pick a day way in the past and start there. Today is Day 64 of year 22,156. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2016, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/49 "2016-05-23T02:36:02Z")
In H. Beam Piper’s Terro-Human Future History the Federation dated from 1943 AD, the year of the first sustained nuclear fission event. Dates were listed as A.E. . or Atomic Era. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2016, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910/50 "2016-05-24T06:44:41Z")
I’m not sure I’d want to reset the calendar to year zero. If you think about the times when it has been attempted in the past, it’s not uncommon that life for the average person approaches hell on earth for everyone who doesn’t belong to the ruling cabal, for example the French Reign Of Terror and the Khmer Rouge. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anno-what/754910.md?page=2)