--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One [method] is by a Watch to keep time…" description: "\"One [method] is by a Watch to keep time exactly. But, by reason of the motion of the Ship, the Variation of Heat and Cold, Wet and Dry, and the Differe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/733/isaac-newton-1226_cold_one-method-is-by-a-watch-to-keep-time-ex_1308582.jpg" --- # One \[method\] is by a Watch to keep time exactly. But, by… ![“One [method] is by a Watch to keep time exactly. But, by reason of the motion of the Ship, the Variation of Heat and Cold, Wet and Dry, and the Difference of Gravity in different Latitudes, such a watch hath not yet been made.” quote by Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/733/isaac-newton-1226_cold_one-method-is-by-a-watch-to-keep-time-ex_1308582.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/733/isaac-newton-1226_cold_one-method-is-by-a-watch-to-keep-time-ex_1308582.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/733/isaac-newton-1226_cold_one-method-is-by-a-watch-to-keep-time-ex_1308582.jpg) > “One \[method\] is by a Watch to keep time exactly. But, by reason of the motion of the Ship, the Variation of Heat and Cold, Wet and Dry, and the Difference of Gravity in different Latitudes, such a watch hath not yet been made.” [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Newton notes that a perfect timekeeping device must account for varying environmental factors, which was not yet achievable. **In simple terms:** A perfect watch must adjust for motion, temperature, humidity, and gravity. Key Takeaway Design clocks that compensate for environmental changes. Themes science technology precision environment Mood curious analytical Type scientific technical When to use this quote - navigation - space travel - deep sea exploration - high‑altitude aviation Key Concepts Physics mechanical engineering thermodynamics Questions to Reflect On - How can modern sensors improve clock accuracy? - What limits remain for universal timekeeping? A Different Perspective Current technology still cannot fully eliminate all environmental influences on timekeeping. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Gravity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gravity/) [Heat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heat/) [Heat and cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heat-and-cold/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [On board ship there are manysources of joy of which the land knows nothing. 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Jackson Brown, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-jackson-brown-jr/) ## More by Isaac Newton > [The same law takes place in a system, consisting of many bodies, as in one single body, with regard to their persevering in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/the-same-law-takes-place-in-a-system-consisting-of-many-bodies-as-in/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [I have been much amused at ye singular phenomena resulting from bringing of a needle into contact with a piece of amber or resin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/i-have-been-much-amused-at-ye-singular-phenomena-resulting-from/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [No great discovery was ever made without a bold guess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/no-great-discovery-was-ever-made-without-a-bold-guess/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [I keep the subject of my inquiry constantly before me, and wait till the first dawning opens gradually, by little and little, into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/i-keep-the-subject-of-my-inquiry-constantly-before-me-and-wait-till/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [Philosophy is such an impertinently litigious lady that a man had as good be engaged in lawsuits as have to do with her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/philosophy-is-such-an-impertinently-litigious-lady-that-a-man-had-as/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [Do not Bodies act upon Light at a distance, and by their action bend its Rays; and is not this action (caeteris paribus) \[all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/do-not-bodies-act-upon-light-at-a-distance-and-by-their-action-bend/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [God in the beginning formed matter in solid, massy, hard, impenetrable, movable particles, of such sizes and figures, and with such other properties, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/god-in-the-beginning-formed-matter-in-solid-massy-hard-impenetrable/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [ I am ashamed to tell you to how many figures I carried these calculations \[of Pi\], having no other business at the time ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/i-am-ashamed-to-tell-you-to-how-many-figures-i-carried-these/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [Hypotheses non fingo. 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