In my post of the other day I observed the planned launching of an Islamic satellite intended to accurately predict the begining of each lunar month in the Arabic calendar. The referenced news article noted this was especially important for the month of Ramadan which is a month of fasting. Apparently some feel it is important to know exactly when the month starts, as pointed out in the article:
It may seem odd to 21st century non-Muslims, but the decision on the start of Ramadan is crucial. If a mistake is made and detected by the public — and it has happened in the past — the Islamic authorities involved will be highly shamed and perhaps demoted in their local religious duties.[1]
I mentioned the launch to a muslim friend who responded that the rules are very simple: You can determine the begining of the month by the phase of the moon. If it is cloudy and you cannot see the moon you can take the word of someone you trust, who presumably saw the moon. If these options are not available you can always start fasting a day late without recourse.
Recalling other examples coupled with the experience of over 30 years in the computer industry I felt a general truth had emerged: people have a tendancy to make simple things more complicated (complex) than they need to be.
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