Union square electronic clock is back to puzzling people on time
Erected in 1999 — with an accompanying smoke-spewing brick wall at its side — Metronome has long baffled those who lived or worked in the neighborhood, even when functioning properly. The digits are intended to display military time, forward and backward: the first seven numbers exhibit the time of day, in hours, minutes, seconds and fifths of a second; the last seven represent the time remaining in the day, using the same units. The middle digit, a collision of numbers overlaying one another from both directions, is a virtual blur to the naked eye.
For more than a year now, one of New York City’s largest timepieces has marched to its own beat, spouting nonsensical readings — 40 minutes slow, an hour and 10 minutes fast, 7 hours and 26 minutes slow — to mystified passers-by.
With updated programming software in place — from its inception until its malfunction, the clock had retrieved an atomic time reading using a dial-up connection, according to Ms. Jones — the artists are optimistic that Metronome’s technical glitches are behind it. At long last, they hope, the founding message of the installation, as a reflection on the passage of time, will resonate with audiences once again.
Early returns are discouraging.“I saw this in the papers in Sweden. It’s the national debt,” insisted Ann Magnusson, a tourist from Stockholm, resting on the steps of Union Square Park on Monday afternoon. “China owns the U.S., no?”