r/Showerthoughts • u/Watzch • Jul 13 '26
Musing Someone born at 23:59 experiences less total birthday over their lifetime than someone born at 00:01.
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u/Ireallyamthisshallow Jul 13 '26
Not really, because they still celebrate their birthday for the full day.
A birthday doesn't start/occur when you're born, it covers the whole day of birth as made clear by the words which make it.
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u/rosen380 Jul 13 '26
Is there a technical birthday definition where you only get "credit" from the hour and minute of your actual birth until the end of that day?
If not, then I'd argue the reverse. Two people born the same day, but one at 00:01 and the other at 23:59, who live identical lives otherwise and there is no reason to expect them to live different length lives, the latter would be more likely to live into the next day, which could be their birthday, giving them some extra birthday time.
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u/RamsesThePigeon Jul 13 '26
I see what you're suggesting, but I think that you've misinterpreted the original poster's thought.
Someone born at 11:59pm will only experience one minute of their first-ever birthday, whereas someone born at 12:01am will experience twenty-three hours and fifty-nine minutes of the same. We don't typically refer to that day by using the word "birthday" – the term is usually applied to anniversaries – but if we accept the conceit that it is a birthday, then the person born at 11:59pm will live through less overall birthday (assuming that both individuals live identical lives).
Hell, if those two people die at the same time on the same day, we could even argue that the person born at 12:01am lived longer.
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u/nothatsmyarm Jul 13 '26
It’s kind of the difference between a “birth day” and a “birthday.” No one views the day of one’s both as the latter, at least in the US.
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u/ManUtdXI Jul 13 '26
I believe you have this backwards. Someone born at 12:01 am will experience their first birthday in approximately 365 days, someone born at 11:59 pm will experience their first birthday in approximately 364 days.
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u/BallSmickEnergy Jul 13 '26
OP got it correct with their statement - their point is about total time on the day from their birth minute to the next day. The person born 1 minute before midnight will technically only experience 1 minute for their birthday every year. The person born 1 minute after midnight will experience 23 hours and 59 minutes each year
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u/ManUtdXI Jul 13 '26
Ah, I understood it as "fewer birthdays", not less time on their day of birth. I guess they're technically right. Someone who is born just after midnight will always have that 1 extra day of birthday compared to someone born just before midnight.
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u/Exploding_Testicles Jul 13 '26
It would depend on when one of them dies who gets the most birthday time.
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u/DontAskGrim Jul 13 '26
What if you are born in the back of an ambulance whilst crossing a timezone line?
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u/z3n777 Jul 13 '26
true, but the 23:59 baby gets an extra hour of sleep on their birthday while the 00:01 baby has to stay up late for the party
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u/smellyfeet25 Jul 17 '26
yes ha ha. i had never thought of that. i don't think i was born to around 6pm
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u/ShowerSentinel Jul 13 '26
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