GoKawiilFrom candles that drop metal pins every hour to the knocker uppers of industrial Britain, people throughout history devised plenty of cunning ways to ensure a timely wake-up.
During Britain's industrial revolution, new factories faced a need for strict timekeeping – including far more specific start times for workers.
A worker arriving even five minutes late could hold up an entire assembly line, losing their employers' profit. They needed a means to wake up on time, especially in the darker winter months, and while early alarm clocks existed at this time, they were far too expensive for a typical worker.
Factories tried using whistles and bells to wake and summon workers, but they often proved unreliable. Instead, an entire profession dedicated to awakening people sprouted up: knocker uppers.
These human alarm clocks would work their way down streets and sometimes whole neighbourhoods knocking or tapping on windows, or shooting peas at them, says Arunima Datta, associate professor of history at the University of North Texas. "They would stand there until they got a response from their clients, they wouldn't move."