Friday, February 13, 2009
13 Facts about Friday the 13th
This is from LiveScience.com. It's interesting that the comments that follow the article (which I'm not posting here), seem to think some of these facts aren't true. Still, it's a fun read.
13 Facts About Friday the 13th
If you fear Friday the 13th, then batten down the hatches. This week's unlucky day is the first of three this year.
The next Friday the 13th comes in March, followed by Nov. 13. Such a triple whammy comes around only every 11 years, said Thomas Fernsler, a math specialist at the University of Delaware who has studied the number 13 for more than 20 years.
By the numbers
Here are 13 more facts about the infamous day, courtesy of Fernsler and some of our own research:
1. The British Navy built a ship named Friday the 13th. On its maiden voyage, the vessel left dock on a Friday the 13th, and was never heard from again.
2. The ill-fated Apollo 13 launched at 13:13 CST on Apr. 11, 1970. The sum of the date's digits (4-11-70) is 13 (as in 4+1+1+7+0 = 13). And the explosion that crippled the spacecraft occurred on April 13 (not a Friday). The crew did make it back to Earth safely, however.
3. Many hospitals have no room 13, while some tall buildings skip the 13th floor.
4. Fear of Friday the 13th — one of the most popular myths in science — is called paraskavedekatriaphobia as well as friggatriskaidekaphobia. Triskaidekaphobia is fear of the number 13.
5. Quarterback Dan Marino wore No. 13 throughout his career with the Miami Dolphins. Despite being a superb quarterback (some call him one of the best ever), he got to the Super Bowl just once, in 1985, and was trounced 38-16 by the San Francisco 49ers and Joe Montana (who wore No. 16 and won all four Super Bowls he played in).
6. Butch Cassidy, notorious American train and bank robber, was born on Friday, April 13, 1866.
7. Fidel Castro was born on Friday, Aug. 13, 1926.
8. President Franklin D. Roosevelt would not travel on the 13th day of any month and would never host 13 guests at a meal. Napoleon and Herbert Hoover were also triskaidekaphobic, with an abnormal fear of the number 13.
9. Superstitious diners in Paris can hire a quatorzieme, or professional 14th guest.
10. Mark Twain once was the 13th guest at a dinner party. A friend warned him not to go. "It was bad luck," Twain later told the friend. "They only had food for 12."
11. Woodrow Wilson considered 13 his lucky number, though his experience didn't support such faith. He arrived in Normandy, France on Friday, Dec. 13, 1918, for peace talks, only to return with a treaty he couldn't get Congress to sign. (The ship's crew wanted to dock the next day due to superstitions, Fernsler said.) He toured the United States to rally support for the treaty, and while traveling, suffered a near-fatal stroke.
12. The number 13 suffers from its position after 12, according to numerologists who consider the latter to be a complete number — 12 months in a year, 12 signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 tribes of Israel, 12 apostles of Jesus, 12 days of Christmas and 12 eggs in a dozen.
13. The seals on the back of a dollar bill include 13 steps on the pyramid, 13 stars above the eagle's head, 13 war arrows in the eagle's claw and 13 leaves on the olive branch. So far there's been no evidence tying these long-ago design decisions to the present economic situation.
Origins of Friday the 13th
Where's all this superstition come from? Nobody knows for sure. But it may date back to Biblical times (the 13th guest at the Last Supper betrayed Jesus). By the Middle Ages, both Friday and 13 were considered bearers of bad fortune.
Meanwhile the belief that numbers are connected to life and physical things — called numerology — has a long history.
"You can trace it all the way from the followers of Pythagoras, whose maxim to describe the universe was 'all is number,'" says Mario Livio, an astrophysicist and author of "The Equation That Couldn't Be Solved" (Simon & Schuster, 2005). Thinkers who studied under the famous Greek mathematician combined numbers in different ways to explain everything around them, Livio said.
In modern times, numerology has become a type of para-science, much like the meaningless predictions of astrology, scientists say.
"People are subconsciously drawn towards specific numbers because they know that they need the experiences, attributes or lessons, associated with them, that are contained within their potential," says professional numerologist Sonia Ducie. "Numerology can 'make sense' of an individual's life (health, career, relationships, situations and issues) by recognizing which number cycle they are in, and by giving them clarity."
Mathematicians dismiss numerology as having no scientific merit, however.
"I don't endorse this at all," Livio said, when asked to comment on the popularity of commercial numerology for a story prior to the date 06/06/06. Seemingly coincidental connections between numbers will always appear if you look hard enough, he said.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Happy Birthday, Abby!
My baby turned 13 on Tuesday.
I am the parent of a teenager.
I am pretty sure I'm far too young to be the parent of a teenager.
Anyway, she's a really good one, so that helps. She's smart and funny and she watches out for other people. She goes out of her way to help people, including her family. She loves to read, and we have the best conversations about books...I always hoped my kids would like to read! In fact, she has started a blog where she reviews Youth Fiction--by a teen for teens. Seriously, how cool is that? She shows more initiative and commitment to things than I would ever have considered at her age.
She IS a lot like me in some ways, in the way her mind works and the things that are important to her (she doesn't like it when we say that; she would prefer to be tragically misunderstood). But she's so much better than I ever was...more confident, smarter, kinder, more creative, more energetic, prettier...
So, happy birthday, my first baby. I love you.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Happy Birthday, David!
David turned 6 on Wednesday! I really can't believe that. When he was born he was 4 pounds 11 ounces, and when we brought him home from the hospital, he could fit entirely in Matt's hands. Now he's tall, one of the tallest in his class, and funny and smart and polite and so very loving.
We had his birthday party on Saturday at the Super 8 hotel swiming pool. They hadn't had school all week because of the ice, so there weren't very many kids there, but Grammy and Papa were there, as well as John and Nancy. And of course, David's sisters. He adores his sisters, and they love him, too. I'm always so impressed at how patient they are with him, how they go out of their way to include him and play with him and help him out. I don't think I was that nice to my brother (sorry, Ray...).
Anyway, David has started playing basketball, and we're already signed up for Spring soccer. I am so glad he is moving up a level and playing with kids who are a little bit older. If anyone wants a basketball or soccer game schedule, let me know!
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