Posted on 02/29/2008 5:00:01 AM PST by Lucky9teen
February 29th eh?
Why do we have Leap Day?
Observatory: Our solar year (the time required for Earth to travel once around the Sun) is 365.24219 days.
Our calendar year is either 365 days in non leap years or 366 days in leap years (Feb 29th inserted).
A leap year every 4 years gives us 365.25 days, sending our seasons off course and eventually in the wrong months.
To change .25 days to .24219, we need to skip a few leap days (Feb 29ths) .... century marks not divisible by 400. So with a few calculations tweek the calendar by skipping 3 of 4 century leap years to average out our calendar year to 365.2425, which is pretty darn close to the solar year 365.24219.
Here’s the history:
The Romans originally had a 355-day calendar. To keep up with the seasons, an extra 22 or 23-day month was inserted every second year. For reasons unknown, this extra month was only observed now and then. By Julius Caesar’s time, the seasons no longer occurred at the same calendar periods as history had shown. To correct this, Caesar eliminated the extra month and added one or two extra days to the end of various months (his month included, which was Quintilis, later renamed Julius we know it as July). This extended the calendar to 365 days. Also intended was an extra calendar day every fourth year (following the 28th day of Februarius). However, after Caesar’s death in 44 B.C., the calendars were written with an extra day every 3 years instead of every 4 until corrected in 8 A.D. So again, the calendar drifted away from the seasons. By 1582, Pope Gregory XIII recognized that Easter would eventually become closer and closer to Christmas. The calendar was reformed so that a leap day would occur in any year that is divisible by 4 but not divisible by 100 except when the year is divisible by 400. Thus 1600 and 2000, although century marks, have a Leap Day.
The calendar we use today, known as the Gregorian calendar, makes our year 365.2425 days only off from our solar year by .00031, which amounts to only one day’s error after 4,000 years.
| You Are a Colon |
 You aren't concerned much with theories or dreams... only what's true or untrue. You are brilliant and incredibly learned. Anything you know is well researched. You like to make lists and sort through things step by step. You aren't subject to whim or emotions. Your friends see you as a constant source of knowledge and advice. (But they are a little sick of you being right all of the time!) You excel in: Leadership positions You get along best with: The Semi-Colon |
That does NOT look earthquake safe! LOL!
| You Are a Dash |
 You're often busy doing something interesting, and what you do changes quickly. You have many facets to your personality, and you connect them together well. You have a ton of interests. While some of them are a bit offbeat, they all tie together well. You friends rely on you to bring novelty and excitement to their lives. (And while you're the most interesting person they know, they can't help feeling like they don't know you well.) You excel in: Anything to do with money You get along best with: the Exclamation Point |
| You Are a Chocolate Chip Cookie |
 You're friendly and easy to get to know. This makes you very popular - without even trying! |
51? If so, IOTP!
| You Are a Dash |
|
You're often busy doing something interesting, and what you do changes quickly. You have many facets to your personality, and you connect them together well. You have a ton of interests. While some of them are a bit offbeat, they all tie together well. You friends rely on you to bring novelty and excitement to their lives. (And while you're the most interesting person they know, they can't help feeling like they don't know you well.) You excel in: Anything to do with money You get along best with: the Exclamation Point |
I’m a colon, too. Does that mean we’re full of crap?
Elaine: And one more thing, you really think we need the exclamation point? Because, it’s not “Top of the Muffin *TO YOU!!!*”
| You Are a Fortune Cookie |
 People want to be around you (even when they're a little sick of you), in hopes of being lucky too! |
The Polite way to Pee
During one of her daily classes, a teacher, trying to teach good
manners, asked her students the following question:
“Michael, if you were on a date having dinner with a nice young
lady, how would you tell her that you have to go to the bathroom?”
Michael said, “Just a minute I have to go pee.”
The teacher responded by saying, “That would be rude and impolite.
What about you Sherman, how would you say it?”
Sherman said, “I am sorry, but I really need to go to the bathroom.
I’ll be right back.”
“That’s better, but it’s still not v ery nice to say the word ‘bathroom’
at the dinner table.
And you, little Edward, can you use your brain for once and show us your
good manners?”
“I would say: Darling, may I please be excused for a moment? I have to
shake hands with a very dear friend of mine, to whom I hope to introduce
to you after dinner.”
The teacher fainted
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