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Rather than clog up the already stuffed riddle thread with non-riddles, I thought it would be nice to have a thread for non-riddle questions.
The one Joseph asked is a good one to start with – he asked:
Is it true that there is a leap year (Feb. 29) every 4 years (in the secular calendar)?
The answer is no. The secular (Gregorian) calendar follows the sun and uses a 365 day year. Unfortunately, nature is not so into round numbers. The true amount of time that it takes the Earth to go around the sun is approximately 365 and 1/4 days. Therefore, at the end of every 365 day year we are actually around 6 hours further behind in our orbital position compared to last year on the same day. At the end of 4 years, we are a full day behind so we have a leap day to catch up.
Unfortunately again, nature abhorrs a round number. 1/4 is not exactly 1/4 but closer to .24. So having a leap year EVERY 4 years overcompensates. As scientific ability to measure this kind of thing improved, they decided to make adjustments to the calendar structure to account for this. At one point, they decided that every 100 years they would skip a leap day. This way, there would be only 24 leap days per century instead of 25, which better corresponds to the .24 extra day.
Well, as time went on we found out that .24 is not exactly .24 (actually, they already knew that but hadn’t done anything about it) but something slightly more (I think close to .2425). So they had again overcompensated (though it is unlikely that the error would have ever be noticed – they were off by 1/4 of a day every 100 years so the seasons wouldn’t even be off by one week for 2800 years!!!!).
The final result is that now we have added back a leap day every 400 years. So in the year 2000 we had one, in the years 2100, 2200, and 2300 we will not, but we will again in the year 2400 – mark my words, and get back to me :). But as we know, things can always change and who knows if some yekkishe scientist will be disturbed by the current inaccuracy and make a new change to the leap year rules.
Next!!
I heard that they added a “leap second” last night before the new year to compensate for inaccuracies. They do this every few years but not on a set schedule, just whenever the scientists decide that we are a second off
mod that is true
it depends on the speed the earth is rotating i think
I posted an article about this a few days ago in the CR on the X-mas lights thread.
…about the leap second that is.
It’s all a waste of time! Real time!! These ppl should add some leap minutes to their schedule to accomplish something good!
Taking a guess, Adar/Adar II.
This entire discussion of leap dyas, leap years, blah, blah, blah, makes me laugh. Who really cares? So WHAT if the season is a day late or a week late? None of us will have much to be concerned about by the time it really makes a difference! Now the Jewish calendar is a different story. If we did not add Adar Bet every few years, Pesach could conceivably not be in Spring….
cheshvan and kislev?
Teves
Interesting thing I noticed: Because Rosh Chodesh is always the day after the 29th of the month (either the 30th or the 1st) and the 29th is the same day of the week as the first so the days of Rosh Chodesh go in order so if Rosh HaShana is a Monday, then R”Ch Cheshvan would be Tuesday and Wednesday, R”Ch Kislev would be Thursday and possibly Friday, etc.
This can make it easier to figure out what day of the week a Yom Tov will be on months in advance assuming you know what day the most recent R”Ch was and how many days each month’s R”Ch has
42 – I learnt that in elementary school. If R”C is on Sunday, next month will be Mon/Tues, next month Wed, etc…
Hmmm, I haven’t graduated elementary school yet (I’m still in 4th grade) so I had to figure it out on my own. Or maybe I just wasn’t paying attention in class.
ok guys, i confess – looks like i’m moderator 42 :}
No Brooklyn19, you’re my Morah
Aha, so that why you’re #42. 4th grade, class 2. Got it!
hmmmm. what’d you say about not paying attention in class…???
Actually 2nd year of 4th grade
that’s what I meant by class 2, but was trying to be carefull about not insulting you in public.
Which of the following numbers is NOT a perfect number?
8,596,989,056
6
8,128
2,305,843,008,139,952,128
And squeak takes the cake.
mod42,
wanna play football by recess tomorrow?
charlie, you will be busy during recess. go to:
I assigned the Wednesday night D’var Torah to you. YW Moderator-72
ooh, me and my big mouth, lol. OK, I’ll try BL”N.
Thanks
ive been seeing trivia on a bunch of diff threads so…..
coke: and so?
Woah!
does miamonides have the biggest birth rate??
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