Friday Feature Thoughts
At this time of year you are either thinking about what has happened over the past year or about what you want to accomplish in the New Year. Many make resolutions that barely last to the end of the month of January. With the cold storms sweeping across the northern part of America our thoughts turn to the coming of spring.
The first day of spring this year happens on March 20 at 5:01 A.M. EDT. This falls on a Thursday and is the astronomical beginning of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere and the autumn season in the Southern Hemisphere. Does this seem early?
In fact over the next four years the vernal equinox occurs on March 20th and then in 2028 it occurs on March 19th, a Sunday. If you’ve always thought the first day of spring comes on March 21st you’ve not been following the calendar too closely. Due to time zone differences there hasn’t been a March 21st equinox in mainland United States during the entire 21st century! We won’t see a March 21st equinox again until 2101. Well, some of us might see it.
An interesting piece of folklore that goes along with the equinox is the ability to stand an egg on its end. This egg folklore became popular in 1945 following a LIFE article about the spring practice. “The origins of this myth are attributed to stories that the ancient Chinese would create displays of eggs standing on end during the first day of spring,” according to John Millis, assistant professor of physics and astronomy at Anderson University in South Carolina. “The ancient Chinese celebrated the first day of spring about six weeks earlier than the equinox”—not just on the equinox itself.
As with most folklore, it’s only partly true. You should be able to balance an egg on its end on the equinox, but it’s possible to balance an egg on other days, too!
Folklore or not, this egg trick sounds like fun to us. Try this yourself and let us know how you did it in the comments. (Tip: You’ll probably have better luck balancing an egg if you try it on a rough surface—or use an egg that has a bumpy end.)
