Like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day has a modern origin. The idea came to Mrs. John Dodd as she sat listening to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909. Her father, William Smart, had raised his children alone on his Washington farm after his wife died giving birth to their sixth child. Mrs. Dodd proposed to the Spokane Ministerial Association and the YMCA that they celebrate a “father’s day” on June 5, her father’s birthday. The idea received strong support, but the good ministers of Spokane asked that the day be changed to give them extra time to prepare sermons on the unexplored subject of fathers. The first Father’s Day was observed on June 19, 1910, in Spokane, Washington, and soon other towns had their own celebrations. In spite of widespread support, Father’s Day did not become a permanent national holiday until 1972, when President Richard Nixon signed a law declaring that it be celebrated annually on the third Sunday in June.
Question of the Day
Why do stars twinkle, while the visible planets (and our Moon) shine constantly when viewed?
First, the stars themselves do not twinkle. We are seeing the effect of Earth’s atmosphere on the light they produce. The starlight is bent by moving volumes of air in our atmosphere. The bending effect makes the stars appear to be larger than points, to dance around slightly, and to change in intensity, which is what is commonly called twinkling. Planets don’t usually appear to twinkle because they are close enough to Earth that they appear as tiny disks of light. The total intensity doesn’t seem to change — hence no twinkling is apparent to the naked eye.
Advice of the Day
Put marigolds in your wedding bouquet to keep your true love.
Home Hint of the Day
As a rule of thumb, the vapor barrier in any insulation always goes on the side toward the warmest room, as the warm air contains the most moisture. This is particularly important when you’re working in a basement or attic area.
Word of the Day
Nephophobia
Fear of clouds
Puzzle of the Day
The highest state. (Abbreviation of a U.S. state)
Mont
Born
Stan Laurel(comedian)–
Barbara McClintock(geneticist)–
Joyce Carol Oates(author)–
Laurie Metcalf(actress)–
Phil Mickelson(golfer)–
Kerry Wood(baseball player)–
Diana DeGarmo(singer)–
Bianca Andreescu(tennis player
)–
Died
Brian Piccolo(football player)–
Jack Montgomery(Medal of Honor recipient)–
Events
Spain declared war on Britain and the siege of Gibraltar began–
The first roller coaster in the United States began operation at Coney Island, New York–
First issue of Klondike Nugget published, Dawson, Yukon–
Andrew Jackson, Jr. was issued a patent for eye protectors for chickens–
Alfred Hitchcock’s film, Psycho, released–
Soviet dancer, Rudolph Nureyev, left the touring Kirov Ballet and asked for political asylum in France–
First female in space, Valentina V. Tereshkova, was launched into orbit in Soviet Vostok VI–
People were caught breaking into the United States Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate building–
A 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck off of California’s northern coast to become the fourth significant quake to jolt California in a week–
Weather
Hail measuring 17 inches in circumference fell in Dubuque, Iowa–
Mecca, California, recorded temperatures up to 124 degrees F–
Thunderstorms dropped 14 inches of rain at Palmer Lake and Larkspur, Colorado–
