Have you ever wondered why we have a Leap Year? Who created this extra day?  Why February and not some other month like April or June, which have thirty days and can easily take an extra day for 31?   

Leap Year is a relic of ancient astronomy. According to Stephen Wood of History.com, ancient calendars often had a 23-day intercalary or “extra month.” These extra months were based on the position of the moon as well as the Earth’s location relative to the sun. Originally, calendars were designed to track the Earth’s movement around the sun and ancient astronomers were extremely good at their jobs.  

The Earth revolves around the sun 365.24 days and yet, a traditional calendar only accounts for 365 days. Therefore, there is a few hours gap each year as a result of the 365-day calendar.  As a result, ancient astronomers created the intercalary to deal with this.  

However, you may be asking, “Why February?” Julius Ceasar, that’s why. The father of the modern calendar decided the perfect calendar was created by the Egyptians. Egyptian solar calendars had 365 days and included one extra month. February was chosen to include the leap day as it was already a month where Romans added extra days.   

Despite this attempt to account for the extra hours it takes for the Earth to revolve around the sun each year, the Julian (named after Ceasar) calendar, over the course of a century, made the equinoxes and solstices shift 24 days every century. As a result, Pope Gregory XIII expressed dismay that Easter was getting further and further away from the Spring Equinox.  

Thus, the Gregorian calendar (the calendar that is used to this day) was born. Gregory kept Leap years and stipulated that they occur every four years and on years that begin a new century, in order to have a Leap day, the year must be divisible by 400. If the year is divisible by 100 evenly, it is not a Leap Year.  In other words, if you lived at the start of the 20th century (1900), there was no Leap Year, but the year 2000 was divisible by 400 and thus, had a Leap Year.   

Leap years are full of lore. Most famously, Leap Year is associated with Bachelor’s Day, as it is known in some countries. Bachelor’s Day is a day where women propose to men. This tradition is most identified with Ireland, St. Bridget, and St. Patrick (yes, that St. Patrick).

But if Ireland is an expense that you can ill-afford, plan a trip in four years to Anthony, Texas. Anthony is the self-proclaimed “Leap Year Capital of the World” with a festival that begins before the end of February and goes to March. This year, it is scheduled for February 28th until March 2nd, 2020. Additionally, Leap Year can also be a time of great superstitions around livestock and weddings. According to Breakingnews.ie, many countries have traditions that suggest Leap Year is a day that is inauspicious, full of death.  

Whatever your stance on Leap Year, it’s undeniably an important tradition that keeps our calendars aligned with the stars. Makes you wonder how “30 Days Hath September” would have been if a different month had been chosen. If you are looking for funny sitcom takes on Leap Year, June Thomas of Slate.com has some suggestions and Leap Year (2010) and The Proposal (2009) are always great watching.  

Written by Simone

Edited by Ryan

Works Referenced 

Elder, Lane. “Why 2020 is a Leap Year.” AJC.com, Atlanta Journal 

Constitution, https://www.ajc.com/news/why-2020-leap-year/RSms7VzmjoNP2C1CLrxp5I/. 

Thomas, June. “Which Sitcom did Leap Day Best?” Slate.com, 2012.03.01.   http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2012/03/01/leap_day_sitcom_episodes_which_is_the_best_one_.html  

Unknown. “9 Leap Year Traditions –and Superstitions- from Around the World.” Breakingnews.ie, 

Landmark Digital. https://www.breakingnews.ie/discover/9-leap-year-traditions-and-superstitions-from-around-the-world-723031.html. Accessed 26/2/2020. 

Wood, Stephen. “5 Things You May Not Know About Leap Day.” History.com, The History 

Channel, https://www.history.com/news/why-do-we-have-leap-year.

Happy Halloween, Illini! Fall is in full swing and with midterms winding down, we could all use a little spooky fun. Check out some of our horror books to get you in the Halloween spirit!

Creepy Comics and Ghoulish Graphic Novels

My Favorite Thing is Monsters by Emil Ferris

• 1960s in Chicago
• Fictional graphic diary of 10-year-old Karen Reyes as she tries to solve the murder of her neighbor, a Holocaust survivor

The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman

• Follow a few human survivors as they struggle through the aftermath of the zombie apocalypse!
• Read the graphic novel series behind the famous TV show

Chilling Classics and Spooky Short Stories

The Stories of Ray Bradbury

• Short stories from a science fiction icon
• Includes spooky classics such as “The Coffin,” “Skeleton,” “The Haunting of the New,” and “The October Game”

Pet Sematary by Stephen King

• Horror, animals, and spooky woods – what more could we ask for?
• See the recent movie adaption!

The Best of the Best Horror of the Year: 10 Years of Essential Short Horror Fiction

• Choose from 28 of the best and most horrific short stories from the last decade!
• Edited and compiled by Ellen Datlow, an award-winning horror anthologist

Haunted and Spook-tacular Nonfiction

Reel Terror: the scary, bloody, gory, hundred-year history of classics horror films by David Konow

• Featuring on-set stories and history of the horror movie genre, from blockbusters to cult classics
• Great companion for your Halloween movie marathon!

Ghostland: an American History in Haunted Places by Colin Dickey

• Explore all of the haunted locations across the country, with the facts behind haunted places and how the stories have changed as they’ve spread and become legends

For more great book recommendations, check out our genre fiction binders on the Lower Level at the UGL!

It’s Banned Books Week! Our library system has one of the largest collections in the country, so come celebrate your freedom to read by checking out a book that has sparked controversy. Books are often banned from schools and libraries for sexual content and violence, but we wanted to explore some of the stranger reasons books have been taken off the shelves. Please enjoy five book bans that made us laugh, and click on the titles to find the books in our catalog! 

1. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

In 1969, child psychologist Bruno Bettelheim wrote that it could be traumatizing for children to read about the character being sent to bed without dinner. This led to the book being banned in schools and libraries throughout the country. 

2. The Dictionary                                                                                                           

Yes, you read that correctly. Both the American Heritage dictionary and the Merriam-Webster dictionary have been taken out of schools across the country for defining “provocative” words. While controversies over this reference book began in the 1970s, it was banned as recently as 2010 in a California school district. 

3. The Diary of Anne Frank                                      

While this book has been banned several times for sexually-explicit passages, it has also been challenged as “pro-Jewish propaganda” with claims that Anne Frank never actually existed. The most head-scratching reason for banning the book came in 1983, when the Alabama State Textbook Committee called it “a real downer.”

4. Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White                                                             

Parents in Kansas in 2006 got this book banned because of the talking animals. They complained that showing lesser creatures with human abilities of communication is highly disrespectful to God, and it must be the work of the devil.

5. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.

This innocent picture book was banned by the Texas Board of Education in 2010 thanks to a misunderstanding. The author happens to have the same name as a Marxist theorist, and no one “bothered” to check if it was the same person. What a great reminder of the importance of doing your research.

All of this content was found on The Week’s 17 most surprising banned books, so check it out if you want to see more!

Written and Edited by: Nicole

Attention Undergraduate Students!

Do you doodle in the margins of your notes? Seeking a creative outlet? Do you make art in your free time? Have you been looking for the ideal spot to showcase your work? If you answered yes to any of these questions, read on!

The Undergraduate Library is inviting artists of all skill levels and majors to apply for the chance to exhibit your art in our art gallery.  We are seeking works in either of two categories: those that match our 2018-2019 theme of “Imaginary Worlds,” or an open call for any work that addresses issues of concern to undergraduate students.

To apply:

• You must be a currently enrolled undergraduate student
• Create an awesome piece of art (or pick something you already have!)
• Fill out an application form by October 29^th
• Wait for email confirmation from the UGL with details
• Selected artists will meet with the UGL gallery curator for installation guidelines, and must complete a permission form to display their artwork
• Celebrate with friends – you’re a featured artist

Any major can apply.  Each Student Art Gallery space is 176” wide, 85” tall, and 6.5” deep.  Most 2D art forms will fit, as well as smaller objects such as jewelry, metalwork, and some sculpture and industrial design works.  We also have a small standing display case for larger 3D works.

Questions? Email undergrad@library.illinois.edu

2018-2019 Theme

Our challenge to you this fall is to create a piece of any medium that is fitting with the theme ‘Imaginary Worlds.’ Take this as literally or as figuratively as you want. Some other concepts we want you to think about as you create your piece are: virtual and augmented reality, avatars, and artificial intelligence.

Be sure to be on the lookout for our bi-semester prompts! These will be advertised around campus and on our webpage. Please note, you do not have to submit artwork within our themes or following our prompts! These are meant to get you thinking if you are stumped.

Written by Annabel

Edited by Zander

It’s Pride Month Illini! The month of June is host to events celebrating LGBTQ people and the Stonewall Riots that occurred in 1969 and served as the tipping point for LGBTQ civil rights. While you can look forward to the Champaign-Urbana area celebrating Pride in September, the festivities are turning up this weekend in Chicago. Below, you’ll find brief facts about the Chicago Pride Parade and learn more about what’s coming this weekend!

• This year marks the 49th year of the annual Chicago Pride Parade.
• The first Chicago Pride Parade took place in 1970, commemorating the 1969 Stonewall Riots.
• In Chicago, there used to be only a Pride Week. It was later expanded from Pride Week to Pride Month.
• The Chicago Pride Parade historically occurs on the last Sunday of June.
• Last year, around one million people attended the Chicago Pride Parade.
• The first Chicago Pride Parades had less than three hundred people in attendance.

Chicago Pride

The Chicago Pride Parade takes place on June 24th starting at 12 p.m. at the corner of Broadway and Montrose in Chicago. If you are able to go, remember to stay hydrated and use sunscreen! To learn more about the Chicago Pride Parade and Pride Month visit the Chicago Pride webpage.

If you’re in the Champaign area and still want to know how libraries were involved in the Gay liberation movement, visit the Marshall Gallery in the Main Library building to see the exhibit, Out of the Closet & Onto the Shelves: Librarians and the Oldest Gay Professional Organization in the U.S. This display will be up until June 30th!

Out of the Closet & Onto the Shelves