Ramadan begins at sundown. The exact timing is subject to the first sighting of the Moon. Beginning at age 12, all Muslims take part in the month-long sunrise-to-sunset fast that is the hallmark of Ramadan. Eating and drinking (including water) is prohibited during daylight hours, and the day’s abstinence is offset by a nightly meal known as iftar. The holiday honors the time when the angel Gabriel revealed the first verses of the Qur’an, the holy book of Islam, to a desert-wandering caravan trader named Muhammad. Muslims believe that fasting cleanses the body, and the practice reminds them of the suffering of the poor. Food is often shared with a poor family during Ramadan. At the end of the 30-day fast is Eid al-Fitr (Festival of Breaking the Fast), replete with feasting and celebration. Read more about Ramadan.
Daily Calendar for Sunday, March 10, 2024
The fourth Sunday of Lent was traditionally a break from the austere rigors of the season, and on that day boys living away from home, such as apprentices or students, were allowed to return home to visit their mothers. It was customary for them to bring a simnel—a highly spiced fruitcake—as a present. The visit was termed “going a-mothering,” and on this occasion the mother bestowed a blessing upon her child.
Question of the Day
Why aren’t there exactly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness on the spring and fall equinoxes?
On the equinoxes, the very center of the Sun sets just 12 hours after it rose. But the day begins when the upper edge of the Sun reaches the horizon (which happens a bit before the center rises), and it doesn’t end until the entire Sun has set. Not only that, but the Sun is actually visible when it is below the horizon, as Earth’s atmosphere refracts the Sun’s rays and bends them in an arc over the horizon.
Advice of the Day
Prune any tree limbs that have been damaged by ice and snow.
Home Hint of the Day
You can clean the starch off the bottom of an iron by making a paste of baking soda and a little water, rubbing it on the iron wih a soft cloth, and wiping it off with a clean cloth.
Word of the Day
Cornscateous Air
First used by the old almanac makers, this term signifies warm, damp air. Though it signals ideal climatic conditions for growing corn, it also poses a danger to those affected by asthma, pneumonia, and other respiratory problems.
Puzzle of the Day
Why are dudes no longer imported into this country from England?
Because a Yankee dude’ll do (Yankee doodle doo).
Born
- Ferdinand V (King of Aragon) –
- Angel de Saavedra (poet, dramatist) –
- Emily Pauline Johnson (Canadian writer, performer) –
- Lillian D. Wald (social worker) –
- Barry Fitzgerald (actor) –
- Bix Beiderbecke (jazz musician) –
- Victor Manuel Blanco (astronomer who helped build the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile) –
- Kenneth Burns (singer) –
- James Earl Ray (convicted of assassinating Martin Luther King Jr.) –
- Chuck Norris (actor) –
- David Rabe (playwright) –
- Lance Burton (magician) –
- Prince Edward (youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II) –
- Mike Timlin (baseball player) –
- Jon Hamm (actor) –
- Lyne Bessette (professional bicycle racer) –
- Shannon Miller (gymnast; Olympic gold medalist) –
- Robin Thicke (musician) –
- Carrie Underwood (singer) –
- Emily Osment (actress) –
Died
- Harriet Tubman (American abolitionist) –
- Zelda Fitzgerald (wife of F. Scott Fitzgerald) –
- Konstantin Chernenko (Soviet leader) –
- Lloyd Bridges (actor) –
- Danny Joe Brown (musician) –
- Corey Haim (actor) –
- Richard Wagamese (Ojibwe writer ) –
- Emilio Delgado (actor; played Luis on Sesame Street ) –
Events
- Thomas Jefferson became U.S. minister to France–
- Thomas Jefferson presented a paper on the megalonyx (which was later determined to be an extinct giant ground sloth)–
- U.S. national paper currency first issued–
- The first royal wedding took place at Windsor Castle in St. George’s chapel. Edward, Prince of Wales, married Alexandra, Princess of Denmark–
- Ulysses S. Grant became the Lt. Gen. of Union army in the Civil War–
- Alexander Graham Bell transmitted the first telephone message to his assistant saying, Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you.–
- Commissioner George Scott Railton and seven women officers officially began the work of the Salvation Army in the U.S.(Battery Park, N.Y.C.)–
- William Knox bowled first perfect 300 game in competition–
- A 6.4 earthquake killed 120 people and caused $50 million in damages, Long Beach, California–
- Mildred E. Gillars, who made wartime broadcasts for the Nazis under the name Axis Sally, was convicted of treason in Washington— she served 12 years in prison–
- Tennessee Williams’s play, Sweet Bird of Youth, opened on Broadway–
- James Earl Ray pleaded guilty to the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and was sentenced to 99 years in prison–
- U.S. Army Captain Ernest L. Medina was court-martialed on murder charges in connection with the My Lai incident of March 1968 (Vietnam War)–
- Uranus rings discovered–
- The Vatican declared its opposition to test tube fertilization, embryo transfer, and most other forms of scientific interference in procreation–
- A previously healthy 25-year old man from Virginia became the first known fatality in the U.S. linked to raccoon rabies–
Weather
- 5.12 inches of rain fell in Wilmington, North Carolina–
- Thirty-four degrees below zero F at International Falls, Minnesota–
- In Colebrook, New Hampshire, snow was 21.5 feet deep–