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With 2024 being a bissextile year, the query has been raised a couple of occasions about how and why we have now a February 29 on the calendar each 4 years. Trying again at bissextile year protection over the a long time within the Calgary Herald, we discovered the next creative take a look at the origins of bissextile year. The function was revealed nearly like a serial graphic novel over a couple of days within the Herald in 1966 — nearly six a long time in the past. On your studying pleasure, right here’s a take a look at the Frontiers of Science graphic function that explored the origins of Leap 12 months and a potential alternate resolution.
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Within the Nineteen Fifties, a proposal was despatched to the United Nations to undertake a brand new, common world calendar with 4 equal quarters. One of many massive advantages would have been the truth that all dates would have fallen on the identical day of the week yearly. It will have additionally meant we would have liked to have an additional day tucked onto the top of the calendar to make the entire thing make sense, however that day wouldn’t have had a date or weekday title, proponents stated. The plan by no means gained the traction that some hoped it will, because it was deemed to be too restrictive to mirror cultural and non secular variations around the globe.
Thus, we proceed to comply with the calendar we nonetheless have at this time. We expertise bissextile year each 4 years — besides in fact, for years which can be divisible by 100, until that yr can be divisible by 400. Blissful bissextile year!
To learn extra information and fables about bissextile year take a look at this story: It’s bissextile year! A glance again at leap years and the way the entire thing began.
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