Dog Day Challenge
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Dog Day Challenge
| Wed, 08-01-2007 - 5:49pm |
The Dog Days of Summer
Everyone knows that the “dog days of summer” occur during the hottest and muggiest part of the season. Webster defines “dog days” as...
1 : the period between early July and early September when the hot sultry weather of summer usually occurs in the northern hemisphere
2 : a period of stagnation or inactivity
But where does the term come from? Why do we call the hot, sultry days of summer “dog days?”
In ancient times, when the night sky was unobscured by artificial lights and smog, different groups of peoples in different parts of the world drew images in the sky by “connecting the dots” of stars. The images drawn were dependent upon the culture: The Chinese saw different images than the Native Americans, who saw different pictures than the Europeans. These star pictures are now called constellations, and the constellations that are now mapped out in the sky come from our European ancestors.
They saw images of bears, (Ursa Major and Ursa Minor), twins, (Gemini), a bull, (Taurus), and others, including dogs, (Canis Major and Canis Minor).
The brightest of the stars in Canis Major (the big dog) is Sirius, which also happens to be the brightest star in the night sky. In fact, it is so bright that the ancient Romans thought that the earth received heat from it. Look for it in the southern sky (viewed from northern latitudes) during January.
In the summer, however, Sirius, the “dog star,” rises and sets with the sun. During late July Sirius is in conjunction with the sun, and the ancients believed that its heat added to the heat of the sun, creating a stretch of hot and sultry weather. They named this period of time, from 20 days before the conjunction to 20 days after, “dog days” after the dog star.
The conjunction of Sirius with the sun varies somewhat with latitude. And the “precession of the equinoxes” (a gradual drifting of the constellations over time) means that the constellations today are not in exactly the same place in the sky as they were in ancient Rome. Today, dog days occur during the period between July 3 and August 11. Although it is certainly the warmest period of the summer, the heat is not due to the added radiation from a far-away star, regardless of its brightness. No, the heat of summer is a direct result of the earth's tilt.Ok, a period of stagnation applies to me right now. As much as

Sure, I'm game! I need to work on food and exercise. I keep thinking I'll exercise more regularly, but it doesn't happen. I think I'll eat better, then I'm late this morning and had an cranberry orange scone on the run and lunch they catered, which was chicken salad (lots of mayo), quiche Lorraine, mixed fruit, and peanut butter pie!! At least I didn't make the chicken salad into a sandwich or use salad dressing. I put the chicken on plain lettuce, still...
Very interesting info. about Dog Days. Thanks!
~~Rhonda~~
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Count me in too Patty,
I am committing to 10 days of exercise.
You Were Born An Original... Don't Die A Copy
You can count me in, too, Patty.
"Make Choices that bring you joy" cl-Patty
Food..need to work on food.
Good information on Dog Days... I'm in for the challenge... 10 days of good eatting and 10 days of doing some form of exercise for at least 30 minutes...
READY SET GO!!!!
Deb/MN
Patty,
I'm in ... it is all about healthy eating and
Karen
Karen, I had to laugh when I saw the ice cream sandwich. You usually have such healthy
Miss P
Nancy/midlifegal
"Make Choices that bring you joy" cl-Patty
I had a pms binge Wed. I knew I was eating for all the wrong reasons
Miss P
Cool info on the dog days.
Lori