FYI December 17, 2019

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On This Day

497 BC – The first Saturnalia festival was celebrated in ancient Rome.
Saturnalia was an ancient Roman festival in honour of the god Saturn, held on 17 December of the Julian calendar and later expanded with festivities through to 23 December. The holiday was celebrated with a sacrifice at the Temple of Saturn, in the Roman Forum, and a public banquet, followed by private gift-giving, continual partying, and a carnival atmosphere that overturned Roman social norms: gambling was permitted, and masters provided table service for their slaves as it was seen as a time of liberty for both slaves and freedmen alike.[1] A common custom was the election of a “King of the Saturnalia”, who would give orders to people, which were to be followed and preside over the merrymaking. The gifts exchanged were usually gag gifts or small figurines made of wax or pottery known as sigillaria. The poet Catullus called it “the best of days”.[2]

Saturnalia was the Roman equivalent to the earlier Greek holiday of Kronia, which was celebrated during the Attic month of Hekatombaion in late midsummer. It held theological importance for some Romans, who saw it as a restoration of the ancient Golden Age, when the world was ruled by Saturn. The Neoplatonist philosopher Porphyry interpreted the freedom associated with Saturnalia as symbolizing the “freeing of souls into immortality”. Saturnalia may have influenced some of the customs associated with later celebrations in western Europe occurring in midwinter, particularly traditions associated with Christmas, the Feast of the Holy Innocents, and Epiphany. In particular, the historical western European Christmas custom of electing a “Lord of Misrule” may have its roots in Saturnalia celebrations.

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Born On This Day

1900 – Mary Cartwright, English mathematician and academic, one of the first people to analyze a dynamical system with chaos (d. 1998)
Dame Mary Lucy Cartwright, DBE, FRS, FRSE (17 December 1900 – 3 April 1998)[1] was a British mathematician.

With J. E. Littlewood Cartwright was one of the first mathematicians to study what would later become known as chaos theory.[2] She saw many solutions to a problem she was studying and this would later be seen as an example of the butterfly effect.

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FYI

The Rural Blog: Feral hogs spreading north; could threaten crops and more; Webinar tomorrow at 1 ET on USDA rural broadband funds and more->
 
 
 
 
By Nicole Winfield, AP News: Pope removes shroud of secrecy from clergy sex abuse cases
 
 
 
 
By Kevin Polowy, Yahoo Entertainment: Let’s celebrate ‘The Simpsons’ at 30 with Nancy Cartwright burning through all her voices on the show

 
 
 
 
By Hanneke Weitering – Space.com Associate Editor: How to Watch Boeing’s 1st Starliner Test Flight to the Space Station Online

 
 
 
 

Kathryn’s Report: Loss of Visual Reference: Cessna U206A Super Skywagon, N8070Z; accident occurred September 08, 2018 near Willow Airport (UUO), Alaska and more ->
 
 
 
 

Open Culture: “The Philosophy of “Flow”: A Brief Introduction to Taoism; Discover the Stendhal Syndrome: The Condition Where People Faint, or Feel Totally Overwhelmed, in the Presence of Great Art; Seven Videos Explain How Edward Hopper’s Paintings Expressed American Loneliness and Alienation and more ->
 
 
 
 
Today’s email was written by Annalisa Merelli, edited by Whet Moser, and produced by Tori Smith. Quartz Obsession: Micronations: What even is a country anyway?
 
 
 
 
By Cari Beauchamp Vanity Fair: The Lost History of L.A.’s Women-Only Hollywood Studio Club: Marilyn Monroe, Kim Novak, Ayn Rand, and Rita Moreno were part of a sorority of stars at what amounted to a safe haven for aspiring celebrities.
 
 
 
 
The Passive Voice: A Ray of Japanese Sunlight on China’s Bestseller List and more->
 
 
 
 

Ideas

By Cherzer:Festive Multi-Way Brooch Scarf Accessory
 
 
By KarenSmithDesigns: Reusable Fabric Gift Bag
 
 

Recipes

A Taste of Alaska: Cheeseburger Soup