Friday, Figs, Freyja, and the Letter "N"

Friday is what keeps Thursday from running into Saturday. It's either the fifth or sixth day of the week, or the last day of the work week, or the day that isn't Labor Day in the United States: ever.

It's named after Venus, or would be if English wasn't a Germanic language. Folks called it Frīġedæġ when English was Old English - but oddly enough it's not called New English now. The language, that is: not the day. That's Friday.

The Lemming had something in mind: not figs, but sort of like that.

Right! Frīġedæġ means the "day of Frigg," which doesn't have anything to do with figs. Frigg is supposed to be the Old English goddess Frige, sort of like the Norse Freyja, or maybe not.

And none of them have anything to do with figs. Unless maybe they'd have liked Fig Newtons, which weren't invented yet. On the other hand, Fig Newtons are made by the Nabisco company, "Newton," "Nabisco," and "Norse" all start with "N" - and there isn't a single "N" in Frigg, Freyja, Friday, or Saturday either.

And if that isn't suspicious, the Lemming doesn't know conspiracy theories.

Most of this came from the Wikipedia page about Friday, except for what happened after the Lemming stayed up too late.

Posts that have nothing much to do with this one:

• "The Grand Panjandrum"
  (April 26, 2013)
• "Amazing, A-Maze-ing, A-Maize-ing, and a Giddy Lemming"
  (May 18, 2012)
• "Planet X, NASA, and the Lizard People From Outer Space"
  (January 2, 2012)
• "Flabbergasted: What's a Flabber, and How Does One Gast It?"
  (October 21, 2011)
• "Nuclear Weapons, Space Aliens, Conspiracy Theories, and Getting a Grip"
  (September 24, 2010)

Amazing, A-Maze-ing, A-Maize-ing, and a Giddy Lemming

"World's Largest Maze"
Dole Plantation, , Hawaii

"...In 2008, Dole Plantation's giant Pineapple Garden Maze was declared the world's largest maze. The maze stretches over three acres and includes nearly two and one-half miles of paths crafted from 14,000 colorful Hawaiian plants. ... one of only a handful of permanent botanical mazes in America. The fastest finishers win a prize and enter into the history of Dole Plantation, with their names recorded on a sign at the maze's entrance...."

The folks running Dole's Pineapple Garden Maze set eight stations inside, which the Lemming gathers must be found and marked before emerging from the maze. That's a pretty good idea: otherwise, someone might get a bearing on the direction of the exit, and barrel straight toward it, right through the hedges. Of course, some of those "colorful Hawaiian plants" probably have thorns, so maybe that wouldn't be such a good idea.


(Dole pineapple maze on Oahu (February 12, 2008) ErgoSum88, via Wikipedia, used w/o permission)

Eight-Acre Corn Maze

"Corn Maze"
Denver Botanic Gardens

"We invite you to get lost at this year’s Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield's 8-acre Corn Maze.

"Navigate the twists and turns of the newly designed cornfield this fall at Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield's Corn Maze.

"Wind your way through acres of corn, view the design from two 15-foot tall illuminated bridges that overlook...."

Since "corn" is what folks in this part of the world call "maize," the Lemming thinks that names line "Corn Maze" are hilarious. Your experience may vary.

Hedge Mazes Predate Harry Potter

"Hampton Court Maze"

"...'It is the most famous Maze in the history of the world, and immeasurably the one most visited.'
(Ernest Law, 1926)

"The maze at Hampton Court was designed by George London and Henry Wise and commissioned around 1700 by William III. Originally planted using hornbeam and later replanted using yew, the Hampton Court maze covers a third of an acre, is trapezoid in shape and is the UK's oldest surviving hedge maze.

"The maze itself is referred to as a multicursal or puzzle maze and is known for confusing and intriguing visitors with its many twists, turns and dead ends. Before the creation of the Hampton Court maze, unicursal or single path mazes were the most popular form of maze in the UK. Unlike the puzzle maze, the single path maze has one path, usually in a spiral shape, winding to a centre point...."

Outdoor mazes were around for about three centuries before "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" hit the shelves: but it's still a rousing story. And another topic.

Ashcombe Maze

"Hedge Maze"
Ashcombe Maze and Lavender Gardens

"Australia's oldest and most famous traditional Hedge Maze now standing over 3 metres high & 2 metres thick. With four mosaic flags to find in each half of the hedge maze, the hundreds of metres of winding paths take you through the South Maze into the Centre Garden before you tackle the North Maze. While not overly complicated it does take a little while to make your way through (some people take longer than others!) The North Maze is a totally different layout to the South Maze, so any tricks you worked out while making your way through the first part, mean absolutely nothing in the other!

"The Ashcombe Hedge Maze was planted in the 1970’s with more than 1000 Cypress (Cupressus macrocarpa) plants. They are planted at around 1 metre intervals, and each year the hedge gets a bit bigger (and the paths get a bit narrower!) Being a drought tolerant plant the hedge only needs irrigation in extreme heat waves. It now stands more than 3m high and 2m thick.

"We do not use string lines or straight edges to trim our hedge and the overall effect is very organic...."

That first photo gives a pretty good idea of how complicated and organic-looking the Ashcombe Maze is: but it's hard to tell just how big the thing is. Judging by this one, nobody's going to be looking over the tops of this maze. Not without a periscope. Assuming that's a normal-size human being. Come to think of it, we can't see the creature's face.

Which brings up an interesting point. Do the folks running these mazes keep track of how many people go in - and come out? And what do they do if the "in" and "out" count doesn't match?

What if more people came out of the maze, than went in?

Then there's this story about an absent-minded dude named Theseus.

Vaguely-related posts:

• "Flabbergasted: What's a Flabber, and How Does One Gast It?"
  (October 21, 2011)
• "A Cause for Our Time: Campaign for Real Gravy"
  (March 7, 2011)
• "Sri Lanka, Hawaii: World Heritage Sites and People"
  (August 1, 2010)
• "Dumbo Octopus: Two Eyes, Eight Tentacles, and Wings"
  (February 1, 2010)
• "Volcanoes in Hawaii, Alaska: Science and Tourism"
  (June 7, 2009)

The Moon, Cheese, Aristotle, and What We've Known

"Our Changing View of the Moon"
Space.com (October 5, 2009)

"The moon, so bright and large in the sky compared to other celestial objects, has captured the attention of humans at least since the dawn of consciousness. Over these eras, mankind's view of the moon has evolved, from the more mystical image of it as a god, to the thought it was covered in seas and vegetation. Most recently, it's been viewed as a dry and dusty wasteland.

"Recent findings of water on the lunar surface could spur yet another shift in the way we see our orbiting companion.

"The moon appears in early art thousands of years ago, showing that early man was as enthralled by its eerie glow as later philosophers and scientists.

"The moon, like the sun and the five planets visible to the naked eye, was wrapped into the mythology of many ancient cultures, and considered a deity by some — to the Egyptians it was Thoth, to the Greeks, Artemis, and to the Hindus, Chandra...."

The idea that there might be water, and other easily-evaporated substances, near the moon's surface made sense: and was taken fairly seriously up until the moon rocks were analyzed. One of the models showed how water, for example, could be chemically bound in the sort of rock the moon seemed to be made of.

Now, going back to the moon with another set of instruments - and about 40 years to think about what to look for - we've found water. The question now is: how much?

I appreciated the way Space.com walks the reader through the last two-dozen (roughly) centuries of serious consideration of what the mooon's like.

"...Since Aristotle, the prevailing school of thought held that the heavens were more perfect than the Earth and therefore all celestial bodies, including the moon, were perfectly smooth spheres...."

There's no question that Aristotle was a smart man. He had a lot on the ball. On the other hand, I wonder if he ever looked, hard, at the moon. With middling-fair vision, it's hard to miss those irregular blotches on the 'perfectly smooth sphere' up in the sky.

It could be a case of love of an attractive idea trumping evidence. Or, maybe Aristotle was near-sighted. Or, something else. Reflections, maybe? A perfectly smooth surface would, presumably, be a pretty good mirror - Never mind what a spherical mirror would do to the image it reflects.

The article has its light side too: including this explanation for 'the moon is made of (green) cheese:

"...No astronomers ever believed the notion that has entered pop culture that the moon is made of green cheese. The phrase comes from an old proverb that makes fun of the overly-credulous, namely those that see the reflection of the moon in the water and think it is a wheel of green (or young) cheese. ..."

There's probably a better, more comprehensive, easier-to-read summary of what we've known about the moon over the millennia - but this is a pretty good one.

Related posts:

• "Water, Water Everywhere - Even on the Moon - Again"
  (September 28, 2009)
• "Water, Water Everywhere - Even on the Moon"
  (September 24, 2009)
• "Working on the Moon? Pack a Blanket"
  (May 26, 2009)
• "R & D & Rovers: Back to the Moon and Mars"
  (May 18, 2009)
• "Hordes of Italian Robots on the Moon: It Could Happen"
  (May 14, 2009)
• "Spaceship to the Moon: This One's from India"
  (October 22, 2008)
• "How Planets Formed - Current Ideas"
  (May 18, 2008)

The Story of the Other Jason

"The myth of Jason, the Argonauts and the Golden Fleece."
Mythweb (1997)

"The Early Years

"Jason was the son of the lawful king of Iolcus, but his uncle Pelias had usurped the throne. Pelias lived in constant fear of losing what he had taken so unjustly. He kept Jason's father...."

Sounds like a rather ordinary retelling of the old story about Jason and the Argonauts.

Mythweb's version of the story follows the ancient Greek line, but Joel Skidmore had a some fun here and there with the telling of the tale:

"...Oh, and there was one trifling detail of which Jason should be aware. These bulls were a bit unusual in that their feet were made of brass sharp enough to rip open a man from gullet to gizzard. And then of course there was the matter of their bad breath...."

You might like Mark Fiore's illustrations, too.

I wouldn't use this was a reference for your term paper, but it's fun to read (IMO), and far from the most painful way of getting acquainted with Jason and company.