Volume 4 Issue 5 by old men in charge of calendars and times around the world? I always find the sol- stices to be magical times of year and look forward to ei- ther the longest or shortest days as they are the bringers of seasons, darkness and light. Depending on how the calendar falls, the December sol- stice occurs annually on a day between December 20 and 23. This year, the December solstice will occur at 05:30 UTC (12:30 a.m. EST) on December 22, 2011. While the southern hemisphere is experiencing the long days of sum- mer, the northern hemisphere will have the “winter sol- stice” – often called the shortest day of the year. So, why do we call it the shortest day of the year for the win- ter solstice and long- est day for the sol- stice in the summer? Do we lose some time off the clock in winter, and in sum- mer do we miracu- lously gain time on the clock in a bizarre cycle that is imposed Winter Solstice – The Shortest day of the Year What do we mean by the shortest day? The shortest day, winter solstice and midwinter are the colloquial terms used to describe the 24 hours around an annual astronomical event which occurs around the 22nd December. The shortest day marks the point when the days start to get longer and the nights shorter, and has profound cultural mean- ing around the world and throughout history. The cultural significance var- ies, but generally refers to a time of rebirth and renewal and is celebrated with festivals and rituals. The opposite of the win- ter solstice is the summer solstice and occurs around the 22nd June, and marks the point when the days are long- est and nights shortest. Special points of interest: Winter Sol- stice – The Shortest day of the Year What do we mean by the shortest day? Merry Christmas S. Ramanu- jan Dec 2013 Article by : Kanti Joshi & Sweta Patel
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Volume 4 Issue 5
by old men in charge
of calendars and
times around the world?
I always find the sol-
stices to be magical
times of year and
look forward to ei-
ther the longest or
shortest days as they
are the bringers of
seasons, darkness
a n d l i g h t .
Depending on how
the calendar falls,
the December sol-
stice occurs annually
on a day between
December 20 and
23. This year, the
December solstice
will occur at 05:30
UTC (12:30 a.m.
EST) on December
22, 2011. While the
southern hemisphere
is experiencing the
long days of sum-
mer, the northern
hemisphere will
have the “winter sol-
stice” – often called
the shortest day of
the year.
So, why do we call it
the shortest day of
the year for the win-
ter solstice and long-
est day for the sol-
stice in the summer?
Do we lose some
time off the clock in
winter, and in sum-
mer do we miracu-
lously gain time on
the clock in a bizarre
cycle that is imposed
Winter Solstice – The Shortest day of the Year
What do we mean by the shortest day?
The shortest day, winter
solstice and midwinter
are the colloquial terms
used to describe the 24
hours around an annual
astronomical event
which occurs around the
22nd December. The
shortest day marks the
point when the days start
to get longer and the
nights shorter, and has
profound cultural mean-
ing around the world and
throughout history. The
cultural significance var-
ies, but generally refers
to a time of rebirth and
renewal and is celebrated
with festivals and rituals.
The opposite of the win-
ter solstice is the summer
solstice and occurs
around the 22nd June,
and marks the point
when the days are long-
est and nights shortest.
Special points of
interest:
Winter Sol-
stice – The
Shortest day
of the Year
What do we
mean by the
shortest day?
Merry
Christmas
S. Ramanu-
jan
Dec 2013
Article by :
Kanti Joshi & Sweta Patel
Page 2
Volume 4 Issue 5
Submitted by : Vinod Suthar
Christmas (Old English: Crīstesmæsse, meaning "Christ's Mass") is an annual commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ and a widely observed cul-tural holiday, celebrated generally on December 25 by mil-lions of peoplearound the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, it closes the Advent season and initiates thetwelve days of Christmastide, which ends after the twelfth night. Christmas is a civil holiday in many of the world's nations, is celebrated by an increasing num-ber of non-Christians, and is an integral part of theChristmas and holiday season.
While the birth year of Jesus is estimated among modern historians to have been between 7 and 2 BC, the exact month and day of his birth are unknown. His birth is mentioned in two of the four canonical gospels. By the early-to-mid 4th century, the Western Christian Church had placed Christmas on December 25, a date later adopted in the East, although some churches cele-brate on the December 25 of the older Julian calendar, which corresponds to January in the modern-day Gregorian calendar. The date of Christmas may have initially been chosen to correspond with the day exactly nine months after early Christians believed Jesus to have been conceived, or with one or more ancient polytheis-tic festivals that occurred near southern solstice (i.e., the Roman winter solstice); a further solar connection has been suggested because of a biblical verse identifying Je-sus as the "Sun of righteousness".
The celebratory customs associated in various countries with Christmas have a mix of pre-Christian, Christian, and secular themes and ori-gins. Popular modern customs of the holiday include gift giving, Christmas music andcaroling, an exchange of Christmas cards, church celebrations, a special meal, and the display of various Christmas decorations, includ-ing Christmas trees, Christmas lights, nativity scenes, garlands, wreaths, mistletoe, and holly. In addi-tion, several closely related and often interchangeable fig-ures, known as Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, and Christkind, are associated with bringing gifts to children during the Christmas season and have their own body of traditions and lore. Because gift-giving and many other aspects of the Christmas festival involve heightened economic activity among both Christians and non-Christians, the holiday has become a significant event and a key sales period for retailers and businesses. The economic impact of Christmas is a factor that has grown steadily over the past few centuries in many regions of the world.
Born 22 December 1887 Erode, Madras Presidency (nowTamil Nadu)
Died 26 April 1920 (aged 32) Chetput, Madras, Madras Presi-dency (now Tamil Nadu)
Residence Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu
Nationality Indian
Fields Mathematics
Alma mater Government Arts College Pachaiyappa's College
Academic advi-
sors G. H. Hardy J. E. Littlewood
Known for Landau–Ramanujan constant Mock theta functions Ramanujan conjecture Ramanujan prime Ramanujan–Soldner constant Ramanujan theta function Ramanujan's sum Rogers–Ramanujan identities Ramanujan's master theorem
Influences G. H. Hardy
Signature
Srinivasa Ramanujan
FRS (pronunciation (help·info)) (22
December 1887 – 26 April 1920) was an
Indian mathematician andautodidact who,
with almost no formal training in pure
mathematics, made extraordinary contribu-
tions to mathematical analysis,number the-
ory, infinite series, and continued fractions.
Living in India with no access to the larger
mathematical community, which was cen-
tred in Europe at the time, Ramanujan de-
veloped his own mathematical research in
isolation. As a result, he rediscovered
known theorems in addition to producing
new work. Ramanujan was said to be a
natural genius by the English mathemati-
cian G. H. Hardy, in the same league as
mathematicians such
as Euler and Gauss. He died at the age of
32.
Ramanujan was born at Erode, Madras Presi-
dency (now Tamil Nadu) in a Tamil Brahmin family
of Thenkalai Iyengar sect.His introduction to for-
mal mathematics began at age 10. He demonstrated a natural
ability, and was given books on ad-
vancedtrigonometry written by S. L. Loney that he mastered
by the age of 12; he even discovered theorems of his own, and
re-discovered Euler's identity independently. He demonstrated
unusual mathematical skills at school, winning accolades and
awards. By 17, Ramanujan had conducted his own mathe-
matical research on Bernoulli numbers and the Euler–