“NATIONAL YELLOW PIG DAY” | Grandma’s Stories

Jul 17th “NATIONAL YELLOW PIG DAY”

NATIONAL YELLOW PIG DAY – July 17

National Yellow Pig Day on July 17th honors the unique attributes of the number 17 and its significance to mathematics.

If you don’t think the number 17 plays any role in our lives, consider these facts:

The number 17 is a premium number in the arena of prime numbers. Add the first four prime numbers together, and 17 is their sum.
The average school bus weighs 17 tons with passengers inside.
Each of the following words has 17 letters:
- interdisciplinary
- telecommunication
- misinterpretation
- commercialization
- electrophotometer
The atomic number of chlorine is 17.
Pebble Beach has a specific road known as the 17 Mile Drive along the Monterey Peninsula in California. However, the exact length of the road is 16.78 miles.
The 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gave the citizens of the United States the right to elect their senators by popular vote. Before the states ratified the amendment on April 8, 1913, each states’ legislature would elect the senators to Congress.

Look for the not so random occurrence of the number 17. Look! Yellow pig!

HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalYellowPigDay

Brush up on your calculus and round up your yellow pigs. Look for the number 17. It’s everywhere! We even have more ideas to help you celebrate:

See how many times you find the number 17 in the newspaper on July 17.
Do 17 jumping jacks.
Order a round of drinks for 17 people (you big spender, you).
Eat 17 spoonfuls of Peach Ice Cream.
Buy 17 lottery tickets.
Get 17 tattoos a number 17 tattoo.

While you’re celebrating, be sure to post on social media using #NationalYellowPigDay.

NATIONAL YELLOW PIG DAY HISTORY

Our research found National Pig Day originates sometime during the early 1960s. Two mathematicians by the name of Michael Spivak and David Kelly were analyzing the random properties of the number 17 and a mysterious yellow pig. It seems the process became excessive and professional. Kelly gave lectures and taught classes around Yellow Pig, and Spivak made publications in several mathematics texts. While not based upon it, Spivak does subtly reference the number 17 and Yellow Pig.