International Day of Action for Rivers

The International Day of Action for Rivers observed on March 14, is a day of solidarity when people from all walks of life come together to declare that rivers are essential and deserve our protection. It highlights the importance of ensuring that communities have access to clean, free-flowing water and that everyone has the fundamental right to participate in decisions that affect their lives and their water. It is our collective responsibility to defend these rights and protect our rivers now more than ever.

"The International Day of Action Against Dams and For Rivers, Water, and Life was approved at the first International Meeting of People Impacted by Dams in March 1997 in Curitiba, Brazil," according to internationalrivers.org. On March 14, river experts from 20 different nations announced the "Day of Action for Rivers". The aim of the participants was to form a coalition against the degradation of ecologically sensitive water bodies, rivers and watersheds.

 

Stephen Hawking Death Anniversary

Stephen Hawking, who passed away on 14 March 2018, aged 76, was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author. Hawking is regarded as one of the most brilliant theoretical physicists in history. His work on the origins and structure of the universe, from the Big Bang to black holes, revolutionized the field, while his best-selling books have appealed to readers who may not have Hawking's scientific background. 

Constitution Day in Andorra

 

Observed in the Principality of Andorra on March 14 annually, Constitution Day is a public holiday that commemorates the constitutional referendum held on this day in Andorra on March 14, 1993. The first Constitution of Andorra was approved by 74.2% of voters in the country on this date and became the country’s first constitution.

This constitution contained 107 articles and included a universal declaration of human rights. Under this constitution, all people in Andorra are equal under the law, and it forbids not only torture and other cruel forms of punishment but also the death penalty as well.

World Kidney Day - 2nd Thursday in March

World Kidney Day is a global healthcare event celebrated on the 2^nd Thursday in March every year since 2006, intending to bring together the patients suffering from kidney diseases and promote awareness of “amazing kidneys” by educating the people about their role in maintaining health. This year 2024, World Kidney Day is on Thursday, 14 March.

On this day, various medical campaigns are conducted, such as

Systematic screening for all types of chronic kidney disease (especially patients suffering from diabetes and hypertension)

Circulation of preventive tips

Advocacy of kidney transplantation as a best-outcome option for kidney failure

1 in 10 people worldwide suffers from some degree of chronic kidney disease, as it can develop at any age, and various risk factors can accelerate it.

Genetically, people of South Asian geographic regions, i.e. people from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, have a higher risk of contracting chronic kidney disease, especially with increased rates of diabetes and hypertension. 

Karl Marx Death Anniversary

Karl Marx, who passed away on 14 March 1883, aged 64, was a German philosopher and revolutionary is of the most influential figures in modern human history.

In 1848 he published with Friedrich Engels "The Communist Manifesto" in Brussels describing how in the class struggle the workers could seize power from the elites. His many writings continued to build upon his ideas, most notably "Das Kapital" published in 1867, detailing his theory of capitalism and its self destructive tendencies.

As a result of Marx's ideas revolutionary socialist governments espousing Marxist concepts took power in a variety of countries in the 20th century, leading to the formation of states such as the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China.

Albert Einstein Birth Anniversary

Albert Einstein, born on 14 March 1879, was a German theoretical physicist, whose profound contributions to science made him one of the most renowned scientists in history. His theory of relativity and the famous equation E=mc^2 are landmarks in the field of physics.

Einstein’s pioneering work on the photoelectric effect earned him the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics and laid a key foundation for quantum theory. Notably, a poll conducted by Physics World named him the greatest physicist of all time.

Albert Einstein was born in 1879 in the German Empire. His parents, Hermann Einstein and Pauline Koch, were secular Ashkenazi Jews. The following year, the Einstein family relocated to Munich, where Hermann and his brother established an electrical equipment manufacturing company.

Einstein's formal education began at a Catholic elementary school and continued at the Luitpold Gymnasium. After his father’s business failed, in 1894 the Einsteins moved to Italy. His talent for mathematics and physics was evident from a young age, with the youth avidly self-studying in these subjects.

Completing his secondary schooling in Aarau, Switzerland, he renounced his German citizenship in 1896 and enrolled at the Swiss Federal Polytechnic School in Zurich. It was there that he met his future wife, Mileva Marić. After graduating in 1900, he gained Swiss citizenship the following year.

Einstein commenced his professional career in 1902 when he took up a job at the Swiss Patent Office in Bern. While working here, he simultaneously conducted his own research. This dual engagement bore fruit in 1905 when he published four influential papers in the journal Annalen der Physik.

These papers, which included expositions on the photoelectric effect, Brownian motion, special relativity, and mass-energy equivalence, had a monumental impact on modern physics. Building on this success, in 1915, Einstein formulated the general theory of relativity, integrating gravitation with the principles of mechanics.

With a move to Berlin in 1914 to join the Prussian Academy of Sciences and the Humboldt University, he solidified his academic standing. The rise of Adolf Hitler in 1933, however, prompted Einstein, a Jewish intellectual, to remain in the United States during a visit. By 1940, he had accepted American citizenship.

Despite his achievements, later in his career Einstein pursued a unified field theory without success and expressed his dissatisfaction with the inherent randomness of quantum mechanics. During this period he frequently clashed with Niels Bohr over the Copenhagen interpretation, famously claiming that God "does not throw dice."

In his personal life, Einstein had various complex relationships. He married Mileva Marić in 1903, with whom he had two sons, but they divorced in 1919. That same year, he married his cousin Elsa Löwenthal, and they stayed married until her death in 1936. His passion for music, especially for Mozart's compositions, was a significant part of his life.

 

Save a Spider Day - USA

Save a Spider Day is celebrated on March 14 annually in the U.S. in part to reduce arachnophobia, a fear of spiders, and to conserve spiders. People are usually afraid of spiders, mostly due to their bites which are considered deadly. Although most of the fear is largely unfounded and exaggerated, spiders are incredibly useful to humans as they work as effective pest control among other things. On this day, we look at the many reasons why we should rather trap a spider in a jar and take it outside than kill it. Let us spin webs about spiders and why they should be saved.

National Learn About Butterflies Day - USA

 

March 14 is National Learn about Butterflies Day: a day dedicated to exploring the most familiar and admirable insect. Butterflies occur on every continent except Antarctica, and are important pollinators in our ecosystems. Take time to observe our fluttering friends as they take to the skies in early spring. Monarch butterflies are the only migratory butterflies, and are noteworthy in their impressive flight distances from Mexico to the northern United States and Canada.

 

Butterflies are closely related to moths, but differ in a few ways. Butterflies are more active in the daytime, generally being brighter in colour than moths.  Butterfly wings stand vertically when resting. The wings of butterflies and moths are covered with microscopic scales that appear as a powder to the naked eye, and grant neutral or iridescent colours to the wings.

 

Butterflies have four stages of their life cycle beginning with an egg that hatches into a caterpillar. The caterpillar spends its days eating in preparation to build itself a chrysalis within which it undergoes metamorphosis. In the chrysalis, the caterpillar’s body cells completely break down to rebuild itself into the winged butterfly.

The best way to learn more about these creatures is to observe them. Plant a native wildflower garden providing food and a habitat for them, grab a lawn chair, and watch as the butterflies flutter by.