34

March 19, 1977 was a long time ago. I'm afraid to grow old, but I like the idea that with each year's unique experiences, challenges, triumphs, and tragedies, maybe I'm a little more grown up and a bit wiser each year. So, at best, I'd say I'm conflicted about this aging business. But rather than stray into these boring philosophical conversations with myself (ample opportunity for that in future posts), how about some fun trivial pursuit instead?

On this day in history*: March 19
American Revolution: Thomas McKean is born, 1734
Literary: Balzac botches a publicity stunt, 1842
Old West: Artist Charlie Russell born, 1864
Civil War: Battle of Bentonville, North Carolina, 1865
World War I: First U.S. air-combat mission begins, 1916
General Interest: Nevada legalizes gambling, 1931
World War II: General Fromm executed for plot against Hitler, 1945
Cold War: East Germany approves new constitution, 1949
Hollywood: First Academy Awards telecast on NBC, 1953
Hollywood: DeMille wins Oscar, 1953
Music: Elvis Presley puts a down payment on Graceland, 1957
Sports: Texas Western defeats Kentucky in NCAA finals, 1966
Vietnam War: Seoul agrees to send additional troops, 1966
Vietnam War: National emergency declared in Cambodia, 1970
Disaster: Peruvian town wiped out, 1971
Miracle: Susannah Thomas born in Provo, Utah, 1977
Crime: Bodies found in Yosemite serial killer case, 1999
Presidential: Bush announces the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003
Automotive: Maverick auto exec John DeLorean dies, 2005
*stolen from the History Channel at history.com

The meaning of 34**
34 (thirty-four) is the natural number following 33 and preceding 35.

In mathematics
34 is the ninth distinct semiprime and has four divisors including unity and itself. Its neighbors, 33 and 35 also are distinct semiprimes having four divisors each, and 34 is the smallest number to be surrounded by numbers with the same number of divisors as it has. It is also in the first cluster of three distinct semiprimes, being within; 33,34,35, the next such cluster of semiprimes is; 85,86,87.

It is the ninth Fibonacci number and a companion Pell number. Since it is an odd-indexed Fibonacci number, 34 is a Markov number, appearing in solutions with other Fibonacci numbers, such as (1, 13, 34), (1, 34, 89), etc.

This number is the magic constant of a 4 by 4 normal magic square


Thirty-four is a heptagonal number

It has the aliquot sum, 20, in the following descending sequence 34,20,22,14,10,8,7,1. and it is the 6th composite member of the 7-aliquot tree.

There is no answer to the equation ?(x) = 34, making 34 a nontotient. Nor is there an answer to the equation x - ?(x) = 34, making 34 a noncototient.

In science
The atomic number of selenium

Messier object M34, a magnitude 6.0 open cluster in the constellation Perseus

The New General Catalogue object NGC 34, a peculiar galaxy in the constellation Cetus

The Saros number of the solar eclipse series which began on 1917 BC August and ended on 384 BC February. The duration of Saros series 34 was 1532.5 years, and it contained 86 solar eclipses. The Saros number of the lunar eclipse series which began on 1633 BC May and ended on 335 BC June. The duration of Saros series 34 was 1298.1 years, and it contained 73 lunar eclipses.

In sports
In baseball:
The number has been retired by the following teams:
The Minnesota Twins in honor of Kirby Puckett.
The Houston Astros and Texas Rangers in honor of Nolan Ryan.
The Oakland Athletics and Milwaukee Brewers in honor of Rollie Fingers.

In basketball:
The number retired by the Houston Rockets in honor of its most famous wearer, Hakeem Olajuwon.

In American football:
The number retired by the Chicago Bears in honor of Walter Payton.
The number retired by the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans in honor of Earl Campbell.

In other fields
The traffic code of Istanbul, Turkey

Rule 34 of the Internet, a meme which states that "If it exists, there is porn of it. No exceptions."

Rule 34, a novel by Charles Stross due July 2011[3]

"#34", a song by the Dave Matthews Band

34 Skidoo, the 1970s magic square puzzle

In the title of the 1947 movie Miracle on 34th Street, remade in 1994

The number of the French department Hérault

+34 is the code for international direct-dial phone calls to Spain

The lucky number of Victor Pelevin's protagonist Stepan Mikhailov in the novel Numbers, published as part of DTT(NN) [Dialectics in Times of Transition (from Nowhere into Nothing)]

Request for production, Rule 34 of the U.S. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Historical years 34 A.D., 34 B.C., 1934, 2034, etc.

ME! (The more I say it, the more I'll get used to it :) )
**Stolen from Wikipedia at wikipedia.org