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Groundhog day question...

by TimothyW
22 replies
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Ok, if Punxatawney Phil sees his shadow, it means 6 more weeks of winter.

But... is that 6 more weeks instead of 3 more weeks
- or 6 more weeks instead of 8 more weeks?

-- TW
  • Profile picture of the author Kurt
    PP is a fraud. His actual record is so bad, he could't pick his own mother out of a line up.

    So, history shows whatever Phil picks, the opposite will happen.
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  • Profile picture of the author JimDucharme
    Wireton Willy (The Canadian version) has a pretty good record. Well except for that year they went to check on him and he was dead in his borough. That's what caused global warming -- the death of Willy.

    Regards,
    jim
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      P-Phil is a simple little furball. He's not a weather-animal by choice so don't over complicate it. If the resulting prediction is six weeks - he means six weeks. Of course, he has no idea what a 'week' is....
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      • Profile picture of the author tagiscom
        Why do l feel a Bill Murray movie coming on???


        Shane
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      • Profile picture of the author JimDucharme
        Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

        P-Phil is a simple little furball. He's not a weather-animal by choice so don't over complicate it. If the resulting prediction is six weeks - he means six weeks. Of course, he has no idea what a 'week' is....
        Don't kid yourself Kay. Rodents rule our lives. It's all in the matrix .

        Regards,
        jim
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        • Profile picture of the author Kay King
          Now you've done it! P-Phil may see that as an insult - and winter will never end!!!! We'll be lost in the damned matrix.
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        • Profile picture of the author seasoned
          Originally Posted by JimDucharme View Post

          Don't kid yourself Kay. Rodents rule our lives. It's all in the matrix .

          Regards,
          jim
          NO! NOT all rodents! JUST MICE!

          Mice[edit]
          From wikipedias races as defined in HGTTG

          Mice are the physical protrusions into our dimension of a race of hyperintelligent pan-dimensional beings who commissioned construction of the Earth to find the Question to the Ultimate Answer of Life, the Universe, and Everything. As such, they are the most intelligent life form on that planet, contrary to what humans think.
          In their home dimension, a popular sport is Brockian Ultra-Cricket, a horribly violent game which involves hitting people for no readily apparent reason and then running away, before apologising from some distance - often through a megaphone. However, it is completely unrelated except in name to the Earth sport of cricket.
          HOW ABOUT THAT! They eve have a "polite" version of BLACKOUT!

          Steve
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          • Profile picture of the author Paul Myers
            But... is that 6 more weeks instead of 3 more weeks
            - or 6 more weeks instead of 8 more weeks?
            Phil's predictions are supposed to tell how severe the remaining winter weather will be, and if we can expect an early spring.

            When he's right, they treat him like a king.



            When he's wrong, not so much...



            If you ever get to Punxsutawney, I recommend stopping for breakfast at Punxsy Phil's. The food is good, and they sell Groundhog's Day hot sauce.

            Oh yeah... Phil says "6 more weeks!"
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          • Profile picture of the author JimDucharme
            [QUOTE=seasoned;8921532]NO! NOT all rodents! JUST MICE!

            God you're right! I hate those freaking white mice!

            Regards,
            jim
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            • Profile picture of the author Kay King
              I always thought Phil was just a jokester - giving silly humans something to complain about. Just because he knows when winter will end doesn't mean he'll tell you the truth.
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  • Profile picture of the author TimothyW
    Thanks but no one has said whether 6 more weeks = "early spring,"
    or *not* 6 more weeks = "early spring."
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    • Profile picture of the author Paul Myers
      Originally Posted by TimothyW View Post

      Thanks but no one has said whether 6 more weeks = "early spring," or *not* 6 more weeks = "early spring."
      You're looking for precise scientific answers from a tradition that involves a bunch of old guys in tuxedos and top hats hoisting a woodchuck into the air at a place called Gobbler's Knob?

      Theoretically, 6 more weeks means "not early." You have to keep in mind, though, that Punxsy is farm country. They aren't referring to a single day on which cold ends and plants suddenly spring forth full-grown, like Athena from the forehead of Zeus.

      It's also useful to remember that most woodchucks hibernate*, and their definition of spring is "enough green food to eat." So, if you assume Phil means his idea of spring, 6 weeks is irrelevant. A woodchuck's internal clock is based on climate indicators that wake them from their semi-comatose state to go out and forage.


      Paul

      * Phil doesn't hibernate. He lives in an annex of a Punxsy library, called the "Groundhog Zoo." Feb 2 is probably the only time all year he's exposed to real cold.
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      • Profile picture of the author MissTerraK
        Okay, let's do the math for you.

        Ground Hog's Day is always February 2nd. That's a given. Six weeks equates to 42 days because 7 x 6 = 42.

        Now it gets sort of tricky because some Februaries are leap years where there are 29 days in the month and the first day of Spring (known as the Vernal Equinox) varies by a day as well.

        In the United States and the rest of the northern hemisphere, the first day of the spring season is the day of the year when the Sun crosses the celestial equator moving northward either on March 20th or 21st.

        So let's just figure out your question for this year. There are 28 days in February and the first day of Spring is March 20th.

        There are 46 days from Ground Hog's Day until the 20th of March.

        Six more weeks of winter at 42 days would put the first day of Spring on the 16th of March meaning winter would be shortened by four whole days.

        See, it really doesn't matter in the scheme of things, now does it?


        Terra
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      • Profile picture of the author TimothyW
        Originally Posted by Paul Myers View Post

        Theoretically, 6 more weeks means "not early."
        Aha. That answers the q. Thanks!
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        • Profile picture of the author AprilCT
          It's just a cute tradition, possibly to put a bit of levity into otherwise cold days. I'm sure many here can remember some really big snowstorms that occurred in March in years gone by. The weather is going to do whatever it wants regardless of what PP predicts.
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  • Profile picture of the author Paul Myers
    April,

    It's a really OLD tradition, too. It dates back to the Roman Empire, albeit with hedgehogs rather than woodchucks.

    Not a lot of hedgehogs in central Pennsylvania, as it turns out...


    Paul
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  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
    I'm all shook up! First it was the Tooth Fairy, and then the Easter Bunny. Next, Santa Claus fell. And now . . . Punxsutawney Phil is a fraud!

    In reality, Phil’s prediction is decided ahead of time by a group called the Inner Circle, whose members don top hats and tuxedos for the annual Groundhog Day ceremony on Gobbler’s Knob, the tiny hill in the town for which he’s named about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh.
    I'm devastated. Devastated I tell you! Here's the article revealing the truth behind this whole shameful story: Handlers: Punxsutawney Phil Predicts Longer Winter
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    Just when you think you've got it all figured out, someone changes the rules.

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  • Profile picture of the author Paul Myers
    Phil is not a fraud. He's an accessory.
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    Stop by Paul's Pub - my little hangout on Facebook.

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    • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
      Originally Posted by Paul Myers View Post

      Phil is not a fraud. He's an accessory.
      Hey, I saw it on the Internet, it must be true.
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      Just when you think you've got it all figured out, someone changes the rules.

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  • Profile picture of the author Kurt
    PP is a fraud. His actual record is so bad, he could't pick his own mother out of a line up.

    So, history shows whatever Phil picks, the opposite will happen.
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  • Profile picture of the author JimDucharme
    If someone woke me from a 3 month doze, dragged me out of my borough and shone lights and poked cameras in my face, I'd lie just to be a prick.

    Regards,
    jim
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