DAY 1073 RUSSIAN AGGRESSION
January 31 is celebrated as International Zebra Day, Scotch Tape Day, and World Goldsmith Day.
The Orthodox Church honors the memory of the holy wonderworkers and non-silvered saints, Cyril and John.
International Zebra Day
January 31 marks International Zebra Day. The initiative to establish this day was taken by environmental organizations, aiming to preserve these unique striped animals.
Scotch Tape Day
Scotch tape was invented by Richard Drew. Initially, this young man worked at a company that produced sandpaper and cellophane. His inspiration for creating the adhesive tape came from a visit to an auto repair shop. While inspecting one of them, Richard noticed the uneven lines on cars being painted in various colors. The paper used by the workers peeled off with the paint and still did not prevent drips from forming.
This led Richard to the idea of creating a sticky tape, 5 cm wide, with adhesive on the sides. At first, the workers were skeptical about this innovation, but the man patented his invention, and soon Scotch tape became famous and indispensable worldwide.
Notable Birthdays on This Day:
155 years since the birth of Vladimir Nikolaevich Peretz (1870-1935), a Ukrainian historian, philologist, literary scholar, theater expert, ethnographer, source researcher, paleographer, bibliographer, organizer of Ukrainian scientific life, and founder of the Kyiv Philological School; according to other sources, he was born on March 14, 1870;
120 years since the birth of John Henry O'Garry (1905-1970), an American writer;
80 years since the birth of Galina Vasilievna Stepanchenko (1945), a Ukrainian musicologist.
Events on This Day:
1917 - German Kaiser Wilhelm II signed an order for unrestricted submarine warfare against Allied shipping routes;
1941 - The Kyiv Studio of Popular Science Films was established (from 1954 - Kyivnauchfilm);
1950 - U.S. President Harry Truman publicly announced support for the hydrogen bomb project, a weapon theoretically hundreds of times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped by Americans on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II;
1958 - The first American artificial satellite, "Explorer-1," was launched, which established the existence of the near-Earth radiation belt;
1961 - The U.S. launched a space rocket with a chimpanzee on board. The rocket reached a speed of 8000 km/h and ascended to an altitude of 250 km above the Earth. The chimpanzee returned safely;
1999 - Scientists from the University of Alabama (USA) claimed to have undeniable evidence that the HIV virus originated in Africa, coming from chimpanzees and first transferring to humans about 50 years ago;
2000 - An aviation disaster involving a McDonnell Douglas MD-83 airliner from Alaska Airlines occurred near Anacapa Island, resulting in the deaths of 88 people;
2020 - The United Kingdom exited the European Union and Euratom.
Church Holiday:
The Day of Remembrance for the Martyrs Cyril and John, along with the martyr Athanasia and her daughters Theodotia, Theoctista, and Eudoxia.
On January 31, the Orthodox Church honors the memory of the non-silvered martyrs Cyril and John, along with the martyr Athanasia and her daughters Theodotia, Theoctista, and Eudoxia, who were canonized for suffering for their faith during the persecution of Christians.
Cyril was a doctor who healed not only the body but also the soul, turning people to the Lord. John served in the army but later became passionate about Christianity and met Cyril. Athanasia was faithful to the Lord, which led to her capture along with her daughters.
John and Cyril sneaked into the prison to support the Christian martyrs. The Syrians, who captured the women, subjected all the prisoners to terrible tortures to force them to renounce their faith. Athanasia and her daughters endured all the torments without betraying the Lord, for which they were executed. After that, the Syrians tortured the ascetics Cyril and John for a long time, but it was all in vain: the holy martyrs died, preserving their faith in God in their souls.
Name Days: Victor, John, Elijah, Nikita.