Tenth Period | Leap Day and Other Oddities from History

0:04 hello and welcome to another episode of the Bill of Rights Institute’s 10th period webinar series my name is Kirk Haynes and I’m the senior manager for education here at the Institute hi thanks for joining us I’m Gary Coletti senior manager of programs here at Bri and so this year is a special year it is only because it’s an election year but also it’s a leap year which is not coincidence every leap

0:25 year is an election year as well as a year for the Summer Olympics well how about that yeah and that means we have an extra day and so we thought we would spend that extra day chatting about a few things that are interesting to us often overlooked you talk about a little bit what’s going on here at the Institute absolutely so it’s a small way to use that one extra day a year every four years to kind of peel back the curtain

0:46 and invite you into our offices to say hi so so what what is the leap day anyway what is the leap day yeah every are you okay we’re gonna do this out or maybe not maybe not what does leap day so you’re saying that they literally everyone is literally in okay since AD 45 no BC 45 BC interesting we have

1:11 adapted our calendar in the Julian calendar to accommodate the rotation of the earth of the rotation of the earth right and it’s not exactly 365 days as you know a year is 365 and a quarter days and so to accommodate that every four years we add a day on so we have a February 29th correctly Thank You Julius

1:33 it’s easier today there you go so we’re kind of sweeping up the little extra bits which is why we’re talking about a little extra bits a little extra business exactly so speaking of history Kirk as senior manager of content we often think of history as being a timeline yeah right how do you see time when you do what you do so to say I mean history is a time right and often our

1:53 classrooms will talk about periodization which is a way that historians make sense of that time right so they they find a block of years that seems to have a similar theme they cut it and then they say well this is this period so the Gilded Age or the antibellum or jacksonian america all of these things are our periods that

2:14 historians investigate but time of course doesn’t really operate that way and right it’s more of a measure which is interesting I think there’s different philosophical ways of approaching time if we really wanted to well you know as someone who likes to talk about philosophical things we often talk about the idea that time may not be real that’s true I was a big fan of that if you haven’t read John McTaggart wrote a

2:36 1908 about the reality of time and really questioned it interest having to do with whether or not it’s what we’ve come to think about is whether or not it’s a contract of how we understand that matter like historians write breaking things up or if it’s something real and his problem I had to do with just the nature of reality right so he was into metaphysics I mean idea that right now is Israel

2:58 right we’re talking about right but when I said that just then that’s God now so that’s no longer real right start a question if any of this you’re right nor is anything that will happen it’s not quite real yet yeah until now when that is real but that’s God yeah so since so much of that is not real all of reality it time all the time is

3:20 really not reality yeah except for right now that is an approach yeah that said it’s we call it present ISM interesting well it is interesting from it from a historical point of view to look at time and that measure whether real or not only for others to decide and up with the perceptions of time and how time was used it understood actually does have somewhat of an impact on history oh sure

3:42 Christine the late 19th century early 20th century there comes the standardized five working days rightly the invention of the weekend right I’ll become something that is measured and that’s this one we probably talked about in class is a good bit but what fascinates me is even earlier than that so the early industrial period you start to see these little things appearing called clocks in watches right all right

4:04 a lot of times we’ll think of these on ships so it’s a way to measure your longitude how far east or west you’re going which opens up the age of exploration and so chronometer to be able to right with time what time noon is allows you to know where you are on the globe which is interesting but even more than that in the everyday experiences of people’s lives they start taking

4:26 something that is just a day so I’m gonna work for you for the day that’s unlike a sundown right well as we move forward and become more industrialized markets start emerging in these things it becomes more important to actually measure those individual units of time mm-hmm so instead of something taking place over a day it might take place

4:46 over a few hours right you don’t necessarily need that when your labor is you know whenever your labor is but as things as transportation is improving as the need for these things to happen more readily is occurring you start to need that while the finer measurements in this emerge one place is in stagecoaches okay the 1750s and 1760s in the england

5:08 they started putting minute hands on clocks because not only with the stage leave at about two it would actually leave at 2:30 because they were able to have a regular enough stagecoach process where that was actually negative right so it’s interesting it is it’s a big concept than one that when you think about it seems like they’ve always been a minute half but of course there’s not if you see much older clocks right

5:29 there’s no need for them it you see a sundial is a very rudimentary way of just writing to knowing about what time it is right I’m hearing that quite a lot their relationship with the Sun is it and that goes back to I think they’re our philosophy of history right that the is it external or internal right is it our own perception of what is going on I think we tend to think of time as our own personal understanding of change

5:50 right if nothing changes does time move is a very atonic idea as you know but that then there’s that external like if I were to meet you for lunch I would probably need to know roughly what time to eat otherwise you’d be waiting unless that doesn’t matter I’m sure there was a time where it was around the time that people generally get hungry in the middle of the day would be it would

6:12 be a much and yet culturally we do have a understanding a tacit understanding if I say I’m meeting you for lunch what that would mean right also another interesting thing to explore absolutely absolutely and speaking of time and events happening we have a couple of guests today we do who is our first our first I believe is lore of the cup Laura you may know Laura from let’s welcome in here come on in Laura no come

6:33 on you yeah you may know her for lots of different places out there but if not for those who may not know and I primarily oversee all of our teacher opportunities so that ranges from a lot of things okay oversee the logistics

6:57 work but then it’s also some of the up-and-coming things that were developing like our teacher counsel and one of our newest initiatives which is going to be a badging initiatives that’s brand new news that we could launching in the fall and really I feel like my spot today is just sort of to do a

7:17 little bi commercial to let you know that there are two opportunities that are coming up very soon oh the first is our Summer Institute so anyone who has attended a one-day program with us or a weekend program with us in the last three years is eligible to apply for that program right you’ll see me there and probably want to be a lot of folks

7:38 for the summer suit it is about justice and the judicial judicial branch so we’re looking at the judicial branch but also the concept of justice and how it interfaces with the various levels of courts as well as those who work in the legal system it’s really there are some Geographic scholarships available as

7:59 well and all of those details can be found on our website so just go to our website and look up upcoming events Summer Institute and then the next one that we are launching the application for next week it actually will open on my May the 16th that one is our teacher counsel and so again that big group of individuals if you’ve been to a VRI

8:19 program in the last three years of in-person program we are looking for a group of about 20 individuals with diverse experience diverse classroom situations to serve on our teacher Council so there will be an application and more details will be coming out soon but I just absolutely yeah speaking of something and speaking of time these are

8:40 opportunities that have specific dates and times yeah oh what’s the date that starts at the Summer Institute sure summer institute or be it like July 20th that’s great so yeah where is that located UC metro area will have the program okay should be in Alexandria but here you get his team ever

9:01 oh yes field trips to the OTC sites along with their time in the classroom time in the classroom and time in our schedule so we’re gonna need a clock with minute hands interesting thing about time that I think Laura can help us out with is this what you’re watching now can we reveal is actually recorded

9:22 right so we have a synchronous time it’s live for us but it is out of time for you so you Laura mentioned a batching system which is also sort of an asynchronous thing can you explain what that is and badging through your school systems or other professional opportunities that you’ve been a part of the overrides Institute is looking to

9:43 get into that space and so in the next six months there are a number of folks here and some who are not even yet hired by the girl grace Institute so we are going to be growing our team that we can jump into that space and so it will be a combination program that lives partially in or on online programming already

10:04 partially in our in-person programs and then there’ll be some self-paced pieces that you’ll be able to take advantage of it as well so stay tuned for more details it’s all in development that I’m very excited about it and just the opportunity that will have to reach many more and educators those resources yeah wonderful yeah we’re so used to events happening at a specific date and time but this is a way that you can still

10:24 have these experiences on your own time I like that on television do either of you watch television a different time than something airs I hardly ever watch live so that’s your sport yeah right for some rights you have – right right other

10:48 people can tell you about it but yeah we definitely live in a world where time is very strange down because we’re watching things that have happened not nothing yet happened much more control over time right exactly right answer I sell it’s wonderful yeah thanks Laura thank you I’m sure we’ll see more of you in the future great that badging program I think it’s

11:09 gonna be really exciting all very exciting you know yeah we’re a big part of that and again it doesn’t replace our our other programs it just sort of enhances that but it’s a really nice opportunity to continue to say I’d love anything that’s self-paced yeah I mean I I do that with long do you do any self-paced learning yourself I do love self-paced learning lately I’ve been doing duolingo oh yeah yeah

11:29 that’s catchy way to pick up yeah that would pick up you know or to brush up on language skill what language or is it English question well I’m brushing up on my French okay and then I’ve also decided to dabble in Latin now you’re on which is yeah which is you know a strange one today no no no no I think it’s but it’s a nation of so many things that you work on it is yeah it’s making

11:50 me a better understand how bad my grammar is when you have to pull it apart and yes I actually think about it and you have a an owl that’s generally nice to you yeah that is you a little bit just you remind you a little bit to stay on target yeah time talking about time having those new little notifications yeah they’re quite useful absolutely but it’s exciting for our Summer Institute to that’s always a

12:11 really great program it’s great to have teachers from across country come out and join us I’m going to be able to dive into their dive in and learn more about I guess the judicial branch this year but also to network with other educators too and see how they’re tackling the same tough questions in their classrooms oh yeah that’s I think among the there’s a beauty to what you’re learning there’s a beauty to exposure to wonderful

12:32 scholars that that you’ll be meeting and people at the different areas that you’ll go to like the geographic regions yeah but the big takeaway that people often say and they have is that lasting relationships come out of this with teachers from across the country and so yeah if you get to be part of that group that would be fantastic yeah absolutely so speaking of wonderful scholars and intellectuals do we have another guest I think we might have one around here

12:53 somewhere I believe Tony Williams is here ah many of you may be familiar with Tony as well I may have either met him or read something of hers hers his let’s let’s bring him in or come on come on in this is their own Tony Willie and Kirk dabbler of Latin that’s right I’m learning quickly that

13:13 Latins not something you can dabble in I’m either right so for those who may not be familiar with you in person they may have known you from a book jacket something like this let’s say hello to the audience in that and say who are you 1000 everyone and I am a senior fellow

13:34 here at the Institute and so that means a lot of research and a lot of writing on our curricula and various content that we produce and see a lot of you at the various seminars and Liberty fund CSS yeah absolutely and Tony found out

13:59 that we were doing overlooked stories from history today and you know he couldn’t help but want to be a part of that right knows many of those forgotten sorts of history so tell me what we’re thinking about sort of overlooked things or what’s immediately coming to mind to you right now yeah a couple things one was actually the subject of my book it’s

14:19 all the Box on the Covenant where I talked about a smallpox epidemic in 1721 in colonial Boston and how that led to the first inoculations being introduced into the colonies so yeah it’s a really dramatic story because the guiding force behind the inoculation is actually taught matter and the other ministers and they were opposed by the doctors of

14:41 Austin and Benjamin Franklin and his brother who started and they started the anti inoculation newspaper intrusive mafioso so the size didn’t normally line up this we might think they did but you know Mather is really interesting figure because he was really a man of science as well as you know he was a member of

15:02 the British Royal Society he had practiced and studied medicine studied medicine at Harvard he had a huge library he preached about heliocentrism and Copernicanism from the pulpit you know so he was a real scientist as well as interesting yeah the man of reason a man of the Enlightenment as much as as

15:24 much as a minister so yeah so the AMIA he got the idea of inoculation from a couple sources one was from the Journal of the British Royal Society but the other one was from a slight and because his slave has some marks on his arm and he said have you had smallpox and the slave said well yes and no and so didn’t

15:47 know what he meant by that acid and he said well I have smallpox but not in the way you normally get and so he explained inoculation to this man on the Enlightenment and I’m neither very open-minded like you know accepted this information and said even that the the

16:09 Africans had knowledge that people in the West did not have and he sort of saw that as God’s providence and so so introduced inoculation during this doing this outbreak doing this epidemic and caught the firestorm about from the doctors and from the populace interesting sir Wow yeah what would have I mean that’s a

16:30 that’s a powerful story and I’m sure one that you know it’s very very timely now given everything that’s going on right now but right they’re all trying to be too with it because I know you’ve written a lot of Washington Washington introduced inoculations to his army did he not or did he did he try to do that to try and stifle smallpox in the military during the revolution yeah

16:51 that’s correct because the the the Revolutionary Army the Continental Army was suffering a great deal of smallpox and especially during the siege of Boston they had a large outbreak a lot of the army was down for the count if you will and so he subsequently started to introduce inoculations and really actually had a lot of the recruiting

17:12 centers in the States perform the inoculation there so that they wouldn’t even get to the army unless they were unless they were inoculated so you know had the foresight had to do that before military efficiency yeah that’s really interesting yeah definitely some a little bit that’s been overlooked I think so yes sir

17:32 speaking of Cosmos a master overlooked what what was what happened at the end of you’ve got Mathers life where if I heard that name before was he involved in the Salem witch trials yeah he was uh oh yeah and I think we just did a thing on that and actually he played mention role in that and first offered to take some of the

17:53 girls into his home to pray because he kind of doubted that they were actually practicing correct and later on he and the other ministers issued a pamphlet or two really questioning the use of spectral evidence and really arguing the trials were sort of a travesty of justice

18:14 you’ve come to an end and the minister is really largely responsible for you know pushing the government to end the trials just to bring a full circle because of those trials a lot of that one of the main days of accusation was beverage – oh thank well a circle interest in time is weird well and

18:35 speaking of the Salem witch trials we just released our brand new podcast that’s true fabric of history which covers so much right our very first episode so you hear a little more about cutting them out of there leap day bring it all together check that out at fabric of history org if you’d like great well thank you telling scars right you know one of the things I

18:56 enjoy most about working here at Bri is the ability to have people like Tony and yeah other intellectual writers and others just pop by and have conversations this is an abbreviated version but this is not uncommon right yeah no it’s great I always think it’s good to be able to explore some of these things without any sort of mandate er need to get to someplace because it really fosters a lot of that curiosity that I think’s at the heart of of

19:17 Education really fostering that curiosity yeah sometimes finding what seems like one of those extra unknown or or lesser-known things can often spark a level of interest in getting to what the bigger picture are or what what surrounded that does yeah so absolutely that’s my never know what’s gonna arcing so hopefully we spark something for you

19:37 today and we appreciate everyone joining us and we hope you have a great afternoon evening morning whatever whatever time you’re watching whether it’s on demand or live right now terrific outlet present well thank you so much and we’ll see you again in a couple weeks all right

20:02 you