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I wonder how many people have adjusted their plans today because it is Friday 13th? Paraskevidekatriaphobia (an irrational fear of Friday 13th) is a well-documented psychological problem. Indeed, a British Medical Journal article from 1993, titled “Is Friday the 13th bad for your health?”, mysteriously found that there were more traffic accidents associated with that particular date. Personally, I am not one who believes in superstition. Apart from the Stevie Wonder song of the same name, I tend to dislike any association with the word.
Some on-line research reveals that superstitions surrounding Friday 13th date back to the early 1900s. Many hypotheses have been proposed, ranging from associations with the sacking of Constantinople on April 13th, 1204 during the Fourth Crusade, to the simultaneous arrest of the Knights Templar by agents of Philip IV in October 1307 (à la Da Vinci Code). Socialists would no doubt point to the fact that Margaret Thatcher was born on Friday 13th as evidence of the day’s association with bad luck. However, that finding is easily dismissed as Mrs T shares the same honour with Fidel Castro. It is more likely that paraskevidekatriaphobia stems from a combination of a fear of the number 13 (Nordic mythology) and a Christian fear of Friday (Crucifixion).
Today happens to be Friday April 13th. Not only is that the anniversary of the sacking of Constantinople, it also happens to be the thirty-seventh anniversary of the oxygen tank on Apollo 13 exploding. The thirteenth Apollo mission had lifted off at 13.13 CST on 11/4/70 (total of digits =13!!). The disaster that befell that fateful attempt to put man on the Moon for the third time most certainly contributed to the curtailing of the Apollo programme.
Despite the ‘facts’ outlined above, the superstitions surrounding Friday 13th are bogus. It certainly should not be used as a reason for not putting man once more outside the orbit of the Earth. I believe that going back to the Moon, and eventually on to Mars should become a major goal of the human race. The Americans have recently announced an intention to go back to the Moon by 2020, with a view to using it as a launch-pad for a manned trip to Mars. Britain, or at least Europe, should offer to play a major part in this next exploration of Space.
April 15th, 2007 - 8:05 pm
I shall try and dig out the research that also suggested that there were fewer hospital admissions on Friday 13th; thought to be caused by the fact that fewer people went out that day or engaged in high risk behaviour. As for the word paraskevidekatriaphobia, it’s not an easy one to spell. Liked the post. Thanks. Michelle