Time is a very curious thing. Ask anyone on the street if they know what time is. They are sure to answer yes. But then, ask them to explain it to you and they will almost certainly be at a loss for words. ~David Lewis Anderson

1582 – Because of the implementation of the Gregorian calendar, this day is skipped in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain.

The Gregorian calendar, also called the Western calendar and the Christian calendar, is internationally the most widely used civil calendar. It is named for Pope Gregory XIII, who introduced it in 1582.

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1916 – Georgia Tech defeats Cumberland University 222-0 in the most lopsided college football game in American history.

The 1916 Cumberland vs. Georgia Tech football game was an American football game played on October 7, 1916, between the Georgia Tech Engineers and Cumberland College Bulldogs at Grant Field (now a part of Bobby Dodd Stadium) in Atlanta, Georgia. The game became the most lopsided in the history of college football, as Georgia Tech was victorious 222–0.

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1931 – Desmond Tutu, South African archbishop and activist, Nobel Prize laureate is born.

Desmond Mpilo Tutu is a South African social rights activist and retired Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid.

He was the first black Archbishop of Cape Town and bishop of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa (now the Anglican Church of Southern Africa).

Tutu’s admirers see him as a man who since the demise of apartheid has been active in the defence of human rights and uses his high profile to campaign for the oppressed. He has campaigned to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, poverty, racism, sexism, the imprisonment of Chelsea Manning, homophobia and transphobia. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984; the Albert Schweitzer Prize for Humanitarianism in 1986; the Pacem in Terris Award in 1987; the Sydney Peace Prize in 1999; the Gandhi Peace Prize in 2007; and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009. He has also compiled several books of his speeches and sayings.

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2011 – Ada Lovelace Day 2011!

Ada Lovelace Day 2011 was on October 7th. We did 24 hours of posts about women in STEM and have made it a tradition to do it every year since then. Be sure to check out this year’s coverage on October 14th!

Who is your heroine?

Do you remember which women have influenced you over the years?

Perhaps your maths teacher, one of your university lecturers, or a colleague?

This Ada Lovelace Day on October 7, share your story about a woman — whether an engineer, a scientist, a technologist or mathematician — who has inspired you to become who you are today. Write a blog post, record a podcast, film a video, draw a comic, or pick any other way to talk about the women who have been guiding lights in your life. Give your heroine the credit she deserves!