We’re big fans of science holidays here at Universal Yarn (see Pi Day). After all, next to pure creativity, math is the foundation for knitwear design. Stitch counts, gauge, garment grading, angles, shaping: all of these things and more rely on basic and advanced calculations in order to achieve desired results in knitting.
I have loved math for as long as I can remember, decades before I learned to knit. It was such a comfort with its logical wizardry. I learned that there may be more than one way to tackle any given problem. But in the end, whatever the road taken to get there, math problems have solutions and formulas and satisfying conclusions.
Enter: Mole Day. In addition to being a cute/ugly insectivore, a mole refers to a unit of measurement, Avogadro’s number which is 6.02 x 10^23. (Read more about the history of this here) While I have never applied this to a knitting pattern, this number is forever seared into my memory thanks to a very catchy jingle I learned in my high school chemistry class. It goes a little something like:
“Let’s roll out the barrels in 1993
To celebrate a very special part of chemistry
Avogadro would be proud if he had only heard
Six point oh two times ten! To the twenty third”
Yes, I have just dated myself. But anyway, back in 1993 at 6:02 am on October 23rd, those of us who were total geeks (and looking for extra credit, I’m sure) showed up for some mole day festivities in our chem lab. The song is much more fun with the jingle that goes along with it, but I’d like to spare you from my singing voice.
There are many other songs out there devoted to mole day. I should know – I just spent 15 minutes out of my work day listening to them! Here’s one of my favorites:
I’d also like to turn our attention back to the fuzzy variety of mole which has been the inspiration for a whole slew of adorable knit and crochet creatures. My favorite is Eugene Mole designed by Paola Navarro (pattern link):
Molly Mole designed by Debi Birkin is cute as can be (pattern link):
Happy mole day!