August 20: World Laziness Day, Mosquito Day

Today, on August 20, people who are looking for the slightest excuse to do nothing are celebrating their "professional" holiday - World Laziness Day, UNN reports.

On August 20, 1984, a Monday, a trade and industrial festival was taking place in a city in Colombia. Local business owners gave their employees a day off and encouraged them to have a good time during the holiday. The idea of having an extra day off to do nothing caught on with Colombians, and a spontaneous movement for the right to be lazy emerged in the country. The idea of having a special day to symbolize laziness and idleness was gradually taken up in other countries around the world.

Interestingly, many famous people, such as Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, and Winston Churchill, were considered lazy in their lives.

There is such a thing as seasonal laziness - when a person cannot concentrate on work at certain times of the year.

Men are 5 times more likely to be idle than women.

Quite often, the reason for people's laziness in the workplace is meaningless or unclear instructions from management.

Also today, you can join the activities dedicated to the event, which is a reminder of the danger of diseases transmitted by small insects - Mosquito Day.

The event was introduced in honor of the British Nobel Prize-winning physician Ronald Ross, who proved that mosquitoes can transmit malaria from a sick person to a healthy one.

As of today, there is no vaccine against malaria, so it remains a potential threat to 40% of the world's population.

Mosquitoes transmit not only malaria, but also Dengue disease, West Nile fever, and other infectious diseases.

August 20 is also the Day of Medical Transport.

The first medical transport was horse-drawn carriages, introduced in 1783 by the chief surgeon of Napoleon Bonaparte's army, Dominique Jean Larray. He believed that wounded soldiers should be evacuated during the battle, not after it, to save more lives.

During the First World War, cars were used as medical transportation.

With the development of technology, medical transportation has also changed. Now it is not only cars, but also helicopters, airplanes and other modes of transportation.

According to the church calendar, today is the Day of Remembrance of the Old Testament prophet Samuel.

According to the legend, Samuel was born to Elkanah and Anna, who were unable to have children for a long time. The parents gave the boy to the high priest Elijah for upbringing.

It is believed that after Elijah's death, Samuel became the prophet and judge of Israel. He also blessed the first king of Israel, Saul, to the throne.

Viktor, Volodymyr, and Fedir celebrate their name days on August 20.