NATIONAL SCRABBLE DAY

April 12, 2026April 12, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 2 Comments

Each year on National Scrabble Day April 13th recognizes a game played around the world. Originally named Lexiko and then Criss-Cross Words, Alfred Mosher Butts eventually settled on the name Scrabble. The amateur artist and unemployed architect developed the word game in the midst of the depression. Still, it wasn’t until 1948, a final name change and a trademark that Butts finally began to produce the game.

Scrabble is played with two to four players who score points by forming words from individual lettered tiles on a game board marked with a 15 x 15 grid.

In the United States, the name Scrabble is a trademark of Hasbro, Inc. Scrabble is sold in 121 countries with 29 different language versions. Worldwide, over One hundred and fifty million sets have been sold with sets being found in nearly one-third of American homes.

1984 – Scrabble became a daytime game show on NBC
2004 – Scrabble was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame
Some cities sponsor Scrabble tournaments on the weekend closest to National Scrabble Day
The word “scrabble” means to “grope frantically.”

NATIONAL SCRABBLE DAY HISTORY

National Scrabble Day commemorates the birth of Alfred Mosher Butts, born on April 13, 1899. However, our research had not identified the founder of the day.

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HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalScrabbleDay

Call your friends and play a game or two of Scrabble! Mix it up, too. There are several ways to play the game if you want to change things up a bit. For example, if you’re spending time alone, Scrabble solitaire challenges you at your own game of words. Another version allows players to only play nouns but they earn bonus points for playing nouns that are both a proper noun and an approved Scrabble word.

Once you’ve played a game, take the final board and create a crossword puzzle using this template. Develop hints to the words and see if others can solve the puzzle.

Do you have fun alternative ways of playing the game? Use #NationalScrabbleDay to post on social media.

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NATIONAL BATTERY DAY

February 17, 2026February 3, 2026Jensperspectiveblog Leave a comment

Get a charge out of National Battery Day! Observed each year on February 18th, the day serves to appreciate the convenience batteries provide to our everyday lives.

Today we would be hard-pressed to find someone in the United States who doesn’t derive a benefit from a battery. Even those who live “off the grid” have battery-operated devices such as a flashlight, radio, or watch.

A battery changes chemical energy into electricity by bringing the different chemicals together in a specific order. When correctly ordered, the electrons will travel from one substance to another, creating an electrical current.

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NATIONAL BATTERY DAY HISTORY

National Battery Day commemorates the anniversary of Alessandro Volta’s birth on February 17, 1745.

Long Road of the Battery

While battery manufacturing for everyday personal use developed in the last 50-60 years, archaeologists found evidence of a device that may have been used to electroplate gold onto silver, much like a battery would. In 1936, during the construction of a new railway near Baghdad, a Parthian tomb was found. Archaeologist Wilhelm Konig found a clay jar containing a copper cylinder encasing an iron rod. Konig suggested the find to be approximately 2,000 years old.

Benjamin Franklin first coined the term “battery” in 1748 to describe an array of charged glass plates.

1800

In 1800, Italian scientist Alessandro Volta layered silver, cloth, or paper soaked in salt or acid and zinc into what he called “voltaic piles.” The voltaic piles generated a limited electrical current. Volta proceeded to publish his work, and we get the word “volt” from his name to describe electric potential.

William Cruickshank, an English chemist, designed a battery for mass production in 1802.

Corrosion in batteries has always been an issue, but until John Daniell came along, it was much worse. Daniel, a chemist, receives credit for developing a way to reduce corrosion when storing batteries. In 1820 he invented the Daniell Cell, which incorporated mercury, reducing the corrosion.

1896

Over time, various scientists and inventors developed gradual improvements to the battery. Then in 1896, the National Carbon Company (later known as the Eveready Battery Company) manufactured the first commercially available battery called the Columbia. Two years later, National Carbon Company introduced the first D sized battery for the first flashlight.

The 1900s and beyond

Until 1957, watches needed to be wound routinely to keep time. Then in 1957, the Hamilton Watch Company introduced the first battery-operated watch.

Today batteries are available for numerous purposes. In our modern age, portable electricity isn’t something we think about every day because it is so easily accessible. We charge the batteries on our phones by using the batteries in our cars as we travel down the road. We even have portable chargers that can charge our batteries where ever we are. The variety of batteries change every day. Solar batteries recharge daily and store power in cells. They come in numerous sizes, too.

HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalBatteryDay

How many batteries do you rely on in your life? From your car to your smoke detectors, batteries are everywhere. Count the items in your home that use batteries. How often do you buy them? Do you have a battery charger? Our phones, watches, hearing aids, all use batteries. Medical devices rely on them to keep people alive. They monitor our children as they sleep, and they serve as back up systems for our security and safety. Batteries operate wheelchairs and keep lights bright for photography. In an emergency, batteries keep the phones going and point us in the right direction.

Use #NationalBatteryDay to post on social media.

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WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY

October 9, 2025October 18, 2025Jensperspectiveblog Leave a comment

Annually, World Mental Health Day on October 10th raises awareness and mobilizes efforts to support mental health.

Mental health is a hot topic. This is good news. It means the stigma for mental health issues is slowly going away. Mental health issues are finally getting the attention they deserve. Healthcare workers and individuals feel they can discuss mental health more openly. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t still work to do, however.

As a whole, we often misunderstand mental health because it is hard to define. Additionally, mental health includes several areas. These areas involve one’s social, emotional, and psychological well-being. Mental health affects thoughts, feelings, and actions. When we have positive mental health, we handle stress better, our productivity remains stable, and we realize our full potential.

When one has poor mental health, they are more likely to suffer from a mental health disorder. These disorders include the following diagnoses:

Depression
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Panic disorder
Phobias
Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD)
Obsessive-compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Of these mental health disorders, most people experience anxiety disorders. Statistics show that about 4% of the world’s population has a form of anxiety disorder. In the United States, the percentage increases to just over 18% of the population.

Some people are at a higher risk of getting a mental health disorder. These include those with high-stress levels, those who have experienced trauma, and those who have few healthy relationships. However, family history plays a role in higher risk factors, too.

Thanks to increased awareness and increased funding for research, there are effective treatment options for most mental health disorders. Conventional treatment methods include medication, psychotherapy, and hospital and residential programs.

HOW TO OBSERVE #MentalHealthDay

While not everyone faces a life with mental health issues, mental health impacts all of us. That’s why discussing mental health with your loved ones is a vital part of this observance.

The World Federation for Mental Health organizes World Mental Health Day. Each year, organizations host a variety of events all around the world to increase awareness about mental health issues. Events include educational seminars, free mental health screenings, walk-a-thons, marathons, conferences, mass media promotions, and public service announcements.

If you know someone who struggles with a mental health disorder, World Mental Health Day is a great way to reach out to them. While many people don’t feel comfortable talking to others about their diagnosis, knowing they have someone to reach out to makes a real difference. You can also donate to an organization that advocates for mental health. A few include the National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) and the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation. If you think you might have a mental health disorder or are at a high risk of getting one, schedule an appointment with your doctor.

You can also discover more about the advancement of mental healthcare.

Share this day on social media with #WorldMentalHealthDay.

WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY HISTORY

The World Federation for Mental Health first observed World Mental Health Day in 1992 with members and contacts in many countries. While the federations first used a theme in 1994, previous years did not. The first theme was “Improving the Quality of Mental Health Services throughout the World.” Twenty-seven countries participated in that campaign.In 1995, the World Federation for Mental Health translated planning kits for World Mental Health Day into various languages. These languages included Spanish and French. Today, planning kits are translated into Hindi, Chinese, Arabic, and other languages, too.Recent themes for World Mental Health Day have included:

2019: Working Together to Prevent Suicide
2018: Young People and Mental Health
2017: Mental Health in the Workplace
2016: Psychological and Mental Health First Aid

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