EIGHT = infinity captured, wholeness, completion, building, destruction, sum of possibilities, harmony, renewal, justice, power, sacrifice, wisdom
- also known as octo- (from Latin) octa- (from Greek)
- associated with octagons (also: a cube has 8 corners/vertices, octahedron has 8 faces)
- 8 is the first cubic number following 1 (1x1x1=1, 2x2x2=8)
- 8 on its side is the symbol for infinity (∞)
- eight is the atomic number of oxygen
- on a computer keyboard, Shift+8 gives you an asterisk (*)
- on telephone keypads, the "8" key is associated with the letters T, U and V
- Roman numeral is VIII
- ancient Greeks associated eight with Rhea, the mother of the universe, and saw eight as a symbol of wisdom
- in astrology, the eighth sign of the Zodiac is Scorpio, the Scorpion (October 23 - November 21)
- octuplets are eight offspring in the same pregnancy; the most infamous mother is Nadya Suleman, who gave birth to 8 children in 2009
- in astrology, 8 is ruled by Saturn
- 8 ball in billiards is solid black, and is the most important ball
- "on the 8th day of Christmas my true love gave to me, eight maids a-milking, seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying, five golden rings, four calling birds, three french hens, two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree"
- eighth wedding anniversary gift is bronze
- an octave is the interval between 8 notes, with the 8th note completing the scale and ending on the same note, different pitch
- there are eight musicians in a double quartet or an octet
- the moon has 8 phases every 29.5 days
- an atom is encircled by 8 electrons
- 8 is prominent in Buddhism; Vishnu, the Hindu god who maintains the universe, is often depicted with 8 arms; there are 8 spokes in the Dharmacakra (the Buddhist Dharma Wheel)
- spiders and most arachnids have 8 legs
- octopuses have 8 arms/tentacles
- a "figure-eight" is the common name of a geometric infinity shape often used in the context of sports, such as figure-skating
- 8 is considered to be a lucky number in Chinese and other Asian cultures; in Chinese, eight sounds like the word meaning to generate wealth (n.b.: The opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics in Beijing started at 8 seconds and 8 minutes past 8 pm (local time) on 8 August 2008.)
- Hanukkah is a Jewish festival holiday that lasts eight days and eight nights
- Jewish baby boys are usually circumcised on their eighth day of life
- an 8-track is an obsolete musical recording format
- in computers, a byte is 8 bits
- "Eight is the number of computing"
- a chessboard is 8x8 squares; there are also 8 pawns in chess
- 8 mm are types of photo or video film
- there are 8 drams in an ounce, 8 ounces in a cup, eight pints in a gallon, eight tablespoons in a gill
- there are 8 furlongs in a mile
- V8 is a canned beverage containing 8 vegetables: tomatoes, beets, celery, carrots, lettuce, parsley, watercress, and spinach
- After Eight mint chocolate bars are to be enjoyed after 8:00pm (mint said to aid in digestion)
- in slang, 8 is often a substitute for the letters "ate" (ie. hate = H8
- Crazy Eights is a card game
- Elizabeth Taylor had 8 husbands between 1950 and 1996
- the G8 refers to the 8 most industrialized nations: USA, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Russia
COMMON EIGHTs:
- 8 planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) - sorry, no Pluto anymore :(
- 8 reindeer (Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen)
- 8 parts of speech (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions, interjections)
