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8 (eight) is the
natural number
In mathematics, the natural numbers are those numbers used for counting (as in "there are ''six'' coins on the table") and ordering (as in "this is the ''third'' largest city in the country").
Numbers used for counting are called ''Cardinal n ...
following
7 and preceding
9.
In mathematics
8 is:
* a
composite number
A composite number is a positive integer that can be formed by multiplying two smaller positive integers. Equivalently, it is a positive integer that has at least one divisor other than 1 and itself. Every positive integer is composite, prime, ...
, its
proper divisor
In mathematics, a divisor of an integer n, also called a factor of n, is an integer m that may be multiplied by some integer to produce n. In this case, one also says that n is a multiple of m. An integer n is divisible or evenly divisible by ...
s being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2.
* a
power of two
A power of two is a number of the form where is an integer, that is, the result of exponentiation with number two as the base and integer as the exponent.
In a context where only integers are considered, is restricted to non-negative ...
, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of the form , being an integer greater than 1.
* the first number which is neither
prime
A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...
nor
semiprime
In mathematics, a semiprime is a natural number that is the product of exactly two prime numbers. The two primes in the product may equal each other, so the semiprimes include the squares of prime numbers.
Because there are infinitely many prime nu ...
.
* the base of the
octal
The octal numeral system, or oct for short, is the radix, base-8 number system, and uses the Numerical digit, digits 0 to 7. This is to say that 10octal represents eight and 100octal represents sixty-four. However, English, like most languages, ...
number system, which is mostly used with
computer
A computer is a machine that can be programmed to Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as C ...
s. In octal, one digit represents three
bits. In modern computers, a
byte
The byte is a unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits. Historically, the byte was the number of bits used to encode a single character of text in a computer and for this reason it is the smallest addressable unit ...
is a grouping of eight bits, also called an
octet
Octet may refer to:
Music
* Octet (music), ensemble consisting of eight instruments or voices, or composition written for such an ensemble
** String octet, a piece of music written for eight string instruments
*** Octet (Mendelssohn), 1825 compos ...
.
* a
Fibonacci number, being plus . The next Fibonacci number is . 8 is the only positive Fibonacci number, aside from 1, that is a perfect cube.
* the only nonzero
perfect power that is one less than another perfect power, by
Mihăilescu's Theorem
Catalan's conjecture (or Mihăilescu's theorem) is a theorem in number theory that was conjectured by the mathematician Eugène Charles Catalan in 1844 and proven in 2002 by Preda Mihăilescu at Paderborn University. The integers 23 and 32 are ...
.
* the order of the smallest non-abelian group all of whose subgroups are normal.
* the dimension of the
octonion
In mathematics, the octonions are a normed division algebra over the real numbers, a kind of hypercomplex number system. The octonions are usually represented by the capital letter O, using boldface or blackboard bold \mathbb O. Octonions have e ...
s and is the highest possible dimension of a
normed division algebra.
* the first number to be the aliquot sum of two numbers other than itself; the discrete biprime , and the square number .
A number is divisible by 8 if its last three digits, when written in
decimal
The decimal numeral system (also called the base-ten positional numeral system and denary or decanary) is the standard system for denoting integer and non-integer numbers. It is the extension to non-integer numbers of the Hindu–Arabic numeral ...
, are also divisible by 8, or its last three digits are 0 when written in
binary
Binary may refer to:
Science and technology Mathematics
* Binary number, a representation of numbers using only two digits (0 and 1)
* Binary function, a function that takes two arguments
* Binary operation, a mathematical operation that t ...
.
A
polygon
In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two toge ...
with eight sides is an
octagon
In geometry, an octagon (from the Greek ὀκτάγωνον ''oktágōnon'', "eight angles") is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon.
A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, whi ...
. The sides and
span
Span may refer to:
Science, technology and engineering
* Span (unit), the width of a human hand
* Span (engineering), a section between two intermediate supports
* Wingspan, the distance between the wingtips of a bird or aircraft
* Sorbitan es ...
of a
regular octagon
In geometry, an octagon (from the Greek ὀκτάγωνον ''oktágōnon'', "eight angles") is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon.
A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, whi ...
, or
truncated square, are in
silver ratio
In mathematics, two quantities are in the silver ratio (or silver mean) if the ratio of the smaller of those two quantities to the larger quantity is the same as the ratio of the larger quantity to the sum of the smaller quantity and twice t ...
, and its
circumscribing square has a side and diagonal length ratio of ; with both the silver ratio and the
square root of two intimately interconnected through
Pell numbers, where in particular the quotient of successive Pell numbers generates rational approximations for coordinates of a
regular octagon
In geometry, an octagon (from the Greek ὀκτάγωνον ''oktágōnon'', "eight angles") is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon.
A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, whi ...
. With a
central angle
A central angle is an angle whose apex (vertex) is the center O of a circle and whose legs (sides) are radii intersecting the circle in two distinct points A and B. Central angles are subtended by an arc between those two points, and the arc le ...
of 45 degrees and an
internal angle of 135 degrees, regular octagons are able to
tessellate two-dimensional space alongside squares in the
truncated square tiling, as well as fill a
plane-vertex with a regular
triangle
A triangle is a polygon with three Edge (geometry), edges and three Vertex (geometry), vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC.
In Euclidean geometry, an ...
and a regular
icositetragon
In geometry, an icositetragon (or icosikaitetragon) or 24-gon is a twenty-four-sided polygon. The sum of any icositetragon's interior angles is 3960 degrees.
Regular icositetragon
The ''regular polygon, regular icositetragon'' is represented by S ...
. The
Ammann–Beenker tiling
In geometry, an Ammann–Beenker tiling is a nonperiodic tiling which can be generated either by an aperiodic set of prototiles as done by Robert Ammann in the 1970s, or by the cut-and-project method as done independently by F. P. M. Beenker.
Th ...
is a nonperiodic tesselation of
prototiles that feature prominent octagonal ''silver'' eightfold symmetry, and is the two-dimensional
orthogonal projection of the
8-8 duoprism
In geometry of 4 dimensions or higher, a double prism or duoprism is a polytope resulting from the Cartesian product of two polytopes, each of two dimensions or higher. The Cartesian product of an -polytope and an -polytope is an -polytope, wher ...
. In number theory,
figurate numbers representing octagons are called
octagonal number
An octagonal number is a figurate number that represents an octagon. The octagonal number for ''n'' is given by the formula 3''n''2 - 2''n'', with ''n'' > 0. The first few octagonal numbers are
: 1, 8, 21, 40, 65, 96, 133, 176, 225, 280, 341 ...
s.
A
cube
In geometry, a cube is a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex. Viewed from a corner it is a hexagon and its net is usually depicted as a cross.
The cube is the only r ...
is a
regular polyhedron with eight
vertices that also forms the
cubic honeycomb, the only regular honeycomb in three-dimensional space. Through various truncation operations, the
cubic honeycomb generates eight other
convex uniform honeycombs under the group
. The
octahedron, with eight
equilateral triangles as
faces, is the
dual polyhedron
In geometry, every polyhedron is associated with a second dual structure, where the vertices of one correspond to the faces of the other, and the edges between pairs of vertices of one correspond to the edges between pairs of faces of the other. ...
to the cube and one of eight
convex deltahedra. The
stella octangula, or ''eight-pointed star'', is the only
stellation
In geometry, stellation is the process of extending a polygon in two dimensions, polyhedron in three dimensions, or, in general, a polytope in ''n'' dimensions to form a new figure. Starting with an original figure, the process extends specific el ...
with
octahedral symmetry. It has eight triangular faces alongside eight vertices that form a cubic
faceting
Stella octangula as a faceting of the cube
In geometry, faceting (also spelled facetting) is the process of removing parts of a polygon, polyhedron or polytope, without creating any new Vertex (geometry), vertices.
New edges of a faceted pol ...
, composed of two self-dual
tetrahedra
In geometry, a tetrahedron (plural: tetrahedra or tetrahedrons), also known as a triangular pyramid, is a polyhedron composed of four triangular faces, six straight edges, and four vertex corners. The tetrahedron is the simplest of all the o ...
that makes it the simplest of five
regular compound polyhedra. The
cuboctahedron, on the other hand, is a
rectified cube or rectified octahedron, and one of only two convex
quasiregular polyhedra
In geometry, a quasiregular polyhedron is a uniform polyhedron that has exactly two kinds of regular polygon, regular faces, which alternate around each vertex (geometry), vertex. They are vertex-transitive and edge-transitive, hence a step closer ...
. It contains eight equilateral triangular faces alongside six squares, whose first
stellation
In geometry, stellation is the process of extending a polygon in two dimensions, polyhedron in three dimensions, or, in general, a polytope in ''n'' dimensions to form a new figure. Starting with an original figure, the process extends specific el ...
is the
cube-octahedron compound. The
hexagonal prism, which classifies as an
irregular octahedron that is a
parallelohedron, like the cube, is able to
tessellate space as a three-dimensional analogue of the
hexagon
In geometry, a hexagon (from Ancient Greek, Greek , , meaning "six", and , , meaning "corner, angle") is a six-sided polygon. The total of the internal angles of any simple polygon, simple (non-self-intersecting) hexagon is 720°.
Regular hexa ...
. The
gyrobifastigium
In geometry, the gyrobifastigium is the 26th Johnson solid (). It can be constructed by joining two face-regular triangular prisms along corresponding square faces, giving a quarter-turn to one prism. It is the only Johnson solid that can tile ...
, with four square faces and four triangular faces, is the only
Johnson solid
In geometry, a Johnson solid is a strictly convex polyhedron each face of which is a regular polygon. There is no requirement that isohedral, each face must be the same polygon, or that the same polygons join around each Vertex (geometry), ver ...
that is able to tessellate space, while the
truncated octahedron
In geometry, the truncated octahedron is the Archimedean solid that arises from a regular octahedron by removing six pyramids, one at each of the octahedron's vertices. The truncated octahedron has 14 faces (8 regular hexagon, hexagons and 6 Squa ...
, also a parallelohedron, is the
permutohedron
In mathematics, the permutohedron of order ''n'' is an (''n'' − 1)-dimensional polytope embedded in an ''n''-dimensional space. Its vertex coordinates (labels) are the permutations of the first ''n'' natural numbers. The edges ident ...
of order four, with eight hexagonal faces alongside six squares that is likewise the only
Archimedean solid
In geometry, an Archimedean solid is one of the 13 solids first enumerated by Archimedes. They are the convex uniform polyhedra composed of regular polygons meeting in identical vertices, excluding the five Platonic solids (which are composed ...
that can generate a
honeycomb on its own.
Vertex-transitive
In geometry, a polytope (e.g. a polygon or polyhedron) or a tiling is isogonal or vertex-transitive if all its vertices are equivalent under the symmetries of the figure. This implies that each vertex is surrounded by the same kinds of face in ...
semiregular polytopes whose
facets are ''finite'' exist up through the 8th dimension. In the
third dimension
Three-dimensional space (also: 3D space, 3-space or, rarely, tri-dimensional space) is a geometric setting in which three values (called ''parameters'') are required to determine the position of an element (i.e., point). This is the informal ...
, they include the
Archimedean solids and the infinite family of uniform
prisms and
antiprisms, while in the
fourth dimension, only the
rectified 5-cell, the
rectified 600-cell, and the
snub 24-cell
In geometry, the snub 24-cell or snub disicositetrachoron is a convex uniform 4-polytope composed of 120 regular tetrahedral and 24 icosahedral cells. Five tetrahedra and three icosahedra meet at each vertex. In total it has 480 triangular face ...
are semiregular polytopes. For dimensions
five
5 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
5, five or number 5 may also refer to:
* AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era
* 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era
Literature
* ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram
* ''5'' (comics), an awa ...
through eight, the
demipenteract
In five-dimensional geometry, a demipenteract or 5-demicube is a semiregular 5-polytope, constructed from a ''5-hypercube'' (penteract) with alternated vertices removed.
It was discovered by Thorold Gosset. Since it was the only semiregular 5- ...
and the
k21 polytopes 221,
321, and
421 are the only semiregular (
Gosset
Gosset, founded in 1584, is the oldest wine house in Champagne. In 1584, Pierre Gosset, alderman of Aÿ and wine-grower, made still, mostly red, wines from the grapes he harvested from his own vines. In those days, two wines vied for pride of pl ...
) polytopes. Collectively, the k
21 family of polytopes contains eight figures that are rooted in the
triangular prism
In geometry, a triangular prism is a three-sided prism; it is a polyhedron made of a triangular base, a translated copy, and 3 faces joining corresponding sides. A right triangular prism has rectangular sides, otherwise it is ''oblique''. A unif ...
, which is the simplest semiregular polytope that is made of three cubes and two equilateral triangles. It also includes one of only three semiregular
Euclidean honeycombs: the
affine 521 honeycomb that represents the arrangement of vertices of the eight-dimensional
lattice, and made of 4
21 facets. The culminating figure is the ninth-dimensional
621 honeycomb, which is the only affine semiregular
paracompact hyperbolic honeycomb with infinite facets and
vertex figure
In geometry, a vertex figure, broadly speaking, is the figure exposed when a corner of a polyhedron or polytope is sliced off.
Definitions
Take some corner or Vertex (geometry), vertex of a polyhedron. Mark a point somewhere along each connect ...
s in the k
21 family. There are no other finite semiregular polytopes or honeycombs in dimensions ''n'' > 8.
Sphenic numbers always have exactly eight divisors.
The number 8 is involved with a number of interesting mathematical phenomena related to the notion of
Bott periodicity. If
is the direct limit of the inclusions of real orthogonal groups
, the following holds:
:
.
Clifford algebras also display a periodicity of 8. For example, the algebra ''Cl''(''p'' + 8,''q'') is isomorphic to the algebra of 16 by 16 matrices with entries in ''Cl''(''p'',''q''). We also see a period of 8 in the
K-theory of spheres and in the
representation theory of the
rotation groups, the latter giving rise to the 8 by 8
spinorial chessboard. All of these properties are closely related to the properties of the
octonion
In mathematics, the octonions are a normed division algebra over the real numbers, a kind of hypercomplex number system. The octonions are usually represented by the capital letter O, using boldface or blackboard bold \mathbb O. Octonions have e ...
s.
The
spin group
In mathematics the spin group Spin(''n'') page 15 is the double cover of the special orthogonal group , such that there exists a short exact sequence of Lie groups (when )
:1 \to \mathrm_2 \to \operatorname(n) \to \operatorname(n) \to 1.
As a L ...
Spin(8) is the unique such group that exhibits the phenomenon of
triality
In mathematics, triality is a relationship among three vector spaces, analogous to the duality relation between dual vector spaces. Most commonly, it describes those special features of the Dynkin diagram D4 and the associated Lie group Spin(8) ...
.
The lowest-dimensional even
unimodular lattice
In geometry and mathematical group theory, a unimodular lattice is an integral lattice of determinant 1 or −1. For a lattice in ''n''-dimensional Euclidean space, this is equivalent to requiring that the volume of any fundamen ...
is the 8-dimensional
lattice. Even positive definite unimodular lattices exist only in dimensions divisible by 8.
A figure 8 is the common name of a
geometric
Geometry (; ) is, with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. It is concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is ca ...
shape
A shape or figure is a graphics, graphical representation of an object or its external boundary, outline, or external Surface (mathematics), surface, as opposed to other properties such as color, Surface texture, texture, or material type.
A pl ...
, often used in the context of sports, such as skating. Figure-eight turns of a rope or cable around a cleat, pin, or bitt are used to belay something.
List of basic calculations
Etymology
English ''eight'', from Old English ''eahta, æhta'',
Proto-Germanic
Proto-Germanic (abbreviated PGmc; also called Common Germanic) is the reconstructed proto-language of the Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages.
Proto-Germanic eventually developed from pre-Proto-Germanic into three Germanic branc ...
''*ahto''
is a direct continuation of
Proto-Indo-European
Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo-E ...
''
*oḱtṓ(w)-'', and as such cognate with Greek and Latin ''octo-'', both of which stems are reflected by the English prefix
oct(o)-, as in the ordinal adjective ''octaval'' or ''octavary'', the distributive adjective is ''
octonary : ''For the base-8 numeral system, see octal.''
An octonary is an eight-line section in a poem, song or psalm. The most notable example is found in Psalm 119Calvin ''Bible Commentaries: Psalms, Part IV'' p287 "Some call this the octonary psalm, bec ...
''.
The adjective ''octuple'' (Latin ''octu-plus'') may also be used as a noun, meaning "a set of eight items"; the diminutive ''
octuplet'' is mostly used to refer to eight siblings delivered in one birth.
The
Semitic numeral is based on a root ''*θmn-'', whence Akkadian ''smn-'', Arabic ''ṯmn-'', Hebrew ''šmn-'' etc.
The
Chinese numeral
Chinese numerals are words and characters used to denote numbers in Chinese.
Today, speakers of Chinese use three written numeral systems: the system of Arabic numerals used worldwide, and two indigenous systems. The more familiar indigenous sy ...
, written (
Mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
: ''bā'';
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
: ''baat''), is from
Old Chinese
Old Chinese, also called Archaic Chinese in older works, is the oldest attested stage of Chinese language, Chinese, and the ancestor of all modern varieties of Chinese. The earliest examples of Chinese are divinatory inscriptions on oracle bones ...
''*priāt-'', ultimately from Sino-Tibetan
''b-r-gyat'' or ''b-g-ryat'' which also yielded Tibetan ''
brgyat''.
It has been argued that, as the
cardinal number
In mathematics, cardinal numbers, or cardinals for short, are a generalization of the natural numbers used to measure the cardinality (size) of sets. The cardinality of a finite set is a natural number: the number of elements in the set. Th ...
is the highest number of items that can universally be
cognitively processed as a single set, the etymology of the numeral ''eight'' might be the first to be considered composite, either as "twice four" or as "two short of ten", or similar.
The
Turkic words for "eight" are from a
Proto-Turkic stem ''*sekiz'', which has been suggested as originating as a negation of ''eki'' "two", as in "without two fingers" (i.e., "two short of ten; two fingers are not being held up");
this same principle is found in
Finnic ''
*kakte-ksa'', which conveys a meaning of "two before (ten)". The Proto-Indo-European reconstruction ''
*oḱtṓ(w)-'' itself has been argued as representing an old dual, which would correspond to an original meaning of "twice four".
Proponents of this "quaternary hypothesis" adduce the numeral ', which might be built on the stem ''new-'', meaning "new" (indicating the beginning of a "new set of numerals" after having counted to eight).
Evolution of the Arabic digit
![Evo8glyph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Evo8glyph.svg)
The modern digit 8, like all modern
Arabic numerals
Arabic numerals are the ten numerical digits: , , , , , , , , and . They are the most commonly used symbols to write Decimal, decimal numbers. They are also used for writing numbers in other systems such as octal, and for writing identifiers ...
other than zero, originates with the
Brahmi numerals
The Brahmi numerals are a numeral system attested from the 3rd century BCE (somewhat later in the case of most of the tens). They are a non positional decimal system. They are the direct graphic ancestors of the modern Hindu–Arabic numeral s ...
.
The Brahmi digit for ''eight'' by the 1st century was written in one stroke as a curve └┐ looking like an uppercase H with the bottom half of the left line and the upper half of the right line removed.
However, the digit for eight used in India in the early centuries of the Common Era developed considerable graphic variation, and in some cases took the shape of a single wedge, which was adopted into the Perso-Arabic tradition as
٨ (and also gave rise to the later Devanagari form
८); the alternative curved glyph also existed as a variant in Perso-Arabic tradition, where it came to look similar to our digit 5.
The digits as used in
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus DIN 31635, translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber languages, Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, ...
by the 10th century were a distinctive western variant of the glyphs used in the Arabic-speaking world, known as ''ghubār'' numerals (''ghubār'' translating to "
sand table
A sand table uses constrained sand for modelling or educational purposes. The original version of a sand table may be the abax used by early Greek students. In the modern era, one common use for a sand table is to make terrain models for milita ...
"). In these digits, the line of the ''5''-like glyph used in Indian manuscripts for eight came to be formed in ghubār as a closed loop, which was the ''8''-shape that became adopted into European use in the 10th century.
Just as in most modern
typeface
A typeface (or font family) is the design of lettering that can include variations in size, weight (e.g. bold), slope (e.g. italic), width (e.g. condensed), and so on. Each of these variations of the typeface is a font.
There are list of type ...
s, in typefaces with
text figures
Text figures (also known as non-lining, lowercase, old style, ranging, hanging, medieval, billing, or antique figures or numerals) are numerals designed with varying heights in a fashion that resembles a typical line of running text, hence the ...
the character for the digit 8 usually has an
ascender, as, for example, in .
The
infinity symbol ∞, described as a "sideways figure eight", is unrelated to the digit 8 in origin; it is first used (in the mathematical meaning "infinity") in the 17th century, and it may be derived from the
Roman numeral
Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, eac ...
for "one thousand" CIƆ, or alternatively from the final Greek letter,
ω.
In science
Physics
* In nuclear physics, the second
magic number.
* In
particle physics
Particle physics or high energy physics is the study of fundamental particles and forces that constitute matter and radiation. The fundamental particles in the universe are classified in the Standard Model as fermions (matter particles) an ...
, the
eightfold way is used to classify sub-atomic particles.
* In
statistical mechanics
In physics, statistical mechanics is a mathematical framework that applies statistical methods and probability theory to large assemblies of microscopic entities. It does not assume or postulate any natural laws, but explains the macroscopic be ...
, the
eight-vertex model
In statistical mechanics, the eight-vertex model is a generalisation of the ice-type (six-vertex) models; it was discussed by Sutherland, and Fan & Wu, and solved by Baxter in the zero-field case.
Description
As with the ice-type models, the ei ...
has 8 possible configurations of arrows at each vertex.
Astronomy
*
Messier object M8, a magnitude 5.0
nebula
A nebula ('cloud' or 'fog' in Latin; pl. nebulae, nebulæ or nebulas) is a distinct luminescent part of interstellar medium, which can consist of ionized, neutral or molecular hydrogen and also cosmic dust. Nebulae are often star-forming regio ...
in the
constellation
A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object.
The origins of the e ...
of
Sagittarius.
* The
New General Catalogue
The ''New General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars'' (abbreviated NGC) is an astronomical catalogue of deep-sky objects compiled by John Louis Emil Dreyer in 1888. The NGC contains 7,840 objects, including galaxies, star clusters and ...
br>
object NGC 8, a double star in the constellation
Pegasus
Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...
.
* Since the demotion of
Pluto
Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the S ...
to a
dwarf planet on 24 August 2006, in our
Solar System
The Solar SystemCapitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar S ...
, eight of the bodies orbiting the Sun are considered to be
planet
A planet is a large, rounded astronomical body that is neither a star nor its remnant. The best available theory of planet formation is the nebular hypothesis, which posits that an interstellar cloud collapses out of a nebula to create a you ...
s.
Chemistry
* The
atomic number
The atomic number or nuclear charge number (symbol ''Z'') of a chemical element is the charge number of an atomic nucleus. For ordinary nuclei, this is equal to the proton number (''n''p) or the number of protons found in the nucleus of every ...
of
oxygen
Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements as wel ...
.
* The most stable allotrope of a
sulfur
Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...
molecule is made of eight sulfur atoms arranged in a rhombic form.
* The maximum number of electrons that can occupy a
valence shell.
* The red pigment
lycopene consists of eight
isoprene
Isoprene, or 2-methyl-1,3-butadiene, is a common volatile organic compound with the formula CH2=C(CH3)−CH=CH2. In its pure form it is a colorless volatile liquid. Isoprene is an unsaturated hydrocarbon. It is produced by many plants and animals ...
units.
Geology
* A
disphenoid
In geometry, a disphenoid () is a tetrahedron whose four faces are congruent acute-angled triangles. It can also be described as a tetrahedron in which every two edges that are opposite each other have equal lengths. Other names for the same sh ...
crystal is bounded by eight scalene triangles arranged in pairs. A ditetragonal prism in the
tetragonal crystal system
In crystallography, the tetragonal crystal system is one of the 7 crystal systems. Tetragonal crystal lattices result from stretching a cubic lattice along one of its lattice vectors, so that the cube becomes a rectangular prism with a square ...
has eight similar faces whose alternate interfacial angles only are equal.
Biology
* All
spider
Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...
s, and more generally all
arachnids, have eight legs.
Orb-weaver spiders of the cosmopolitan family Areneidae have eight similar eyes.
* The
octopus
An octopus ( : octopuses or octopodes, see below for variants) is a soft-bodied, eight- limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttle ...
and its cephalopod relatives in genus
''Argonauta'' have eight arms (tentacles).
* Compound coelenterates of the subclass or order
Alcyonaria
Octocorallia (also known as Alcyonaria) is a class of Anthozoa comprising around 3,000 species of water-based organisms formed of colonial polyps with 8-fold symmetry. It includes the blue coral, soft corals, sea pens, and gorgonians (sea fans ...
have polyps with eight-branched tentacles and eight septa.
* Sea anemones of genus ''
Edwardsia
''Edwardsia'' is a genus of sea anemones, the type of the family Edwardsiidae. They have eight mesenteries and live in tubes in the sand. The name, in New Latin, commemorates the French zoologist Henri Milne-Edwards.
The genus contains the fo ...
'' have eight
mesenteries.
* Animals of phylum
Ctenophora swim by means of eight meridional bands of transverse ciliated plates, each plate representing a row of large modified cilia.
* The
eight-spotted forester (genus ''Alypia'', family
Zygaenidae) is a diurnal moth having black wings with brilliant white spots.
* The
ascus
An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera or s ...
in fungi of the class
Ascomycetes
Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The defi ...
, following nuclear fusion, bears within it typically eight ascospores.
* Herbs of genus ''
Coreopsis'' (tickseed) have showy flower heads with involucral bracts in two distinct series of eight each.
* In human
adult dentition there are eight teeth in each quadrant. The eighth tooth is the so-called
wisdom tooth
A third molar, commonly called wisdom tooth, is one of the three molars per quadrant of the human dentition. It is the most posterior of the three. The age at which wisdom teeth come through ( erupt) is variable, but this generally occurs betwe ...
.
* There are eight
cervical nerves on each side in man and most mammals.
Psychology
* There are eight
Jungian cognitive functions
Cognitive functions, also referred to as psychological functions, as described by Carl Jung in his book ''Psychological Types'', are particular mental processes within a person's psyche that are present regardless of common circumstance. This is a ...
, according to the
MBTI models by
John Beebe
John Beebe (born June 24, 1939) is an American psychiatrist and Jungian analyst in practice in San Francisco.
Beebe was born in Washington, D.C. He received degrees from Harvard College and the University of Chicago medical school. He is a past ...
and
Linda Berens
Linda may refer to:
As a name
* Linda (given name), a female given name (including a list of people and fictional characters so named)
* Linda (singer) (born 1977), stage name of Svetlana Geiman, a Russian singer
* Anita Linda (born Alice Lake i ...
.
*
Timothy Leary identified a
hierarchy of eight levels of consciousness.
In technology
* A
byte
The byte is a unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits. Historically, the byte was the number of bits used to encode a single character of text in a computer and for this reason it is the smallest addressable unit ...
is eight
bits.
* Many (mostly historic) computer architectures are eight-bit, among them the
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in America ...
.
*
Standard-8 and
Super-8
Super 8 mm film is a motion-picture film format released in 1965 by Eastman Kodak as an improvement over the older "Double" or "Regular" 8 mm home movie format.
The film is nominally 8 mm wide, the same as older formatted 8& ...
are 8 mm
film formats
A film format is a technical definition of a set of standard characteristics regarding image capture on photographic film for still images or film stock for filmmaking. It can also apply to projected film, either slides or movies. The primary ch ...
.
* Video8, Hi8 and Digital8 are related
8 mm video format
The 8mm video format refers informally to three related videocassette formats. These are the original Video8 (analog recording) format and its improved successor Hi8 (analog video and analog audio but with provision for digital audio), as well as ...
s.
* On most phones, the 8 key is associated with the letters
T,
U, and
V, but on the
BlackBerry Pearl it is the key for
B and
N.
* An eight may refer to an eight-cylinder engine or automobile. A
V8 engine
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and us ...
is an
internal combustion engine
An internal combustion engine (ICE or IC engine) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal combus ...
with eight cylinders configured in two banks (rows) of four forming a "V" when seen from the end.
* A
figure-eight knot (so named for its configuration) is a kind of
stopper knot.
* The number eight written in parentheses is the code for the musical note in
Windows Live Messenger
MSN Messenger (also known colloquially simply as "Messenger"), later rebranded as Windows Live Messenger, was a cross-platform instant messaging client, instant-messaging client developed by Microsoft. It connected to the Microsoft Messenger ser ...
.
* In a
seven-segment display
A seven-segment display is a form of electronic display device for displaying decimal numerals that is an alternative to the more complex dot matrix displays.
Seven-segment displays are widely used in digital clocks, electronic meters, basic ...
, when an 8 is illuminated, all the display bulbs are on.
In measurement
* The
SI prefix
The International System of Units, known by the international abbreviation SI in all languages and sometimes pleonastically as the SI system, is the modern form of the metric system and the world's most widely used system of measurement. E ...
for 1000
8 is yotta (Y), and for its reciprocal, yocto (y).
* In liquid measurement (
United States customary units
United States customary units form a system of measurement units commonly used in the United States and U.S. territories since being standardized and adopted in 1832. The United States customary system (USCS or USC) developed from English units ...
), there are eight
fluid ounces in a
cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...
, eight
pints in a
gallon
The gallon is a unit of volume in imperial units and United States customary units. Three different versions are in current use:
*the imperial gallon (imp gal), defined as , which is or was used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Austral ...
and eight
tablespoonfuls in a
gill
A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...
.
* There are eight
furlongs in a mile.
* The clove, an old
English unit of weight, was equal to eight pounds when measuring cheese.
* An eight may be an article of clothing of the eighth
size
Size in general is the Magnitude (mathematics), magnitude or dimensions of a thing. More specifically, ''geometrical size'' (or ''spatial size'') can refer to linear dimensions (length, width, height, diameter, perimeter), area, or volume ...
.
* Force eight is the first
wind
Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few hou ...
strength attributed to a
gale on the
Beaufort scale
The Beaufort scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort wind force scale.
History
The scale was devised in 1805 by the Irish hydrographer Francis Beaufort ...
when announced on a
Shipping Forecast.
In culture
Currency
* Sailors and civilians alike from the 1500s onward referred to evenly divided parts of the
Spanish dollar as "pieces of eight", or "bits".
Architecture
* Various types of buildings are usually eight-sided (octagonal), such as single-roomed
gazebo
A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands.
Etymology
The etymology given by Oxford Dictionaries (website), Oxford D ...
s and multi-roomed
pagodas (descended from stupas; see religion section below).
* Eight
caulicoles rise out of the leafage in a
Corinthian capital
The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order w ...
, ending in leaves that support the
volutes
A volute is a spiral, scroll-like ornament that forms the basis of the Ionic order, found in the capital of the Ionic column. It was later incorporated into Corinthian order and Composite column capitals. Four are normally to be found on an Ion ...
.
In religion, folk belief and divination
Hinduism
* Also known as Ashtha, Aṣṭa, or Ashta in
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
, it is the number of wealth and abundance.
* The goddess of wealth and prosperity,
Lakshmi
Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with ''Maya'' ("Illusion"). Alo ...
, has eight forms known as
Ashta Lakshmi and worshipped as:
"''Maha-lakshmi, Dhana-lakshmi, Dhanya-lakshmi, Gaja-lakshmi,
Santana-lakshmi, Veera-lakshmi, Vijaya-lakshmi and Vidhya-lakshmi''"
*There are eight ''nidhi'', or seats of wealth, according to
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
.
*There are eight
guardians of the directions known as ''Astha-dikpalas''.
*There are eight
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
monasteries established by the saint
Madhvacharya
Madhvacharya (; ; CE 1199-1278 or CE 1238–1317), sometimes Anglicisation, anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Purna Prajna () and Ānanda Tīrtha, was an Indian philosopher, theologian and the chief proponent of the ''Dvaita'' ...
in
Udupi
Udupi (alternate spelling Udipi; also known as Odipu) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is situated about north of the educational, commercial and industrial hub of Mangalore and about west of state capital Bangalore by road.
...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
popularly known as the ''
Ashta Mathas of Udupi''.
Buddhism
* The
Dharmacakra, a
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
symbol, has eight spokes. The Buddha's principal teaching—the
Four Noble Truths
In Buddhism, the Four Noble Truths (Sanskrit: ; pi, cattāri ariyasaccāni; "The four Arya satyas") are "the truths of the Noble Ones", the truths or realities for the "spiritually worthy ones". —ramifies as the Noble Eightfold Path">Four Noble Truths: BUDDHIST PHILOSOPHY Encycl ...
—ramifies as the Noble Eightfold Path and the Buddha emphasizes the importance of the eight attainments or jhanas.
* In Mahayana Buddhism, the branches of the Eightfold Path are embodied by the Eight Great Bodhisattvas: (Manjusri, Vajrapani, Avalokiteśvara, Maitreya, Ksitigarbha, Nivaranavishkambhi, Akasagarbha, and
Samantabhadra (Bodhisattva), Samantabhadra). These are later (controversially) associated with the Eight Consciousnesses according to the
Yogacara school of thought: consciousness in the five senses, thought-consciousness, self-consciousness, and unconsciousness-"consciousness" or "store-house consciousness" (alaya-vijñana). The "irreversible" state of enlightenment, at which point a Bodhisattva goes on "autopilot", is the Eight Ground or ''bhūmi''. In general, "eight" seems to be an auspicious number for Buddhists, e.g., the "eight auspicious symbols" (the jewel-encrusted parasol; the goldfish (always shown as a pair, e.g., the glyph of Pisces); the self-replenishing amphora; the white ''kamala'' lotus-flower; the white conch; the eternal (Celtic-style, infinitely looping) knot; the banner of imperial victory; the eight-spoked wheel that guides the ship of state, or that symbolizes the Buddha's teaching). Similarly,
Buddha's birthday falls on the 8th day of the 4th month of the
Chinese calendar
The traditional Chinese calendar (also known as the Agricultural Calendar 曆; 农历; ''Nónglì''; 'farming calendar' Former Calendar 曆; 旧历; ''Jiùlì'' Traditional Calendar 曆; 老历; ''Lǎolì'', is a lunisolar calendar ...
.
Judaism
* The religious rite of
brit milah
The ''brit milah'' ( he, בְּרִית מִילָה ''bərīṯ mīlā'', ; Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazi pronunciation: , "Covenant (religion), covenant of circumcision"; Yiddish pronunciation: ''bris'' ) is Religion and circumcision, the cerem ...
(commonly known as
circumcision
Circumcision is a surgical procedure, procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin ...
) is held on a baby boy's eighth day of life.
*
Hanukkah
or English translation: 'Establishing' or 'Dedication' (of the Temple in Jerusalem)
, nickname =
, observedby = Jews
, begins = 25 Kislev
, ends = 2 Tevet or 3 Tevet
, celebrations = Lighting candles each night. ...
is an eight-day Jewish holiday that starts on the 25th day of
Kislev.
*
Shemini Atzeret
Shemini Atzeret (—"Eighth ay of
Ay, AY or variants, may refer to:
People
* Ay (pharaoh), a pharaoh of the 18th Egyptian dynasty
* Merneferre Ay, a pharaoh of the 13th Egyptian dynasty
* A.Y. (musician) (born 1981), a Tanzanian "bongo flava" artist
* A.Y, stage name of Ayo Makun ...
Assembly") is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday. It is celebrated on the 22nd day of the Hebrew calendar, Hebrew month of Tishrei in the Land of Israel, and on the 22nd and 23rd outside the Land, usually coi ...
(
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
: "Eighth Day of Assembly") is a one-day Jewish holiday immediately following the seven-day holiday of
Sukkot
or ("Booths, Tabernacles")
, observedby = Jews, Samaritans, a few Protestant denominations, Messianic Jews, Semitic Neopagans
, type = Jewish, Samaritan
, begins = 15th day of Tishrei
, ends = 21st day of Tishre ...
.
Christianity
* The spiritual
Eighth Day, because the number 7 refers to the days of the week (which repeat themselves).
* The number of
Beatitudes
The Beatitudes are sayings attributed to Jesus, and in particular eight blessings recounted by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew, and four in the Sermon on the Plain in the Gospel of Luke, followed by four woes which mirr ...
.
*
1 Peter 3:20 states that there were eight people on
Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark ( he, תיבת נח; Biblical Hebrew: ''Tevat Noaḥ'')The word "ark" in modern English comes from Old English ''aerca'', meaning a chest or box. (See Cresswell 2010, p.22) The Hebrew word for the vessel, ''teva'', occurs twice in t ...
.
* The
Antichrist is the eighth king in the
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...
.
Islam
* In
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
, eight is the number of
angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
s carrying the
throne
A throne is the seat of state of a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat occupied by a sovereign on state occasions; or the seat occupied by a pope or bishop on ceremonial occasions. "Throne" in an abstract sense can also refer to the monar ...
of
Allah
Allah (; ar, الله, translit=Allāh, ) is the common Arabic word for God. In the English language, the word generally refers to God in Islam. The word is thought to be derived by contraction from '' al- ilāh'', which means "the god", an ...
in heaven.
* The number of gates of heaven
Taoism
*
Ba Gua
The bagua or pakua (八卦) are a set of eight symbols that originated in China, used in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality, seen as a range of eight interrelated concepts. Each consists of three lines, each lin ...
*
Ba Xian
The Eight Immortals () are a group of legendary ''xian'' ("immortals") in Chinese mythology. Each immortal's power can be transferred to a vessel () that can bestow life or destroy evil. Together, these eight vessels are called the "Covert Eight ...
*
Ba Duan Jin
Other
* In
Wicca
Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...
, there are eight Sabbats, festivals, seasons, or spokes in the
Wheel of the Year
The Wheel of the Year is an annual cycle of seasonal festivals, observed by many modern pagans, consisting of the year's chief solar events (solstices and equinoxes) and the midpoints between them. While names for each festival vary among dive ...
.
* In
Ancient Egyptian mythology
Egyptian mythology is the collection of myths from ancient Egypt, which describe the actions of the Egyptian gods as a means of understanding the world around them. The beliefs that these myths express are an important part of ancient Egyptia ...
, the
Ogdoad represents the
eight primordial deities of creation.
* In
Scientology there are eight dynamics of existence.
* There is also the
Ogdoad in
Gnosticism
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people ...
.
As a lucky number
* The number eight is considered to be a
lucky number in Chinese and other Asian cultures. Eight (;
accounting
Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "languag ...
;
pinyin
Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...
''bā'') is considered a
lucky number in Chinese culture because it sounds like the word meaning to generate wealth (;
Pinyin
Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...
: ''fā''). Property with the number 8 may be valued greatly by Chinese. For example, a Hong Kong
number plate
A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate (British English), license plate (American English), or licence plate (Canadian English), is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identificatio ...
with the number 8 was sold for $640,000. 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.
* In Pythagorean
numerology
Numerology (also known as arithmancy) is the belief in an occult, divine or mystical relationship between a number and one or more coinciding events. It is also the study of the numerical value, via an alphanumeric system, of the letters in ...
(a
pseudoscience
Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or falsifiability, unfa ...
) the number 8 represents victory, prosperity and overcoming.
* is also considered a lucky number in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, but the reason is different from that in Chinese culture. Eight gives an idea of growing prosperous, because the letter () broadens gradually.
* The Japanese thought of as a holy number in the ancient times. The reason is less well-understood, but it is thought that it is related to the fact they used eight to express large numbers vaguely such as (literally, eightfold and twentyfold), (literally, eight clouds), (literally, eight millions of Gods), etc. It is also guessed that the ancient Japanese gave importance to pairs, so some researchers guess twice as , which is also guessed to be a holy number in those times because it indicates the world (north, south, east, and west) might be considered a very holy number.
* In
numerology
Numerology (also known as arithmancy) is the belief in an occult, divine or mystical relationship between a number and one or more coinciding events. It is also the study of the numerical value, via an alphanumeric system, of the letters in ...
, 8 is the number of building, and in some theories, also the number of destruction.
In astrology
* In
astrology
Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of Celestial o ...
,
Scorpio is the 8th
astrological sign of the
Zodiac
The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the Sun path, apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. ...
.
* In the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, 8 was the number of "unmoving" stars in the sky, and symbolized the perfection of incoming planetary energy.
In music and dance
* A note played for one-eighth the duration of a whole note is called an
eighth note, or quaver.
* An
octave
In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...
, the interval between two
musical notes with the same letter name (where one has double the frequency of the other), is so called because there are eight notes between the two on a standard major or minor
diatonic scale
In music theory, a diatonic scale is any heptatonic scale that includes five whole steps (whole tones) and two half steps (semitones) in each octave, in which the two half steps are separated from each other by either two or three whole steps, ...
, including the notes themselves and without chromatic deviation. The ecclesiastical
modes
Mode ( la, modus meaning "manner, tune, measure, due measure, rhythm, melody") may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* '' MO''D''E (magazine)'', a defunct U.S. women's fashion magazine
* ''Mode'' magazine, a fictional fashion magazine which is ...
are ascending diatonic musical scales of eight notes or tones comprising an octave.
* There are eight notes in the
octatonic scale.
* There are eight musicians in a double quartet or an
octet
Octet may refer to:
Music
* Octet (music), ensemble consisting of eight instruments or voices, or composition written for such an ensemble
** String octet, a piece of music written for eight string instruments
*** Octet (Mendelssohn), 1825 compos ...
. Both terms may also refer to a musical composition for eight voices or instruments.
* Caledonians is a square dance for eight, resembling the
quadrille.
*
Album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
s with the number eight in their title include ''8'' by the Swedish band
Arvingarna
Arvingarna is a Swedish dansband formed in Gothenburg in 1989. The group consists of Casper Janebrink (vocals and bass guitar), Lars Larsson (guitars, vocals and keyboards), Kim Carlsson (vocals and guitars) and Tommy Carlsson (drums and vocals). ...
, ''
8'' by the American rock band
Incubus, ''
The Meaning of 8'' by Minnesota indie rock band
Cloud Cult and ''8ight'' by Anglo-American singer-songwriter
Beatie Wolfe.
*
Dream Theater
Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of the ...
's eighth album ''
Octavarium'' contains many different references to the number 8, including the number of songs and various aspects of the music and cover artwork.
* "Eight maids a-milking" is the gift on the eighth day of Christmas in the carol "
The Twelve Days of Christmas
The Twelve Days of Christmas, also known as Twelvetide, is a festive Christian season celebrating the Nativity of Jesus. In some Western ecclesiastical traditions, "Christmas Day" is considered the "First Day of Christmas" and the Twelve Days a ...
".
* The
8-track cartridge
The 8-track tape (formally Stereo 8; commonly called eight-track cartridge, eight-track tape, and eight-track) is a magnetic tape sound recording technology that was popular from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s, when the compact cassette, whi ...
is a musical recording format.
* "#8" is the stage name of
Slipknot vocalist
Corey Taylor
Corey Todd Taylor (born December 8, 1973) is an American musician, songwriter and actor. He is the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Slipknot (band), Slipknot, in which he is designated #8, as well as the lead vocalist and guitarist for the ...
.
* "Too Many Eights" is a song by Athens, Georgia's
Supercluster
A supercluster is a large group of smaller galaxy clusters or galaxy groups; they are among the largest known structures in the universe. The Milky Way is part of the Local Group galaxy group (which contains more than 54 galaxies), which in turn ...
.
*
Eight Seconds, a Canadian musical group popular in the 1980s with their most notable song "Kiss You (When It's Dangerous)".
* "
Eight Days a Week
"Eight Days a Week" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon based on McCartney's original idea. The song was released in the United Kingdom in December 1964 on the album ''Beatles for Sale ...
" is a #1 single for the music group
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
.
*
''Figure 8'' is the fifth studio album by singer-songwriter
Elliott Smith
Steven Paul Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003), known professionally as Elliott Smith, was an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and lived much of hi ...
, released in the year 2000, an album released by Julia Darling in 1999, and an album released by
Outasight in 2011.
* Ming Hao from the k-pop group
Seventeen
Seventeen or 17 may refer to:
*17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18
* one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017
Literature
Magazines
* ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazine
* ''Seventeen'' (Japanese m ...
goes by the name "The8".
* "8 (circle)" is the eighth song on the album ''
22, A Million
''22, A Million'' is the third studio album by American indie folk band Bon Iver, released on September 30, 2016. Recorded in lead member Justin Vernon's April Base studio in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, the album marks a major shift in the band's soun ...
'' by the American band
Bon Iver
Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon.
Vernon released Bon Iver's debut album, ''For Emma, Forever Ago,'' independently in July 2007. The majority of the album was recorded while Vernon ...
.
* "8" is the eighth song on the album ''
When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
''When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?'' (stylized in all caps) is the debut studio album by American singer and songwriter Billie Eilish. It was released on March 29, 2019, by Darkroom and Interscope Records in the US and Polydor Records i ...
'' by
Billie Eilish.
In film and television
* ''
8 Guys
''8 Guys'' is a short film written and directed by American comedian Dane Cook. It was released in 2003, and was produced by Barry Katz and Brian Volk-Weiss. In addition to Cook, the film features Alonzo Bodden, Jay Davis, John DiResta, Rusty Do ...
'' is a 2003 short film written and directed by
Dane Cook.
* ''
8 Man'' (or ''Eightman''): 1963 Japanese manga and anime superhero.
*
''8 Mile'' is a 2002 film directed by
Curtis Hanson.
*
''8 mm'' is a 1999 film directed by
Joel Schumacher
Joel T. Schumacher (; August 29, 1939June 22, 2020) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Raised in New York City by his mother, Schumacher graduated from Parsons School of Design and originally became a fashion designer. H ...
.
* ''
8 Women
''8 Women'' (french: 8 femmes) is a 2002 dark comedy musical film written and directed by François Ozon. Based on the 1958 play by Robert Thomas, it features an ensemble cast of high-profile French actresses that includes Catherine Deneuve, Is ...
'' (Original French title: ) is a 2001 film directed by
François Ozon.
* ''
Eight Below'' is a 2006 film directed by
Frank Marshall.
* ''
Eight Legged Freaks'' is a 2002 film directed by
Ellory Elkayem
Ellory Elkayem (born 12 August 1970) is a New Zealand film director.
Born in Christchurch, Elkayem began making films at a young age. He later attended a film school designed to give students practical experience and preparation for a career in ...
.
* ''
Eight Men Out'' is a 1988 film directed by
John Sayles.
* ''
Jennifer Eight
''Jennifer 8'' is a 1992 American thriller film written and directed by Bruce Robinson and starring Andy García, Uma Thurman, and John Malkovich.
Plot
Former Los Angeles policeman John Berlin is teetering toward burnout after the collapse o ...
'', also known as ''Jennifer 8'', is a 1992 film written and directed by
Bruce Robinson.
* ''
Eight Is Enough
''Eight Is Enough'' is an American television comedy-drama series that ran on ABC from March 15, 1977, until May 23, 1981. The show was modeled on the life of syndicated newspaper columnist Tom Braden, a real-life parent with eight children, who ...
'' is an American television comedy-drama series.
* In ''
Stargate SG-1'' and ''
Stargate Atlantis'', dialing an 8-chevron address will open a
wormhole
A wormhole (Einstein-Rosen bridge) is a hypothetical structure connecting disparate points in spacetime, and is based on a special Solutions of the Einstein field equations, solution of the Einstein field equations.
A wormhole can be visualize ...
to another galaxy.
* ''
The Hateful Eight'' is a 2015 American western mystery film written and directed by
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...
.
* ''
Kate Plus 8
''Jon & Kate Plus 8'', later known as ''Kate Plus 8'', is an American reality television series starring Kate Gosselin, Jon Gosselin, and their eight children, which ran from April 4, 2007 to July 24, 2017.
History
After the success of two on ...
'' is an American reality television show.
In sports and other games
*
Eight-ball
Eight-ball (also spelled 8-ball or eightball, and sometimes called solids and stripes, spots and stripes or rarely highs and lows) is a discipline of pool played on a billiard table with six pockets, cue sticks, and sixteen billiard balls (a ...
pool is played with a cue ball and 15 numbered balls, the black ball numbered 8 being the middle and most important one, as the winner is the player or side that legally pockets it after first pocketing its numerical group of 7 object balls (for other meanings see ''
Eight ball (disambiguation)
Eight-ball is a pool game played with a solids-and-stripes ball set.
Eight-ball, 8-ball, or variants may also refer to:
Games
* Blackball (pool), or 8-ball pool, a British game played with a yellows-and-reds ball set
* 8 ball, the black ball mark ...
'').
* In
chess
Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...
, each side has eight pawns and the board is made of 64 squares arranged in an eight by eight lattice. The
eight queens puzzle is a challenge to arrange eight queens on the board so that none can capture any of the others.
* In the game of eights or
Crazy Eights
Crazy Eights is a shedding-type card game for two to seven players and the best known American member of the Eights Group which also includes Pig and Spoons. The object of the game is to be the first player to discard all of their cards. The ga ...
, each successive player must play a card either of the same suit or of the same rank as that played by the preceding player, or may play an eight and call for any suit. The object is to get rid of all one's cards first.
* In
association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
, the number 8 has historically been the number of the Central Midfielder.
* In
Australian rules football
Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...
, the top eight teams at the end of the
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...
regular season qualify for the
finals series (i.e. playoffs).
* In
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
:
** The
center fielder
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...
is designated as number 8 for scorekeeping purposes.
** The
College World Series, the final phase of the
NCAA Division I tournament, features eight teams.
* In
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
, the only position without a proper name is the
Number 8, a forward position.
* In
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
:
** Most competitions (though not the
Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...
, which uses static squad numbering) use a position-based player numbering system in which one of the two starting props wears the number 8.
** The Australia-based
National Rugby League has its own 8-team finals series, similar but not identical in structure to that of the Australian Football League.
* In
rowing, an "eight" refers to a sweep-oar racing boat with a crew of eight rowers plus a
coxswain.
* In the
2008 Games of the XXIX Olympiad held in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
, the official opening was on 08/08/08 at 8:08:08 p.m.
CST.
* In Rock Climbing, climbers frequently use the
Figure Eight knot to tie into their harnesses.
In foods
*
Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...
sells a brand of chocolates filled with peppermint-flavoured cream called
After Eight
After Eight Mint Chocolate Thins, often referred to as simply "After Eights", are a brand of mint chocolate covered sugar confectionery. They were created by Rowntree Company Limited in the UK in 1962 and have been manufactured by Nestlé sin ...
, referring to the time 8 p.m.
* There are eight vegetables in
V8 juice.
In literature
* Eights may refer to
octosyllabic The octosyllable or octosyllabic verse is a line of verse with eight syllables. It is equivalent to tetrameter verse in trochees in languages with a stress accent. Its first occurrence is in a 10th-century Old French saint's legend, the '' Vie de ...
, usually
iambic,
lines
Line most often refers to:
* Line (geometry), object with zero thickness and curvature that stretches to infinity
* Telephone line, a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system
Line, lines, The Line, or LINE may also refer to:
Arts ...
of verse.
* The drott-kvaett, an
Old Icelandic
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlement ...
verse, consisted of a stanza of eight regular lines.
* In
Terry Pratchett's ''
Discworld'' series, eight is a magical number and is considered taboo. Eight is not safe to be said by wizards on the
Discworld and is the number of Bel-Shamharoth. Also, there are eight days in a Disc week and eight colours in a Disc spectrum, the eighth one being
octarine
The Discworld is the fictional setting for all of Terry Pratchett's ''Discworld'' fantasy novels. It consists of a large disc (complete with edge-of-the-world drop-off and consequent waterfall) resting on the backs of four huge elephants which ar ...
.
*
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...
's poem ''
The Hunting of the Snark
''The Hunting of the Snark'', subtitled ''An Agony in 8 Fits'', is a poem by the English writer Lewis Carroll. It is typically categorised as a nonsense poem. Written between 1874 and 1876, it borrows the setting, some creatures, and eight por ...
'' has 8 "fits" (cantos), which is noted in the full name "The Hunting of the Snark – ''An Agony, in Eight Fits''."
* Eight apparitions appear to
Macbeth
''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...
in Act 4 scene 1 of Shakespeare's ''
Macbeth
''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...
'' as representations of the eight descendants of
Banquo
Lord Banquo , the Thane of Lochaber, is a semi-historical character in William Shakespeare's 1606 play ''Macbeth''. In the play, he is at first an ally of Macbeth (both are generals in the King's army) and they meet the Three Witches together. ...
.
In slang
* An "eighth" is a common measurement of
marijuana
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...
, meaning an eighth of an
ounce. It is also a common unit of sale for
psilocybin mushrooms.
*
Avril Lavigne
Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, ''Let Go (Avril Lavigne album), Let Go'' (2002), is the ...
's song "
Sk8er Boi" uses this convention in the title.
* "Section 8" is common U.S. slang for "crazy", based on the
U.S. military's Section 8 discharge for
mentally unfit personnel.
* The
Housing Choice Voucher Program
Section 8 of the Housing Act of 1937 (), often called Section 8, as repeatedly amended, authorizes the payment of rental housing assistance to private landlords on behalf of low-income households in the United States. Fort Lauderdale, Florida Hou ...
, operated by the
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the Secretary of Housing and Urb ...
, is commonly referred to as the Section 8 program, as this was the original section of the Act which instituted the program.
* In
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
and
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
, "volverse un ocho" (meaning to tie oneself in a figure 8) refers to getting in trouble or contradicting oneself.
* In China, "8" is used in chat speak as a term for parting. This is due to the closeness in pronunciation of "8" (bā) and the English word "bye".
See also
*
The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two
"The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information" is one of the most highly cited papers in psychology. It was written by the cognitive psychologist George A. Miller of Harvard University's De ...
*
List of highways numbered 8
The following highways are numbered 8. For roads numbered A8, see list of A8 roads. For roads numbered N8, see list of N8 roads.
Route 8, or Highway 8, may refer to:
International
* Asian Highway 8
* European route E08
* European route E008
...
References
External links
The Octonions John C. Baez
{{DEFAULTSORT:8 (Number)
Integers
8 (number)