31, 28, 31, 30, 31, 30, 31, what next?

Question

Find the next term and the rule: 31, 28, 31, 30, 31, 30, 31, ? The numbers are all familiar, the pattern is not arithmetic, and one of the terms is special because it sometimes changes. Say which one and why.

Accepted Answer

The next term is 31. These are the numbers of days in the months: January 31, February 28, March 31, April 30, May 31, June 30, July 31, then August 31, September 30, October 31, November 30, December 31. The special second term. February has 28 days in ordinary years and 29 in leap years, so in a leap year the sequence starts 31, 29, 31, 30. Everything else is fixed. The knuckle trick. Make a fist and read across the knuckles and the dips between them: knuckle, dip, knuckle, dip, knuckle, dip, knuckle, then start again at the first knuckle. Knuckles are 31-day months, dips are shorter months…

31, 28, 31, 30, 31, 30, 31, what next?

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