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Topic: Useless Fact's
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 08-19-2003 06:01 AM
Rated G ![[Smile]](smile.gif)
Useless fact - How dangerous are cougars?
Fearsome tales of cougars ("pumas," "panthers," "mountain lions,"sometimes "catamounts")stalking adults for miles and then pouncing for the kill are fiction,not fact.Like any wild animal,a cougar wounded,sick,or cornered can be dangerous, especially a mother with kittens.Even so,given a choice,some authorities say that cougars will attempt diversion rather than attack.
Cougars are,in fact,rather shy and prefer to avoid human encounter.Like wolves,they have been given a reputation as killers which is quite undeserved.It is unfortunate that bears have been treated so sentimentally ("Goldilocks," Gentle Ben, Smokey),whereas cougars are so often regarded with fear.For bears really are dangerous,as Yellowstone Park rangers know very well even if tourists do not; people in tents or sleeping bag have been killed by bears and many others have been maimed.But not by cougars.
~source used: "Dictionary of Misinformation" by Tom Burnam~
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 08-19-2003 09:51 AM
Rated G
Useless fact - Why Do VCR Manuals Advise You to Disconnect the Machine During Storms?
If lightning strikes your home and your antenna or AC power line is not properly grounded, you can find yourself with a busted VCR. William J. Goffi, of the Maxell Corporation, explains:". . . the electrical surge will find its way through your home's wiring and into your VCR, and consequently cause much damage to your unit. This is true, however, for any electrical appliance you have. A surge of lightning can blow out your television monitor, your stereo, etc. Purchasing a surge protector will protect your investments."
As Mark Johnson, a spokesperson for Panasonic, points out, an electrical surge can blow out an electrical appliance even if it is off, which is why the manual recommends disconnecting the plug.
Another potential threat to a connected appliance is a sudden surge of power from the local electric power utility. Surge protectors will also usually solve this problem.
~source used: "Do Penguins Have Knees?" by David Feldman~
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 08-19-2003 04:01 PM
Rated G
Useless fact - Why someone rescued from a difficult
situation at the last minute is said to be "saved by the bell"?
Contrary to what many believe,this expression did not come from
the world of boxing,where a downed fighter can,indeed,be saved
by the bell.
It originated,instead,in the seventeenth century when a sentry at Windsor Castle was accused of being asleep on duty and was sentenced to death.The sentry denied the charge and offered as proof of his innocence the fact that he had heard the bell in the clock tower of St. Paul's Cathedral strike thirteen
times at midnight.
At first no one believed that the clock's bell could have been heard from so far away,but then it was discovered that the clock had,in fact,struck thirteen times at midnight on the very night the sentry was supposed to have fallen asleep on duty.
The sentry was, of course, released, having been "saved by the bell."
~source used: "Every Wonder Why?" by Douglas B. Smith~
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 08-19-2003 07:17 PM
Rated G
Useless fact - Why do we say "God bless you" after a sneeze?
Why do we bless people when they sneeze? After all,we have no
such custom for people when they cough or hiccup. In ancient
times, it was believed that the soul left your body when you
sneezed and that evil spirits could then enter. Blessing you with the name of God was supposed to prevent this. In the Dark Ages, it was believed that your heart stopped momentarily when you sneezed. You were, in effect, dead for an instant and had to be blessed.
Sneezing is triggered by irritants such as dust, pollen, or pet
dander. These particles land on the mucous lining of the nose.
The irritation triggers the lungs to inhale, building up high
pressure, while the airways are all tightly closed. When the air
passages are suddenly opened, the breathing muscle forcibly
expels the air, and any irritants, out through the nose and mouth.
Dust and pollen aren't the only things expelled with the air. If
you are sick, any viruses in the nasal passages or throat can
also be expelled. When you sneeze, mucus-laden air is shot out of your nose and mouth at around one hundred miles per hour. A good blast can travel clear across a room. A sick person could, thus, spread their illness to anyone in the immediate area. Bearing this in mind, perhaps the next time someone sneezes, they should bless *you*!
~source used: "Thoughts for the Throne" by Don Voorhees~
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 08-21-2003 05:38 AM
Rated G
Useless fact - Why do old tents smell like barf?
People will tell you it's mildew,but they're wrong.Tents do
suffer from mildew,of course,but that's another problem and
another smell.The real culprit here is cellulose acetate
butyrate(CAB),which is commonly added to the polyurethane coatings used on tents.When CAB breaks down over time,one of its many by-products is butyric acid,which gives off a distinctly puky odor.("Butyric" comes from the Latin word for butter; butyric acid is the substance that gives rancid butter its endearing fragrance.)
According to Kris Krishnan,technical director of "Raffi & Swanson",a manufacturer of polyurethane coatings,the odor
is "not normal—it's an abused condition."You can avoid CAB
breakdown by taking a few simple precautions:Keep your tent out of excessive sunlight.Don't store it wet.And don't leave it
cooking in your car trunk for weeks at a time.
~source used: "Why Moths Hate Thomas Edison?" by Hampton Sides
~
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 08-22-2003 06:04 AM
Rated G
Useless fact - Who invented Gatorade?
During physical exertion at high temperatures,you can suffer
severe dehydration and loss of body salts.If you lost just 2
percent of your body weight because of perspiration,your blood
volume could drop,dangerously decreasing your blood pressure.
Dehydration can cause fatigue, muscle cramping, decreased
coordination,and poor all-around performance.In the early
1960s,a team of researchers at the University of Florida started
a project to develop a product that would rapidly replace the
fluid and salts lost during extreme exertion.In 1965,Robert
Cade,a kidney researcher and professor of medicine, concocted a
formula to combat dehydration.All that was left to do was test
the new formula.
Football players lose a great amount of body fluid when
practicing and playing games.The researchers decided to test the
new formula on 10 members of the University of Florida football
team.The name of the team is the "Gators," derived from the word
alligator,so it was decided to name the formula "Gatorade."
The football coach,recognizing the value of Gatorade,had his
players drink it for the entire season.That year the Gators had
a winning season and earned the nickname "the second-half team,"
because they outplayed all their opponents in the second half of
the game.When the Gators whipped Georgia Tech in the 1967 Orange
Bowl,the opposing coach said, "We didn't have Gatorade. That
made the difference." 'Sports Illustrated' magazine published the coach's remarks.From that time on,more and more football
coaches realized that players needed to consume fluids during the game to avoid dehydration.
Robert Cade eventually sold the Gatorade rights to Stokely Van-
Kamp,Inc.In 1983,the Quaker Oats Company purchased the rights
to Gatorade.At that time, Gatorade came in three flavors,the
original Lemon Lime,Orange, and Fruit Punch.There are now about
30 flavors worldwide.In spite of increased competition from
about 60 different sports drinks,Gatorade is still the number
one sports drink in the United States.
Whether football players are drinking it or pouring it over their coach's head in a victory celebration, the pale-green Gatorade will probably be part of the football scene for years to
come.
To prevent dehydration when exercising, weigh yourself before and after your workout.If you have lost 2 or more pounds,drink 24 ounces of water for each pound you've lost.In 1985, Jim Burt,
who played for the New York Giants,was the first football player
to dump a cooler of Gatorade on a coach when he drenched Bill
Parcells.It wasn't until 1989 when a coach retaliated.Steve
Spurrier,coach at the University of Florida,crept up behind
three unsuspecting players who had doused him the week before and promptly dumped a cooler of Gatorade on them.
Drinking a sports drink is better than drinking water when
you're working out. Water will quench your thirst but it isn't
that good for preventing dehydration. It turns off your thirst
before you get all the fluids you need, and it doesn't contain theimportant electrolytes that you lose when perspiring.
~source used: "What Makes Flamingos Pink?" by Bill McLain
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 08-23-2003 05:21 AM
Rated G
Useless fact - The fate of greatest Chinese poet Li Po:
Li Po (A.D. 701-762),a distant relative of Chinese royals and
sometime follower of Taoist principles,supposedly drowned in a
lake while drunkenly trying to grasp the reflection of the moon
in its waters.He was a wide-eyed, heavy-drinking romantic,and
legend has it that he was granted all the wine he wanted by royal decree.The truth is,because he is China's most honored poet,much of what he did has now been romanticized and much of what is known about him is only guesswork.
We do know that Li Po went off twice to Taoist monasteries,spent
much of his time simply wandering about writing poetry on nature
and wine (although he really wanted a job in the royal court),
and several times got caught up in political intrigues. At one
point,he had charges brought against him for aligning himself
with the wrong prince in a power struggle,but he managed to have
the charges dropped after a few years.
Many of Li Po's wandering sprees were preceded by official
banishments for being too close to this or that segment of the
royal family. Reliable sources suggest that his work wasn't fully appreciated until after his death and that no royal decree about wine or anything else would have been given while he was living.
According to some historians,Li Po really died in seclusion at a friend's house at the age of 61.
~source used: "Just Curious, Jeeves"by Erin Barrett & Jack Mingo
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
|
posted 08-25-2003 05:53 AM
Rated G
Useless fact - Why do men have Adam's apples?
Actually,both men and women have Adam's apples.In medical terms, the Adam's apple is called a thyroid cartilage. The reason a man's Adam's apple is larger than a woman's is because his larynx is larger to accommodate his longer vocal cords. (By the way,it is men's longer vocal cords that give them deeper voices.)
A second reason,which female readers may not enjoy reading, is because women have more fat in their necks,which hides the Adam's apple.
The name,Adam's apple, is taken from the Biblical story of Adam and Eve.As the story goes,a piece of the apple that Eve had given Adam to eat became lodged in his throat.From then on, Adam and all his male descendants had an enlarged larynx as a symbol of Adam's shame.
~source used: "Thoughts for the Throne" by Don Voorhees~
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Bob Maar
(Maar stands for Maartini)
Posts: 28608
From: New York City & Newport, RI
Registered: Feb 2001
|
posted 08-25-2003 12:07 PM
Rated G
Useless fact - What is quicksand? Where does it occur? And is it as dangerous as in the movies?
Quicksand can be found anywhere on Earth, wherever the conditions are right. It's a kind of thick soup created when water flows up through sand. It can develop, for example, along the inland side of a levee when a river is in flood stage or when an underground spring flows beneath a silty bank. The flow can cancel out the weight of the sand. Instead of packing together like a solid, the
sand granules float around. When you step into it, there's nothing to support your weight, and you start to sink. However, you won't be pulled under, as victims invariably are in those old jungle flicks. Quicksand is thicker than water, so in the long run you'll float. You probably could drown if you really put your mind to it, but your corpse wouldn't go anywhere.
If you should step in quicksand: Get on your back and let your feet float to the surface. Then squidge slowly to stableland. It'll take time. There are reports of people taking all day to move a half dozen feet in quicksand. You could starve, but you won't sink.
On the other hand, animals that can't float on their back —elephants, for instance — are in real danger of drowning in quicksand. In fact, some researchers believe that the legendary "elephant graveyards" might actually be patches of former bog or quicksand where groups of pachyderms got trapped. In any event, you can ignore the old Tarzan movies:Quicksand can't suck you in. Hollywood's another matter.
~source used: "Why Moths Hate Thomas Edison" by Hampton Sides~
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