Someone will know

Archived discussion from Toril-2.
Thilindel
Sojourner
Posts: 3173
Joined: Sun Aug 31, 2003 9:09 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Someone will know

Postby Thilindel » Mon Aug 21, 2006 12:43 am

Got this at my .mil address - anybody know if they're all true?




In the 1400's a law was set forth that a man was not allowed to beat his
wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of
thumb".

Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented. It was ruled
"Gentlemen Only...Ladies Forbidden"...and thus the word GOLF entered
into the English language.

The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV was Fred and
Wilma Flintstone

Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the US Treasury.

Men can read smaller print than women can; women can hear better.

Coca-Cola was originally green .

It is impossible to lick your elbow.

The average number of people airborne over the US any given hour: 61,000

Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.

The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom Sawyer

Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king in history:
Spades - King David
Hearts - Charlemagne
Clubs -Alexander, the Great
Diamonds - Julius Caesar

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the
air, the person died in battle. If the horse has one front leg in the air
the person died as a result of wounds received in battle. If the horse has
all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.

Q. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you
would find the letter "A"?
A. One thousand

Q. What do bullet-proof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers, and laser
printers all have in common?
A. All invented by women.

Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil?
A. Honey

In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When
you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to
sleep on. Hence the phrase......... "goodnight, sleep tight."

It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month
after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law
with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their
calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month,
which we know today as the honeymoon.

In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England ,
when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them
"Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down." It's where we get the phrase
"mind your P's and Q's"

Many years ago in England , pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the
rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they
used the whistle to get some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase
inspired by this practice.

Don't delete this just because it looks weird. Believe it or not, you can
read it..........

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdgnieg. The
phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde
Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the
olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit
pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a
porbelm Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef,
but the wrod as a wlohe.

Amazing huh?

~~~~~~~~~~~AND FINALLY~~~~~~~~~~~~

At least 75% of people who read this will try to lick their elbow
Yayaril
Sojourner
Posts: 2552
Joined: Sun Feb 18, 2001 6:01 am
Location: Green Bay, WI

Postby Yayaril » Mon Aug 21, 2006 12:46 am

8)

It IS too possible to lick your own elbow.
Thilindel
Sojourner
Posts: 3173
Joined: Sun Aug 31, 2003 9:09 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Postby Thilindel » Mon Aug 21, 2006 12:49 am

Yeah, I've seen the google chick do it in a video. But she'd had a car accident that messed her arm length up :P
User avatar
Shevarash
FORGER CODER
Posts: 2944
Joined: Fri Dec 29, 2000 6:01 am

Re: Someone will know

Postby Shevarash » Mon Aug 21, 2006 2:44 am

I hate these things. I will never understand the purpose of spreading falsehoods like this. Here we go...

Thilindel wrote:Got this at my .mil address - anybody know if they're all true?

In the 1400's a law was set forth that a man was not allowed to beat his
wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of
thumb".


False. The most probable origin lies in the fact that the top joint of a man's thumb is approximately an inch long. Want a quick approximation to an inch? Use your thumb as a rule.

Thilindel wrote:Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented. It was ruled
"Gentlemen Only...Ladies Forbidden"...and thus the word GOLF entered
into the English language.



False. http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/golf.asp

Thilindel wrote:The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV was Fred and
Wilma Flintstone


False. http://www.snopes.com/radiotv/tv/marykay.htm

Thilindel wrote:
Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the US Treasury.


Who knows, sounds plausible.

Thilindel wrote:Men can read smaller print than women can; women can hear better.


Generalizations like that tend to be false, and given that this email is full of crap, I see no reason to believe that one.


Thilindel wrote:Coca-Cola was originally green .


False. http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/green.asp

Thilindel wrote:It is impossible to lick your elbow.


False. some people can lick their elbow.

Thilindel wrote:The average number of people airborne over the US any given hour: 61,000


That number is widely circulated on "Trivia" and "Did you know?" sites, which makes me think its probably false...but who knows. I don't care enough to hunt for the real facts.

Thilindel wrote:Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.


False. Idiotic. Hard to find research to state as such, but, uh, find me some that proves it.

Thilindel wrote:
The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom Sawyer


Possible, but debatable according to this: [url]http://circadianoesis.blogspot.com/2006/03/tom-sawyer-was-not-first-typewritten.html
[/url]

Thilindel wrote:Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king in history:
Spades - King David
Hearts - Charlemagne
Clubs -Alexander, the Great
Diamonds - Julius Caesar


False. Only French playing cards represent a king - the standard British cards Americans are used to do not. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_(playing_card)


Thilindel wrote:111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321


True.


Thilindel wrote:If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the
air, the person died in battle. If the horse has one front leg in the air
the person died as a result of wounds received in battle. If the horse has
all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.


Maybe true for some statues, but clearly false for all statues in parks all over the world.

Thilindel wrote:
Q. What do bullet-proof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers, and laser
printers all have in common?
A. All invented by women.


False. I searched enough to see that fire escapes and laser printers were not.

Thilindel wrote:Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil?
A. Honey


True.

Thilindel wrote:In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When
you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to
sleep on. Hence the phrase......... "goodnight, sleep tight."


False. http://www.askoxford.com/asktheexperts/faq/aboutwordorigins/tight

Thilindel wrote:It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month
after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law
with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their
calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month,
which we know today as the honeymoon.



False. http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-hon1.htm

Thilindel wrote:In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... So in old England ,
when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them
"Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down." It's where we get the phrase
"mind your P's and Q's"


False. Have you ever heard of a bar that served beer by the quart?

Thilindel wrote:Many years ago in England , pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the
rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they
used the whistle to get some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase
inspired by this practice.


Also completely false, and ludicrous.

Enjoy!
Shevarash -- Code Forger of TorilMUD
Thilindel
Sojourner
Posts: 3173
Joined: Sun Aug 31, 2003 9:09 pm
Location: Indianapolis

Postby Thilindel » Mon Aug 21, 2006 3:55 am

Damn, I'm _so_ watching shev when he's on jeopardy! :)
Duna
Sojourner
Posts: 450
Joined: Sun Mar 28, 2004 1:40 am
Contact:

Re: Someone will know

Postby Duna » Mon Aug 21, 2006 3:56 am

Shevarash wrote:
Thilindel wrote:
Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the US Treasury.


Who knows, sounds plausible.



I actually saw a thing about this on the history channel.. they had a show around christmas one year about games and toys....
it's true.
"A true friend unbosoms freely, advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, and continues a friend unchangeably." - William Penn
" I"m built for comfort not for speed. " - Carl on Jimmy Neutron.
Cirath
Sojourner
Posts: 517
Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2001 5:01 am

Re: Someone will know

Postby Cirath » Mon Aug 21, 2006 8:13 am

Thilindel wrote:In the 1400's a law was set forth that a man was not allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of thumb".


This is false if for no other reason than it is worded incorrectly. The way it is written states that the stick must be larger than his thumb, meaning he could use a louisville slugger, if he so chose. As for the reality of this law, I can't say, but I have heard the myth that a stick no larger in diameter than the man's thumb was legal at one point in time. At the time I heard it, it was the 1800's, not the 1400's.
Dalar
Sojourner
Posts: 4905
Joined: Sun Feb 25, 2001 6:01 am

Re: Someone will know

Postby Dalar » Mon Aug 21, 2006 4:06 pm

Cirath wrote:
Thilindel wrote:In the 1400's a law was set forth that a man was not allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of thumb".


This is false if for no other reason than it is worded incorrectly. The way it is written states that the stick must be larger than his thumb, meaning he could use a louisville slugger, if he so chose. As for the reality of this law, I can't say, but I have heard the myth that a stick no larger in diameter than the man's thumb was legal at one point in time. At the time I heard it, it was the 1800's, not the 1400's.
It will be fixed in Toril 2.0.
Aremat group-says 'tanks i highly suggest investing 20 silver in training weapons from cm to cut down on the losing scales to shield'
Cirath
Sojourner
Posts: 517
Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2001 5:01 am

Re: Someone will know

Postby Cirath » Mon Aug 21, 2006 5:56 pm

Thilindel wrote:In the 1400's a law was set forth that a man was not allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. Hence we have "the rule of thumb".


Read more closely.
amolol
Sojourner
Posts: 688
Joined: Mon Sep 30, 2002 5:01 am

Postby amolol » Tue Aug 22, 2006 6:38 am

here is a list of foods that will not spoil.(unless sme outside force interacts with them)

honey
vinegar
raw sugar
sugar
brown sugar
cane sugar
peeps (some say they do, other say they only get better)
corn syrup
bleached flour (bleached enriched white or bleached flour)
european pastry flour (yes there is a difference)
those are the ones off of the top of my head that wont spoil unless you add something else to them.

none of the sugars will unless you add water to them.
same with flour
as for peeps, well you cand ecide.
i dont know what your problem is, but i bet its hard to pronounce

myspace.com/tgchef
Yarash
Sojourner
Posts: 432
Joined: Thu Sep 05, 2002 5:01 am
Location: Monterey, CA

Postby Yarash » Tue Aug 22, 2006 8:51 am

What about a twinkie? Doesn't that last forever?
teflor the ranger
Sojourner
Posts: 3923
Joined: Fri Jul 26, 2002 5:01 am
Location: Waterdeep

Re: Someone will know

Postby teflor the ranger » Tue Aug 22, 2006 3:50 pm

Shevarash wrote:I hate these things. I will never understand the purpose of spreading falsehoods like this. Here we go...


Holy crap, thanks for saving me a lot of work Shev.

Btw thil, honey spoils. That's how they can make mead.
Teflor does. Teflor does not.
Cirath
Sojourner
Posts: 517
Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2001 5:01 am

Re: Someone will know

Postby Cirath » Tue Aug 22, 2006 4:39 pm

teflor the ranger wrote:Btw thil, honey spoils. That's how they can make mead.


There's a difference between spoiling and fermenting. Besides, while mead is made with honey, that isn't the only ingredient (honey is to mead what barley is to beer, if I remember correctly). On it's own honey won't spoil, only crystalize.
Lilira
Sojourner
Posts: 1438
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 3:53 pm

Postby Lilira » Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:12 pm

Correctomundo Cir.

Mmm.... Mead.


Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: [as Herger offers a mead horn] I cannot taste neither the fermentation of grape, nor of wheat.

[Herger laughs]

Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: What? Why do you laugh?

Herger the Joyous: [laughing, and handing over the bottle] HONEY! It's made from honey!
~\o--Lilira Shadowlyre--o/~

You group-say 'my chars will carry the component on them if I can.'
Inama group-says 'hopefully they'll have some sort of volume discounts on ress items for people like you'
You group-say 'oh? Ya think? *giggle*'
Inama group-says 'they could at least implement frequent dier miles'

Suzalize group-says 'oh, eya's over weight i bet'
teflor the ranger
Sojourner
Posts: 3923
Joined: Fri Jul 26, 2002 5:01 am
Location: Waterdeep

Re: Someone will know

Postby teflor the ranger » Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:45 pm

Cirath wrote:
teflor the ranger wrote:Btw thil, honey spoils. That's how they can make mead.


There's a difference between spoiling and fermenting. Besides, while mead is made with honey, that isn't the only ingredient (honey is to mead what barley is to beer, if I remember correctly). On it's own honey won't spoil, only crystalize.


"On it's own."

What food is ever on it's own? Not exposed to molds, oxygen, water, or otherwise?

It spoils. And I bet you wouldn't eat fifty year old honey. - nice try. Oh, and you still need honey to make mead.
Teflor does. Teflor does not.
Lilira
Sojourner
Posts: 1438
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2003 3:53 pm

Postby Lilira » Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:52 pm

I've kept honey in the pantry for YEARS and its never spoiled, just crystalize, which I believe is what was said..

Keeping honey in a well sealed container prevents it from spoiling.

Oh and I've made mead too.

Stop with the splitting of the hairs. Sheesh.
~\o--Lilira Shadowlyre--o/~

You group-say 'my chars will carry the component on them if I can.'
Inama group-says 'hopefully they'll have some sort of volume discounts on ress items for people like you'
You group-say 'oh? Ya think? *giggle*'
Inama group-says 'they could at least implement frequent dier miles'

Suzalize group-says 'oh, eya's over weight i bet'
amolol
Sojourner
Posts: 688
Joined: Mon Sep 30, 2002 5:01 am

Postby amolol » Tue Aug 22, 2006 10:18 pm

no teflor honey does not spoil, it does crystalize. to make mead out of honey you need to add yeast. granted yeast floats flreely in the air but you need alot of yeast to make the firmentation process happen.

to clarify on its own means that you can expose it to air and let it sit out on your counter for an indefinate amount of time.
i dont know what your problem is, but i bet its hard to pronounce



myspace.com/tgchef
Cirath
Sojourner
Posts: 517
Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2001 5:01 am

Re: Someone will know

Postby Cirath » Wed Aug 23, 2006 1:29 am

teflor the ranger wrote:It spoils. And I bet you wouldn't eat fifty year old honey. - nice try. Oh, and you still need honey to make mead.


"Liquid honey does not spoil. Because of its high sugar concentration, it kills bacteria by plasmolysis. Natural airborne yeasts cannot become active in it because the moisture content is too low. Natural, raw honey varies from 14% to 18% moisture content. As long as the moisture content remains under 18%, virtually no organism can successfully multiply to significant amounts in honey." -Wikipedia

Yes, I know that wikipedia isn't the most reliable of sources, but it agrees with what other sources I scanned through on a quick search, as well as my memory of assorted trivia. I also seem to remember that some Egyptian tombs contained pots of honey several hundreds years old that were still edible.

And yes, I would eat fifty year old honey, though I expect that unless it was particularly pure, it would have turned to something resembling hard candy by then.
daggaz
Sojourner
Posts: 464
Joined: Mon Nov 01, 2004 4:17 pm
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark

Postby daggaz » Sat Aug 26, 2006 7:00 pm

Erm... bars used to sell beer by the quart all the time, Shev. The evidence is rife in English novels, and the practise was even carried over to the states, surviving at least till around the Great Depression. My grandmother used to run a tavern and sold beer by the quart to sailors and loggers up in Washington. Steinbeck I believe makes references to the practise in Cannery Row, tho I could be mistaken.

Just cause you dont see it these days doesnt make it untrue... Who knows, but its the best explanation Ive heard for the addage... always did wonder about that one.


As for the statue thing, its definitely true in European cities, not counting modern sculpture, and I believe the idea was also used in the early history of the states and carries on today with the military.


As for the food thing, add dried pasta to the list. Anything with a low enough level of active H20 (liquid, not chemically bound) is basically impervious to most organisms, provided it is kept in a dry environment. Keep it out of the light too, as UV will degrade things (tho they wont technically spoil). Honey will rot in the comb, but it is the comb that contains too much water and contaminates. Honey ferments because you mix it with water and purposely contaminate it with yeast.

I believe twinkies have a stated shelf life of only a month or so... The army did develop a fieldration ham sandwhich tho, which contains no dairy products, is processed under extremely sterile conditions, is heavily irradiated until less than 1000th of a percent of any orginal microbes are surviving, and is then vacuum packed in a heavy duty wrapper. It lasts five years.
Cirath
Sojourner
Posts: 517
Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2001 5:01 am

Postby Cirath » Sat Aug 26, 2006 11:52 pm

daggaz wrote:The army did develop a fieldration ham sandwhich tho, which contains no dairy products, is processed under extremely sterile conditions, is heavily irradiated until less than 1000th of a percent of any orginal microbes are surviving, and is then vacuum packed in a heavy duty wrapper. It lasts five years.


And I bet it is oh so very tasty, too. Hell, at that point why even pretend that it is still a sandwich? Just call it "lump of emergency calories."
Drache
Sojourner
Posts: 338
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2002 5:01 am
Location: Bloomington IN USA

Postby Drache » Sun Aug 27, 2006 7:27 am

Look! Nonox can do it!

Image
Cirath
Sojourner
Posts: 517
Joined: Fri Jun 29, 2001 5:01 am

Postby Cirath » Sun Aug 27, 2006 12:32 pm

daggaz wrote:Erm... bars used to sell beer by the quart all the time, Shev. The evidence is rife in English novels, and the practise was even carried over to the states, surviving at least till around the Great Depression. My grandmother used to run a tavern and sold beer by the quart to sailors and loggers up in Washington. Steinbeck I believe makes references to the practise in Cannery Row, tho I could be mistaken.

Just cause you dont see it these days doesnt make it untrue... Who knows, but its the best explanation Ive heard for the addage... always did wonder about that one.


I also forgot to mention that one of the bars here that I frequent serves beer by the quart, though they refer to it as a "medium." They also sell a three pint size (which is what I usually get. Saves having to get a pitcher, and there is something amusing about having a beer nearly the size of my head served to me).

Return to “General Discussion Archive”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 25 guests