marc n
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| posted on 10/10/05 at 05:51 PM |
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interesting facts
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 were 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 State with the highest percentage of people who walk to work: Alaska
The percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28% (now get this...) The percentage of North America that is wilderness: 38%
The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of eleven: $6,400
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.
The San Francisco Cable cars are the only mobile
National Monuments.
Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a
great king from 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 per son 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.
Only two people signed the Declaration of Independence
on July 4th, John Hancock and Charles Thomson. Most of the rest signed on August 2, but the last signature wasn't added until 5 years later.
Q. Half of all Americans live within 50 miles of what?
A. Their birthplace
Q. Most boat owners name their boats. What is the most popular boat name requested?
A. Obsession
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 bulletproof 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
Q. Which day are there more collect calls than any other day of the year?
A. Father's Day
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."
Hence, 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.
~~~~~~~~~~~AND FINALLY~~~~~~~~~~~~
At least 75% of people who read this will try to lick their elbow
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NOTE:This user is registered as a LocostBuilders trader and may offer commercial services to other users
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flak monkey
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| posted on 10/10/05 at 06:04 PM |
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Some good ones in there. I have a book full of useless facts somewhere.
However I disagree with this one:
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
Depending on your english I guess.
Its one hundred And one
David 
Sera
http://www.motosera.com
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rusty nuts
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| posted on 10/10/05 at 06:35 PM |
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Couldn't lick mine .
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steve_gus
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| posted on 10/10/05 at 07:09 PM |
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thing is with those kinda lists, is that its pretty hard to check the facts..... you coul make up a lot of em and not be found out.
I could say that 75% of brummies dont go further north than Manchester in their lives, and you couldnt prove it ether way
Mark Twain was the first author with a typewriter, or the first one famous enough to be credited with one....
atb
steve
http://www.locostbuilder.co.uk
Just knock off the 's'!
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scoobyis2cool
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| posted on 10/10/05 at 11:01 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by steve_gus
I could say that 75% of brummies dont go further north than Manchester in their lives, and you couldnt prove it ether way
Well I for one have been to york this weekend, so that one brummie in the "has been further north than manchester" category 
Good list of facts, I'll be sure to impress my friends with those next time I'm at the pub
Pete
It's not that I'm lazy, it's that I just don't care...
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indykid
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| posted on 10/10/05 at 11:12 PM |
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it's not impossible to lick your elbow.
i know that for a fact, i've seen it done by my mate, and also on brainiac.
it's true that you can't touch your right elbow with your right hand though. it's amazing how any people have to try it to believe
it though
tom
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TheGecko
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| posted on 11/10/05 at 12:07 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by marc n
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."
Hence, 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.
Sorry, but I think both of these (which appear on a lot of these internet lists of "wisdom" are crap.
P's & Q's derives from the printing industry, when type was hand set from individual letters. As the type is reversed when set
it's very easy to confuse a 'p' and a 'q'. So, mind your p's & q's was an admonishment to young,
inexperienced typesetters to watch what they were doing.
Re: wet your whistle. Can anyone actually imagine a pub with patrons whistling on their mugs for service? Or publicans/patrons bearing the cost of
mugs with a good, functional whistles baked in?
But, ever tried to whistle when your lips are dry? Doesn't work very well does it? So, have a drink, wet your lips, and you can whistle.
Hence, wet your whistle.
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TheGecko
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| posted on 11/10/05 at 12:35 AM |
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Oh, and "golf" is believed to derive from an old Germanic word meaning club. Given that the game has a history back into the 12th
century, an acronym that only works in relatively modern English seems a little unlikely.
And the origin given for "rule of thumb" doesn't seem to bear up under investigation - no-one ever seems to find any old statutes
that actually set down such a law, despite there being preserved legal documents from many sources for the last many hundreds of years.
To quote WikiPedia (yes, I know, not infallible but usually pretty good):quote:
The term "rule of thumb" or similar exists in many
languages and cultures. Its likely origin is that the thumb is often used for rough measurement by carpenters, seamstresses, artists and many others.
In fact, the measurement of an inch is believed to have been derived from the distance between the tip of the thumb and the first joint.
And Gary Starkweather, who invented the laser printer in 1971 by modifying a Xerox
copier, is not female.
[Edited on 11/10/2005 by TheGecko]
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