Trivia Today

[historylover]

Really? I'll be damned. I always thought the troll capital of the world was the Freeones Talk forum.

:rofl::rofl2:


















:yesyes:


RANDOM TIDBITS - TOP DOGS

In 1998, Russian wolfhound Olive Oyl of Grayslake, Illinois,
made the Guinness Book of World Records when she skipped
rope 63 times in one minute.

***

Chihuahua and shih tzu mix Tiny Tim of London holds the
record (as of 2004) for being the tiniest dog ever. The
little guy measures three inches tall at the shoulder and
four inches long from nose to tail, and weighs just over a
pound.

***

The oldest dog reliably documented was an Australian cattle
dog named Bluey. After 29 years and 5 months of faithful
service, Bluey was put to rest in 1939.

***

Border collies are widely regarded as the smartest of dogs,
since they have been bred to work closely with humans for
centuries. However, without enough stimulation, they can
appear hyper and not quite as brilliant!

***

The favorite dog of ancient Egyptians, the basenji is
incapable of barking, instead uttering a sound called a
yodel.

***

Zorba, an Old English mastiff, was the world's heaviest and
longest dog ever recorded. Zorba weighed 343 pounds and,
from nose to tail, was eight feet three inches long.

 

[gunslingingbird]

The favorite dog of ancient Egyptians, the basenji is
incapable of barking, instead uttering a sound called a
yodel.

This is an ancient recording of Ramses II's dog Fluffy.

 

[historylover]

1920s

23 skiddoo -- to get going; move along; leave; or scram
The cat's pajamas -- the best; the height of excellence
Gams -- legs
The real McCoy -- sincere; genuine; the real thing
Hotsy-totsy -- perfect
The bee's knees -- excellent; outstanding

1930s

I'll be a monkey's uncle -- sign of disbelief; I don't
believe it!
Gig -- a job
Girl Friday -- a secretary or female assistant
Skivvies -- men's underwear

***

1940s

Blockbuster -- a huge success
Keeping up with the Joneses -- competing to have a lifestyle
or socioeconomic status comparable to one's neighbors
Cool -- excellent; clever; sophisticated; fashionable; or
enjoyable
Sitting in the hot seat -- in a highly uncomfortable or
embarrassing situation

***

1950s

Boo-boo -- a mistake; a wound
Hi-fi -- high fidelity; a record player or turntable
Hipster -- an innovative and trendy person

***

1960s

Daddy-o -- a man; used to address a hipster or beatnik
Groovy -- cool; hip; excellent
Hippie -- derived from hipster; a young adult who rebelled
against established institutions, criticized middle-class
values, opposed the Vietnam War, and promoted sexual freedom
The Man -- a person of authority; a group in power

1970s

Catch you on the flip side -- see you later
Dig it -- to like or understand something
Get down/Boogie -- dance
Mind-blowing -- unbelievable; originally an expression for
the effects of hallucinogenic drugs
Pump iron -- lift weights
Workaholic -- a person who works too much or is addicted to
his or her job

***

1980s

Bodacious -- beautiful
Chillin' -- relaxing
Dweeb -- a nerd; someone who is not cool
Fly -- cool; very hip
Gag me with a spoon -- disgusting
Gnarly -- exceptional; very cool
Preppy -- one who dresses in designer clothing and has a
neat, clean-cut appearance
Wicked -- excellent; great
Yuppie -- Young Urban Professional; a college-educated
person with a well-paying job who lives near a big city;
often associated with a materialistic and superficial
personality

***

1990s

Diss -- show disrespect
Get jiggy -- dance; flirt
Homey/Homeboy -- a friend or buddy
My bad -- my mistake
Phat -- cool or hip; highly attractive; hot
Wassup? -- What's up?; How are you?
Word -- yes; I agree

2000s

Barney Bag -- a gigantic purse
Newbie -- a newcomer; someone who is inexperienced
Peeps -- friends; people
Rents -- parents
Sweet -- beyond cool

(howstuffworks.com)

 

[gunslingingbird]

[nobabe]Origins of States' Names

ALABAMA. Possibly from the Creek Indian word alibamo, meaning "we stay here."

ALASKA. From the Aleutian word alakshak, which means "great lands," or "land that is not an island."

ARIZONA. Taken either from the pima Indian words ali shonak, meaning "little spring," or from the Aztec word arizuma, meaning "silver-bearing."

ARKANSAS. The French somehow coined it from the name of the Siouan Quapaw tribe.

CALIFORNIA. According to one theory, Spanish settlers names it after a utopian society described in a popular 16th-century novel called Serged de Esplandian.

COLORADO. Means "red" in Spanish. The name was originally applied to the Colorado River, whose waters are reddish with canyon clay.

CONNECTICUT. Taken from the Mohican word kuenihtekot, which means "long river place."

DELAWARE. Named after Lord De La Warr, a governor of Virginia. Originally used only to name the Delaware River.

FLORIDA. Explorer Ponce de Leon named the state Pascua Florida - "flowery Easter"—on Easter Sunday in 1513.

GEORGIA. Named after King George II of England, who charted the colony in 1732.

HAWAII. An English adaptation of the native word owhyhee, which means "homeland."

IDAHO. Possibly taken from the Kiowa Apache word for the Comanche Indians.

ILLINOIS. The French bastardization of the Algonquin word illini, which means "men."

INDIANA. Named by English-speaking settlers because the territory was full of Indians.

IOWA. The Sioux word for "beautiful land," or "one who puts to sleep."

KANSAS. Taken from the Sioux word for "south wind people," their name for anyone who lived south of Sioux territory.

KENTUCKY. Possibly derived from the Indian word kan-tuk-kee, meaning "dark and bloody ground." Or kan-tuc-kec, "land of green reeds", or ken-take, meaning "meadowland."

LOUISIANA. Named after French King Louis XIV.

MAINE. The Old French word for "province."

MARYLAND. Named after Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of English King George I.

MASSACHUSETTS. Named after the Massachusetts Indian tribe. Means "large hill place."

MICHIGAN. Most likely from the Chippewa word for "great water." micigama.

MINNESOTA. From the Sioux word for "sky tinted" or "muddy water."

MISSISSIPPI. Most likely taken from the Chippewa words mici ("great") and zibi ("river").

MISSOURI. From the Algonquin word for "muddy water."

MONTANA. Taken from the Latin word for "mountainous."

NEBRASKA. From the Otos Indian word for "broad water."

NEVADA. Means "snow-clad" in Spanish.

NEW HAMPSHIRE. Capt. John Mason, one of the original colonists, named it after his English home county of Hampshire.

NEW JERSEY. Named after the English Isle of Jersey.

NEW MEXICO. The Spanish name for the territory north of the Rio Grande.

NEW YORK. Named after the Duke of York and Albany.

NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA. From the Latin name Carolus; named in honor of King Charles I of England.

NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA. Taken from the Sioux word for "friend," or "ally."

OHIO. Means "great," "fine," or "good river" in Iriquois.

OKLAHOMA. The Choctaw word for "red man."

OREGON. Possibly derived from Ouaricon-sint, the French name for the Wisconsin River.

PENNSYLVANIA. Named after William Penn, Sr., the father of the colony’s founder, William Penn. Means "Penn’s woods."

RHODE ISLAND. Named "Roode Eylandt" (Red Island) because of its red clay.

TENNESSEE. Named after the Cherokee tanasi villages along the banks of the Little Tennessee River.

TEXAS. Derived from the Caddo Indian word for "friend," or "ally."

UTAH. Means "upper," or "higher," and was originally the name that Navajos called the Shoshone tribe.

VERMONT. A combination of the French words vert ("green") and mont ("mountain").

VIRGINIA AND WEST VIRGINIA. Named after Queen Elizabeth I of England, the "virgin" queen, by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1584.

WASHINGTON. Named after George Washington.

WISCONSIN. Taken from the Chippewa word for "grassy place."

WYOMING. Derived from the Algonquin word for "large prairie place." [/nobabe]

 

[tunsty]

Sitting in the hot seat -- in a highly uncomfortable or
embarrassing situation

I would dispute that definition.

'Hot-seat' is more likely to mean being in a position that is deemed very important, essential or pivotal to a particular outcome

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

Bugsy Siegel named his Las Vegas casino "The Flamingo" for
the long legs of his showgirl sweetheart, Virginia Hill.

***

In 1931, the Pair-O-Dice Club was the first casino to open
on Highway 91, the future Las Vegas Strip.

***

In 1899 Charles Fey invented a slot machine named the
Liberty Bell. The device became the model for all slots to
follow.

***

The Imperial Palace on the Las Vegas strip is the nation's
first off-airport airline baggage check-in service.

***

In March 1931, Governor Fred Balzar signed into law the
bill legalizing gambling in the state.

***

The longest running show in Las Vegas is the Follies
Bergere at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino, which opened in
1959.

 

[gunslingingbird]

33 Names of Things You Never Knew had Names

1. AGLET - The plain or ornamental covering on the end of a shoelace.
2. ARMSAYE - The armhole in clothing.
3. CHANKING - Spat-out food, such as rinds or pits.
4. COLUMELLA NASI - The bottom part of the nose between the nostrils.
5. DRAGÉES - Small beadlike pieces of candy, usually silver-coloured, used for decorating cookies, cakes and sundaes.
6. FEAT - A dangling curl of hair.
7. FERRULE - The metal band on a pencil that holds the eraser in place.
8. HARP - The small metal hoop that supports a lampshade.
9. HEMIDEMISEMIQUAVER - A 64th note. (A 32nd is a demisemiquaver, and a 16th note is a semiquaver.)
10. JARNS,
11. NITTLES,
12. GRAWLIX,
13. and QUIMP - Various squiggles used to denote cussing in comic books.
14. KEEPER - The loop on a belt that keeps the end in place after it has passed through the buckle.
15. KICK or PUNT - The indentation at the bottom of some wine bottles. It gives added strength to the bottle but lessens its holding capacity.
16. LIRIPIPE - The long tail on a graduate's academic hood.
17. MINIMUS - The little finger or toe.
18. NEF - An ornamental stand in the shape of a ship.
19. OBDORMITION - The numbness caused by pressure on a nerve; when a limb is 'asleep'.
20. OCTOTHORPE - The symbol '#' on a telephone handset. Bell Labs' engineer Don Macpherson created the word in the 1960s by combining octo-, as in eight, with the name of one of his favourite athletes, 1912 Olympic decathlon champion Jim Thorpe.
21. OPHRYON - The space between the eyebrows on a line with the top of the eye sockets.
22. PEEN - The end of a hammer head opposite the striking face.
23. PHOSPHENES - The lights you see when you close your eyes hard. Technically the luminous impressions are due to the excitation of the retina caused by pressure on the eyeball.
24. PURLICUE - The space between the thumb and extended forefinger.
25. RASCETA - Creases on the inside of the wrist.
26. ROWEL - The revolving star on the back of a cowboy's spurs.
27. SADDLE - The rounded part on the top of a matchbook.
28. SCROOP - The rustle of silk.
29. SNORKEL BOX - A mailbox with a protruding receiver to allow people to deposit mail without leaving their cars.
30. SPRAINTS - Otter dung.
31. TANG - The projecting prong on a tool or instrument.
32. WAMBLE - Stomach rumbling.
33. ZARF - A holder for a handleless coffee cup.

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

Tax Day is on April 15 each year because it allows the IRS
more time to handle the work and also gives the government
more time to offer taxpayers' refunds. This day was decided
upon in 1955 after several changes over the years. It only
changes if Tax Day falls on a weekend or holiday, and then
Tax Day will be on the following business day.

***

The country's first income tax law came into existence in
1862. Due to the gigantic expense of the Civil War, a person
earning between $600 to $10,000 paid a yearly tax rate of
3%; those that made more were taxed higher.

***

The Commissioner of Internal Revenue was formed in 1862 to
assess and collect taxes as well as enforce tax laws by
seizing property and income and using prosecution as
punishment. In 1953, the Bureau of Interal Revenue became
the Internal Revenue Service, or as we call it, the IRS.

***

There are over 7 million words in tax law and regulations.
That beats the Bible, the Declaration of Independence, and
the Gettysburg Address combined.

***

Almost 300,000 trees are cut down each year to make the
paper for all the forms and instructions relating to taxes.

***

Tax Freedom Day is the one day that the country as a whole
has earned enough income to fund its annual tax burden.
This year's Tax Freedom day falls on April 13.

 

[gunslingingbird]

The country's first income tax law came into existence in
1862. Due to the gigantic expense of the Civil War, a person
earning between $600 to $10,000 paid a yearly tax rate of
3%; those that made more were taxed higher.

Nowadays, people who make over $10k are taxed 99%, unless they're on welfare or illegals... :cussing:

The Commissioner of Internal Revenue was formed in 1862 to
assess and collect taxes as well as enforce tax laws by
seizing property and income and using prosecution as
punishment. In 1953, the Bureau of Interal Revenue became
the Internal Revenue Service, or as we call it, the IRS.

Actually, I call them "Those mother fuckers with nothing better to do than to find ways to legally justify stealing money from me." :thefinger

There are over 7 million words in tax law and regulations.
That beats the Bible, the Declaration of Independence, and
the Gettysburg Address combined.

And they expect the average American to understand enough about the tax code to do their own taxes? :rofl: I've never understood why we're the ones who have to tell them how much money they didn't steal from us. If they're going to steal our money they should send out statements that say how much more money they want to loot out of our wallets.

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

The oldest dinosaur types are known from rocks in Argentina
and Brazil and are about 230 million years old. The most
primitive of these types, Eoraptor, was a small meat-eating
dinosaur. Because Eoraptor's skeleton shows some advanced
skeletal features, older dinosaurs may yet be found.

***

Paleontologists now have evidence that dinosaurs lived on
all of the continents. At the beginning of the age of
dinosaurs (during the Triassic Period, about 230 million
years ago) the continents we now know were arranged together
as a single supercontinent called Pangea.

***

During the 165 million years of dinosaur existence the
supercontinent slowly broke apart. Its pieces then spread
across the globe into a nearly modern arrangement by a
process called plate tectonics. Volcanoes, earthquakes,
mountain building, and sea-floor spreading are all part of
plate tectonics, and this process is still changing our
modern Earth.

***

Dinosaurs generally are named after a characteristic body
feature, after the place where they were found, or after a
person involved in the discovery. Usually the name consists
of two Greek or Latin words (or combinations); in order,
these are the genus (plural, genera) and the species name.

***

Some dinosaurs ate lizards, turtles, eggs, or early mammals.
Some hunted other dinosaurs or scavenged dead animals. Most,
however, ate plants (but not grass, which hadn't evolved yet).
Rocks that contains dinosaur bones also contain fossil pollen
and spores that indicate hundreds to thousands of types of
plants existed during the Mesozoic Era.

***

Some dinosaurs were social creatures. Recently discovered
evidence indicates that they traveled together and that
some may even have migrated (because dinosaur fossils have
been found above the Arctic Circle, where food supply would
have been seasonal).

(From the United States Geological Survey)

 

[gunslingingbird]

Dinosaurs generally are named after a characteristic body
feature, after the place where they were found, or after a
person involved in the discovery. Usually the name consists
of two Greek or Latin words (or combinations); in order,
these are the genus (plural, genera) and the species name.

What do you call a lesbian dinosaur? A Lickalotapuss. :rofl:

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

In 2001, a Nepalese boy named Temba Tsheri became the
youngest person to climb Mount Everest. While traveling
with a French hiking group, the 16-year-old reached the
summit of the mountain, which is approximately 29,035 feet
high!

***

It took six weeks at sea, but Michael Perham, a 14-year-old
from Hertfordshire, England, managed to sail solo across
the 3,500-mile long Atlantic Ocean in his yacht, the Cheeky
Monkey, in January 2007.

***

Child prodigy Ruth Elke Lawrence was only 11 years old when
she passed the Oxford entrance exam in mathematics, and
became the youngest person ever to attend the prestigious
university. With her father there to accompany her to
classes, Ruth graduated with a bachelor's degree in two
years instead of the usual three. Now in her thirties,
Lawrence teaches at Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

***

The Guinness Book of World Records credits Balamurali
Ambati as the youngest person to become a doctor.
Balamurali graduated from NYU at the age of 13 and from
Mount Sinai's School of Medicine at age 17. He currently
teaches and does research in ophthalmology, and has a long
list of awards and honors under his belt.

***

Arfa Karim Randhawa of Pakistan caught the attention of Bill
Gates after passing her Microsoft Certified Professional
examinations at age ten. After she asked for a job, Gates
suggested she should stay in school, but did offer her an
intership instead.

***

In the small country of Bhutan in southern Asia, the
youngest monarch in the world ruled the throne for over 30
years. Jigme Singye Wangchuck was only 17 when he became
the "Druk Gyalpo," or "Dragon King," back in 1972, and he
remained in power until 2006, when he handed over control
to his oldest son.

 

[shaggydude]

The square root of 623 equals 24.96

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

The Titanic was designed to hold 32 lifeboats, though only
20 were on board; White Star management was concerned that
too many boats would sully the aesthetic beauty of the ship.

***

Survivors were rescued by the Carpathia, which was 58 miles
southeast of the Titanic when it received the distress call.

***

The Titanic boasted electric elevators, a swimming pool, a
squash court, a Turkish Bath, and a gymnasium with a
mechanical horse and mechanical camel.

***

Lillian Gertrud Asplund, the last American survivor of the
Titanic tragedy, died in Massachusetts on May 6, 2006, at
age 99. Her mother and a brother also survived, but her
father and three other brothers perished.

***

Eleanor Shuman, who was the inspiration for Kate Winslet's
Rose, died on March 7, 1998, at age 87.

***

The wreckage of the Titanic was located in 1985, 12,500
feet down, about 350 miles (531 km) southeast of
Newfoundland, Canada.

 

[gunslingingbird]

mechanical camel.

What the FUCK is a mechanical camel? I've heard of mechanical horse and mechanical bull, but a mechanical camel? Was that put in to attract Middle-Eastern passengers? :dunno:

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

The most famous decorated Easter eggs were those made by
the well-known goldsmith, Peter Carl Faberge. In 1883
Faberge was commissioned by the Russian Czar, Alexander, to
make a special Easter gift for his wife, the Empress Marie.
Faberge's first egg had an outside shell of platinum and
enameled white which opened to reveal a smaller gold egg.
The smaller egg, in turn, opened to display a golden
chicken and a jeweled replica of the Imperial crown.

***

In 1878 President Hayes and his wife Lucy officially opened
the White House grounds to the children of the area for egg
rolling on Easter Monday. The event has been held on the
South Lawn ever since, except during World War I and World
War II. During the war years the Easter Egg Roll was held
at the National Zoo, and other Washington locations.

***

The name Easter comes from Eostre, an ancient Anglo-Saxon
goddess, originally of the dawn. In pagan times an annual
spring festival was held in her honor.

***

The word paschal comes from a Latin word that means
belonging to Passover or to Easter. Because Easter and the
Passover were closely related, Christians of the Eastern
church initially celebrated both holidays together. But the
Passover can fall on any day of the week, and Christians of
the Western church preferred to celebrate Easter on Sunday,
the day of the resurrection.

***

The Easter lily (or Bermuda lily) was first brought to the
United States in 1919 by a World War I soldier named Louis
Houghton, who brought the bulbs to Oregon and gave them to
friends and family.

***

Creating Easter baskets arose from the Catholic custom of
bringing Easter dinner food to mass to be blessed. This
custom may also be related to ancient agrarian customs of
bringing first crops to the temple.

(www.firstscience.com)

RANDOM TIDBITS

The world’s biggest hot dog was 1,996 feet long, created by
Sara Lee Corporation in honor of the 1996 Olympics. In 1978,
David Berg of Chicago made a six-foot, 681-pound beef hot
dog in a 100-pound poppy seed bun covered with two gallons
of mustard.

***

Chicago's O'Hare International Airport sells more than two
million hot dogs a year.

***

President Franklin Roosevelt served King George VI of
England hot dogs and beer during a White House visit in
1939.

[Facts from the State Cafe & Catering Restaurant, South
Bend, IN]

The average hot dog is consumed in 6.1 bites (average sized
mouth tested). The most popular hot dog topping among adults
is mustard (87.6%). Among children, it is ketchup.


***

Baseball fans will enjoy about 26.8 million hot dogs at U.S.
baseball stadiums this season. That's enough hot dogs to
circle the bases 36,000 times!

***

On July 4, 1916 four Irish immigrants held a hot dog eating
contest to decide which of them was the most patriotic. The
winner, James Mullen, at 13 dogs & buns in 12 minutes.

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

In 1880, California’s first Commissioner of Agriculture
brought cuttings from France to California. He sent his
first wine from his vines to the Gran Prix in Paris where
it won top honors in 1889.

***

If a dry wine is fully fermented, about 40 percent of the
sugar will be converted to carbon dioxide while 60 percent
will be converted to alcohol.

***

The seeds and skin of the grape contain tannins. Tannin is
a bitter tasting substance that cause the “dry mouth”
feeling associated with some red wines.

***

The vintage year isn’t necessarily the year the wine was
bottled. In the northern hemisphere, white wines may not
be bottled the same year the grapes are picked.

***

Australia developed wine in a box in the ‘70s. The wine
inside of the box is stored in a bladder that is not
exposed to air. This means that the wine may last up to a
few weeks compared to a few days.

***

The famous Chateau Petrus in Pomerol makes the world’s most
expensive Merlot, which sells up to $2,500 or more.

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

At 4.2 million square feet the Mall of America near
Minneapolis, MN is the largest mall in the United States.
But despite this huge volume of space, and the fact that
it is located in Minnesota, the Mall of America does not
have a heating system. Even in January and February the
mall is adequately heated by the interior lighting and the
body heat of more than 45 million visitors every year!

***

Bananas contain a natural chemical which can make a person
happy. This same chemical is also found in Prozac.

***

The most powerful earthquake to strike the United States
occurred in 1811 in New Madrid, Missouri. The quake shook
more than one million square miles, and was felt as far as
1,000 miles away.

***

At The Movies

During the filming of Fight Club Brad Pitt chipped his
tooth, but waited to have it capped until after filming
because he felt it added to his character.

***

The Blues Brothers once held the record for crashing the
most police cars in a movie at approximately 30. The record
was eventually broken by Blues Brothers 2000.

***

During the filming of the movie "Scream", director Wes
Craven kept telling Drew Barrymore real life stories about
animal cruelty in order to keep her looking scared and
crying. She is a keen animal lover in real life.

 

[historylover]

RANDOM TIDBITS

In 1883, the explosion of the volcano Krakatoa put so much
dust into the atmosphere that sunsets appeared green and
the moon appeared blue around the world for almost 2 years.

***

Adhesive tape (specifically masking tape) was invented in
the 1920's by Richard Drew of Minnesota Mining and Manu-
facturing, Co. Duct tape (the WWII military version) was
first created and manufactured in 1942 by the Johnson and
Johnson Permacel Division.

***

Tremendous erosion at the base of Niagara Falls undermines
the shale cliffs and as a result the falls have receded
approximately 7 miles over the last 10,000 years.

***

SOMETHING TO TALK ABOUT

The "invention" of language is not known except for
references in the Bible. It is not known what language Adam
and Eve spoke. The first mention of different languages is
the reference to the tower of Babel when different tongues
were bestowed.

***

The invention of writing, however, is credited to the
Sumerians of Mesopotamia in the 4th millennium BC. Their
descendants, the Sumero-Babylonians, developed the time
system that we use today: an hour divided into 60 minutes,
which are divided into 60 seconds.

***

Today, there are more than 2,700 different languages spoken
in the world, with more than 7,000 dialects. In Indonesia
alone, 365 different languages are spoken. More than 1,000
different languages are spoken in Africa.

 

[gunslingingbird]

It is not known what language Adam
and Eve spoke.

That's because you're not asking the right sources. Jerry Falwell will probably tell you that they spoke English. :thumbsup:

Today, there are more than 2,700 different languages spoken
in the world,

Of these, it has been proven that the toughest to learn is Chippewa, in which one must master the more than 20,000 different verbal inflections to be considered fluent.