Did You Know? – Candle Clocks And Feral Cats Are Just Two Of Today’s Fabulous Facts!

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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Another selection of random facts including candle clocks and feral cats, and what could be more random than that?

So here we go.

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did you know2

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Russia sold Alaska to the US for 2 cents an acre

because they thought it was a useless tundra.

(Big mistake comrades!)

map Alaska and Russia

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The Chernobyl disaster released

at least 100 times more radiation

than the atom bombs dropped

on Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

chernobyl

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Up to 200 feral cats live in Disneyland

and are tolerated because they eradicate

mice and rats on the property.

feral cats live in Disneyland

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The largest cell in the human body is the female egg,

and the smallest is the male sperm.

ovum-largest-cell-in-the-body-and-sperm-cell-the-smallest-

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There are entire cities all over China

with no people living in them!

China ghost city

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In Germany there are fake bus stops outside many nursing homes

to prevent confused senior citizens from wandering off.

fake-bus-stop

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Twelve book publishers rejected Harry Potter,

a very shrewd move on their part since

the sales of the series is now approaching half a billion!

harry_potter_paperback_set

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Before clocks as we now know them,

there were candle clocks that burned a set amount of hours.

If you wanted an alarm or reminder,

you pushed a nail into the candle at the desired height/time length

and when it melted the nail would fall out and the

noise of it hitting the metal holder would alert you.

candle clock

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Loophole (or murder hole)

originally referred to the slits in castle walls

that archers would shoot their arrows through.

castle-arrow-slits

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NASA has lost over 700 boxes of magnetic data tapes

recorded throughout the Apollo program

including original footage of the moon landing.

They ‘think’ some of them may have

‘accidentally been taped over’.

NASA-Tape
A NASA tape – not one of the ones they lost – because they’re lost!!!

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Harvard University was founded

before calculus was derived.

Harvard University

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Apparently it is possible

to sail a boat from Pakistan to Russia

if you sail in a completely straight line.

sail boat

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There are some trees alive today that

were alive before the pyramids were built.

oldest trees on earth

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Chester A. Arthur was known for his impeccable attire,

earning him the nickname “Elegant Arthur.”

On his last day in office,

four women offered him their hands in marriage.

chester_arthur

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Regarded as his finest song,

David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’ purports to tell in only five minutes

a story that can easily serve as the plot to a two-hour sci-fi film.

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Ready To Give Your Head A Good Workout?

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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The title means, of course, that it is quiz day again.

So if you are ready to give your head a bit of a work out to start the week you’ve come to the right place.

Easy, tricky and difficult, you should find something in this lot to make you think a bit. And if you get stuck you know the answers are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down below – but NO cheating.

Enjoy.

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Quiz 03

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Q.  1:  We all know about Martha Stewart, but what did the American Martha Graham become famous for?

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Q.  2:  What is the capital of Finland?

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Q.  3:  What in the human body is the epidermis?

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Q.  4:  Sitting Bull, a victorious chief at the Battle of Little Big Horn later went on tour in which travelling show?

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Q.  5:  In which famous short animation movie from 1969 does a beloved Disney character meet an untimely end?

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Q.  6:  Which very popular writer with a degree invented the word ‘nerd’?

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Q.  7:  Which three animals (a point for each) are directly responsible for  the most deaths each year in the USA? (The mosquito is excluded, as are fatalities resulting from a car crash with animals)

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Q.  8:  James Madison was the first US President to sport which clothing fashion?

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Q.  9:  In which two movies does Henry Fonda play the US President; and in which monumental movie does he play the ‘Medal of Honor’ winning son of US President Teddy Roosevelt? (Again a point for each correct answer)

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Q. 10:  Which Frenchman, famous for abhorring bad drink, said “A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world”?

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Q. 11:  David Hedison, Jack Lord, Rik van Nutter, Jeffrey Wright, John Terry, Cec Linder, Michael Pate, Norman Burton and Bernard Casey have all played which role in movies?

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Q. 12:  What kind of burst is the most powerful radiation known to science?  

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Q. 13:  Leningrad, Fort Sumter, Sarajevo and Massada are all examples of what?

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Q. 14:  Which famous Russian female made around the world headlines after the 3rd of November 1957?

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Q. 15:  Like other coastal regions in the area, what was the coast of Florida called in the 16th century?

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Q. 16:  What was depicted on the seal of the Knights Templar?

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Q. 17:  Which worry prone movie character is fluent in more than 6,000,000 forms of communication?

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Q. 18:  The name for which delightful and lofty empyrean goal stems from the Persian word for ‘walled enclosure’?

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Q. 19:  In which five US states has the USA tested atom bombs? (Another chance to get a point for each correct answer)

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Q. 20:  Philadelphia is the old name for the largest city in which country?

 

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ANSWERS

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Q.  1:  We all know about Martha Stewart, but what did the American Martha Graham become famous for?

A.  1:  As a Modern Dancer / Choreographer

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Q.  2:  What is the capital of Finland?

A.  2:  Helsinki

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Q.  3:  What in the human body is the epidermis?

A.  3:  Skin

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Q.  4:  Sitting Bull, a victorious chief at the Battle of Little Big Horn later went on tour in which travelling show?

A.  4:  Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show

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Q.  5:  In which famous short animation movie from 1969 does a beloved Disney character meet an untimely end?

A.  5:  Bambi meets Godzilla

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Q.  6:  Which very popular writer with a degree invented the word ‘nerd’?

A.  6:  Dr. Seuss.  From the book ‘If I ran the zoo’.

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Q.  7:  Which three animals (a point for each) are directly responsible for  the most deaths each year in the USA? (The mosquito is excluded, as are fatalities resulting from a car crash with animals)

A.  7:  Bees, dogs and horses.

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Q.  8:  James Madison was the first US President to sport which clothing fashion?

A.  8:  Long trousers (pants)

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Q.  9:  In which two movies does Henry Fonda play the US President; and in which monumental movie does he play the ‘Medal of Honor’ winning son of US President Teddy Roosevelt? (Again a point for each correct answer)

A.  9:  Fonda plays the US President in ‘Fail Safe’ and ‘Meteor’. In ‘The longest day’ he plays Teddy Roosevelt Jr.

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Q. 10:  Which Frenchman, famous for abhorring bad drink, said “A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world”?

A. 10:  Louis Pasteur

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Q. 11:  David Hedison, Jack Lord, Rik van Nutter, Jeffrey Wright, John Terry, Cec Linder, Michael Pate, Norman Burton and Bernard Casey have all played which role in movies?

A. 11:  CIA agent Felix Leiter in Bond films.

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Q. 12:  What kind of burst is the most powerful radiation known to science?  

A. 12:  A gamma ray burst. (A burst recorded in December 1997 was for a few seconds brighter than all the other objects in the entire universe put together.)

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Q. 13:  Leningrad, Fort Sumter, Sarajevo and Massada are all examples of what?

A. 13:  Famous or infamous sieges.

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Q. 14:  Which famous Russian female made around the world headlines after the 3rd of November 1957?

A. 14:  Laika. The Russian cosmonaut dog. (or muttnik )

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Q. 15:  Like other coastal regions in the area, what was the coast of Florida called in the 16th century?

A. 15:  The Spanish Main

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Q. 16:  What was depicted on the seal of the Knights Templar?

A. 16:  Two knights riding on one horse.

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Q. 17:  Which worry prone movie character is fluent in more than 6,000,000 forms of communication?

A. 17:  C3PO

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Q. 18:  The name for which delightful and lofty empyrean goal stems from the Persian word for ‘walled enclosure’?

A. 18:  Paradise

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Q. 19:  In which five US states has the USA tested atom bombs? (Another chance to get a point for each correct answer)

A. 19:  New Mexico, Nevada, Colorado, Alaska and Mississippi.

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Q. 20:  Philadelphia is the old name for the largest city in which country?

A. 20:  Jordan  (The city of Amman)

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Those Of A Nervous Disposition Should Look Away Now

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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Yes, those of a nervous disposition should indeed look away now, because today we have the penultimate list of irrational fears and phobias that seem to afflict certain members of the population. How and why they develop such curious mental afflictions I don’t. They are real to them, but foolish and amusing to the rest of us.

Today is ‘Q’, ‘R’ and ‘S’.

Enjoy.

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scared 3

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Quadraphobia ……….fear of the number four.

 

Quadriplegiphobia ……….fear of quadriplegics or fear of becoming a quadriplegic.

 

Quintaphobia ……….fear of the number five.

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Radiophobia ……….fear of radiation, x-rays.

 

Ranidaphobia ……….fear of frogs.

 

Rectophobia ……….fear of rectum or rectal diseases.

 

Rhabdophobia ……….fear of being severely punished or beaten by a rod, or of being severely criticized. Also fear of magic.(wand)

 

Rhypophobia ……….fear of defecation.

 

Rhytiphobia ……….fear of getting wrinkles.

 

Rupophobia ……….fear of dirt.

 

Russophobia ……….fear of Russians.

 

Samhainophobia ……….fear of Halloween.

 

Sarmassophobia ……….fear of love play. (Malaxophobia)

 

Satanophobia ……….fear of Satan.

 

Scabiophobia ……….fear of scabies.

 

Scatophobia ……….fear of fecal matter.

 

Scelerophibia ……….fear of bad men, burglars.

 

Sciaphobia or Sciophobia or Sciaphobia ……….fear of shadows.

 

Scoleciphobia ……….fear of worms.

 

Scolionophobia ……….fear of school.

 

Scopophobia or Scoptophobia ……….fear of being seen or stared at.

 

Scotomaphobia ……….fear of blindness in visual field.

 

Scotophobia ……….fear of darkness. (Achluophobia)

 

Scriptophobia ……….fear of writing in public.

 

Selachophobia ……….fear of sharks.

 

Selaphobia ……….fear of light flashes.

 

Selenophobia ……….fear of the moon.

 

Seplophobia ……….fear of decaying matter.

 

Sesquipedalophobia ……….fear of long words.

 

Sexophobia ……….fear of the opposite sex. (Heterophobia)

 

Siderodromophobia ……….fear of trains, railroads or train travel.

 

Siderophobia ……….fear of stars.

 

Sinistrophobia ……….fear of things to the left or left-handed.

 

Sinophobia ……….fear of Chinese, Chinese culture.

 

Sitophobia or Sitiophobia ……….fear of food or eating. (Cibophobia)

 

Snakephobia ……….fear of snakes. (Ophidiophobia)

 

Soceraphobia ……….fear of parents-in-law.

 

Social Phobia ……….fear of being evaluated negatively in social situations.

 

Sociophobia ……….fear of society or people in general.

 

Somniphobia ……….fear of sleep.

 

Sophophobia ……….fear of learning.

 

Soteriophobia ……….fear of dependence on others.

 

Spacephobia ……….fear of outer space.

 

Spectrophobia ……….fear of specters or ghosts.

 

Spermatophobia or Spermophobia ……….fear of germs.

 

Spheksophobia ……….fear of wasps.

 

Stasibasiphobia or Stasiphobia ……….fear of standing or walking. (Ambulophobia)

 

Staurophobia ……….fear of crosses or the crucifix.

 

Stenophobia ……….fear of narrow things or places.

 

Stygiophobia or Stigiophobia ……….fear of hell.

 

Suriphobia ……….fear of mice.

 

Symbolophobia ……….fear of symbolism.

 

Symmetrophobia ……….fear of symmetry.

 

Syngenesophobia ……….fear of relatives.

 

Syphilophobia ……….fear of syphilis.

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