1.2 Billion cell phones were sold last year, 2008.
Oct 21, 2009
Oct 19, 2009
Oct 16, 2009
Edgar Allen Poe
Devotees celebrated Poe's 200 year funeral last Sunday, Oct 11 in honor of the originator of detective stories, and some say the creator of horror writing. He died in 1849. The Raven - "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary" over many Blogging Thoughts. . .
Warmest Year Ever
What is globally the warmest year on record? 1998. It has been cooler every year since then and many scientists are predicting it to continue. Seems that 98% of the earth's warmth comes from the sun, not man. Hmmm!
Benefits of Humor
Here is one from the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. In my never ending Quixotic quest to finding what is funny, I stumbled on this tidbit that suggests that watching comedy can increase your creativity, but it still does not answer 'what is funny'.
Researchers found that watching a comedy film has several benefits. First, that it makes you feel better and we all know that. Second, that it makes you more creative. Third, that it aids in problem solving.
Are you bored and wondering what to do next (after finishing this). Well, view a comedy film, or maybe this quickie of Mr. Bean making faces.
The movie makes you laugh and it makes you feel better. Now, don't you feel more creative?
Experiment results from, Isen, Daubman, and Nowicki found that people who watched a comedy film were more likely to solve a problem requiring a creative solution than people who watched a neutral film.
Another experiment involved a comedy film and the Remote Associates Test. The mean number of items correct on this test was higher for people who watched a comedy film than for people who did not watch a comedy film. The hypothesis was that positive emotion would foster creativity.
The bottom line is that if you are working on a problem at home or work that requires a creative solution, it may be good to first view some comedy. I know that I always feel better after watching Laurel and Hardy, but am not sure if it makes me feel more creative.
Researchers found that watching a comedy film has several benefits. First, that it makes you feel better and we all know that. Second, that it makes you more creative. Third, that it aids in problem solving.
Are you bored and wondering what to do next (after finishing this). Well, view a comedy film, or maybe this quickie of Mr. Bean making faces.
Experiment results from, Isen, Daubman, and Nowicki found that people who watched a comedy film were more likely to solve a problem requiring a creative solution than people who watched a neutral film.
Another experiment involved a comedy film and the Remote Associates Test. The mean number of items correct on this test was higher for people who watched a comedy film than for people who did not watch a comedy film. The hypothesis was that positive emotion would foster creativity.
The bottom line is that if you are working on a problem at home or work that requires a creative solution, it may be good to first view some comedy. I know that I always feel better after watching Laurel and Hardy, but am not sure if it makes me feel more creative.
To Stop a Crying Baby
Here is one interesting video. It is a one minute Japanese video showing a simple way to stop a crying baby by making a sound. The voice over is not in English, but the sound is obvious. Great for babies and grand babies that will not stop crying. It does not say how long the effect lasts, but sometimes a brief respite is all that is needed. Getting down on all fours and imitating a rhinoceros also stops babies from crying.
Oct 15, 2009
Quotable
Pessimist: Person who thinks all women are the same.
Optimist: Person who thinks all women are the same.
Oct 14, 2009
Oct 13, 2009
What's in a Name, Sparky
The 1920s comic strip, Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, strip gave us the nickname "Sparky," from the name of Barney's horse, Sparkplug. 
Billy DeBeck wrote the strip about a community of backwoods hillbillies and moonshiners. In a 1923 strip Barney tells someone to, "Get that stupid look offa your pan. You gimme the heeby jeebys!" It meant, 'a feeling of discomfort'.
Other phrases coined by DeBeck: 'horsefeathers', 'hotsie-totsie', and 'googly-eyed' after Barney Google, who had huge, bulbous eyes.
Peanuts creator Charles Schulz was nicknamed Sparky - and that ain't no horsefeathers.
Billy DeBeck wrote the strip about a community of backwoods hillbillies and moonshiners. In a 1923 strip Barney tells someone to, "Get that stupid look offa your pan. You gimme the heeby jeebys!" It meant, 'a feeling of discomfort'.
Other phrases coined by DeBeck: 'horsefeathers', 'hotsie-totsie', and 'googly-eyed' after Barney Google, who had huge, bulbous eyes.
Peanuts creator Charles Schulz was nicknamed Sparky - and that ain't no horsefeathers.
Quotable
People who live in the past generally are afraid to compete in the present. I've got my faults, but living in the past is not one of them. There's no future in it. Sparky Anderson, baseball player and coach.
Shave and a Haircut, Two Bits
Shaving does not cause hair to grow back thicker, or coarser, or darker. This belief is due to the fact that hair that has never been cut has a tapered end, whereas, after cutting, there is no taper. Thus, it appears thicker, and feels coarser due to the sharper, unworn edges.
Hair can also appear darker after it grows back because hair that has never been cut is often lighter due to sun exposure. I have noticed the hair on my head has begun to grow in, because it sure isn't growing out like it used to.
PS - Two bits is an old expression in the US for 25 cents. It dates from colonial days, when a common unit of currency was the Spanish dollar. As a way of making change, these dollars were often cut into eight pie-slice shaped pieces, called bits. Hence, two bits being a quarter dollar.
Hair can also appear darker after it grows back because hair that has never been cut is often lighter due to sun exposure. I have noticed the hair on my head has begun to grow in, because it sure isn't growing out like it used to.
PS - Two bits is an old expression in the US for 25 cents. It dates from colonial days, when a common unit of currency was the Spanish dollar. As a way of making change, these dollars were often cut into eight pie-slice shaped pieces, called bits. Hence, two bits being a quarter dollar.
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