A popular study showed that
kissing as a greeting is healthier than a handshake because you
don't know what someone has just been touching.
What we call the 'Eskimo kiss', or rubbing noses is called a kunik
by the Inuit. It is an expression of affection, usually from an
adult to a child. The Inuit also kiss on the lips as we do. The myth
of rubbing noses grew out of a Hollywood silent documentary.
French disagree on the number of greeting kisses, but mostly for
central France it's two kisses, and for the North, four. There are
exceptions - in Finistère, one kiss is normal - and even disparities
within the same area: half the population of Calais prefer deux
bises, while the other half will greet you with quatre. The number
of kisses can depend on whether someone is a friend or family
member, and varies between generations. To the upper-class French
any more than two kisses is a faux pas.
Of course, it is not just in France that people greet each other
with a kiss; in the Netherlands three is normal, and in Belgium it's
one kiss for your peers, but if someone is 10 years older than you,
then three is respectful. In Spain, two is normal, but you must kiss
the right cheek first.
The French don’t necessarily French kiss more than anyone else; the
term probably comes from our belief that French sexuality is more
sophisticated. In France, it's known as baiser anglais ('English
kissing'), baiser florentin (Florentine kiss) or rouler une pelle
(to roll a spade). In Quebec, it is frencher.
Kissing in public is illegal in India and a similar law has been
proposed in Russia and Indonesia.
Dec 27, 2014
Dec 12, 2014
Happy Friday
Even a quantum smile produces exponential benefits.
It is difficult to calculate the exponential benefits of a Happy Friday!
It is difficult to calculate the exponential benefits of a Happy Friday!
Free Microsoft Books
Came across this site recently and
thought it is worth passing along. The site offers over one
hundred Microsoft e-books for free. Topics like Windows 8.1,
Windows 8, Windows 7, Office 2013, Office 365, Office 2010,
SharePoint 2013, Keyboard shortcuts, CRM, PowerShell, etc. Likely
will appeal more to the technical bunch, but also useful to get
the most out of software you may already be using. For instance,
instructions for using Windows voice commands to tell your
computer to perform many actions. LINK
Six Tape Types
Beyond duct tape (Duck tape is a brand
name), scotch tape, packing tape, and others are a few relatively
unknown to many. Here are a few of the more interesting types of
tape.
Speed
tape is an aluminized adhesive tape used to do minor
repairs on aircraft, and as a temporary repair material until a
more permanent repair can be carried out. It has an appearance
similar to duct tape, with which it is sometimes mistaken, but
its adhesive is capable of sticking on an airplane fuselage or
wing at high speeds. It is resistant to water, solvents, and
flames, and will reflect heat and UV light. It is also able to
expand and contract through a wide range of temperatures.
Bondage
tape adheres to itself without using adhesives. Bondage
tape is a 2-to-3-inch-wide (51 to 76mm) and 0.0051 inch-thick
(0.13mm) strip of thin plastic material, usually latex. It is
typically intended to be used for erotic bondage. Since it does
not stick to the hair or skin, a person can be tightly bound or
gagged without causing harm when the tape is removed
Elastic
therapeutic tape, also known as K tape and kinesiology
tape, is an elastic-cotton strip backed with acrylic adhesive.
It is used for treating various physical disorders. It is
claimed to be able to stretch up to 140% of its original length.
As a result, if the tape is applied to a patient with a stretch
greater than its normal length, it will recoil after being
applied and therefore create a pulling force on the skin that it
is being applied to. This elastic property allows much greater
range of motion compared to traditional white athletic tape and
can also be left on for long periods of time.
Gecko
tape is being designed with directional adhesion
properties, which is the ability to grip a load in one direction
and to release its grip when the direction is reversed. The same
structures on Scotch tape revealed that this material could
support a shear stress of 36N/cm2, nearly four times higher than
a gecko foot. This new material can adhere to a wider variety of
materials, including glass and Teflon. When pulled parallel to a
surface, the tape releases, not because the CNTs lose adhesion
from the surface, but because they break, and the tape cannot be
reused. It only works for small area (approximately 1 cm2).
Researchers are currently working on a number of ways to
strengthen the nanotubes.
Lingerie
tape, also called cleavage tape or fashion tape is
double-sided adhesive tape used to keep clothing in place. It
is used to secure the edges of a strapless dress or top to the
cleavage or side of the breasts or on shoulders to secure bra
straps from slipping, in order to keep the item of clothing in
place. It may also be referred to as toupee tape or wig tape, a
similar double-sided tape intended for a different function.
Road
marking tape is reformed polymer tape that can be applied
permanently or temporarily on pavement to create road surface
markings. It is heavy-grade material with reflective beads
embedded in the plastic. It is commonly used to mark crosswalks,
stop bars, and traffic guidance, such as turn lanes, HOV lanes,
train crossings, pedestrian crossings, taxi lanes, bus lanes,
etc.
Holiday Meal Cures
This also a bit tacky, but it is a
real product. Pills to change the smell of flatulence to something
less offensive. Just in time for the holidays. LINK
Searing Meat
A 19th century German chemist Justus von
Liebig was one of the first people to propose that by applying
very high temperatures to meat you would create a 'sealed' layer
of cooked meat through which liquid inside the meat couldn't
escape.
Liebig's experiment compared the liquid and nutrients from a piece of meat submerged in cold water which was gradually heated in that water and simmered in the cooking liquid with a dry piece of meat applied to an extremely hot surface. Liebig thought that searing meat "sealed in juices," because the resulting meat was juicier than the meat that was essentially boiled to death.
However, in the book On Food and Cooking, Harold McGee makes a direct comparison between a seared piece of meat and an un-seared piece, both cooked with identical methods. The result was that the seared piece of meat actually retained fewer juices than the un-seared piece, and at the very least the searing did nothing to preserve the moisture inside the meat. This debate still continues. Many people think that searing meat does result in moister meat, while others dispute it.
In reality, the best thing about searing meat is that when applied to high heat, the surface of the meat undergoes the Maillard Reaction, which results in some delicious browning on the surface of the meat. Bottom line; sear your steaks, not because it locks in juices, but because it is tastier.
Liebig's experiment compared the liquid and nutrients from a piece of meat submerged in cold water which was gradually heated in that water and simmered in the cooking liquid with a dry piece of meat applied to an extremely hot surface. Liebig thought that searing meat "sealed in juices," because the resulting meat was juicier than the meat that was essentially boiled to death.
However, in the book On Food and Cooking, Harold McGee makes a direct comparison between a seared piece of meat and an un-seared piece, both cooked with identical methods. The result was that the seared piece of meat actually retained fewer juices than the un-seared piece, and at the very least the searing did nothing to preserve the moisture inside the meat. This debate still continues. Many people think that searing meat does result in moister meat, while others dispute it.
In reality, the best thing about searing meat is that when applied to high heat, the surface of the meat undergoes the Maillard Reaction, which results in some delicious browning on the surface of the meat. Bottom line; sear your steaks, not because it locks in juices, but because it is tastier.
Which Sandwich
The Earl of Sandwich is purportedly the
first to put a slab of meat between two slices of bread.
The
existence of the club sandwich comes from a cook named Danny
Mears, who worked at the Saratoga Club House in Saratoga
Springs, N.Y. during the 1800s.
During
the 1920s, Reuben Kulakofsky, who was playing poker at the
Blackstone Hotel in Omaha, Nebraska, ordered a sandwich with
corned beef and sauerkraut. Bernard Schimme made the sandwich by
draining the sauerkraut and mixing it with Thousand Island
dressing then layering it with corned beef and Swiss cheese on
dark rye bread. He then grilled the sandwich and served it with
it a sliced kosher dill pickle and potato chips.
A
French myth says croque monsieur was accidentally discovered in
1910 when some French workers left their lunch pails full of
cheese and ham sandwiches too close to a hot radiator. The
sandwich was originally made with ham and Gruyère cheese, later
evolving into other variations like the the croque madame, the
croque Provencal, the croque tartiflette, and the Monte Cristo (my
favorite).
The
grilled cheese sandwich was first widely eaten as a cheap meal
during the US Great Depression, when cheese and bread were some
of the least expensive food items.
In
1901, Julia David Chandler published the first known recipe for
a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Peanut butter is not widely
consumed in Europe and is almost never mixed with jelly. In the
US peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are a staple.
Joe
Lorenza added cheese to a popular chopped steak sandwich
creating the Philly Cheesesteak sandwich during the 1940s.
The
bacon chip butty is made with handfuls of French fries and large
pieces of crispy bacon between two slices of soft buttered
bread. It was originally considered a working-class meal and was served in English pubs. Yum!
The
most likely story of the origin of the New Orleans po' boy
belongs to Clovis and Benjamin Martin, who had a restaurant on
St. Claude Avenue during the 1920s. When streetcar drivers went
on strike in 1929, the brothers created an inexpensive sandwich
consisting of gravy and bits of roast beef on French bread that
they served unemployed workers out of the back of their
restaurant. A worker would come to get one and the restaurant
employees would yell, “Here comes another poor boy.” which
eventually transferred to the name of the sandwich, po’ boy.
Wordology, Lector
The word ‘lector’ usually makes us think of
university lecturers and public speakers, but in the 1900s, a
lector was actually a form of entertainment. A factory lector
was employed to entertain workers in cigar factories by reading
out loud, usually newspapers and sometimes novels. The
profession started in Cuba, later becoming more prominent in New
York and Florida.
Life in a cigar factory was mostly manual labor, such as rolling cigars by hand, so the lectors proved to be good for the morale of workers. The employees would pool money together to help pay the lector’s salary. Lectors had a huge influence on the workers, providing an education for them through their reading. Lectors were eventually replaced by radios during the 1920’s.
Life in a cigar factory was mostly manual labor, such as rolling cigars by hand, so the lectors proved to be good for the morale of workers. The employees would pool money together to help pay the lector’s salary. Lectors had a huge influence on the workers, providing an education for them through their reading. Lectors were eventually replaced by radios during the 1920’s.
Expired Milk Dates
That date on the carton of milk could
mean very different things depending on what US state you are in.
Some states require a sell by date, which indicates the last day a
store can legally sell the milk. It is calculated to give the
consumer a reasonable amount of time to enjoy. Other states have a
use by date that indicates the date milk is believed to be at peak
flavor. For instance, milk cartons in Montana are labeled with a
sell by date 12 days after pasteurization, Washington requires a
use by date that is 21 days after pasteurization.
While the pasteurization of milk kills most of the harmful bacteria, precautions always need to be made by the consumer to keep the milk from going bad. One way to keep milk as fresh as possible is to keep it on a shelf, never in the door of your fridge, where temperature fluctuates the most.
Depending on whom you ask, the refrigerator temperature should be 34-38 °F or 38-40 °F. Warmer temperatures give bacteria more of a chance to develop.
One rule of thumb is that if you are properly refrigerating it, whole milk's expiration date is five days after the "sell-by" date. If it is non-fat, skim, or reduced fat, you will have a bit less time. Ultra pasteurized milk has a longer shelf life than other types of milk and can be left in the pantry until opened, and then it must be chilled.
While the pasteurization of milk kills most of the harmful bacteria, precautions always need to be made by the consumer to keep the milk from going bad. One way to keep milk as fresh as possible is to keep it on a shelf, never in the door of your fridge, where temperature fluctuates the most.
Depending on whom you ask, the refrigerator temperature should be 34-38 °F or 38-40 °F. Warmer temperatures give bacteria more of a chance to develop.
One rule of thumb is that if you are properly refrigerating it, whole milk's expiration date is five days after the "sell-by" date. If it is non-fat, skim, or reduced fat, you will have a bit less time. Ultra pasteurized milk has a longer shelf life than other types of milk and can be left in the pantry until opened, and then it must be chilled.
Dec 5, 2014
Meeting Minutes
Meeting minutes have nothing to do with
time, but rather small, as in minute (my-newt). Minutes in this
sense first appeared in the early 18th century, possibly directly
from the Latin “minuta scriptura”, meaning small notes.
Minutes as in 'meeting notes' references condensing something, such as information down, as in the 'my-newt' pronunciation, not as in 'seconds, minutes, hours'.
Minutes as in 'meeting notes' references condensing something, such as information down, as in the 'my-newt' pronunciation, not as in 'seconds, minutes, hours'.
Straight Teeth Talk
Though fillings do crack and decay over
time, you rarely need all of them replaced at once. Some dentists
claim that old silver fillings need to be removed for safety
reasons, because they leech mercury, but that idea is a myth.
There is enough fluoride in our drinking water and in over-the-counter toothpastes to prevent cavities in most people, so additional fluoride from a dentist is additional cost, with little benefit.
There is enough fluoride in our drinking water and in over-the-counter toothpastes to prevent cavities in most people, so additional fluoride from a dentist is additional cost, with little benefit.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)