Jan 23, 2015
Gelotophobia, Gelotophilia, and Katagelasticism
Most people
have heard none of these conditions, but they all have to do with
laughter. Gelotophobia is a fear of being laughed at, a type
of social phobia that makes them feel awkward. Gelotophilia is the joy
of being laughed at. Katagelasticism is the joy of laughing at
others. None are particularly good to have. Luckily these are not
common, so have a good laugh and enjoy yourself.
Pink Pearls
The Pink Pearl apple is an inner pink-flesh
apple cultivar with cream colored skin developed in 1944 by Albert
Etter, a northern California breeder. US plant patent 723 for the
Pink Pearl was obtained later that year. It is the offspring of the
Surprise apple, an old English variety and was cultivated from an
older rosy-fleshed apple introduced by German settlers in the mid
1800s. It is different from the Pink Lady apple, which has pink skin
and is not a novelty.
Pink Pearl apples are low in calories, high in water content and contain vitamins A, C and B. They also contain a dietary fiber known as pectin, which has been shown to lower cholesterol levels, and trace amounts of boron, which has been touted for its ability to help build strong bones. Great for pink applesauce or as a color burst in salads.
Pink Pearl apples are generally medium sized, with a conical shape. They are named for the color of their flesh, which is a bright rosy pink sometimes streaked or mottled with white. They have a translucent, yellow-green skin, and a crisp, juicy flesh with tart to sweet-tart taste. Pink Pearls are grown in various countries, but generally available in the US from California, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon, as well as Canada, England, and Australia.
Pink Pearl apples are low in calories, high in water content and contain vitamins A, C and B. They also contain a dietary fiber known as pectin, which has been shown to lower cholesterol levels, and trace amounts of boron, which has been touted for its ability to help build strong bones. Great for pink applesauce or as a color burst in salads.
Pink Pearl apples are generally medium sized, with a conical shape. They are named for the color of their flesh, which is a bright rosy pink sometimes streaked or mottled with white. They have a translucent, yellow-green skin, and a crisp, juicy flesh with tart to sweet-tart taste. Pink Pearls are grown in various countries, but generally available in the US from California, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon, as well as Canada, England, and Australia.
International Year of Light
On 20 December 2013, The
United Nations General Assembly 68th Session proclaimed 2015 as the
International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies. "An
International Year of Light is a tremendous opportunity to ensure
that international policymakers and stakeholders are made aware of
the problem-solving potential of light technology. We now have a
unique opportunity to raise global awareness of this." John Dudley,
Chairman of the IYL 2015 Steering Committee
2015 is also the Einstein Centenary. In 1915, the theory of General Relativity developed by Einstein showed how light was at the center of the structure of space and time.
Thought I would toss in a few facts about light.
Lighting represents almost 20% of global electricity consumption.
The first commercially viable incandescent light bulb, patented by Thomas Edison in 1880, used a filament made from burned bamboo.
Other animals can see parts of the spectrum that humans can not, for example, a large number of insects can see ultraviolet light.
The giant squid, Taningia danae, has the largest light-producing organs of any living creature. The lemon-yellow light organs are called photophores and are found at the tip of the two of the squid’s feeding arms and they flash blinding light.
The speed of light in a vacuum is about 186,000 miles per second (300,000 kilometers per second).
Light takes 1.255 seconds to get from the Earth to the Moon.
More than half of the visible sunlight spectrum is absorbed within three feet of the ocean's surface; at a depth of 10 meters, less than 20% of the light that entered at the surface is still visible; by 100 meters, this percentage drops to 0.5%.
Refraction can make things look closer than they really are. The difference in speed between light traveling through water and through air means that, from the surface, a 13ft (4m) pool appears to be just 10ft (3m) deep.
Between 18% and 35% of the human population is estimated to be affected by a so-called "photic sneeze reflex," a heritable condition that results in sneezing when the person is exposed to bright light.
Here is a link to "Light my Fire" by the Doors, just because.
2015 is also the Einstein Centenary. In 1915, the theory of General Relativity developed by Einstein showed how light was at the center of the structure of space and time.
Thought I would toss in a few facts about light.
Lighting represents almost 20% of global electricity consumption.
The first commercially viable incandescent light bulb, patented by Thomas Edison in 1880, used a filament made from burned bamboo.
Other animals can see parts of the spectrum that humans can not, for example, a large number of insects can see ultraviolet light.
The giant squid, Taningia danae, has the largest light-producing organs of any living creature. The lemon-yellow light organs are called photophores and are found at the tip of the two of the squid’s feeding arms and they flash blinding light.
The speed of light in a vacuum is about 186,000 miles per second (300,000 kilometers per second).
Light takes 1.255 seconds to get from the Earth to the Moon.
More than half of the visible sunlight spectrum is absorbed within three feet of the ocean's surface; at a depth of 10 meters, less than 20% of the light that entered at the surface is still visible; by 100 meters, this percentage drops to 0.5%.
Refraction can make things look closer than they really are. The difference in speed between light traveling through water and through air means that, from the surface, a 13ft (4m) pool appears to be just 10ft (3m) deep.
Between 18% and 35% of the human population is estimated to be affected by a so-called "photic sneeze reflex," a heritable condition that results in sneezing when the person is exposed to bright light.
Here is a link to "Light my Fire" by the Doors, just because.
National Peanut Butter Day
Tomorrow January 24 is also
National Peanut Butter Day, an unfortunate choice, because it is
extremely difficult to laugh out loud with a mouth full of peanut
butter. One quickie, it takes 550 peanuts to make a 12 ounce jar of
peanut butter. Peanuts are cholesterol free and an excellent source
of protein. It is the high protein content that causes peanut butter
to stick to the roof of your mouth.
The king, Elvis knew how to use it with his famous peanut butter, banana, bacon sandwiches and his Fool's Gold Loaf, with a loaf of Italian bread filled with a pound of bacon, peanut butter, and grape jelly. Yumm!
The king, Elvis knew how to use it with his famous peanut butter, banana, bacon sandwiches and his Fool's Gold Loaf, with a loaf of Italian bread filled with a pound of bacon, peanut butter, and grape jelly. Yumm!
Memory Help
Do you ever have a song in your mind, but
cannot remember the singer, or group, or title? You can call your
friends or you can go to this site, hum a few bars into your mic and
it will tell you all you need to know LINK.
You might have had times when you are discussing a movie or an actor and the answer is on the tip of your tongue, but you cannot remember exactly. Go to this site LINK, type whatever you remember and someone will help you out.
Maybe you have seen a picture of something or found a strange item in your garage, but do not know what it is. You can go to this site LINK, upload a picture, and someone will tell you what that thing is. Unfortunately there is no site yet to tell you where you put your keys.
You might have had times when you are discussing a movie or an actor and the answer is on the tip of your tongue, but you cannot remember exactly. Go to this site LINK, type whatever you remember and someone will help you out.
Maybe you have seen a picture of something or found a strange item in your garage, but do not know what it is. You can go to this site LINK, upload a picture, and someone will tell you what that thing is. Unfortunately there is no site yet to tell you where you put your keys.
Body Odor Facts
Body odor is a uniquely personalized thing.
Just what kind of body odor each individual person has is determined
by a combination of a certain area of their genetic makeup called
the major histocompatibility complex and, partially by what they
eat. The basic composition of a person’s body odor remains the same,
however, and it has been suggested that one of the reasons for it is
to help us choose a genetically appropriate mate. Change in body
odor has also been linked to the development of certain cancers and
viral diseases.
The body odor fingerprint isn't the only thing scientists have discovered about body odor. They found that the older people get the worse they stink. A substance called 2-Nonenal has been identified as the reason some people have a faintly greasy odor about them. The substance has only been found in people over the age of 40 and the older people get, the more of the substance the body produces. Sweat itself is pretty much odorless, but the bacteria that reacts with sweat is what produces the odor.
The body odor fingerprint isn't the only thing scientists have discovered about body odor. They found that the older people get the worse they stink. A substance called 2-Nonenal has been identified as the reason some people have a faintly greasy odor about them. The substance has only been found in people over the age of 40 and the older people get, the more of the substance the body produces. Sweat itself is pretty much odorless, but the bacteria that reacts with sweat is what produces the odor.
Ten Alcohol Facts
1.) The production of alcohol has been
traced back at least 12,000 years.
2.) Sherry was apparently the alcohol of choice for many world travelers; both Magellan and Columbus had it on board during their respective voyages. Magellan liked Sherry so much that he spent more money stockpiling the alcoholic beverage than he spent on weapons.
3.) Frederick the Great, who was the king of Prussia, was so enamored by alcohol that he tried to ban coffee in an attempt to get everyone in Prussia to drink liquor instead.
4.) The Pilgrims made the decision to stop at Plymouth Rock because they were running low on supplies, particularly alcohol.
5.) Winston Churchill’s mother was the inventor of the Manhattan cocktail. It is made with whiskey and sweet vermouth.
6.) Until the mid-1600′s, wine makers in France used oil soaked rags in lieu of corks.
7.) Vikings enjoyed alcohol, and they preferred to toast to their victories by drinking it from the skulls of their defeated enemies.
8.) Many historians believe that the practice of farming was not started as a means of food production, but in order to produce the necessary ingredients to create alcoholic beverages.
9.) Hangover cures date back almost as far as alcohol itself. Ancient Romans believed that eating a fried canary would take care of their hangover symptoms, and the ancient Greeks were believers in the power of cabbage. People today are still trying to find the perfect cure for a hangover. In France they put salt into a strong cup of coffee, and in Puerto Rico some drinkers lift their drinking arm and rub half a lemon under it. (None have proven to be effective).
10.) The term honeymoon traces its roots back to ancient Babylon. It was a tradition for the soon to be father-in-law to supply his daughter’s fiancé with a month’s supply of mead. This time period was referred to as the honey month, and that phrase eventually morphed into what we now call a honeymoon.
2.) Sherry was apparently the alcohol of choice for many world travelers; both Magellan and Columbus had it on board during their respective voyages. Magellan liked Sherry so much that he spent more money stockpiling the alcoholic beverage than he spent on weapons.
3.) Frederick the Great, who was the king of Prussia, was so enamored by alcohol that he tried to ban coffee in an attempt to get everyone in Prussia to drink liquor instead.
4.) The Pilgrims made the decision to stop at Plymouth Rock because they were running low on supplies, particularly alcohol.
5.) Winston Churchill’s mother was the inventor of the Manhattan cocktail. It is made with whiskey and sweet vermouth.
6.) Until the mid-1600′s, wine makers in France used oil soaked rags in lieu of corks.
7.) Vikings enjoyed alcohol, and they preferred to toast to their victories by drinking it from the skulls of their defeated enemies.
8.) Many historians believe that the practice of farming was not started as a means of food production, but in order to produce the necessary ingredients to create alcoholic beverages.
9.) Hangover cures date back almost as far as alcohol itself. Ancient Romans believed that eating a fried canary would take care of their hangover symptoms, and the ancient Greeks were believers in the power of cabbage. People today are still trying to find the perfect cure for a hangover. In France they put salt into a strong cup of coffee, and in Puerto Rico some drinkers lift their drinking arm and rub half a lemon under it. (None have proven to be effective).
10.) The term honeymoon traces its roots back to ancient Babylon. It was a tradition for the soon to be father-in-law to supply his daughter’s fiancé with a month’s supply of mead. This time period was referred to as the honey month, and that phrase eventually morphed into what we now call a honeymoon.
Whether Weather
The National Weather Service is about
to boost its computing power by more than tenfold, which officials
hope will translate to better weather forecasts.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's two supercomputers will more than triple in computational ability this month January, 2015 and more than triple again by October, 2015. Computers will go from now being able to handle 426 trillion operations per second to 5,000 trillion calculations per second later in October, 2015.
NOAA chief Kathryn Sullivan, in a press release, said the computer boost, "Will lead to more timely, accurate, and reliable forecasts." It would be nice if some of the climaticogasmic scientists would upgrade their capabilities to predict, rather than just forecast.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's two supercomputers will more than triple in computational ability this month January, 2015 and more than triple again by October, 2015. Computers will go from now being able to handle 426 trillion operations per second to 5,000 trillion calculations per second later in October, 2015.
NOAA chief Kathryn Sullivan, in a press release, said the computer boost, "Will lead to more timely, accurate, and reliable forecasts." It would be nice if some of the climaticogasmic scientists would upgrade their capabilities to predict, rather than just forecast.
Jan 16, 2015
Happy Friday
A smile is like an upside down rainbow.
It is easy to have smiles and rainbows when celebrating a Happy Friday!
It is easy to have smiles and rainbows when celebrating a Happy Friday!
Why Snow is White
Snowflakes are crystals of frozen water. Water and ice appear clear or slightly blue in large volumes. Snow is white, because of the way light interacts with snowflakes and the air molecules packed between each snowflake.
Water, ice, and an individual snowflake may appear transparent or clear, but water actually is translucent. The difference is that light can pass through a transparent material unchanged, while it is bent when passing through a translucent material. Light hits a snowflake and is bent and scattered across the spectrum by the facets and imperfections in each crystal.
Snowflakes scatter all frequencies of visible light, so the net effect is to produce white light, but deep layers of snow or compacted snow may appear blue. There is little air between crystals in compacted snow or ice, so there is less opportunity for light to be reflected. Thick layers absorb enough red light to cause this snow to appear blue. Snow also can appear blue if it has a layer of ice over it, which can reflect back the blue of the sky.
Ice is the word for the solid form of water, regardless of how or where it formed or how the water molecules are stacked together.
Snow is the word for precipitation that falls as frozen water. If the water forms crystals, you get snowflakes. Other types of snow include rime and graupel, which are ice, but not crystals. Bottom line, frost is ice, ice cubes are ice, and snow is a form of ice.
Water, ice, and an individual snowflake may appear transparent or clear, but water actually is translucent. The difference is that light can pass through a transparent material unchanged, while it is bent when passing through a translucent material. Light hits a snowflake and is bent and scattered across the spectrum by the facets and imperfections in each crystal.
Snowflakes scatter all frequencies of visible light, so the net effect is to produce white light, but deep layers of snow or compacted snow may appear blue. There is little air between crystals in compacted snow or ice, so there is less opportunity for light to be reflected. Thick layers absorb enough red light to cause this snow to appear blue. Snow also can appear blue if it has a layer of ice over it, which can reflect back the blue of the sky.
Ice is the word for the solid form of water, regardless of how or where it formed or how the water molecules are stacked together.
Snow is the word for precipitation that falls as frozen water. If the water forms crystals, you get snowflakes. Other types of snow include rime and graupel, which are ice, but not crystals. Bottom line, frost is ice, ice cubes are ice, and snow is a form of ice.
Satchmo
Louis Armstrong had many nicknames as a child, all
of which referred to the size of his mouth: “Gatemouth,”
“Dippermouth,” and “Satchelmouth.” During a visit to Great Britain,
Louis was met by Percy Brooks, the editor of Melody Maker magazine,
who greeted him by saying, “Hello, Satchmo!” (He contracted
“Satchelmouth” into “Satchmo.”) Louis loved the new name and adopted
it for his own. It provides the title to Louis’s second
autobiography, is inscribed on at least two of his trumpets, and was
on his stationery.
Retro PC
Thanks to my nephew, was browsing the December
2000 edition of Popular Science online when I came across this super
fast (for the time) PC. Wow, only 14 years ago, $1,799 would pay for
128MB memory and a large 15GB hard drive.
These days memory is measured in GB and storage in Terabytes, with prices down into the low hundreds of dollars. Current watches and phones have more memory and storage than the old devices. We probably can't conceive of what will happen during the next 14 years.
Am voting for a personal wearable eye device so I can watch 100 inch, or larger, fully immersive 4D TV with at least 8k resolution and omnidirectional sound. Of course for the big game it will need to be full wall TV picture and wall speakers. Am also thinking wearable/implantable phone/PC devices with stretchable screens so we can keep our pockets empty. Wouldn't it also be nice to have a ceiling that glows with natural light instead of bulbs. Ah, the mind wanders
These days memory is measured in GB and storage in Terabytes, with prices down into the low hundreds of dollars. Current watches and phones have more memory and storage than the old devices. We probably can't conceive of what will happen during the next 14 years.
Am voting for a personal wearable eye device so I can watch 100 inch, or larger, fully immersive 4D TV with at least 8k resolution and omnidirectional sound. Of course for the big game it will need to be full wall TV picture and wall speakers. Am also thinking wearable/implantable phone/PC devices with stretchable screens so we can keep our pockets empty. Wouldn't it also be nice to have a ceiling that glows with natural light instead of bulbs. Ah, the mind wanders
4K, 8K, LED, OLED, HD, UHD
There are a number of confusing TV terms being thrown around these days to catch our attention and drive us to toss out our relatively new flat screen TVs. I decided to decode a few of the terms so we can make an informed decision - and then rush out to buy something to get the 'first on the block' medal.
4K has about eight million pixels which equates to about four times more than a current 1080p TV. Think of your TV like a grid, with rows and columns. A full HD 1080p image is 1080 rows high and 1920 columns wide. A 4K image almost doubles both those numbers, so you could fit every pixel from your 1080p set onto one quarter of a 4K screen. Recent 4K TVs are the same thickness as a smart phone, less than two tenths of an inch thick.
Since 4K contains four times the information of High Definition (HD or FHD), someone came up with the name Ultra High Definition (UHD). The bad news is the Internet providers have not opened up the pipes enough, so many 4K users see a lag time (that frustrating spinning circle) when watching 4K content. Netflix and Amazon currently charge more for delivering 4K content.
Currently, 1080 resolution comes from the image height, while 4K (3840 x 2160) is derived from image width. If it was described the same way as now, 4K would be 2160p. Seems that was not enough of a difference to command the increased price so they changed the definition to make it seem better to the uninitiated.
8K (7680 x 4320) basically doubles the pixel height and width of 4K to about 32 million pixels. The 8K standard is currently for exhibitions and movie theaters. Since 4K will not become the norm for a few more years, 8K is many years away from the home market.
LED comes from Light Emitting Diode. LED TVs are really LCD TVs, but the difference is how the screen is lit. Traditional LCD TVs use florescent backlights, LED TVs use smaller, more energy-efficient LEDs. LED screens produce great color, but the brightness of the lights can also wash out blacks on the screen.
OLED or Organic Light Emitting Diodes have been around for years, but producing big screens using this technology has proven to be prohibitively expensive until lately. The OLED elements generate their own light so the technology is stunning, with vibrant colors, deep blacks, and bright whites.
3D TV continues to die a slow death, even though some manufacturers are still trying to convince us we need it. Think of 3D as Three Times Dead.
Bottom line, OLED is better than LED, 4K is amazing when you can see 4K content, both 4K and 8K are Ultra High Definition (UHD), both cost twice as much or more than HD, both require faster internet to be useful. Since there is little 4K and no 8K content, people who buy theses TVs are stuck explaining the picture deficiency and Ultra High Cost to guests. When content arrives, these TVs will be awesome and, by then, the price will be much more affordable. Last thing, when it comes to TVs, bigger is better, OLED is much better, 4K is awesome, but too expensive, for now.
4K has about eight million pixels which equates to about four times more than a current 1080p TV. Think of your TV like a grid, with rows and columns. A full HD 1080p image is 1080 rows high and 1920 columns wide. A 4K image almost doubles both those numbers, so you could fit every pixel from your 1080p set onto one quarter of a 4K screen. Recent 4K TVs are the same thickness as a smart phone, less than two tenths of an inch thick.
Since 4K contains four times the information of High Definition (HD or FHD), someone came up with the name Ultra High Definition (UHD). The bad news is the Internet providers have not opened up the pipes enough, so many 4K users see a lag time (that frustrating spinning circle) when watching 4K content. Netflix and Amazon currently charge more for delivering 4K content.
Currently, 1080 resolution comes from the image height, while 4K (3840 x 2160) is derived from image width. If it was described the same way as now, 4K would be 2160p. Seems that was not enough of a difference to command the increased price so they changed the definition to make it seem better to the uninitiated.
8K (7680 x 4320) basically doubles the pixel height and width of 4K to about 32 million pixels. The 8K standard is currently for exhibitions and movie theaters. Since 4K will not become the norm for a few more years, 8K is many years away from the home market.
LED comes from Light Emitting Diode. LED TVs are really LCD TVs, but the difference is how the screen is lit. Traditional LCD TVs use florescent backlights, LED TVs use smaller, more energy-efficient LEDs. LED screens produce great color, but the brightness of the lights can also wash out blacks on the screen.
OLED or Organic Light Emitting Diodes have been around for years, but producing big screens using this technology has proven to be prohibitively expensive until lately. The OLED elements generate their own light so the technology is stunning, with vibrant colors, deep blacks, and bright whites.
3D TV continues to die a slow death, even though some manufacturers are still trying to convince us we need it. Think of 3D as Three Times Dead.
Bottom line, OLED is better than LED, 4K is amazing when you can see 4K content, both 4K and 8K are Ultra High Definition (UHD), both cost twice as much or more than HD, both require faster internet to be useful. Since there is little 4K and no 8K content, people who buy theses TVs are stuck explaining the picture deficiency and Ultra High Cost to guests. When content arrives, these TVs will be awesome and, by then, the price will be much more affordable. Last thing, when it comes to TVs, bigger is better, OLED is much better, 4K is awesome, but too expensive, for now.
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