Sugar Stops Hiccups

This remedy is no placebo. Hiccups occur when a spasm contracts the diaphragm, a large sheet of muscle that separates the chest cavity from the abdominal cavity. This spasm causes an intake of breath that is suddenly stopped by the closure of the vocal cords. This closure causes the 'hiccup' sound.

Hiccups are irritating, but it is possible to stop them within sixty seconds or so by swallowing a teaspoon filled with dry sugar or honey. Specialists believe the abrupt sweetness on the tongue overloads the nerve endings in the mouth and blocks the hiccup spasm.

Joseph Lister

The idea of clean operating rooms did not exist until Joseph Lister began his practice of antisepsis in the 1860's. He introduced washing surgical instruments in carbolic acid, and keeping the operating area clean and sterile. He used it on the incision wound, dressings, and instruments. It was a revolutionary change for hospitals. Lister discovered that the infections in wounds which caused so many surgical deaths were not caused by the miasma in the air, but by something entirely different.

In his article in The Lancet of 21 September 1867 and his book 'Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery' he explained the cause was microorganisms that traveled from the surgeon’s hands onto the wound. Because of his miraculous results in operative and post-operative infection, Lister is considered to be one of the founders of modern surgery.

In 1893 Dr. J.C. Bloodgood (his real name) insisted on surgical glove use by his entire surgical team. This was followed by W. Steward Halstead's adoption of surgical gloves at Johns Hopkins that gained national exposure. Halstead is generally credited with the glove's discovery, which is not true.

Listerine was formulated by Dr. Joseph Lawrence and Jordan Wheat Lambert in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1879. Joseph Lister had nothing to do with it, other than it was named after him.

Bad Breath Eliminators

If you do not have any Listerine handy, here are a few other options. Sugar may cure hiccups, but it also can cause plaque, which is one cause of bad breath. Bad breath usually results from poor oral hygiene and gastrointestinal health. Breath odors originate inside the mouth and also from the digestive tract. The cause in both is mostly bacteria.

Coriander, spearmint, tarragon, eucalyptus, rosemary, and cardamom are all good for fighting bad breath, either by chewing, or steeping in hot water, as a tea.

Research also shows that live microorganisms in sugar free yogurt may reduce levels of bad breath germs. A serving of yogurt each day reduces the level of odor-causing hydrogen sulfide in the mouth. It also reduces bacteria in the mouth as well as reduces plaque and gum disease.

Apples, carrots, celery, and any fiber-rich fruits or vegetables also help fight halitosis. Plaque build-up causes odors and eating foods that increase saliva production keep the mouth moist and rinsed. Eating berries, citrus fruits, melons and other vitamin C foods create an inhospitable environment for bacteria growth and prevent gum disease and gingivitis.

National Hot Dog Day

You can renew that bad breath with some of your favorite toppings on a hot dog, wiener, or frankfurter. This week, July 23, Americans celebrated National Hot Dog day.

Hot dogs were originally culturally imported from Germany. The word frankfurter comes from Frankfurt, Germany, where pork sausages similar to hot dogs originated. Wiener refers to Vienna, Austria, whose German name is 'Wien', home to a sausage made of a mixture of pork and beef.

Americans eat seven billion hot dogs from Memorial Day to Labor Day. That amounts to about 818 hot dogs consumed every second, according to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council.

Hot dogs are made with a simple mixture of ground meats and spices, such as salt, garlic, and paprika. Some commercial makers include binders and fillers. Preservatives from curing typically include sodium erythorbate and sodium nitrite. Skinless dogs have the casing removed after cooking and before packaging. I love the natural casing dogs that crunch with every bite.

3D Printed Keys

The once almost ubiquitous key kiosks have long since gone and many hardware stores no longer provide the service. Now a company called 'Keys Duplicated' prints keys from photographs. Snap a picture of any key, send it in, and within a few days you will receive a duplicate in the mail. The site suggests to text a link to its page to your phone, or go to keysduplicated.com on your mobile browser. It says it is easier to send a key if you visit the page directly on your mobile phone. No need to download an app.

The charge shows six dollars for the first key and four dollars for the second, with no shipping charges. The company pitches its service to people who need an extra key to their own house. LINK  Practical use for new technology.

Hologram Shopping

Lowe's may not provide printed 3d keys yet, but it is entering the digital age in a big way. The Lowe's Holoroom is a home improvement simulator which applies augmented reality to provide homeowners an intuitive, immersive experience in the room of their dreams. It was introduced to stores in Toronto in June, 2014 and equipped with thousands of products to help customers plan a bathroom remodel or refresh project.

Customers begin by choosing their preferred products on a pad device before viewing and experiencing those products in the Holoroom. While in the Holoroom, they can make changes to the room design or finalize their plan. A take-home link allows customers to view a 3-D model of their room at home, and share the model with family and friends by downloading a free app available on smartphones.

The concept is to let customers use a pad to create the room, adding features, textures, tiles, counters, etc., then walk around a physical space set up in the store to view it as if they are in the actual room. They can look down into the sink to see the texture and drain or up to see a light fixture.

Lowes plans to expand additional living spaces in the future, including the kitchen and outdoor living. It is also envisioned to eventually let people do the same thing in their own home, then click to buy everything needed to make that room a reality. Cool technology, from hammers to holograms. Seems to me this might be a perfect application for an Oculus Rift virtual reality headset device.

National Ice Cream Month

July is National Ice Cream Month, so here are a few ice cream facts.

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan declared the third Sunday in July to be National Ice Cream Day and the month of July to be National Ice Cream Month.

Per capita ice cream consumption in the US is about 5 1/2 gallons.

It takes about twelve pounds of whole milk to make one gallon of ice cream.

French Ice Cream is enriched with egg yolks.

More ice cream is sold on Sunday than any other day of the week.

It takes 50 licks to finish a single scoop of ice cream.

The top five most popular ice cream flavors are: vanilla, chocolate, Neapolitan, strawberry, and cookies n' cream.

Vanilla makes up about twenty five percent of all ice cream sales.

Neapolitan ice cream is ice cream made up of blocks of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry ice cream side by side in the same container. Giuseppe Tortoni, a Neapolitan (living in Paris) created many layered ice cream cakes and the term Neapolitan was named after him.

Free Friday Smile

Happy Friday

The greatest hindrance to life as we know it is the snooze button.

I always get up early to enjoy a longer Happy Friday!

Hot Weather Thoughts

While some of complain about heat, think of this: Lowest temperature recorded was in Vostok, Antartica July 21, 1983, –128.6f or –89.2C

Record breaking rainfall during 24 hours in Alvin, Texas, July 25–26, 1979 43inches or 109centimeters

The hottest temperature recorded was 134f or 56.7C at Furnace Creek Ranch in Death Valley California, July 10, 1913

Heaviest hail officially recorded: 2.25 pounds or 1.02 kg; Gopalganj District, Bangladesh, 14 April 1986.

Beer-nails

College students have loved beer for centuries. They are also generally very smart. In one fit of brilliance, students invented biernagels (beer-nails).

These are metal studs placed on the covers of books to keep the leather covers away from wet (spilled beer) pub tables. With biernagels on it, a book cover is raised half a centimeter from the surface of the table, and thus remains mostly dry. From the name, we can only assume it was some inventive German students.

Guarana

This is a climbing plant in the maple family, native to the Amazon basin and especially common in Brazil. Guarana features large leaves and clusters of flowers, and is best known for its fruit, which is about the size of a coffee bean. As a dietary supplement, guarana is an effective stimulant and its seeds contain about twice the concentration of caffeine found in coffee beans (about 2–4.5% caffeine in guarana seeds compared to 1–2% for coffee beans). As with other plants producing caffeine, the high concentration of caffeine is a defensive toxin that repels herbivores from the berry and its seeds.

If you look at the contents of any energy drink, chances are that guarana is listed as one of the main ingredients. European missionaries in 17th-century Brazil recorded the native people’s use of the berry, noting that it not only gave them energy, but allowed them to go for days without feeling hungry. It became a colonial trading commodity that was said to help protect the body from illness, but too much of it was known to cause insomnia.

The caffeine that is found in the guarana berry is thought to be different from the caffeine found in coffee. Guarana contains chemical components called tannins, which are thought to produce a longer-lasting effect than caffeine from other sources. For centuries, guarana berry seeds have been powdered or smoked in a long process that is done by hand. Drinking properly prepared guarana can be central to formal occasions and gatherings, where groups of people pass around a calabash bowl.

Two Summer Ice Cream Tips

Ice cream two ways - one is to slice it for serving the other is to put the whole carton in a large freezer bag and it will not freeze so hard, so it is easier to extract.

What's in a Name, Wenis

Wenis has achieved the status of a dictionary word and can be found in the online Merriam Webster dictionary. Even Wikipedia is reserving the word for inclusion. It refers to the skin on the outside of the elbow. The excess skin allows your elbow to move and flex. Medically speaking, it is called the olecranal skin.

The word has long been used as slang, because it sounds like the male appendage. Sample usage, "I fell and scraped my wenis."

Browser Tip

If you accidentally close a tab in either Firefox or Chrome, hold down CTRL and Shift keys then hit the letter t. The tab will come back.

Fifteen More Coffee Facts

Coffee is the second largest traded commodity in the world (oil is the largest).

1. There are two types of oils in coffee, good oils and bad oils. The good oils are good for your body and your health, the bad oils may give you ulcers and stomach problems. To avoid the bad oils in coffee use paper filters to minimize the effects.
2. Mocha Java Coffee has no chocolate in the Mocha or Java bean. Mocha is the name of the port in Yemen, where all African coffee beans are traded and transported. Java is the name of an island in Indonesia where the Java bean originates. Both coffees are dark bean and provide a bold coffee, when you mix the two together you get Mocha Java coffee.
3. Coffee starts out as a yellow berry, ripens into a red berry, and is then harvested by hand. Through water soaking process the red berry is de-shelled and leaves the green coffee bean. This bean then dries in the sun for 3-5 days before bagging.
4. In Africa, coffee beans are soaked in water mixed with spices and served as candy to chew.
5. Brazil is the largest coffee producer in the world and the US is the largest coffee consuming country in the world.
6. There are 65 countries in the world that grow coffee and they are all located along the equator.
7. Black coffee with no additives contains no calories.
8. There are two types of coffee plants, Arabica and Robusta.
9. Espresso Coffee has one third of the caffeine content of a cup of regular coffee.
10. James Mason invented the coffee percolator on December 26, 1865.
11. Instant coffee was invented in 1901 by a Japanese American chemist, Satori Kato. In 1906 English chemist, George Constant Washington claimed he invented instant coffee.
12. Melitta Bentz a housewife from Dresden, Germany, invented the first coffee filter in 1908.
13. It takes five years for a coffee tree to reach full maturity, coffee trees can live up to 100 years and the average yield from one tree equals about one pound of roasted coffee.
14. A regular 6oz cup of coffee contains about 150 milligrams of caffeine.
15. Robusta coffee beans have twice as much caffeine as Arabica beans, but are of less quality.

Reheat Crunchy Fried Foods

Few foods are as good the next day when you reheat them, especially fried foods. If you want to get your french fries or fried chicken crispy again after they spent a night in the refrigerator, wrap them in aluminum foil and stick them in the broiler. The top-down heat on oil-soaked food makes these leftovers become crunchy again.

Sports Wave Origin

The wave, also generally known as the 'Mexican wave' outside of the US, was the brain-child of the longest continuously active professional cheerleader, Krazy George Henderson. It made its national debut on October 15, 1981 in a playoff game between the Oakland Athletics and the New York Yankees, which the Yankees won 4-0.

Krazy George’s claim is easily verified by the Major League Baseball archives. As the wave was something not seen before, with nearly all 47,000 in attendance participating, players and the announcers were amazed. Video of this first documented wave, including Krazy George leading it, made it onto the Oakland A’s highlight video for the season.

Of this first documented wave, Krazy George states, “I started with three sections and it went about five or six sections down. I did it again and it went 11 and then all the way around. Joe Garigiola was in the broadcast booth yelling at his cameramen to get that thing. Of course, no one knew what it was.”



It is generally called the 'Mexican wave' outside of the United States due to the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, where the rest of the world was first introduced to the wave. Krazy George invented the move, but not 'the wave', or the 'Mexican wave' name.

Free Smile Friday

Summer Joy

Happy Friday

Some people forget their smile is always right under their nose.

The best way to hide wrinkles is to smile, especially while enjoying a Happy Friday!

Sports Drinks

A study found that sports drinks work because they activate the pleasure center of your brain. You don't even have to drink them, just swishing some around in your mouth and spitting it out has the same effect.

The carbohydrates in the drink stimulate receptors in your mouth that then send your brain messages that things are all great. Your brain then becomes more active in the pleasure center, allowing you to enjoy feeling the burn longer than someone without a sugary drink.

Smiles Work

NYU students smiled, on average a little over once a minute when they were with a smiling confederate and averaged only a third of a smile per minute when they were with a confederate who did not smile.

We judge people and objects to be more pleasant when we are smiling in comparison to when we are frowning, so if you want your interviewer to think positively about you, try smiling.

Benjamin Franklin Pseudonyms

Franklin was prolific, regardless of which name he used.

Richard Saunders - He used this name for his Poor Richard’s Almanac, which ran annually from 1732 to 1758. The Richard character brought humor to what was otherwise a serious resource in the almanac. During the years of publication the unnecessary character gradually disappeared.

Silence Dogood - When Benjamin was 16-years-old, he wanted to write for his brother James’ newspaper, The New England Courant, but James would not allow it. Ben contributed to the paper as a middle-aged widow named Silence Dogood whose witty and satirical letters covered a range of topics from courtship to education. Fifteen Dogood letters were published, resulting in the amusement of Courant readers and several marriage proposals for the pretend widow, Mrs. Dogood.

Anthony Afterwit - Mr. Afterwit, a gentleman, wrote humorous letters about married life that appeared in Franklin’s own Pennsylvania Gazette.

Polly Baker - Polly Baker was a pseudonym Franklin used to examine colonial society’s unequal treatment of women. She was pretend punished by society for having children out of wedlock while the fathers of the children went unpunished.

Alice Addertongue - Alice is another middle-aged widow who wrote a gossip column for Franklin’s Gazette in the form of scandalous stories about prominent members of society.

Caelia Shortface and Martha Careful - These pseudonyms were used by Franklin to settle a personal dispute. They wrote letters mocking Franklin’s former employer, Samuel Keimer, who had stolen some of Franklin’s publishing ideas. Shortface and Careful’s letters were published in The American Weekly Mercury, a publication by a Keimer rival.

Busy Body - Also published in The American Weekly Mercury, Miss Body’s letters were gossip stories about local businessmen.

Benevolous. Benevolous - He wrote letters to British newspapers while Franklin was in London. The primary focus of the letters was to correct negative statements made about Americans in the British press.

Negotiating Technique

From a recent study, people who sat in hard chairs were more likely to maintain a hard line in negotiations and were less receptive to their partner's way of thinking.

In a series of studies, scientists found that they could easily manipulate people's feelings and perceptions based on nothing more than what the subjects were touching. Holding heavier objects, for instance, made men think more seriously about things, which in turn made them more likely to donate money to charity if asked. Men holding lighter objects were less likely to donate to charitable causes. People handling rough objects were more likely to see neutral social situations in a bad light, saying that other people were obviously in a bad mood.

Fifteen Detroit Facts

Detroit, Michigan might not be the city it once was, but it does have a prestigious history and a few firsts attributed to it.
    The very first news broadcast came out of Detroit on WWJ.
    Detroit was the first city to assign individual phone numbers, in 1879.
    It is potato chip capital of the world… per consumption. (Love those Better Made chips)
    Ice cream soda was invented in Detroit.
    Pizza deliveryman Richard Davis invented the bulletproof vest, after being attacked by three armed robbers during a delivery. (DuPont chemist Stephanie Kwolek, who passed away last month, discovered Kevlar in 1965).
    Detroit has more registered bowlers than any other city.
    The salt mines beneath Detroit could keep food flavored for over seventy thousand years.
    Elijay J. McCoy invented the best lubrication system for locomotives and other machinery in 1872. Manufacturers wanted the best, “the real McCoy.” (That’s where the saying came from).
    The first four-way traffic light was in Detroit, at the intersection of Woodward and Fort St.
    A one-mile stretch of Detroit road was paved with concrete in 1908, making it the world's first concrete-paved road.
    Vernor's Ginger Ale was invented there.
    The first air-conditioned car was manufactured in 1939 by Detroit's Packard Motor Car Company.
    The J.W. Westcott II, Detroit, is the world's only floating post office, as it delivers mail to ships as they pass under the Ambassador Bridge (I once rode on it).
    The first tunnel connecting two countries in the world is the Detroit Windsor Tunnel, connecting Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
    Belle Isle, in Detroit is the largest island park in the US.

Prescription Discounts

We all like a deal and this site has some good deals for prescriptions. LINK Type in the drug and dosage, then zip code and look for deals or coupons. There was nothing to sign up for, no email necessary, and no credit card needed  for the few I tested. Seems like a good deal to me.

What Makes Super Glue Work

Super glue works like a two-part adhesive, the glue in the tube and the hardener is water. Most dry surfaces have microscopic droplets of water adhering to them. When super glue comes in contact with these droplets they create the chemical reaction that causes the super glue to harden.

You can wipe both surfaces with a very slightly damp cloth or breathe on it, like breathing on a mirror to speed the adhesive's setting. It sticks to skin because skin is full of large, medium, small and microscopic grooves and pores that provide the perfect type of roughness for glue to grab. Second, the skin tissues are saturated with water so the super glue can soak in and find water to cause the hardening reaction.

The super glue that doctors use is different than the type available in hardware stores. Surgical super glue contains types of alcohols that are less toxic to human tissue. The type sold in stores uses ethyl of methyl alcohols that can kill cells.

Pain and Coughing

Next time you feel some pain, such as a shot from the doctor, or paper cut, or a prick from a plant thorn, force a rough cough or a few coughs. Coughing  has been shown to moderate the feeling of pain.

Five Attributes Happiness and Sex Share

Here is another way to ease pain. A 2004 study asked 900 American women how various daily activities made them feel and found that "intimate relations" topped the charts for happiness. Both reduce anxiety, reduce stress, boost your immune system, ease pain, and both reduce neuroticism, a trait marked by mood swings and frequent worry. Not sure who paid for the study to show the obvious.

Kindness Multiplies

Here is a site that has 35 uplifting acts of kindness. LINK Too good not to share.

Free Friday Thought

Friday Thoughts

Happiness has two faces, tears and smiles.

Sometimes my smile gets so big it makes my eyes leak, especially while having a Happy Friday!

Happy Canada Day

On July 1, 1867, the nation was officially born when the Constitution Act joined three provinces into one country: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Canada province, which then split into Ontario and Quebec. However, Canada was not completely independent of England until 1982.

PL Peace Tower, Japan

July 6 fireworks - a tribute to all the fallen souls of war. This six hundred foot tower is located at the Church of Perfect Liberty headquarters in Tondabayashi, Japan. The tower stands as a monument to all the perished souls of war throughout all time. Within the tower is a shrine in which all known names of the lives claimed in human conflict have been recorded on microfilm and stored in a golden container.

The structure was built in 1970. Once a year, the Church of Perfect Liberty headquarters is the site of one of the world's largest fireworks shows. Every July 6th, the members celebrate the passing of their first founder with what they call the "PL Art of Fireworks." Unlike most fireworks shows, which fire around 5,000 shells, the PL show consists of around 25,000 shells fired. During the finale about 7,000 shells are shot off in unison, almost completely lighting nearly night sky.

Darwin Beer Can Regatta

Jul 06, 2014, Darwin, Australia. The first Beer Can Regatta was held on the 16th June 1974, and was a "festival" developed by Lutz Frankenfeld and Paul Rice-Chapman. Each year contestants handcraft boats out of recycled beer cans and take to the seas. For boats that do not float, there is another chance, to see how fast the team can carry a Henley boat in a straight line in a race down the beach.

Entrance is by a gold coin donation and proceeds go to projects of the combined Lions Clubs of Darwin. There are many festivities along with eating and drinking booths set up.

Rules for the beer can boats - The Ten Can-Mandments
1. Thou shalt enter the event in the right spirit.
2. Thou shalt build the craft of cans.
3. The craft shall float by cans alone.
4. Thou shalt not drown.
5. Thou shalt not take the name of the craft in vain. Any craft bearing signs or lettering that may be offensive will be barred.
6. Thou shalt not drift from the straight and narrow and end up at Mandorah.
7. Thou shalt not protest too much.
8. Thou shall honor thy Committee.
9. Thou shalt not commit adultery – nothing really to do with the Regatta, but it gives us an air of responsibility and respect.
10. Thou shalt go back and read the first can-mandment again.

The Aussies sure know how to have a good time.

Lobster Colors

Before you cook a lobster it looks grey-blue, and when you cook it, it turns pink. It does not really change color, the red pigment is already there, but is surrounded by the grey and blue pigments. When those pigments are heated they are destroyed. The red pigments take the heat and remain.

Ten Interesting Tidbits

The average child asks over four hundred questions each day. Makes it easy to understand why they learn so fast.
Of all the people in history that have reached age 65, half are still living.
The US is older than Germany. Germany became independent in 1871 and the US in 1776.
Two thirds of the people on earth have never seen snow.
A hummingbird weighs less than a US penny.
There are more empty houses in the US than homeless people.
The US FDA allows ten insects and thirty five fly eggs per eight ounces of raisins.
One in ten European babies were conceived on an IKEA bed.
A giraffe's tongue is twenty one inches long.
The Guinness Book of Records holds its own record as the book most stolen from public libraries.

Types of Bacon Sandwiches

 A bacon sandwich (also known in parts of the United Kingdom and New Zealand as a bacon butty or bacon sarnie, in Ireland as a rasher sandwich, and as a bacon sanger in Australia and parts of Scotland is a sandwich of cooked bacon between bread that is usually spread with butter or margarine, and may be seasoned with ketchup or brown sauce. It is generally served hot. The BLT is a popular variant of the bacon sandwich with the additional ingredients of lettuce and tomato, but served cold. It is also called piece 'n bacon, bacon cob (made with bread roll rather than slice), grilled bacon and cheese.

A Fool's Gold Loaf, mostly in Colorado, US consists of a single warmed, hollowed-out loaf of bread filled with one jar of creamy peanut butter, one jar of grape jelly, and a pound of bacon.

Bacon Gerber in Saint Louis, Missouri, US half section of Italian or French bread with garlic butter, containing ham, provolone cheese, topped with paprika, then toasted.

Hot Brown in Louisville, Kentucky, US open-faced with turkey and bacon, topped with Mornay sauce, and baked or broiled

Bacon sandwiches are an all-day favorite throughout the United Kingdom. They are often served in greasy spoons, and are sometimes recommended as a hangover cure. Australian hamburger shops sell a bacon sandwich, which is made much like a traditional Australian hamburger with fried bacon, fried onions, lettuce, tomato, tinned beetroot and barbecue sauce or tomato sauce. In some places the sandwich is made from bread toasted on only one side and other establishments serve it on the same roll as used for hamburgers. In Toronto, Canada, peameal bacon (rolled cured and trimmed boneless loin in dried and ground yellow peas) is served on a Kaiser roll.

Irish formula - Place at least three carefully chosen bacon rashers on grill pan. Insert grill pan under grill (broiler). Cook until sizzling, then turn over (the rashers, not the pan), and cook other side until sizzling.
In the meantime, cut two hunks of Kelly's small loaf. Butter liberally with real butter (none of that low cal crap). According to taste, apply your chosen sauce to the bread. Evenly spread the rashers (still sizzling) onto the bread. Apply the upper part of the sandwich. Turn off the TV and the radio. Tell the wife / girlfriend / dog etc to go away.

Perfect Bacon Sandwich - Experts at Leeds University discovered the secret to the ideal sandwich, after four researchers at the Department of Food Science spent more than 1,000 hours testing 700 variations of a traditional bacon sandwich. They tried different types and cuts of bacon, cooking techniques, types of oil and a range of cooking times at different temperatures. They found that two or three back bacon rashers should be cooked under a preheated oven grill (broiler) for seven minutes at about 240C (475F). The bacon should then be placed between two slices of farmhouse bread, 1cm to 2cm thick. They concluded  that is not only the taste and smell of bacon that consumers find most attractive, but that texture and how crispy and crunchy rashers are. Side note - A rasher of bacon can also be used to mean a "portion" or "serving" of bacon, not just a single slice. Also, streaky bacon is the British term for American style bacon.

Borrow a Drone

Students at the University of South Florida, US are now able to borrow quadcopter drones from the school library. The university allows students to check out one of the library's two remote control devices for supervised flights. The small white drones come fitted with a video camera. The university says they will be useful for students studying a range of disciplines. Students need to complete a course in drone operation before checking the devices out, and their use is to be monitored by staff members standing over the students' shoulders.

What's in a Name, Bronx

A seventeenth century Scandinavian man by the name of Jonas Bronck immigrated in 1639 to New Amsterdam (now New York), which was right next to the Bronx River, that was later named after him.

Jonas owned a 680 acre farm called 'Bronck’s Land' and the river abutting it 'Bronck’s River'. Various people owned this property and kept the name, until Colonel Lewis Morris acquired it and renamed it the 'Manor of Morrisania'. The river next to it continued to be called Bronck’s River. From the river’s name, the modern-day name of 'Bronx' extended to the region directly around it.

The spelling change happened around the same time there was a big push for the simplification of English, such as thre names of the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox, from 'Socks'.

Holiday Thought

Get out there and have some fun!

Happy Friday

You can't pull happiness from your neighbor's garden, you must grow your own.

I grow my own happiness and it blossoms every time I enjoy a Happy Friday!

In the Middle

We all look at records for first and last, top and bottom, largest and smallest, and left and right. Sometimes it is its own reward to be in the middle. Here are a few examples of things that celebrate being in the middle.

Next week, July 2, at noon is the exact middle of the year. It has 182 days before it and 182 days following.

There is a obelisk monument located at U.S. Highway 2 and North Dakota Highway 3, in Rugby, North Dakota, United States  that claims to be the middle of North America. Rugby was named after the town of Rugby in Warwickshire, England (yes, where rugby football was born). It is approximately 15 miles (24 km) from the geographic center of North America, but that is close enough according to locals. (The Geographic Center of the Contiguous United States is located about two miles northwest of Lebanon, Kansas.)

A view of the picture below shows a monument in Ecuador dedicated to being the center of the globe. It commemorates the 200th anniversary of the French Geodesic Mission which charted the equator and measured the shape of the earth. The San Antonio de Pichincha, Mitad del Mundo also has a  painted line on the pavement marked Latitude 0° 0' 0", where visitors take a photo straddling both hemispheres. The original calculations have been proven incorrect by more accurate modern technology and the actual equator line runs about 240 meters north of the monument, but that is close enough for locals.

At exactly 45 degrees latitude, 90 degrees longitude, in  the town of Rietbrock, Wisconsin, Untied States is the exact center of the Northern half of the Western Hemisphere. It is here that the 90th Meridian of Longitude bisects the 45th Parallel of Latitude meaning it is exactly halfway between the North Pole and the Equator and is a quarter of the way around Earth from Greenwich, England. The marker is about 1063 feet away from the actual 45x90 spot, but that is close enough for the locals.

The equator monument, is at Pontianak on the Indonesian side of the island of Borneo. This monument marks where the exact middle of the world used to be.

Due to constant global shift, the true Equatorial line was recorded a short distance south of the monument and, according to GPS readings, the line continues to move south, but that is close enough for the locals.

Before you ask, there is no middle of the universe. According to standard theories of cosmology, the universe began about 14 thousand million years ago and has been expanding ever since. Expansion is the same everywhere, it is not expanding out from a center into space, but is expanding equally at all places. So I have come to the end of the middle, Happy July.

Tragus

Speaking of middle, here is where the tragus is located.

Sleep Juice

New research  finds drinking tart cherry juice twice a day can help you sleep nearly 90 more minutes a night. Cherry juice is a natural source of the sleep-wake cycle hormone melatonin and amino acid tryptophan. The ruby red pigments in tart cherry juice, contain an enzyme that reduces inflammation and decreases the breakdown of tryptophan.

Researchers from Louisiana State University had seven older adults with insomnia drink eight ounces of Montmorency tart cherry juice twice a day for two weeks, followed by two weeks of no juice, and then two more weeks of drinking a placebo beverage. Compared to the placebo, drinking the cherry juice resulted in an average of 84 more minutes of sleep time each night.

Another thing you might try is kiwi. Eating two kiwi fruits an hour before bed was shown to increase sleep time by 13% and decrease mid-sleep waking periods by 29% after just four weeks. Zzzzzz

What's in a Name, Salisbury Steak

This dish was created by and named after James Salisbury in 1886 as a treatment for many afflictions such as gout, bronchitis, and tuberculosis. He believed that well-done ground beef should be eaten three times a day and a glass of hot water be taken before and after each meal.

J.K. Rowling

In 2004, she became the first person to become a billionaire by writing books. I plan to be the second, as long as I can hang in there for about 542 more years.

Color Me Purple

Purpura is the Latin name of a particular kind of shellfish which, when ground up, produces a bright purple dye, which in turn was taken from the Greek word porphura to describe the same sea creature. The word purpura later began to refer to the dye, and eventually the color of this dye. This dye was very expensive, and purple was considered a color of royalty throughout Europe. When this dye was exported to England, the word purple was imported into English as well. Today "purpura" is used by doctors to describe purplish discolorations of the skin.

The Egyptian queen Cleopatra loved purple. To obtain one ounce of Tyrian purple dye, she had her servants soak 20,000 Purpura snails for 10 days.
In Thailand, purple is worn by a widow mourning her husband's death.
A “purple heart” is a U.S. military decoration for soldiers wounded or killed in battle.
Purple is a royal color.
Purple robes are an emblem of authority and rank.
“Purple speech” is profane talk.
“Purple prose” is writing that is full of exaggerated literary effects and ornamentation.
Leonardo da Vinci believed that the power of meditation increases 10 times when done in a purple light, as in the purple light of stained glass.
Purple in a child's room is said to help develop the imagination, according to color theory.
Richard Wagner composed his operas in a room with shades of violet, his color of inspiration.

Ten Crazy US Driving Laws

In Alaska it is illegal to tie a dog to the roof of your car.
In San Francisco it is illegal to dry your car with used underwear.
In Florida, if an elephant is tied to a parking meter, the attendant must deposit money in the meter.
In Nevada it is illegal to ride a camel on the highway.
In Alabama it is illegal for a driver to be blindfolded while operating a vehicle.
In Illinois it is illegal to change clothes inside a car, except during a fire.
In Montana it is illegal to leave a sheep unescorted in a truck.
In Georgia it is illegal to drive through playgrounds.
In Oklahoma it is illegal to read a comic book while driving.
In Massachusetts it is illegal to drive with a gorilla in the back seat of your car.

Sweet Potato vs. White Potato Myth Debunked

The differences are much less than some experts would have us believe. These two tubers are very similar. The myth seems to stem from the fact that people tend to eat sweet potatoes baked or boiled, not fried, but more than a third of all white potatoes are consumed as either chips or French fries, so the sweet potato would appear to be less fattening by cooking style, not nutritional fact.

In a 100-gram portion, the white potato has 92 calories, 21 grams of carbs, 2.3 grams of fiber, 2.3 g of protein and 17% of the recommended daily value of vitamin C. White potatoes are higher in essential minerals, such as iron, magnesium, and potassium.

The same amount of sweet potato has 90 calories, 21 grams of carbs, 3 grams of fiber, 2 grams of protein, 35% of the recommended daily value of vitamin C and 380% of the daily recommended value of vitamin A.

Another difference is that sweet potatoes have a lower glycemic index than regular potatoes. The glycemic index is a measure of how quickly blood glucose levels rise after eating. Foods that have a low glycemic index do not cause a quick spike in blood sugar. As a result, people do not experience the same sugar highs and lows, which can lead to hunger and the consumption of extra calories. In other words, foods with lower glycemic indexes, like sweet potatoes and brown rice, make you feel full longer. However, baked white potatoes typically are eaten with cheese, sour cream, or butter. These toppings all contain fat, which also lowers the glycemic index of a meal.

Bottom line, the form in which you consume a potato, such as baked vs. fries is a more important difference than the type of potato.  Yams and sweet potatoes are not the same, but they are cousins and come from a different plant family.