Wendy’s: The first “Wendy’s Old
Fashioned Hamburgers” was opened on November 15, 1969; the
restaurant being named after the fourth child, Melinda Lou Thomas,
of founder Dave Thomas (who incidentally was a high school dropout
and before founding Wendy’s helped stop Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC)
from going out of business.) You might be asking yourself, “How do
you get ‘Wendy’ out of Melinda Lou Thomas?” This was a nickname
given to her as she couldn’t pronounce her own name when she was
young, instead she would say “Wenda”, which is how she got the
nickname “Wendy”.
Arby’s: Although some people believe that the enunciation of Arby’s
stands for “roast beef”, this isn’t true. It actually comes from the
initials of its founders, the Raffel Brothers (R.B.’s). They
originally planned to name their company “Big Tex”, but someone
already owned the rights to that name.
eBay: The company was originally supposed to be “Echo Bay Technology
Group”, but the domain “EchoBay.com” was already taken, so they
shortened it and got eBay.com, which was available.
Starbucks: Not many companies dive into the world of fiction
literature to find inspiration for their brand, but Starbucks is not
just any company. Its name comes from a character in the story of
Moby Dick.
Nintendo: This famous company name comes from the Japanese name
“Nintendou”. Roughly translated “Nin” means “entrusted” and
“ten-dou” means “heaven”, so basically “leave luck to heaven”. If
this seems a strange name/slogan for a company, perhaps it’s
important to note it started out as a playing card making company in
1889.
Mar 26, 2013
Nine Ways to Keep Food Fresh Longer
- Put onions in pantyhose, and tie knots between onion - will last up to 8 months.
- Freeze green onions in a plastic bottle. Make sure the green onions are completely dry before storing or they will get freezer burn.
- Use a vinegar solution to make your berries last longer.
- Spray leftover guacamole with cooking spray before putting it back in the fridge.
- Store potatoes with apples to keep them from sprouting.
- Add a dab of butter to the cut side of cheese to keep it from drying out.
- Wrap celery, broccoli, and lettuce in tin foil before storing in the fridge.
- Keep ginger in the freezer.
- Keep mushrooms in a paper bag, not a plastic bag.
Is TV Real or Fake
TV shows are using green screens more
than we realize and it has been going on for years. It is becoming
difficult to know what is real and what is not. Here is a LINK to some
of the tricks that popular TV shows use to make us believe the shows
are shot on location when they are not.
Mar 22, 2013
Happy Friday
The most dramatic conflicts are perhaps, those that take place not
between men but between a man and himself.
There is never a conflict when it comes to having a Happy Friday!
There is never a conflict when it comes to having a Happy Friday!
Tin Foil
Almost no one uses real tin foil these days. The
stuff we all call “tin foil” is actually aluminum foil. Originally
foil was made of tin, but it gave a tin flavor to whatever it
touched. It was heavier than modern aluminum foil.
Aluminum foil began to surpass tin foil after World War II, but it had been available since 1910 when it was first produced by “Dr. Lauber, Neher & Cie.” a Swiss company. Its first use in the US was as a wrapper on Life Savers candy in 1913.
Tin foil was also used to fill cavities in teeth before the 20th century.
Aluminum foil began to surpass tin foil after World War II, but it had been available since 1910 when it was first produced by “Dr. Lauber, Neher & Cie.” a Swiss company. Its first use in the US was as a wrapper on Life Savers candy in 1913.
Tin foil was also used to fill cavities in teeth before the 20th century.
Another Food Myth Debunked
Never Use Wooden Cutting
Boards with Meat. This comes from the thought that using a
wooden cutting board will result in tiny scratches and cuts from
your knife, and if you use that cutting board with meat, especially
raw meat, that all those meat juices will settle into the tiny cuts
in the board and cause germs. The solution proposed is to use
plastic cutting boards, which can be dishwashed and sanitized, and
therefore must be safer.
There is much research that disputes this myth. One of the most famous studies was conducted by Dean O. Cliver, Ph.D of the UC-Davis Food Safety Laboratory. His research points out that there is no significant antibacterial benefit from using a plastic cutting board over a wood one. He notes that even if you apply bacteria to a wooden cutting board, its natural properties cause the bacteria to pass through the top layer of the wood and settle inside, where they are very difficult to bring out unless you split the board open.
Although the bacteria that disappeared from the wood surfaces are found alive inside the wood for some time, they do not multiply and gradually die. They can be detected only by splitting or gouging the wood or by forcing water completely through from one surface to the other. If a sharp knife is used to cut into the work surfaces after used plastic or wood has been contaminated with bacteria and cleaned manually, more bacteria are recovered from a used plastic surface than from a used wood surface.
Dr. Cliver's study tested 10 different hardwoods and 4 different plastic polymers. It found, if you want a plastic cutting board, anti-bacterial property is no reason to buy one. If you want a wooden cutting board, bacterial infection should not scare you away.
Bottom line: It is more important that you properly clean and disinfect whatever board you buy, regardless of what it is made of. Cutting boards touted as being coated or made with anti-microbial chemicals or materials are mostly not.
There is much research that disputes this myth. One of the most famous studies was conducted by Dean O. Cliver, Ph.D of the UC-Davis Food Safety Laboratory. His research points out that there is no significant antibacterial benefit from using a plastic cutting board over a wood one. He notes that even if you apply bacteria to a wooden cutting board, its natural properties cause the bacteria to pass through the top layer of the wood and settle inside, where they are very difficult to bring out unless you split the board open.
Although the bacteria that disappeared from the wood surfaces are found alive inside the wood for some time, they do not multiply and gradually die. They can be detected only by splitting or gouging the wood or by forcing water completely through from one surface to the other. If a sharp knife is used to cut into the work surfaces after used plastic or wood has been contaminated with bacteria and cleaned manually, more bacteria are recovered from a used plastic surface than from a used wood surface.
Dr. Cliver's study tested 10 different hardwoods and 4 different plastic polymers. It found, if you want a plastic cutting board, anti-bacterial property is no reason to buy one. If you want a wooden cutting board, bacterial infection should not scare you away.
Bottom line: It is more important that you properly clean and disinfect whatever board you buy, regardless of what it is made of. Cutting boards touted as being coated or made with anti-microbial chemicals or materials are mostly not.
Microsoft Suit
Microsoft threatened to sue a high school
student named Mike Rowe for registering MikeRoweSoft.com. It claimed
that it was copyright infringement because it sounded phonetically
the same as Microsoft. The student was a part-time web designer and
thought it would be funny to add Soft at the end of his name.
When Microsoft found out about the domain, it asked him to give up the domain and offered to give him $10 to cover the registration expenses. He counter offered with $10,000, because he was upset at Microsoft's offer. Microsoft accused him of being a cybersquatter.
The case resulted in a PR loss for Microsoft, as the media portrayed it negatively. In the end, Microsoft flew Mike to its headquarters, gave him training as a developer, and an Xbox in exchange for the domain.
When Microsoft found out about the domain, it asked him to give up the domain and offered to give him $10 to cover the registration expenses. He counter offered with $10,000, because he was upset at Microsoft's offer. Microsoft accused him of being a cybersquatter.
The case resulted in a PR loss for Microsoft, as the media portrayed it negatively. In the end, Microsoft flew Mike to its headquarters, gave him training as a developer, and an Xbox in exchange for the domain.
Wordology Cryptomnesia
The emergence in the mind of
previously learned information that is treated as a new, original
idea is cryptomnesia. A fragment of a song or a line of poetry comes
to you, for instance, that you think you have invented, until
someone else informs you it was Seeger or Lennon. The act of
remembering, without knowing that is what you are doing.
It was first used by the nineteenth-century psychologist Théodore Flournoy, who studied mediums, psychics, and others. The ability to generate vivid recollections of past lives under hypnotic regression is, perhaps facilitated by cryptomnesia. From Greek kryptos, “hidden,” + mnesia, “memory.”
It was first used by the nineteenth-century psychologist Théodore Flournoy, who studied mediums, psychics, and others. The ability to generate vivid recollections of past lives under hypnotic regression is, perhaps facilitated by cryptomnesia. From Greek kryptos, “hidden,” + mnesia, “memory.”
Smile for Your Health
Researchers have found what we always
knew. Smiling is good for you. A smile slows down your heart and
reduces stress. These results follows research that proved the act
of smiling can make you feel happier.
Other studies indicate even a polite smile may be beneficial. Frowning also may have a health effect. Preventing people from frowning, such as with the use of Botox can help alleviate depression, according to another study.
A study published in the journal Psychological Science found that people who smiled after engaging in stress-inducing tasks showed a greater reduction in heart rate than people who maintained a neutral facial expression. "We saw a steeper decline in heart rate and a faster physiological stress recovery when they were smiling, even though the participants were not aware they were making facial expressions," according to Sarah Pressman, co-author of the study and an assistant psychology professor at UC Irvine.
Pressman is currently researching how smiling affects certain stress hormones, such as cortisol, and oxytocin. "We've already seen it with heart rate; we are hoping to see it with these other stress levels in the body," she says.
Other studies indicate even a polite smile may be beneficial. Frowning also may have a health effect. Preventing people from frowning, such as with the use of Botox can help alleviate depression, according to another study.
A study published in the journal Psychological Science found that people who smiled after engaging in stress-inducing tasks showed a greater reduction in heart rate than people who maintained a neutral facial expression. "We saw a steeper decline in heart rate and a faster physiological stress recovery when they were smiling, even though the participants were not aware they were making facial expressions," according to Sarah Pressman, co-author of the study and an assistant psychology professor at UC Irvine.
Pressman is currently researching how smiling affects certain stress hormones, such as cortisol, and oxytocin. "We've already seen it with heart rate; we are hoping to see it with these other stress levels in the body," she says.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)