On Night Court, Nostradamus
Shannon was better known as Bull.
2. On Entourage, Turtle’s real name is Salvatore Assante.
3. Sesame Street‘s resident game show host Guy Smiley was using a
pseudonym all these years. He was born Bernie Liederkrantz.
4. The Michelin Man’s name is Bibendum.
5. Jonas Grumby was called The Skipper on Gilligan's Island.
6. The Professor on Gilligan's Island was Roy Hinkley.
7. The Shaggy of Scooby-Doo is Norville Rogers.
8. The Pillsbury Doughboy’s name is Poppin’ Fresh. He has a wife,
Poppie Fresh, and two kids, Popper and Bun Bun.
9. The patient in the classic game Operation is Cavity Sam.
10. The true identity of The Lone Ranger was John Reid. He was also
the uncle of the Green Hornet. Both radio series originated on
Detroit radio.
May 25, 2012
May 24, 2012
Clean Up With The Boss
William Henry 'Boss' Hoover didn't
even invent the vacuum cleaner, yet his name has become a verb and a
noun, especially in England, where they hoover the floors with a
Hoover.
James Murray Spangler invented the first upright vacuum in 1908 because his asthma was exacerbated by the dust the carpet sweeper used at his work stirred up. He was making one every 2-3 weeks when he loaned a model to his cousin Susan Hoover.
Her husband was looking for a new business venture since he was a leather worker and the popularity of the car was reducing people’s need for his goods. He seized the opportunity and bought Spangler’s patent from him. Absolutely no one was interested in his weird sucking machine. He decided to put an ad in a popular magazine for possibly the first ever 'free at home trial'. The gimmick worked and within four years the Hoover Company was an international brand.
James Murray Spangler invented the first upright vacuum in 1908 because his asthma was exacerbated by the dust the carpet sweeper used at his work stirred up. He was making one every 2-3 weeks when he loaned a model to his cousin Susan Hoover.
Her husband was looking for a new business venture since he was a leather worker and the popularity of the car was reducing people’s need for his goods. He seized the opportunity and bought Spangler’s patent from him. Absolutely no one was interested in his weird sucking machine. He decided to put an ad in a popular magazine for possibly the first ever 'free at home trial'. The gimmick worked and within four years the Hoover Company was an international brand.
Walnuts and Other Handy Home Tips
My brother, a carpenter,
among other skills, says to rub a walnut over a wood scratch to hide
the scratch.
Six Uses for Butter
Butter isn't just good for topping toast and popcorn. There are plenty of other things it is useful for, such as:
Swallowing pills: Coat the pills with a thin layer of butter to make them go down easier, especially bigger pills and ones that have no coating.
De-stress cats: If you're moving or throwing a party, your cat can get a bit stressed by the sudden change in the environment. Put a little dab of butter on the top of her paws. She'll be distracted by cleaning herself.
Prevent cheese mold: Put a thin coat of butter on the cheese after you cut it so it won't get too hard or start molding, especially harder cheeses.
Preserve onions: If you cut an onion in half and decide to leave the other half in the fridge, coat the exposed side with a bit of butter to keep it fresh longer.
Swallowing pills: Coat the pills with a thin layer of butter to make them go down easier, especially bigger pills and ones that have no coating.
De-stress cats: If you're moving or throwing a party, your cat can get a bit stressed by the sudden change in the environment. Put a little dab of butter on the top of her paws. She'll be distracted by cleaning herself.
Prevent cheese mold: Put a thin coat of butter on the cheese after you cut it so it won't get too hard or start molding, especially harder cheeses.
Preserve onions: If you cut an onion in half and decide to leave the other half in the fridge, coat the exposed side with a bit of butter to keep it fresh longer.
Duffel Bags
Duffel bag now stands for a particular style of
bag. They were originally named for the thick Duffel cloth they were
made out of, which was produced in the town of Duffel, Belgium.
Duffel coats are named for the same cloth.
Five Weaponology Facts
The Chinese invented
gunpowder, but they were not the first to develop firearms.
Sam Colt invented the revolving pistol, therefore, all revolvers are correctly called pistols.
Revolvers cannot be silenced, due to all the noisy gasses which escape the cylinder gap at the rear of the barrel.
A 12 gauge rifled slug does not spin, even though there are grooves on its bearing surface. A slug actually travels like a dart.
A bullet fired from the 7.62 x 51mm NATO cartridge (also called the .308 Winchester) is still supersonic at 1000 yards.
Sam Colt invented the revolving pistol, therefore, all revolvers are correctly called pistols.
Revolvers cannot be silenced, due to all the noisy gasses which escape the cylinder gap at the rear of the barrel.
A 12 gauge rifled slug does not spin, even though there are grooves on its bearing surface. A slug actually travels like a dart.
A bullet fired from the 7.62 x 51mm NATO cartridge (also called the .308 Winchester) is still supersonic at 1000 yards.
May 18, 2012
Happy Friday
Words are strong, brevity stronger, silence strongest.
No words needed to have a Happy Friday!
No words needed to have a Happy Friday!
Glass is the New Plastic
For the techno geeks, here is an
interesting site that discusses technological uses of glass, like
curved glass, smart glass, wearable glass, Gorilla glass and more.
Too much to summarize here. link
Leprosy
Contrary to popular belief, leprosy does not cause
rotting flesh or the loss of limbs. It is actually a disease (now
called Hansen’s disease, named after Gerhard Hansen a Norwegian
physician who discovered the leprosy bacteria that damages nerve
endings and effects the skin. Because of the numbness caused by
leprosy, a sufferer can be unaware of harming himself accidentally.
It is this accidental harm that can lead to infections and,
consequently, the loss of limbs.
Leprosy has been treatable since the 1930s, but to this day there remain leper colonies in some nations such as India, Japan, and China.
Armadillos also carry leprosy and can transmit it to humans. Ninety five percent of humans are naturally immune to the disease, and the remaining five percent can be easily and successfully cured of it.
Leprosy has been treatable since the 1930s, but to this day there remain leper colonies in some nations such as India, Japan, and China.
Armadillos also carry leprosy and can transmit it to humans. Ninety five percent of humans are naturally immune to the disease, and the remaining five percent can be easily and successfully cured of it.
Wilhelm Scream Again
A while back I had a Friday Thought
about the Wilhelm Scream from movies. I just found out it was the
voice work of Sheb Wooley, a man more famous for his novelty song
‘Purple People Eater’. Shelby Wooley passed away in 2003. He played
Ben Miller, brother of Frank Miller in the film High Noon, played
Travis Cobb in The Outlaw Josey Wales, and also had a co-starring
role as scout Pete Nolan in the television program Rawhide.
The Cool Botijo
The botijo generally has a wide, spherical
belly with two openings on top -- a wide opening to pour water in
the jug and a smaller drinking spout -- as well as one or two
handles to carry it. Traditionally, people drink the water directly
from the botijo by holding it up and tilting it so that the water
pours from the drinking spout.
Botijo-etiquette demands that the lips do not touch the drinking spout, as the water container is usually shared among several people. The large opening is covered with a cork or a cloth after filling the jug, in order to keep insects out. Botijos come in different sizes, but on average it contains about 3 liters of water, with larger ones holding up to 7 liters, enough to supply a small group of people with drinking water for a full day.
After the botijo is filled with water, it is preferably placed outside in the shade, although it also works when placed in the sun or indoors. The technology is based on evaporative cooling, the same process that keeps the human body cool by sweating. Because the ceramic jug is not completely water-tight, a small amount of the stored water filters through the pores of the clay and evaporates once it comes in contact with the outside, dry environment. Evaporation (the transition from liquid to gas) requires thermal energy, which is partly extracted from the water inside the jug, cooling it down. One 1995 study showed that, under optimal conditions, a cooling of up to 15 degrees Celsius can be obtained.
Glazed botijos often sold as tourist souvenirs do not cool water as it cannot evaporate through the glaze.
The botijo is a mobile refrigeration device, for which there exists no modern counterpart. Plastic, glass or metal bottles, which have no pores are unable to 'sweat'.
Botijo-etiquette demands that the lips do not touch the drinking spout, as the water container is usually shared among several people. The large opening is covered with a cork or a cloth after filling the jug, in order to keep insects out. Botijos come in different sizes, but on average it contains about 3 liters of water, with larger ones holding up to 7 liters, enough to supply a small group of people with drinking water for a full day.
After the botijo is filled with water, it is preferably placed outside in the shade, although it also works when placed in the sun or indoors. The technology is based on evaporative cooling, the same process that keeps the human body cool by sweating. Because the ceramic jug is not completely water-tight, a small amount of the stored water filters through the pores of the clay and evaporates once it comes in contact with the outside, dry environment. Evaporation (the transition from liquid to gas) requires thermal energy, which is partly extracted from the water inside the jug, cooling it down. One 1995 study showed that, under optimal conditions, a cooling of up to 15 degrees Celsius can be obtained.
Glazed botijos often sold as tourist souvenirs do not cool water as it cannot evaporate through the glaze.
The botijo is a mobile refrigeration device, for which there exists no modern counterpart. Plastic, glass or metal bottles, which have no pores are unable to 'sweat'.
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