The commonly held notion that they
were invented in China typically comes from the fact that they are
primarily served in American Chinese restaurants. However, you will
not find fortune cookies in actual Chinese restaurants, nor will you
find historical records of a similar food item in China.
The largest manufacturer of fortune cookies, Wonton Food, based in
New York, even once tried to introduce fortune cookies to the
Chinese in the late 1980s. After three years, they gave up, as they
simply were not a popular food item in China.
The people often credited with inventing fortune cookies were
Japanese immigrants to America. Fortune cookies were actually
invented in Japan.
A researcher, Yasuko Nakamachi, encountered a fortune cookie-shaped
cracker, called a Tsujiura Senbei, made by hand in a family bakery
near a Shinto shrine outside of Kyoto, Japan. This cracker, not only
looked like a fortune cookie, it also contained a fortune, called an
“omikuji” (fortune slip), and was traditionally sold in shrines and
temples.
Around 3 billion fortune cookies are consumed annually world-wide,
with most consumed in the United States. Wonton Food produces around
4.5 million fortune cookies per day.
As an aside, Chop Suey, which translates to “break into many
pieces,” is commonly believed to be a Chinese food invented in
America. Not so. It was invented in Taishan, a district of Guangdong
Province, China.
Oct 25, 2012
Halloween Facts
Here are some interesting tidbits about the holiday.
In parts of Mexico, rather than saying the Spanish equivalent of “trick or treat”, “dulce o travesura” (literally “candy or mischief”), it is common to say ¿Me da mi calaverita? (“Can you give me my little skull?”)
During Samuin, it was also traditional to leave a place and food at the table for deceased loved ones temporarily returned from the grave.
The word Halloween originally came from the Middle English ‘Alholowmesse’, meaning “All Saints’ Day”. The night before Alholowmesse was called “All Hallows Even (evening)” which was eventually shortened to “Hallowe’en” until it just became “Halloween” in the 20th century.
In North America about $3 billion is spent on Halloween costumes.
Haunted house attractions bring in about half a billion dollars annually.
Halloween candy sales average around $2 billion per year in the United States. Chocolate candy bars are consistently rated as the #1 treat to get, with the Snickers candy bar being most preferred. In addition, Reese’s peanut butter cups and candy corn are among the most sold Halloween candy items.
Over 35 million Halloween cards, worth $100 million are given every year.
Halloween is the second most commercially successful holiday world-wide after Christmas.
Recently “Trunk or Treat,” where many people will gather in a parking lot with their trunks open and the children will walk from car to car to get their treats from the trunks. This is purported to be a safer way to do trick or treating than having kids go door to door.
In parts of Mexico, rather than saying the Spanish equivalent of “trick or treat”, “dulce o travesura” (literally “candy or mischief”), it is common to say ¿Me da mi calaverita? (“Can you give me my little skull?”)
During Samuin, it was also traditional to leave a place and food at the table for deceased loved ones temporarily returned from the grave.
The word Halloween originally came from the Middle English ‘Alholowmesse’, meaning “All Saints’ Day”. The night before Alholowmesse was called “All Hallows Even (evening)” which was eventually shortened to “Hallowe’en” until it just became “Halloween” in the 20th century.
In North America about $3 billion is spent on Halloween costumes.
Haunted house attractions bring in about half a billion dollars annually.
Halloween candy sales average around $2 billion per year in the United States. Chocolate candy bars are consistently rated as the #1 treat to get, with the Snickers candy bar being most preferred. In addition, Reese’s peanut butter cups and candy corn are among the most sold Halloween candy items.
Over 35 million Halloween cards, worth $100 million are given every year.
Halloween is the second most commercially successful holiday world-wide after Christmas.
Recently “Trunk or Treat,” where many people will gather in a parking lot with their trunks open and the children will walk from car to car to get their treats from the trunks. This is purported to be a safer way to do trick or treating than having kids go door to door.
Oct 19, 2012
Happy Friday
The place to improve the world is first in one's own heart, head,
and hands, and then work outward from there.
It is the same for having a Happy Friday!
It is the same for having a Happy Friday!
Velcro Myth
Some say that Velcro was invented by NASA for
the space program. Not true, Velcro was already commercially
available before being used by NASA. It did receive a huge boost in
popularity after being used by NASA on parts of astronaut’s space
suits as well as used to allow astronaut’s to store things along the
walls of their space craft. Because of this, similar to Tang, it is
a common misconception that Velcro was invented by or for NASA.
World Championship of Punkin' Chunkin
This year it runs
from Nov. 2-4, 2012. The World Championships of Punkin' Chunkin in
Bridgeville, Del., brings together some of the most determined,
ingenious, and crazy hobbyists, who arrive with various contraptions
engineered to launch pumpkins thousands of feet.
The competition started in 1986, and last year drew more than 200,000 people. The winning "chunk" in the Adult Air category flew 4,329 feet.
If you can't get there in person, they always have the finals on TV and it is fun and very entertaining.
The competition started in 1986, and last year drew more than 200,000 people. The winning "chunk" in the Adult Air category flew 4,329 feet.
If you can't get there in person, they always have the finals on TV and it is fun and very entertaining.
Poinsettia Poison
Myths and rumors about the toxicity of
the poinsettia plant are common late in the year, when the popular
red-leaved plants take center stage in holiday decorations. While
the genus (Euphorbia) to which the poinsettia plant belongs does
contain some highly toxic plants, the popular poinsettia itself is
not toxic. Some sources attribute the rumor about the dangers of
poinsettia leaves to a case of poisoning in 1919 that led to the
death of a two year-old child. At the time, the cause of the
poisoning was incorrectly determined to be a poinsettia leaf.
Contact with the sap of a poinsettia plant may cause a mild, itchy rash. If this happens, wash the affected area with soap and water and apply a cool compress to ease itching. Eating the leaves or stems of a poinsettia plant may cause a mild stomachache, vomiting or diarrhea, but severe signs and symptoms are unlikely.
A 50 pound child would need to eat about 500-600 leaves or about 20 ounces of the bitter tasting leaves of a poinsettia plant before any medical action would be necessary.
Contact with the sap of a poinsettia plant may cause a mild, itchy rash. If this happens, wash the affected area with soap and water and apply a cool compress to ease itching. Eating the leaves or stems of a poinsettia plant may cause a mild stomachache, vomiting or diarrhea, but severe signs and symptoms are unlikely.
A 50 pound child would need to eat about 500-600 leaves or about 20 ounces of the bitter tasting leaves of a poinsettia plant before any medical action would be necessary.
Lighting Pumpkins Tip
This year for Halloween, get a few
glow sticks to light your pumpkins. They are safer than candles and
last most of the night. You can find them for a dollar at the Dollar
store. They also come in fun colors.
Pleased as Punch
This phrase came from an English
puppet show, Punch and Judy that goes all the way back to the 1600s.
No two performances of the show were totally alike, but they all
usually involved the same events:
1. Punch kills his infant child
2. Punch punches Judy until she dies
3. Punch goes to prison and escapes using a golden key
4. He then kills doctors, lawyers, and a hangman
5. He kills Death, as in the Grim Reaper
6. Then it all ends spectacularly as he kills the Devil.
1. Punch kills his infant child
2. Punch punches Judy until she dies
3. Punch goes to prison and escapes using a golden key
4. He then kills doctors, lawyers, and a hangman
5. He kills Death, as in the Grim Reaper
6. Then it all ends spectacularly as he kills the Devil.
Apple Tracking
No, not a way to look for apples. It is a
way Apple is tracking your iPhone. The new operating system that
came out a few weeks ago has a feature that is turned on by default.
IFA or IDFA stands for "identifier for advertisers." It is a random,
anonymous number that is assigned to you and your iPhone.
The good news is that you can turn it off so advertisers cannot track your every move.
First, what it does. When you look at an app, or browse the web, your presence generates a call for an ad. The site you are looking at passes the IFA to the ad server so an advertiser knows a specific iPhone user is looking at a specific publication and can direct a specific ad to you.
To disable this, go to "Settings," "General," then "About," and then "Advertising." The tracking control is titled "Limit Ad Tracking," and must be turned to On. On means 'limit tracking' so tracking is not working. Interesting, you have to turn it on to turn tracking off.
The good news is that you can turn it off so advertisers cannot track your every move.
First, what it does. When you look at an app, or browse the web, your presence generates a call for an ad. The site you are looking at passes the IFA to the ad server so an advertiser knows a specific iPhone user is looking at a specific publication and can direct a specific ad to you.
To disable this, go to "Settings," "General," then "About," and then "Advertising." The tracking control is titled "Limit Ad Tracking," and must be turned to On. On means 'limit tracking' so tracking is not working. Interesting, you have to turn it on to turn tracking off.
State Rocks
Many people do not know there are many states
that have a state rock. Here are states that do.
Serpentine California
Geode Iowa
Bauxite Arkansas
Slate Vermont
Thunder egg Oregon
Red granite Wisconsin
Agate Kentucky, Nebraska
Limestone Tennessee
Petoskey stone Michigan
Cumberlandite Rhode Island
Barite rose Oklahoma
Mozarkite Missouri
Roxbury puddingstone, Massachusetts
Marble Alabama, Colorado, Vermont
Coal Utah, West Virginia
Sandstone Nevada
Granite New Hampshire, North Carolina, Vermont
Serpentine California
Geode Iowa
Bauxite Arkansas
Slate Vermont
Thunder egg Oregon
Red granite Wisconsin
Agate Kentucky, Nebraska
Limestone Tennessee
Petoskey stone Michigan
Cumberlandite Rhode Island
Barite rose Oklahoma
Mozarkite Missouri
Roxbury puddingstone, Massachusetts
Marble Alabama, Colorado, Vermont
Coal Utah, West Virginia
Sandstone Nevada
Granite New Hampshire, North Carolina, Vermont
Robot Pole Dancer
This struck me funny and had to
share. It is a pole dancing robot shown at the Tobit Software booth
prior to the opening of the CeBIT IT fair in Hanover, Germany, on
March 5, 2012. It should destroy the myth that nerds do not have a
sense of humor.
You can find this and many more robots for work and play at LINK.
You can find this and many more robots for work and play at LINK.
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