I bet you didnt know that

jimgoose

Squall Leonhart wrote: »

I'm not sure if it was called Night Shift or not, but I definitely read a Stephen King story about huge rats in an old factory. I can corroborate that much for Cartouche

That one is called Graveyard Shift, written in 1970.

cgrvy

Isambard Kingdom Brunel's iron sailing ship the SS Great Eastern was by far the biggest ship ever built at the time of her launch - 1858. It took until 1899 before a bigger ship was built.

When it was dismantled in Liverpool in about 1889, Everton football club were looking for a flagpole for their Anfield ground, they purchased the top mast and it is still standing at the Kop end of Anfield today. Although Everton are no longer the owners of that ground.

Mr. FoggPatches

Buford T. Justice V wrote: »

Badum tish!

It's always nice when someone gets it.

Buford T. Justice XIX

Mr. FoggPatches wrote: »

It's always nice when someone gets it.

It was very subtle. I was wondering if it was intentional or not myself;)

theoneeyedman

Every Catholic diocese in Ireland touches the sea. This helps explain how for instance co. Leitrim has a really short coastline, giving access to the sea to the diocese of Armagh & Clonmacnoise whose Bishop is based in Longford.

con___manx1

The only mammal that lays eggs and has a posionous sting is a platypus.

IvyTheTerrible

Actually the playtpus is venomous, not poisonous.
Poisonous means the toxin is ingested, inhaled or delivered via touch, while venomous mean the toxin is injected into a wound.

Peregrinus

con___manx1 wrote: »

The only mammal that lays eggs and has a posionous sting is a platypus.

Echidnas lay eggs and have a sting, but it's not venomous.

Wibbs

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

Actually the playtpus is venomous, not poisonous.

Apparently platypus envenomation though not fatal to people causes one of the most excruciating pains going(and can become chronic) and even opiates do little to reduce it. Only males possess the venom. Which makes the purpose less clear as if it was for protection from predation one would expect females to have it too.

Kat1170

Peregrinus wrote: »

Echidnas lay eggs and have a sting, but it's not venomous.

Ah, but are they poisonous though ;)

IvyTheTerrible

Translators only translate from the written word: it is interpretors who translate orally.

foxy farmer

You can tell the difference between boiling water and colder water by the sound of it being poured into a container.

Duffy the Vampire Slayer

The Korean alphabet (Hangul) was invented in the fifteenth century by a group of scholars on the order of the king as he felt Chinese characters were impractical. It's now the only language that goes both left to right and top to bottom. The alphabet is extremely phonetic and easy to learn and Korean are so proud of it they celebrate 'Hangul Day' every year.

Cartouche

Payara is also known as the ‘vampire fish’ and are even more dangerous and vicious predators than the Piranhas. It may grow up to four feet and are absolutely capable of preying fishes nearly of their own size. Apart from having sharp teeth and two front outer tusks, Payara is the only fish that is capable of devouring Piranhas, which marks their deadliness higher than Piranhas.

Capt'n Midnight

Duffy the Vampire Slayer wrote: »

The Korean alphabet (Hangul) was invented in the fifteenth century by a group of scholars on the order of the king

Sequoyah was an illiterate Cherokee.

He taught himself to read and write the hard way, by devising a new writing system. :cool:

Cartouche

Within three days of death, the enzymes that once digested your dinner...... begin to eat you

New Home

I've always wondered what the difference between meteor and meteorite was - perhaps I should post this in the 'Obvious things you just realised' thread.

osarusan

Lothar von Arnauld de la Perière was a German U-boat commander in WW1 who holds the record for most ships (194) and Gross Tonnage (453,716) sunk.

He spent almost all of WW1 commanding U-35, with which he sank 189 ships in 14 voyages. In the period of July/August 1916, his sinking of 54 ships and 91,000 gross tonnes represented about two thirds of the entire tonnage sunk in the war during that period.

He didn't just sink the ships with torpedos either - when possible* he preferred to surface, force the ship to surrender, even directing the escaping crew and lifeboats to the nearest port, and then sink the ship. That may sound hard to believe, but it's shown by the fact that in his career, he fired only 74 torpedos (preferring to use dynamite or his deck gun to sink the ships after evacuating).

*not always possible obviously, he used a torpedo to sink the massive troop carrier SS Gallia, with the loss of between 600-1800 French soldiers.

Cartouche

1936 Berlin olympics, Jesse Owens won four gold medals for the US
When he returned to the US there was a ticker tape parade for athlethes in New York
He should have been given a hero’s welcome wherever he went, but instead, his moment of glory was short-lived.

For when Jesse and wife Minnie tried to get into the upmarket hotel for his own celebration, he was told that he could not use through the front-door – because of the colour of his skin.

It has always been popular belief that Hitler snubbed Owens because he was black. However the worst snubs came from his own countrymen

Owens said later in life
“Hitler didn’t snub me, it was FDR who snubbed me. The President didn’t even send me a telegram.”

Rubberlegs

Mike the Headless Chicken or Miracle Mike was a chicken that survived for 18 months after having it's head chopped off. He was born in Fruita,Colorado, America in 1945, somehow survived beheading, and was then fed by his owner using a dropper down his neck. He gained fame touring sideshows, but eventually choked on tour. Fruita hosts a Mike the Headless Chicken Day every year so the legacy lives on

RiderOnTheStorm

The only survivor on the US side of the Battle of the Little Bighorn (1876) was the horse Comanche, who belonged to Captain Myles Keogh. Cpt Keogh was born in Leighlinbridge, Co Carlow.

Comanche recovered from his considerable wounds and led a life of some fame. Including being interviewed by newspapers and being made second Commanding Officer of 7th cavalry.

Comanche died in 1891. He is one of only two horses in United States history to be given a military funeral with full military honours.

Miss Demeanour

There are more than 1000 species of banana yet we only eat one of them.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Miss Demeanour wrote: »

There are more than 1000 species of banana yet we only eat one of them.

Not so. The most widely cultivated for food are Musa acuminata, Musa balbisiana, and Musa × paradisiacal. Then there are the dozens of species grown for plantain crops. There are dessert bananas and cooking banana.

Oh and Bananas are technically a berries.

Miss Demeanour

Anders Shy Aircraft wrote: »

Not so. The most widely cultivated for food are Musa acuminata, Musa balbisiana, and Musa × paradisiacal. Then there are the dozens of species grown for plantain crops. There are dessert bananas and cooking banana.

Oh and Bananas are technically a berries.

Well alrighty then
I stand corrected and I'll change that to I only eat one type.

New Home

Isn't the Cavendish the most widespread, though, among the 'normal' bananas we see in the shops? (excluding plantains and the mini ones, for instance)

IvyTheTerrible

New Home wrote: »

Isn't the Cavendish the most widespread, though, among the 'normal' bananas we see in the shops? (excluding plantains and the mini ones, for instance)

Us in mostly white Western Europe, yes. Everywhere else, people eat more plantains etc, Apparently.

Malari

There is a town in Arizona where people who believe they have 'environmental illness' as a result of various symptoms that clinicians have been unable to diagnose as anything specific - headaches, dizziness, fatigue, muscle discomfort, etc. - have congregated and live in an isolated community, where they have built modified homes and shun socialising with people who use pesticides, laundry products, fragrances and electronic or wireless devices.

The name of this town? Snowflake. :pac:

New Home

So much water is being re-routed from the Colorado river for human consumption in its various forms, that during some summers the river doesn't even reach the sea any more.

cabledude

Miss Demeanour wrote: »

Well alrighty then
I stand corrected and I'll change that to I only eat one type.

I eat 3 types - Fyffes, Smiths and Del Monte.

RiderOnTheStorm

Today is EU 112 Day. The emergency phone number 112 is now recognised in all EU countries.

FYI, ringing 112 from a mobile phone will work if you have no credit, and even works in phones with no sim. If the phone has no coverage, ringing 112 will try all networks until it gets coverage. It can even tap into the reserve charge in the battery, so its always worth trying if you have an emergency.

Also, if its a non-smartphone and its pin locked, pressing 112 will unlock it and dial.

Cool, eh?