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What really obvious thing have you only just realised?

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Comments

  • #1292
    leewarden
    Closed Accounts Posts: 131 ✭✭leewarden


    I didn't realise till well into adulthood that you needed a coastline for a beach.
    My mate was from Tipp and when he told me there was no beach there i asked him "You think there are any other counties in Ireland without a beach?

    What a twit!


  • #1293
    kiffer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,097 ✭✭✭kiffer


    leewarden wrote: »
    I didn't realise till well into adulthood that you needed a coastline for a beach.
    My mate was from Tipp and when he told me there was no beach there i asked him "You think there are any other counties in Ireland without a beach?

    What a twit!

    Some lakes have beaches...


  • #1294
    [Deleted User]
    Posts: 32,956 ✭✭✭✭ [Deleted User]


    That 'blushing' is a portmanteau of blood rushing.


  • #1295
    humbert
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,238 ✭✭✭humbert


    Omackeral wrote: »
    That 'blushing' is a portmanteau of blood rushing.
    It would be a stretch to consider that obvious and it doesn't seem to be correct:
    http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blushing
    An understanding of how capillaries in the skin work is a fairly recent thing.


  • #1296
    Allyall
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,381 ✭✭✭✭Allyall


    humbert wrote: »
    It would be a stretch to consider that obvious and it doesn't seem to be correct:
    http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blushing
    An understanding of how capillaries in the skin work is a fairly recent thing.

    Although that doesn't give the etymology, the OP isn't correct anyway. :P
    aflush (adj.) dictionary.gif"blushing," 1880, from a- (1) + flush (v.).blush (v.) dictionary.gifmid-14c., bluschen, blischen, probably from Old English blyscan "blush, become red, glow" (glossing Latin rutilare), akin to blyse "torch," from Proto-Germanic *blisk- "to shine, burn," which also yielded words in Low German (e.g. Dutch blozen "to blush") and Scandinavian (e.g. Danish blusse "to blaze; to blush"); ultimately from PIE *bhel- (1) "to shine, flash, burn" (see bleach (v.)).

    For vowel evolution, see bury. Earliest recorded senses were "to shine brightly; to look, stare." Sense of "turn red in the face" (with shame, modesty, etc.) is from c.1400. Related: Blushed; blushing.


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  • #1297
    Amirani
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 12,563 Mod ✭✭✭✭Amirani


    leewarden wrote: »
    I didn't realise till well into adulthood that you needed a coastline for a beach.
    My mate was from Tipp and when he told me there was no beach there i asked him "You think there are any other counties in Ireland without a beach?

    What a twit!

    Chicago is pretty far away from the US coastline: http://cdn.c.photoshelter.com/img-get/I0000OnMij5EaTuc/s/850/850/Chicago-Beach-Skyline-1.jpg


  • #1298
    humbert
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,238 ✭✭✭humbert


    Allyall wrote: »
    Although that doesn't give the etymology, the OP isn't correct anyway. :P
    The etymology is down at the bottom of the page under "Origin of blush"!


  • #1299
    Richard
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,439 ✭✭✭Richard


    Al Capwned wrote: »
    The punchline to "Why did the chicken cross the road" has a second meaning....

    "The other side" - I did laugh at myself when i realised this a year or so ago - I'm 35.

    I'm 35 too. I had to look it up to find the other meaning but it seems obvious now!.


  • #1300
    MistyCheese
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,006 ✭✭✭MistyCheese


    leewarden wrote: »
    I didn't realise till well into adulthood that you needed a coastline for a beach.
    My mate was from Tipp and when he told me there was no beach there i asked him "You think there are any other counties in Ireland without a beach?

    What a twit!

    Not such a twit at all, lots of countries have man-made beaches which are purpose built, inland beaches. France, Spain, Japan, Mexico and even Austrailia have them.


  • #1301
    Capt'n Midnight
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 95,756 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight


    humbert wrote: »
    It would be a stretch to consider that obvious and it doesn't seem to be correct:
    http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blushing
    An understanding of how capillaries in the skin work is a fairly recent thing.

    webster ?

    Noah Webster is responsible for the inability of Americans to spell correctly. Words are even spelt differently depending on which version of his "dictionary" is used.


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  • #1302
    humbert
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,238 ✭✭✭humbert


    Capt'n Midnight wrote: »
    webster ?

    Noah Webster is responsible for the inability of Americans to spell correctly. Words are even spelt differently depending on which version of his "dictionary" is used.
    Aye, I've encountered his dubious contribution to the language before (can't remember if it was cracked.com or QI) but I've always found the online dictionary to be pretty satisfactory.


  • #1303
    Allyall
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,381 ✭✭✭✭Allyall


    humbert wrote: »
    The etymology is down at the bottom of the page under "Origin of blush"!

    Perfect thread to state i didn't realise that...



    .. until just now.


  • #1304
    Blisterman
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 7,514 ✭✭✭Blisterman


    Speaking of dictionaries, the idea of there being standardised spelling only really took hold in the 19th century. Before that people just spelled things in any phonetic way they wanted. Even names

    For example, In all six surviving signatures of William Shakespeare, he used a different spelling of his own name. None of which was "Shakespeare".


  • #1305
    candy-gal1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,568 ✭✭✭candy-gal1


    Austmcc wrote: »
    and in zoolander, both ben stiller and his dad are in it, but the reporter girl is also his wife!


    And, Ben Stillers sister is in Zoolander too, playing one of hansels hippy type friends behind him in the nightclub scene, Amy Stiller I think!

    Yeah I know too much on that movie! :o:D


  • #1306
    Capt'n Midnight
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 95,756 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight


    Blisterman wrote: »
    Speaking of dictionaries, the idea of there being standardised spelling only really took hold in the 19th century. Before that people just spelled things in any phonetic way they wanted. Even names

    For example, In all six surviving signatures of William Shakespeare, he used a different spelling of his own name. None of which was "Shakespeare".
    There is a difference between that and doing what Webster did which was to go out of his way to spell words differently for his own nefarious purposes. In short he sold a lot of word books


  • #1307
    sbsquarepants
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 11,810 ✭✭✭✭sbsquarepants


    rubadub wrote: »
    they can use less metal to achieve the same functional strength. Have a look at a ring pull, they punch a hole in the thin metal and then form the metal around itself, this forming gives it a lot more strength, if there as no hole (which allows this forming on 2 sides) the metal would have to be thicker. The tab is not formed equally in all places, they want it to bend at certain points and not at others.

    Saving on metal used is also the reason for the chamfer at the top of drinks cans. The top is the thickest part of the can and the chamfer allows it to be smaller - it's saved millions of tons of aluminium since it's introduction. There's a lot of thought goes into the humble drinks can!


  • #1308
    Stone Deaf 4evr
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,000 ✭✭✭Stone Deaf 4evr


    The dimples on the underneath of Jars of Jam etc are so the manufacturer can keep the container looking the same size, but have less actual product inside, thus hiding the price increase.


  • #1309
    Blisterman
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 7,514 ✭✭✭Blisterman


    They did the same thing with Yorkie Bars: The gaps between chunks have become wider over the years.


  • #1310
    StickyIcky
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 899 ✭✭✭StickyIcky


    Blisterman wrote: »
    They did the same thing with Yorkie Bars: The gaps between chunks have become wider over the years.

    Mother ****ers. I did not know this


  • #1311
    Seachmall
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,041 ✭✭✭Seachmall


    StickyIcky wrote: »
    Mother ****ers. I did not know this

    According to Wikipedia we've lost around 15g off of Yorkie bars over the last 10 or so years.

    That's roughly a 20% decrease in size!


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  • #1312
    sunflower27
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,822 ✭✭✭sunflower27


    When I was a kid, I used to watch the MTV channel and there was a cartoon guy called Max Headroom on it. I never thought much of it till many years later I was with a friend driving into a carpark and saw 'Max Headroom: 2 metres'. Until then I had never made the connection :o:o

    Good thing I still don't drive :pac:


  • #1313
    Seachmall
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,041 ✭✭✭Seachmall


    sunflower27 wrote: »
    When I was a kid, I used to watch the MTV channel and there was a cartoon guy called Max Headroom on it. I never thought much of it till many years later I was with a friend driving into a carpark and saw 'Max Headroom: 2 metres'. Until then I had never made the connection :o:o

    Good thing I still don't drive :pac:

    I just realised one of the more popular Anonymous videos from ~2008 was stylizing itself after Max Headroom.

    I always thought it was just poor production, turns out it was a pop culture reference.

    Meh.


  • #1314
    Blisterman
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 7,514 ✭✭✭Blisterman


    It's reMUNeration not reNUMeration, and asteriSK not asteriX.


  • #1315
    kiffer
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,097 ✭✭✭kiffer


    Blisterman wrote: »
    It's reMUNeration not reNUMeration, and asteriSK not asteriX.

    Remuneration and renumeration are both words... remunerate means to pay someone and renumerate means to count again.


  • #1316
    Blisterman
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 7,514 ✭✭✭Blisterman


    Well people (myself included for a long time) tend to use the latter to refer to the former.


  • #1317
    GreeBo
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 27,493 ✭✭✭✭GreeBo


    Blisterman wrote: »
    They did the same thing with Yorkie Bars: The gaps between chunks have become wider over the years.

    They actually have less squares now.
    they used to spell out Y_O_R_K_I_E with one letter on each chunk, now its yorkie on each one as they lopped off a few.


  • #1318
    kylith
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 17,744 ✭✭✭✭kylith


    Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »
    The dimples on the underneath of Jars of Jam etc are so the manufacturer can keep the container looking the same size, but have less actual product inside, thus hiding the price increase.
    I bought a thing of cheese spread a while ago and the base was fully half way up the tub. Bastards.
    Blisterman wrote: »
    It's reMUNeration not reNUMeration, and asteriSK not asteriX.

    Also eTCetera, not eKCetera.


  • #1319
    Festy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,425 ✭✭✭Festy


    Not really obvious,but anyway.

    Q Lazzarus who sings that famous song Goodbye Horses is actually a woman....


  • #1320
    Mr.Prodston
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 16,305 ✭✭✭✭Mr.Prodston


    Not particularly obvious, but watching Graham Norton finding out that Hayden Panettiere and the boxer Wladimir Klitchsko are going out :eek:

    I'm not even sure how that would even work :pac:


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  • #1321
    wil
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,188 ✭✭✭wil


    sunflower27 wrote: »
    When I was a kid, I used to watch the MTV channel and there was a cartoon guy called Max Headroom on it. I never thought much of it till many years later I was with a friend driving into a carpark and saw 'Max Headroom: 2 metres'. Until then I had never made the connection :o:o

    Good thing I still don't drive :pac:
    And the same actor played the neighbour in Honey I Shrunk the Kids.
    I think cartoon Max came about when the reporter using Max as an psuedonym, dies being chased by baddies after crashing in to a Max Headroom sign on motorbike, and his whizkid friend virtualises his personality into the smartmouth VJ Max. Original movie was a bit of a cult classic.
    Also just realised Hayden Pannaterie played live-in neighbour/childminder in Malcolm in the middle


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