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Message
Random Knowledge/Interesting Facts
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:15 pm
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:15 pm
Drop some random knowledge on a topic you find interesting, that maybe a lot of people don't know about.
Examples:
Plague Doctors and Miasma Theory
“What the hell is that thing?” you may be asking. Good question. It’s a person wearing a freakish cloak and mask. It’s also a plague doctor - more specifically, the bubonic plague, or Black Death, doctor.
The first cases of the plague were discovered in the 14th century, and it is considered the most devastating pandemic in the history of mankind. At the time, there was no understanding of germs, as the germ theory of disease had not yet been proposed. The commonly held belief was the miasma theory of disease. This theory held that diseases were caused by a miasma, a noxious form of "bad air", also known as night air. Simply put, people believed that bad odors were the cause of sickness and disease.
Enter: the plague doctor. Plague doctors were hired by local villages to care for those infected by the terrible disease. Their costume was an attempt to prevent their being infected as well. This consisted of a bird-like mask with spectacles, and a long leather or waxed-canvas gown which was from the neck to the ankle. The mask, which featured a “beak” measuring a half-foot to 1-foot in length, had two small nose holes and was a type of respirator which contained aromatic items such as mint leaves, rose petals, camphor, cloves and straw. The idea was that if the doctors could keep out the bad smells, they could prevent the spread of the disease.
The costume also included a wide-brimmed leather hat to indicate their profession. They used wooden canes to point out areas needing attention and to examine patients without touching them. The canes were also used to keep people away, to remove clothing from plague victims without having to touch them, and to take a patient's pulse.
The US half cent
As worthless as a penny is now, imagine your cupholders and center console being filled with half-pennies. The half cent is the smallest denomination of United States coin ever minted. It was first minted in 1793 and last minted in 1857. At the time it was first minted, many Americans made about a dollar a day, and might have been able to purchase a pound of potatoes for 1.5 cents. But as prices went up, the half-cent was quickly proven to be useless. It was retired, and most of the coins were scrapped for their copper.
There have been some discussions recently about doing away with the penny because of its relatively low value. When you look at the measurement of buying power, or the equivalent of what the coin is worth to today's consumer, their might be a strong case for going penniless. According to the Consumer Price Index, the 1857 half-cent was the equivalent of around 10 cents today.
WW1 Body Armor
The Brewster Body Shield or Brewster Body Armor was the first effective body armor developed for the United States Army in World War I. The armor was effective, able to withstand direct fire from large caliber rifles, but it was heavy, weighing nearly 40 pounds. Its problems occurred due to maneuverability being massively reduced and the small issue of the helmet not turning. This led to incredibly poor visibility for the soldier on the inside. The armor wasn't fully developed until the war was nearly over so it saw only limited action.
Vexillology & Flag Similarities
Vexillology is the scientific study of the history, symbolism and usage of flags or, by extension, any interest in flags in general. Your boy Pecker happens to be something of a flag aficionado. Feel free to test yourself at Flags geography quizzes. If one isn't particularly interested in vexillology, it may be difficult to distinguish between the flags of these countries, as not every country has a flag as unique as the United States:
Romania
Chad
Poland
Monaco
Haiti
Lichtenstein
Ireland
Ivory Coast
The Terror Bird
The Phorusrhacids, or Terror Birds, are an extinct clade of large carnivorous flightless birds that were the largest species of apex predators in South America during the Cenozoic era (~1.8 million years ago). These flightless freaks of nature could reach nearly 10 feet tall and used their large beaks to crush their prey. The terror bird head is the largest known bird skull. It’s about two-and-a-half feet long, an enormous, colossal beast with a very big hook at the end of the beak like an eagle. It's estimated that these birds could run at around 30 mph while chasing down smaller mammals.
Examples:
Plague Doctors and Miasma Theory
“What the hell is that thing?” you may be asking. Good question. It’s a person wearing a freakish cloak and mask. It’s also a plague doctor - more specifically, the bubonic plague, or Black Death, doctor.
The first cases of the plague were discovered in the 14th century, and it is considered the most devastating pandemic in the history of mankind. At the time, there was no understanding of germs, as the germ theory of disease had not yet been proposed. The commonly held belief was the miasma theory of disease. This theory held that diseases were caused by a miasma, a noxious form of "bad air", also known as night air. Simply put, people believed that bad odors were the cause of sickness and disease.
Enter: the plague doctor. Plague doctors were hired by local villages to care for those infected by the terrible disease. Their costume was an attempt to prevent their being infected as well. This consisted of a bird-like mask with spectacles, and a long leather or waxed-canvas gown which was from the neck to the ankle. The mask, which featured a “beak” measuring a half-foot to 1-foot in length, had two small nose holes and was a type of respirator which contained aromatic items such as mint leaves, rose petals, camphor, cloves and straw. The idea was that if the doctors could keep out the bad smells, they could prevent the spread of the disease.
The costume also included a wide-brimmed leather hat to indicate their profession. They used wooden canes to point out areas needing attention and to examine patients without touching them. The canes were also used to keep people away, to remove clothing from plague victims without having to touch them, and to take a patient's pulse.
The US half cent
As worthless as a penny is now, imagine your cupholders and center console being filled with half-pennies. The half cent is the smallest denomination of United States coin ever minted. It was first minted in 1793 and last minted in 1857. At the time it was first minted, many Americans made about a dollar a day, and might have been able to purchase a pound of potatoes for 1.5 cents. But as prices went up, the half-cent was quickly proven to be useless. It was retired, and most of the coins were scrapped for their copper.
There have been some discussions recently about doing away with the penny because of its relatively low value. When you look at the measurement of buying power, or the equivalent of what the coin is worth to today's consumer, their might be a strong case for going penniless. According to the Consumer Price Index, the 1857 half-cent was the equivalent of around 10 cents today.
WW1 Body Armor
The Brewster Body Shield or Brewster Body Armor was the first effective body armor developed for the United States Army in World War I. The armor was effective, able to withstand direct fire from large caliber rifles, but it was heavy, weighing nearly 40 pounds. Its problems occurred due to maneuverability being massively reduced and the small issue of the helmet not turning. This led to incredibly poor visibility for the soldier on the inside. The armor wasn't fully developed until the war was nearly over so it saw only limited action.
Vexillology & Flag Similarities
Vexillology is the scientific study of the history, symbolism and usage of flags or, by extension, any interest in flags in general. Your boy Pecker happens to be something of a flag aficionado. Feel free to test yourself at Flags geography quizzes. If one isn't particularly interested in vexillology, it may be difficult to distinguish between the flags of these countries, as not every country has a flag as unique as the United States:
Romania
Chad
Poland
Monaco
Haiti
Lichtenstein
Ireland
Ivory Coast
The Terror Bird
The Phorusrhacids, or Terror Birds, are an extinct clade of large carnivorous flightless birds that were the largest species of apex predators in South America during the Cenozoic era (~1.8 million years ago). These flightless freaks of nature could reach nearly 10 feet tall and used their large beaks to crush their prey. The terror bird head is the largest known bird skull. It’s about two-and-a-half feet long, an enormous, colossal beast with a very big hook at the end of the beak like an eagle. It's estimated that these birds could run at around 30 mph while chasing down smaller mammals.
This post was edited on 7/24/17 at 3:27 pm
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:20 pm to Pecker
Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:21 pm to TheArrogantCorndog
quote:
Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina
A lot of people disagree now a days
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:22 pm to Pecker
Pringles now has a Ramen flavored chip. Saw it today and had to grab a can to try it out. So good, I destroyed the can before I made it home. Will buy more in the future
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:22 pm to SwampKitty
quote:
A lot of people disagree now a days
That's why I posted it... gotta set the record straight
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:24 pm to Pecker
If I had worried about half pennies stockpiled in my vehicles cupholder or center console in 1857, I would be 2 things.
1. A time traveller.
2. Supremely wealthy.
Giraffes have the highest blood pressure.
1. A time traveller.
2. Supremely wealthy.
Giraffes have the highest blood pressure.
This post was edited on 7/24/17 at 3:25 pm
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:26 pm to Pecker
There's more ferral camels in Australia than the middle East.
Reno, NV is farther west than LA and San Diego.
Reno, NV is farther west than LA and San Diego.
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:27 pm to Mingo Was His NameO
quote:
There's more ferral camels in Australia than the middle East.
The Australian ferral camel is awesome and borderline unkillable
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:29 pm to Collegedropout
Wade Boggs once drank 64 beers on a cross country flight from NY to LA.
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:31 pm to Pecker
Bananas are curved because they grow towards the sun.
Kangaroos can't hop if you hold their tails up.
Kangaroos can't hop if you hold their tails up.
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:35 pm to Pecker
Puma and Adidas were founded by brothers... both were Nazis, but only one actually went to war
the cut
newsweek
quote:
Adidas and Puma, which began in WWII, and were founded by brothers Adolf (a.k.a. Adi) and Rudolf Dassler. See, they co-owned Dassler Brothers, an athletic shoe enterprise before they started feuding. Then Rudolf was forced to serve the German forces in Poland. Not only did this make him angry, but he believed his brother Adi had something to do with why he wound up there. So when the war ended, Rudolf told the Allies that Adi assisted the Nazi war effort. And they basically hated each other from them on.
the cut
newsweek
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:47 pm to TigerBait2008
quote:
Your posting sucks
You're currently the worst poster on the forum. And it's not even close. You're like the Michael Jordan of having shitty thoughts and opinions, typing those thoughts and opinions, and then hitting the submit button.
I'm not saying this because you insulted me. I'm saying it because it's true.
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:49 pm to Pecker
quote:
You're currently the worst poster on the forum. And it's not even close. You're like the Michael Jordan of having shitty thoughts and opinions, typing those thoughts and opinions, and then hitting the submit button.
I'm not saying this because you insulted me. I'm saying it because it's true.
I'd give you another upvote if I could. That's how bad he is
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:51 pm to Pecker
quote:
The female lion does 90% of the hunting for the pride.
quote:
The current US flag was designed by high schooler Robert Heft as part of a school project. He initially got a B- on the project, but when his design was chosen for the country, his teacher gave him an A.
quote:
Somewhere between 1-10 percent of people of European decent are immune to AIDS.
quote:
Horses drink at least 25 gallons of water a day.
This post was edited on 7/24/17 at 3:52 pm
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:53 pm to Pecker
The first heavyweight boxing championship match was in fricking Kennebrah.
Posted on 7/24/17 at 3:53 pm to Pecker
The US state closest to the continent of Africa is Maine.
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