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Some things are obvious
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/10/2012 9:01AM - in reply to kudzurunner Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

kudzurunner wrote:

Many years ago, during a 5th grade summer school enrichment class in suburban New York (Rockland County), somebody brought in a dying Polyphemus moth. It laid some eggs. I took them home. They hatched. Suddenly I was the possessor of about thirty tiny Polyphemus moth caterpillars. I raised them over the summer.

Here's the fact: when you shake a stick on which a half dozen big fat green mature Polyphemus moth caterpillars are hanging, they click their teeth loudly enough to be heard. They don't like that.


Cool story. Only thing is, mature Polyphemus moth caterpillars do not have teeth.

Cool story anyway.
smarter ass
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/10/2012 9:10AM - in reply to Some things are obvious Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Much like human males, gorillas burp when they are happy.
factual
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/12/2012 11:59PM - in reply to smarter ass Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Katy Perry has a cat names Kitty Purry.
fadfasdfdsf
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/13/2012 3:46AM - in reply to factual Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

factual wrote:

Katy Perry has a cat names Kitty Purry.



What about her favorite band? Katy Parody?
areh
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/13/2012 6:10AM - in reply to fadfasdfdsf Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
The phrase "balls to the wall"--referring to top speed or a maximum effort--does not refer to male anatomy and is appropriate to use with athletes of either sex.
asdsdf
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/13/2012 12:23PM - in reply to areh Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

areh wrote:

The phrase "balls to the wall"--referring to top speed or a maximum effort--does not refer to male anatomy and is appropriate to use with athletes of either sex.


What does it refer to? This is a useless post unless you provide that.
areh
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/13/2012 12:36PM - in reply to asdsdf Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

asdsdf wrote:

[quote]areh wrote:

The phrase "balls to the wall"--referring to top speed or a maximum effort--does not refer to male anatomy and is appropriate to use with athletes of either sex.


What does it refer to? This is a useless post unless you provide that.[/quote]

It's a term from aviation: when you push the stick (which has a ball-shaped top) forward to the firewall, for maximum power.
asdsdf
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/13/2012 1:26PM - in reply to areh Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

areh wrote:

[quote]asdsdf wrote:

[quote]areh wrote:

The phrase "balls to the wall"--referring to top speed or a maximum effort--does not refer to male anatomy and is appropriate to use with athletes of either sex.


What does it refer to? This is a useless post unless you provide that.[/quote]

It's a term from aviation: when you push the stick (which has a ball-shaped top) forward to the firewall, for maximum power.[/quote]

Why "balls" then? Why not "ball"? Unless it's referring to multiple planes flying in formation, in which case, why isn't it "walls" instead of "wall"?
simple solution
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/13/2012 1:46PM - in reply to asdsdf Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

asdsdf wrote:

Why "balls" then? Why not "ball"? Unless it's referring to multiple planes flying in formation, in which case, why isn't it "walls" instead of "wall"?



back in the day every engine on a plane had it's own individual throttle (the handle of which was a ball). Therefore, when those planes generally with 2-4 engines went full throttle, they went balls (multiple throttles) to the wall (single plane).
Maranas Trench
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/14/2012 1:25AM - in reply to simple solution Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
The deepest place in the ocean is The Challenger Deep with a depth of at least 10,900 and possiblly as much as 11,000 meters.

Jacques Piccard & Don Walsh rode The Trieste bathyscape to the bottom in 1960 the deepest under water man has ever gone.
bhkhk
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/14/2012 1:50AM - in reply to Maranas Trench Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
hrmhrm
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/14/2012 7:38AM - in reply to Mohammed Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

Mohammed wrote:
111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321


i never heard of this. being curious.
(base 10, 10-1 digits of '1') squared = 12345678987654321

so i tried:
(base 8, 8-1 digits of '1') squared = 1234567654321

(using: http://www.tonymarston.net/php-mysql/converter.php)

cool.
hrmhrm
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/14/2012 11:50AM - in reply to hrmhrm Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

hrmhrm wrote:
so i tried:
(base 8, 8-1 digits of '1') squared = 1234567654321



seriously, i'm not hijacking this thread, and obviously math class was years ago, but ...
in base 10, 8, and 6 -- but not 2 -- and probably more, if you have a number of length n, comprised of 1s in each unit position, and you square it, you get an ascending, descending product that has as its crescendo, n. (as shown in excel with oct2dec, hex2dec, etc.) / on second thought, i suppose this is obvious. ;)

still, it's a random fact about the world.
bauhaus
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/15/2012 12:11PM - in reply to coach bigfoot Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
here's a few that blew my mind:
1. the San Gabriel MTns outside L.A. are actually taller in terms of relief, than the Front Range outside denver, CO.

2. If you herded every man, woman, child in the USA together, you could fit them in the outline of the state of Kansas.


3. The tallest location in lower 48 states (Mt. Whitney, CA) is adjacent to the lowest location in the lower 48: Death Valley, CA.
yeppers
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/15/2012 12:16PM - in reply to bauhaus Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Turtles can't stick out their tongues

Asians can buy live worms from vending machines

Bears make their own form of custard in nature from honey and bee protein
Concerned Citizen
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/15/2012 12:19PM - in reply to yeppers Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
The Rupal Face of Nanga Parbat, Earth's ninth highest peak, rises over 15000 feet above its base.
Moxy Fruvous
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/15/2012 12:23PM - in reply to Concerned Citizen Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
The state with the lowest highest point is Florida at 345 ft.

The state with the lowest mean elevation is Delaware, at 60 feet.
malmo
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/15/2012 5:09PM - in reply to Maranas Trench Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
Ostriches do not put their heads in sand.
random a hole
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/15/2012 6:17PM - in reply to yeppers Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

yeppers wrote:


Asians can buy live worms from vending machines




Can also do this in the US. Live minnows, and waxworms too. They don't check your ethnicity, just need singles that are not too wrinkly.
dueling at a dual meet?
RE: Tell me a random fact about the world, I want to learn something new. 2/16/2012 10:14AM - in reply to coach bigfoot Reply | Return to Index | Report Post
One could fit 484 Rhode Islands into Alaska and still have room for a couple of standard 400m tracks.
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