Official Random Fact/Random Thought Thread!

[Knotorious]

Random Fact: The blue-footed booby's name comes from the Spanish word bobo which means "stupid," "foolish, or "clown." The name originated from the bird's clumsy behavior on land, such as when wooing a mate, and its seemingly fearless attitude towards humans.

The blue-footed booby is not considered endangered. The IUCN Red List and BirdLife International classify the species as of "least concern".

The global population is estimated to number more than 90,000 mature individuals. However, the species is undergoing a moderate decline.



Picture: (All you need is Biology - WordPress.com)

The blue-footed booby's population has dropped from 20,000 in the 1960s to only about 6,400 today. The main factor behind the decline is thought to be a scarcity of food. The birds find their current, low sardine diet sufficient to live but insufficient to breed successfully.

The blue-footed booby is often shown in documentaries about the Galapagos.

The Galapagos Islands are home to the majority of the world's breeding pairs.

The blue-footed booby also nests as far north as western Mexico. In some years, small numbers stray north into the southwestern United States, mainly to the Salton Sea, California.


Random Fact: Marco Polo (1254-1324) was an Italian voyager and merchant who was one of the first Europeans to travel across Asia through China, visiting the Kublai Khan in Beijing. He left in 1271 (he was a teenager at the time) with his father (Nicolo Polo) and uncle (Maffeo Polo); they spent about 24 years traveling.

 

[Kaveman]

T posts, those ubiquitous green fence posts, are made from railroad track.

Retired track is pulled up and replaced on a regular basis, although the intervals can vary massively depending on the traffic seen on a given section of line. Most mainline freight or passenger service rails in the US are 120 POUNDS PER FOOT.

Entire lengths of rail are fed into a series of roller die presses, which progressively draw the rail out and change its shape. The rail goes in one end cold and dirty, comes out the other yellow hot fence post. No heat is applied, the pressure heats the steel to high enough temperatures that it is effectively re-forged.

Interesting process. Saw it on the history channel years ago, when you could still learn something, sometimes.

 

[Mick!]

Cleopatra lived in a time closer to today than the construction of the pyramid of Giza.

 

[Kaveman]

Cleopatra, was not actually a famous beauty. She is described in contemporary texts as the greatest conversationalist. She was nice to talk too. Also, she wasn't Egyptian, she was an inbred Ptolemy, a Roman.

 

[Mick!]

Cleopatra, was not actually a famous beauty. She is described in contemporary texts as the greatest conversationalist. She was nice to talk too. Also, she wasn't Egyptian, she was an inbred Ptolemy, a Roman.

You still would though, wouldn’t you?

 

[Kaveman]

You still would though, wouldn’t you?

Am slut, I'd hit that so hard! Been with more than one jabber jaw. One repeated my name with every breath, like a broken record... it was almost hot...

 

[lxskllr]

Y'all know about the nazi trees, right?

Forest swastika - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

That would be a cool thing to do it you had some property, or access to decent property. Maybe not swastikas. You could write stuff with runes. The geometric shapes would be pretty easy, and it would be just mysterious enough to make people go "Hmm..."

 

[Knotorious]

I can't believe the people who finally went to try and get rid of the swastika only managed to get rid of less than half of the trees. It says a lot of it grew back and it still looked like a swastika. What a waste of time haha

 

[Knotorious]

Random Thought: I've been dragging my feet on getting a new battery for my laptop for sometime because I thought it was expensive to repair. In fact, so long that I forgot it was an issue (only used the computer with direct power because I never leave home with it anyways). But today, I got a warning from my operating system that it detected decreased battery capacity (duh) and so I took action. I ended up calling HP and finding the part number and then locating said part on Amazon on the cheap. If your laptop's battery capacity is diminished and weakening by the day, then don't hesitate to do the same thing I did. Get yourself a brand new battery. I haven't tried the new battery yet, but I'll update once I have.

 

[Knotorious]

Random Fact: When was golf first played in the US? It is thought that the first organized golf played in America was on Harleston Green, undeveloped pastureland near the corner of Pitt and Bull streets. In 1743, Charleston merchant David Deas received a shipment of 432 golf balls and ninety-six clubs from Scotland.

Random Fact: Which mammal has the largest eyes? The equine (horse) eye is the largest of all land mammals–whales, seals and the ostrich are the only other animals that have larger eyes. The equine eye is the largest of all land mammals–whales, seals and the ostrich are the only other animals that have larger eyes.

 

[lxskllr]

The largest known star in the universe compared to our sun

UY Scuti - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Knotorious]

@lxskllr That's incredible. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Knotorious]

Do you take OTC (over-the-counter) supplements? The government recently randomly tested 3,000 supplements and here's what they found...

In one study, 28% had some sort of illegal substance; mostly steroids. This means that a statistically significant number of supplement users are unintentionally "doping"...

In another study, 92% contained varying degrees of bacterial contamination.

In a third study, 87% had a fungal contamination.

And when they tested CBD supplements, they discovered that 55% had either way more or way less CBD than advertised. Some even contained THC, the active metabolite in marijuana.

Want to learn more? Watch this documentary and check out the resources in the description...



We should all be cautious about what we put into our bodies. There are some supplements that are safe for you, but most are outright fraudulent and/or dangerous.

 

[Knotorious]

Random Facts:

"As it turns out, putting candles on birthday cakes is a tradition that has been around for a long, long time. It can be traced back to the Ancient Greeks, who often burned candles as offerings to their many gods and goddesses.

For the Ancient Greeks, putting candles on a cake was a special way to pay tribute to the Greek moon goddess, Artemis. They baked round cakes to symbolize the moon. Candles were added to represent the reflected moonlight.

Candles on cakes became a popular tradition long ago in Germany, too. For religious reasons, Germans would place a large candle in the center of a cake to symbolize “the light of life."

Some scholars believe that other meanings have also been attached to the use of candles on cakes. People may have believed that the smoke from the candles carried their wishes and prayers to gods who lived in the skies. Others probably believed the smoke helped to ward off evil spirits.

Today, we still put birthday candles on cakes. Many people still hold superstitious beliefs about them, too.

For example, many people believe that the person (or website!) whose birthday it is must make a silent wish before blowing out the candles. If all the candles are blown out in one breath, the wish will come true, and the person will have good luck throughout the year.

On the other hand, if it takes more than one breath to blow out all the candles or if the person tells someone what the wish was, it will supposedly not come true.

What do you think? Have you ever made a birthday wish? Did it come true?

If you have a trickster in the family, you may have been duped at one time or another by “trick" or “magic" candles. These candles automatically relight — as if by magic — after they're blown out.

If you've never seen someone trying to blow out trick candles before, it can be quite entertaining to watch. So how do these candles magically relight themselves?

In truth, there's no magic to it. It's all science, of course!

When you blow out a “regular" candle, a burning ember usually remains on the end of the wick (the part you light). It's that ember that causes the little ribbon of paraffin smoke you see.

The ember is hot enough to vaporize the paraffin (the “wax" on the wick), but it's not hot enough to ignite the paraffin vapor back into a flame.

“Trick" or “magic" candles, however, have a special substance — usually magnesium — added to the wick. Magnesium burns quickly at a relatively low ignition temperature (as low as 800° F).

When you blow out a “trick" or “magic" candle, the ember that remains is hot enough to ignite the magnesium dust on the wick, which in turn gets hot enough to ignite the paraffin vapor back into a flame."

Source:

Why Do We Blow Out Birthday Candles?

You say it’s your birthday? It’s our birthday, too! Join us today for Wonderopolis’ birthday party!

wonderopolis.org

 

[Kaveman]

My CBD supplements have THC in them. Or else the dispensary is gonna get an earfull.

Also, Delta-9- tetrahydrolcannibadol is he main and most highly psychoactive compound found in Marijuana. THC-A is also highly responsible for the high, as its most easily absorbed by the bloodstream. Also, combustion decarboxolates the cannibanoids, and much Delta-9-THC thus becomes THC-A.

CBD has become a catch all term in regards to the wide plethora of cannabinoids contained in the Devil's Lettuce, all of which contribute to the "entourage effect". While recent marketing has turned towards terpenes and flavonoids, much research is continuing into the wide and varied effects of the various cannabinoids.

 

[Knotorious]

My CBD supplements have THC in them. Or else the dispensary is gonna get an earfull.

Also, Delta-9- tetrahydrolcannibadol is he main and most highly psychoactive compound found in Marijuana. THC-A is also highly responsible for the high, as its most easily absorbed by the bloodstream. Also, combustion decarboxolates the cannibanoids, and much Delta-9-THC thus becomes THC-A.

CBD has become a catch all term in regards to the wide plethora of cannabinoids contained in the Devil's Lettuce, all of which contribute to the "entourage effect". While recent marketing has turned towards terpenes and flavonoids, much research is continuing into the wide and varied effects of the various cannabinoids.

Δ9- tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC or simply THC), also known by its International Non-Proprietary Name (INN) as dronabinol.

 

[Knotorious]

Random Fact: Who wrote the first computer program? Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (10 December 1815 – 27 November 1852), born Augusta Ada Byron and now commonly known as Ada Lovelace, was an English mathematician and writer chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's early mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine.

Random Fact: Which country first adopted time zones? On November 2, 1868, the then-British colony of New Zealand officially adopted a standard time to be observed throughout the colony, and was perhaps the first country to do so. It was based on the longitude 172°30′ East of Greenwich, that is 11 hours 30 minutes ahead of GMT.

 

[Knotorious]

Random Thought: Nothing worse than forgetting what you were going to... Wait, what was I going to say? F*ck!

Random Thought: *That awkward moment when you can't sleep and wake up at 1am. Then you take more sleeping medication and still can't fall asleep...but now you're awake and groggy. Ugh. Should have just stayed awake!*

 

[Knotorious]

RANDOM THOUGHT: I hate when people bring two small to midsized roller bags onto a plane as carry on items to avoid paying the $30 bag check-in fee. It's not a good look; don't be that guy! How cheap and selfish does someone have to be? Yes, you're allowed "two reasonably sized carry ons," but they specifically say that one has to be a purse, briefcase or laptop bag which can fit under your seat. Because of some dick head's second roller bag, someone else who boards later might be forced to check their one roller bag. Some people suck so much.

 

[Knotorious]

Random Fact; Do animals sleep with one eye open? For dolphins, this is an easy task. They can turn off half their brain and close one eye, allowing them to be partly asleep and awake at the same time. According to an article in the Scientific American , dolphins sleep this way so they can be ready to protect themselves from predators and swim to the surface for air.

Random Fact: Which president signed Father's Day into law? In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers, designating the third Sunday in June as Father's Day. Six years later, the day was made a permanent national holiday when President Richard Nixon signed it into law in 1972.

 

[Knotorious]

George Mallory, during the 1924 attempt at Mount Everest's summit, was once asked why he would take such a heavy risk to ascend the highest peak in the world.

His response? "Because it's there," he said.

His disappearance sparked a lot of controversy as he and a counterpart were seen at the Second Step, close to the summit, "going strong for the top" (a quote by another team member, Noel Odell; one of the most popular quotes in alpinism), the day they vanished, as he watched the two men "disappear into the clouds."

Mallory's body was eventually discovered in 1999. He had pledged that he would leave a picture of himself and his wife at the summit and the picture was nowhere to be found on his body.

Did he summit before Sir Edmund Hillary? Andrew Irvine, the counterpart who summitted with Mallory, had on him a camera. His body has never been found, but it is believed by many that his camera might hold proof of a summit before Hillary's.

On 29, May, 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary and the Sherpa, Tenzig Norgay, became the first two individuals to officially successfully summit Mount Everest.

Check out this beautiful documentary where modern alpine climbers embark on an expedition to retrace Mallory's and Irvine's steps, in hopes of finding the missing camera and Irvine's body.

 

[Knotorious]

Random Fact: On September 25, 2000, 19-year-old Kevin Hines attempted to end his own life by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. Plunging over 220 feet at a speed of 75 miles per hour, he hit the water below, shattering three of his vertebrae and narrowly missing severing his spine by two millimeters. Despite the odds, he miraculously survived the impact.

Upon realizing he was still alive, an intense will to live surged within him. Yet, the weight of his clothes continuously pulled him beneath the surface of San Francisco Bay. For what seemed like an eternity, he struggled to resurface briefly, gasping for air, just enough to hold on to life.

Suddenly, he felt an unusual force from below lifting him above the water's surface, where he remained until the Coast Guard arrived. It was only later that he discovered the mysterious presence keeping him afloat: a sea lion had been supporting his body until the rescue boat arrived, as eyewitnesses had observed.

His story gained major media coverage and he has since become a motivational speaker and advocate for suicide prevention.

 

[Knotorious]

Random Thought: What if all you ever heard about after you die is what people who are still alive think about you every time they think about you? That could go horribly wrong in so many different ways. We're talking dystopian Black Mirror kind of shit. I mean, if you're a douche. If you're a truly good person, this would be quite a pleasurable experience...until everyone you ever knew dies and nobody ever thinks about you again. And then nothingness. See what I'm getting at?

#ThatGuyWithThePhilosophy

 

[Knotorious]

The fact that the two last topics are about death is pure coincidence. Legitimately. Not to concern anyone.

 

[friedrich]

Random Thought: What if all you ever heard about after you die is what people who are still alive think about you every time they think about you? That could go horribly wrong in so many different ways. We're talking dystopian Black Mirror kind of shit. I mean, if you're a douche. If you're a truly good person, this would be quite a pleasurable experience...until everyone you ever knew dies and nobody ever thinks about you again. And then nothingness. See what I'm getting at?

#ThatGuyWithThePhilosophy

i would not enjoy that dystopia wether people liked me or hated me