Today I found out how ‘gay’ came to mean ‘homosexual’. The word “gay” seems to have its origins around the 12th century in England, derived from the Old French word ‘gai’, which in turn was probably derived from a Germanic word, though that isn’t completely known. The word’s original meaning meant something to the effect of “joyful”, “carefree”, “full of […]
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Today I found out what a backronym is (also commonly spelled bacronym). In short, a backronym is when you treat a word that is not an acronym as if it was an acronym, constructing a phrase out of the word. For example: Delta – Doesn’t Ever Leave The Airport Backronyms are often used for humorous effect as in the example […]
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Today I found out that baking soda makes a good teeth whitener. Specifically it works by breaking down stains in your teeth caused by such things as dark sodas, wine, smoking, coffee, etc. Baking soda, also known as sodium bicarbonate, when dissolved in water gives off free radicals which penetrate the surface of your enamel, combining with the stains in […]
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Today I found out Duct tape was originally named “Duck” tape and originally only came in green, not silver. Duct tape was originally invented by Johnson & Johnson’s Permacel division during WWII for the military. The military specifically needed a waterproof tape that could be used to keep moisture out of ammunition cases. This is why the originally Duct tape […]
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Today I found out how to survive being trapped in quicksand. First, don’t panic! Panicking in quicksand is pretty much one of the few ways to turn this slightly dangerous situation into deadly. Second, if you are wearing something heavy attached to yourself like a backpack, unstrap it immediately if you feel it pushing you down. Outside of having something […]
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Today I found out that poinsettias are not poisonous, contrary to popular belief. The belief that they are poisonous originally seems to have started around 1919 when a two year old child of a U.S. Army officer died after supposedly eating poinsettia leaves. The poinsettia leaves were blamed for the death, even though there was never any actual evidence that […]
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Today I found that Dr Pepper is the oldest major soft drink, that is still being produced, in the United States; now over 125 years old. In 1885, in the frontier town of Waco Texas (nicknamed “six-shooter junction”), a pharmacists by the name of Charles Alderton worked at the “Old Corner Drug Store” owned by Wade Morrison. At this drug […]
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Today I found out that there isn’t any difference between fur and hair; it’s all just hair. We tend to refer to a lot of animal hair as “fur”, while referring to our own hair as just “hair”. It turns out though that hair and fur are chemically indistinguishable, both made up of keratin. The argument that is often cited […]
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Today I found out twelve ways to remove a stripped screw. We’ve all been there; trying to void a warranty or otherwise take something apart and you go to take that one last screw off and invariably it strips. Now what? You can either A: Think Hammer… really, really big hammer; or B: Read the list below and pick the […]
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Today I found out about a Japanese soldier who continued fighting World War II a full 29 years after the Japanese surrendered, because he didn’t know the war was over. Hiroo Onoda is a Japanese citizen that originally worked at a Chinese trading company. When he was 20 years old, he was called to join the Japanese army. He promptly […]
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Today I found out that sitting too close to the TV will not damage your vision, contrary to popular belief. So why do parents the world over still say this to their kids? Surprisingly, there was actually a very brief period of time where sitting close to the TV could damage your eyes, assuming you owned a General Electric TV […]
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Today I found out how Valentine’s Day got started. It was all a huge conspiracy jointly popularized by the diamond company De Beers; Hallmark; and the collective might of gourmet chocolate manufacturers the world over … Ok, not really, but it certainly worked out for them didn’t it??? Didn’t it!?!?!?!? 😉 Really though, it actually all started with a little […]
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Today I found how to easily sharpen scissors from home. The two easiest methods, that still do a very good job, involve using sand paper or aluminum foil. In both methods you literally just cut the material using full scissor strokes each time. If you want to sharpen them more “professionally” and you have a grinder about, there is a […]
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Today I found out the difference between a fact and a factoid. I have gotten several helpful commenters pointing out recently that perhaps I am using the word “factoid” incorrectly in my articles here, thinking that it means the same as “fact”. In fact (eh? eh?) ;-), I am not. But since this is a common area of confusion, indeed […]
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Today I found out how to drastically increase the life of your shaver razor blades, such as Gillette or Schick Brand razors. This trick is incredibly simple and just as incredibly effective. It will also save you a nice chunk of change over time and make all your dreams come true… For instance, Gillette Fusion Brand razor cartridge sets typically […]
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Today I found out Simo Häyhä, arguably the greatest sniper to ever live, sniped over 542 invading Soviet soldiers in World War II using nothing but a bolt action rifle that had no scope. He also has the distinction of having recorded the highest known number of confirmed kills by any sniper in any major war; with the runner up […]
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Today I found out that the 7-11 Double Big Gulp holds about twice the amount of fluid than the average adult human’s stomach. The average adult human’s stomach can hold comfortably about 32 ounces at any given time (edit: excepting we Americans who, judging from the comments, apparently can hold about 138 times that amount despite science’s official averages). The […]
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Today I found out how to survive being buried alive in a coffin. Yesterday, I posted an article on taphophobia and I got an email from a reader wondering if I could write-up an article on the best ways to actually get out of a coffin, if you happen to find yourself buried alive in one. So here goes. First, […]
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