Groucho's Fact Hunt

[Whistlin' Dixie]

Leonard Nimoy was the 3rd choice to play his most famous role of "Star trek's Mr Spock". Martin Landau (He of 'Commander Koenig [Space1999] fame) was first choice, but turned the role down due to 'The emotionally limited range of the character".

Surprisingly, the 2nd choice was Deforrest Kelley (Who played Dr 'Bones' McCoy) but he'd already opted to play said character.


Donaudampfschiffahrtselektrizitätenhauptbetriebswerkbauunterbeamtengesellschaft

The writer Mark Twain once said “some German words are so long that they even have a perspective”. The classic longest German word with its 79 letters would be translated in English into 15 words “Association for subordinate officials of the head office management of the Danube steamboat electrical services.”

As an “agglutinative” language, German can however offer other amusing examples, just as in 1999 when members of a regional parliament adopted the law entitled ‘Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz’ (literally, Cattle marking and beef labeling supervision duties delegation law).

 

[kev]

I think the old 50p coin was the greatest coin that ever existed. You got given one of them by your grandad, you were rich!

OK
Now I feel REALLY old
Your Grandad gave you 50p coins ?
I used to get farthings off mine

 

[hibbo'sclass]

Several for for all potential Kloppites
"Deutschland uber Alles" was originally a call to the German people to form their country into a cohesive federal republic.
It was written in the 1840's about 30 years before this happened with the founding of the German Empire by a guy called Hoffman who was on Heligoland which at the time was owned by Britain.
The music was written in the 1790's by Haydn, an Austrian and was previously used for a celebration of the Holy Roman Emperor
The German national anthem is only the third stanza and does not include the phrase Deutschland uber alles.

 

[admirschleck]

India never invaded any country in its history.

 

[summerisle]

India never invaded any country in its history.

I think you'll find British India did, as well as India being involved in four wars against Pakistan, as well as other incursions in to Pakistan.

 

[admirschleck]

I think you'll find British India did, as well as India being involved in four wars against Pakistan, as well as other incursions in to Pakistan.

Actually doubted it aswell, googled it a bit and found few interesting results. They did attack some areas in 1971, 1948 and 1944, but it all depends on terminology whether it can be called an invasion or not and whether the land they attacked was a country at that point. Few sites listed that as just a myth due to these attacks, while others just said that it could pass as a fact.

 

[summerisle]

Actually doubted it aswell, googled it a bit and found few interesting results. They did attack some areas in 1971, 1948 and 1944, but it all depends on terminology whether it can be called an invasion or not and whether the land they attacked was a country at that point. Few sites listed that as just a myth due to these attacks, while others just said that it could pass as a fact.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/6/newsid_3632000/3632092.stm

 

[Black Belt Jones]

Teflon (Or PTFE) was discovered by accident.

A ballsy discovery that wouldn't happen today - the bloke was working with tetrafluoroethylene in a pressurised gas cylinder and couldn't understand why nothing was coming out. The cylinder seemed heavy (ie there was something in it), and it wasn't obviously blocked - so he gets out a band saw and cuts the thing open! Discovers all the contents are a waxy solid - the gas has unexpectedly polymerised to solid polytetrafluoroethylene - teflon.

If he had misjudged things and it was some sort of temporary blockage of the gaseous TFE he could have killed himself.

 

[Dylan]

And now they're getting toksvig to replace him Should've been the original choice (Before fry) - Michael Palin.

If you travelled at a steady 55mph, it'd take 192 years, 326 days, 13 hours, 5 minutes and 27 seconds to reach the sun.

A quick bit of napkin math confirms this.

 

[deipnosophist]

A rivers sinuous length (source to mouth) divided by its 'as the crow flies' length very closely describes pi.

 

[Seamus Colemole]

A ballsy discovery that wouldn't happen today - the bloke was working with tetrafluoroethylene in a pressurised gas cylinder and couldn't understand why nothing was coming out. The cylinder seemed heavy (ie there was something in it), and it wasn't obviously blocked - so he gets out a band saw and cuts the thing open! Discovers all the contents are a waxy solid - the gas has unexpectedly polymerised to solid polytetrafluoroethylene - teflon.

If he had misjudged things and it was some sort of temporary blockage of the gaseous TFE he could have killed himself.

Isnt this the same stuff they make some waterproof jackets out of?

 

[deipnosophist]

The only English word to have 4 consecutive letter 'doublets' is subbookkeeper.

 

[The Cowboy]

A rivers sinuous length (source to mouth) divided by its 'as the crow flies' length very closely describes pi.

Figures. Each twist and turn being bisected by a straight line creates a series of semi circles, the river becoming the circumference and the straight line becomes the diameter.

 

[Black Belt Jones]

Isnt this the same stuff they make some waterproof jackets out of?

Yes - the waterproof layer of stuff like goretex is teflon that has been stretched to create microscopic holes. Idea being liquid water is kept out, but water vapour can escape so the fabric is breathable.

The breathable idea is a bit optimistic IME - worn loads of goretex and related stuff cycling and none of it 'breathes' if you're working hard. It's ok for walking around in if you're not exercising.

 

[ToffeeDoug]

The only English word to have 4 consecutive letter 'doublets' is subbookkeeper.

I knew that bookkeeper was 3, adding sub to the front looks a little contrived to me. Is it a real word in use?