Interesting yet useless facts...

[Krys TOFF]

Fear of the dark - An Iron Maiden album

Talking of Iron Maiden, let me tell you that 666 is NOT the former number of the Beast. 616 is.

The Roman Emperor, hunting the 1st Christians, was considered the human representation of the "Beast", the Evil, on Earth by the early Christians.

To hide the real name of the person concerned, it has been coded using gematria ("trick" where numbers are based on the numerical values of letters in people's names).

Caligula (reigning from 37 to 41 A.D.) was designed as "616", and it's confirmed in the earliest known manuscript of the Book of Revelation (Papyrus 115).

The final version of the Book of Revelation, the one used in the Bible, has been written when Nero was Roman Emperor (from 54 to 68 A.D.). Nero Claudius' number was 666, so it was the one written in the final version of the Bible, and therefore kept along until now.

[CTG]

Clans of long ago that wanted to get rid of their unwanted people without killing them used to burn their houses down - hence the expression "to get fired."

It happened in a small Hungarian village 20-25 years ago - they wanted to avoid gipsies moving there. Nobody died, only the house was burned. Since that gipsies don't dare to enter that village.

[Chulk]

When you mean "for example", e.g. is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase "exempli gratia". This could be translated as "for the sake of example"

The word "snorkel" comes from the German word "schnoerkel", which was a tube used by German submarine crews in WW2. The subs used an electric battery when traveling underwater, which had to be recharged using diesel engines, which needed air to run. To avoid surfacing to start the engines, the Germans used the schnoerkel to feed air from the surface into the engines.

[Krys TOFF]

When you mean "for example", e.g. is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase "exempli gratia". This could be translated as "for the sake of example"

Same thing for "that is", also written "i.e.", for "id est" in Latin.

[Chulk]

The symbol for pounds (you know, that strange "L" I can't find it right now, will edit later) comes from the zodiacal Libra which symbol is a balance.
Casuality or Causality, Spanish word for pound is "Libra"

[Duplode]

The symbol for pounds (you know, that strange "L" I can't find it right now, will edit later) comes from the zodiacal Libra which symbol is a balance.
Casuality or Causality, Spanish word for pound is "Libra"

I think I (literally) just realized the connection. The word for the Imperial System mass worth about 0.45kg unit is "pound" in English and "libra" in Portuguese (and Spanish too I suppose) as well. Weighing goods when buying => find how much it will be charged. Weight measurement instrument <=> balance => Zodiac's Libra... (note that even though £ is not used as symbol for pound, the weigh unit, lb is - even in English).

Speaking of Imperial Units, a spin-off from the Stunts Physics thread - have at look on how "easy" is to convert length units if you live in the USA:

12 inches = 1 foot
3 feet = 1 yard
8 yards = 1 furlong
220 furlongs = 1 mile

Very convenient, except that no two conversion factors have any relation to each other...

[Krys TOFF]

Speaking of Imperial Units, a spin-off from the Stunts Physics thread - have at look on how "easy" is to convert length units if you live in the USA:

12 inches = 1 foot
3 feet = 1 yard
8 yards = 1 furlong
220 furlongs = 1 mile

Very convenient, except that no two conversion factors have any relation to each other...

Decimal metric system is much easier to use : 1000m = 1km, 1t = 1000kg. Length, mass and volumes are defined in convertible units (1l=1kg of pure water). Simple, efficient, French (created after the French Revolution of 1789).

Below there's a picture about the use of metric system around the world (green = older use, red = mewer use). Even English use it now, I wonder why USA still don't understand that this system is way much better to use than original English system they still use in the USA...


Official creation of metric system was done between 1793 and 1795, officially adpoted in France in 1799 (1kg was called 1 "grave" at this time). After the brief come-back of monarchy in France, the system is aborted in France in 1812. But it is officially approved in Kingdom of Netherlands (equivalent to nowadays "BeNeLux" = Belgium+Netherlands+Luxemburg) in 1816. With the 2nd Revolution in France (and the final end of monarchy, about time !) in France in 1830, the metric system is adopted, 1 "grave" is renamed 1kg. The system was never aborted since then and conquered the entire world, except a few countries (but it's just a matter of time ).

[JTK]

The word "snorkel" comes from the German word "schnoerkel", which was a tube used by German submarine crews in WW2. The subs used an electric battery when traveling underwater, which had to be recharged using diesel engines, which needed air to run. To avoid surfacing to start the engines, the Germans used the schnoerkel to feed air from the surface into the engines.

Sorry, the correct fact is: The word "snorkel" comes from the German word "Schnorchel" (...).

[Chulk]

The word "snorkel" comes from the German word "schnoerkel", which was a tube used by German submarine crews in WW2. The subs used an electric battery when traveling underwater, which had to be recharged using diesel engines, which needed air to run. To avoid surfacing to start the engines, the Germans used the schnoerkel to feed air from the surface into the engines.

Sorry, the correct fact is: The word "snorkel" comes from the German word "Schnorchel" (...).

Don't be sorry, it's great to have it corrected.

[Chulk]

The only nation whose name begins with an "A", but doesn't end in an "A" is Afghanistan.

La Paz, the capital city of Bolivia is the highest capital in the world. Ski resorts there operate only on weekends during the South American summer (November to March). At an elevation of over 17,000 feet, it is too cold to operate during the South American winter.

In Calama, a town in the Atacama Desert of Chile, it has never rained. 

[Chulk]

Golf was banned in England in 1457 because it was considered a distraction from the serious pursuit of archery.

Is that stupid or what!

[Krys TOFF]

Golf was banned in England in 1457 because it was considered a distraction from the serious pursuit of archery.

Is that stupid or what!

GOLF means "Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden". Machist game.

[BonzaiJoe]

Or gay game? 

[Chulk]

Or gay game? 

Gays Only, Lesbians Forbbiden? 

[BonzaiJoe]

Nice one Chulk 

So, when women think they are playing golf, they are actually playing logf?