Things Only You Know

[TheLuckyOne]

In a similar vein, there are several urban legends surrounding a popular 4-letter swear word- one is that the letters stand for "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge." Supposedly this dates back to a time when one could be imprisoned for deviant or illegal sexual practices. The other acronym is "Fornication Under Consent of the King." The supposed genesis of that one is said to have been a kingdom where the population had grown too large, so to cut back on births, one had to receive a special dispensation from the king before engaging in any naughty business.

However, both of those legends are false; the word probably descends from similar words in Anglo-Saxon English, though linguists aren't entirely in agreement about just which one(s).

-D

[DocD83]

This is a rather addictive website. (Given the preceding post, do I really need a language warning here?)

[StarOpal]

On a more wholesome note...

Texas is the first (and I think still only) state to allow absentee ballots from space.

[DocD83]

What, linguistic history isn't wholesome?

[StarOpal]

Behold, the darker side of etymology.

[TheLuckyOne]

In the comic strip Peanuts, the original cast consisted solely of Charlie Brown, Shermy, Patty, and Snoopy. Violet was added within the first year, and infants Schroeder and Lucy in the year after that. Adults were actually glimpsed in the background of one early series of Sunday strips.

-D

[StarOpal]

William Henry Harrison became the ninth U.S. president in 1841. Age 68, he was the oldest president ever, a title he would hold until Ronald Regan was elected.

Having received guff from his opponent and the media because of his age, he decided to show he was still strong and healthy enough for the position. March 4, 1841 President Harrison set another record by delivering the longest inaugural speech - about two hours - in cold, rain, and wind.

30 days, 11 hours and 30 minutes after officially becoming president, he died of pneumonia. Setting a third record: Shortest term in office. Also, the first president to die in office.

EDIT: Other firsts:
Harrison was the first sitting president to have his picture taken.

He was the first president to have no military vessel named after him.

[Blind Ryan]

It's not so much about what I know as what I can do. I'm the only one in my family that can speak with perfect Scottish (old Gaelic) and German tongue. NOBODY else in my family can do it. I only need to see words in either language to be able to speak them. I also have a knack for deciphering German.

As for things only I know, I'd have to say I know the seedier side of being a newborn and how much care is ACTUALLY paid to babies. I also know way WAY WAY too much about the Atari 800xl, Dos 2.1 and 5.11, and how to perfectly photograph in abstract ways.

I'm esoteric... and I love weird and oft unheard of words. YE HATH QUIVERED ME TUPPENCE!!!

[TheLuckyOne]

Beats havering, I guess.

While it can make for funny scenes in movies and on TV, cans of soda will no longer explode if violently shaken, then opened hours or days later by some unsuspecting soul. The way the cans are constructed has changed, so these days you can shake a can of soda as hard as you want... as long as you give it about 30 seconds or so to settle afterward, it won't spray everywhere.

-D

[TheOogieBoogieMan]

I found this on Wikipedia, in the article on Fatal Hilarity:

"In 1989 a Danish audiologist, Ole Bentzen, died watching A Fish Called Wanda. His heart was estimated to have beat at between 250 and 500 beats per minute, before he succumbed to cardiac arrest."

[StarOpal]

docd83 said:

What, linguistic history isn't wholesome?

Well lookie what I found: History of the Word ****

Major language warning.

"Dismissal" is my favorite.

[TheLuckyOne]

Peter Benchley came up with the idea for Jaws from a series of shark attacks that occured at the Jersey Shore in 1916. Between July 1 and July 12, five people were attacked in three separate incidents in Beach Haven, Spring Lake, and Matawan, resulting in four deaths and one survivor. In the most brutal attack, the shark swam 16 miles up a freshwater creek and killed a 12-year-old boy, as well as a man who tried to recover the boy's body a half hour later, then attacked another swimming boy a half-mile away but was beaten off. All of the attacks occured in less than 20 feet of water.

At the time, the Jersey Shore was an incredibly popular vacation destination for people on the east coast, and the attacks caused massive panic. Miles of wire fence were placed in the water to protect bathers, and rewards were offered for anyone who could kill the man-eater. On July 16, a 7 1/2 foot great white shark was captured and found to have 15 pounds of human remains in its stomach. While we may never know for sure, most researchers believe this was indeed the shark responsible for the attacks. The case is argued rather convincingly in the book Twelve Days of Terror by Dr. Richard Fernicola.

-D

[TheLuckyOne]

When first introduced in the comic strip Thimble Theater in 1929 (alongside protaganist Castor Oyl and his sister Olive Oyl), Popeye the sailor man did not eat spinach to gain strength, instead being able to beat pretty much anyone (or "lay 'em among the swee'peas") at any time. The spinach connection was made later, thanks to an erroneous medical report that attributed to spinach 10 times its actual iron content. Spinach farmers in Crystal City, Texas credited Popeye with saving their dying industry and erected a statue of him in their town in 1937.

-D

[penguinslovedw]

Christopher Lee can do an amazing Sylvester the Cat impersonation (as in "Thuffering Thuccotash!!"). He used to make Peter Cushing fall over laughing on the sets of their old Hammer movies.
When I told my friend Mike this he started talking like Saruman in Sylvester's voice. "Tho, you think you can defeat Thauron, do you?!" I laughed so hard I fell over, hit my head on a desk and lost consciousness for a few seconds. It was awesome, I even had to go to the hospital and everything.
Sorry for the slight segue just there, but you said you wanted a little story behind each bit of information.

[Head Mutant]

My computer speakers sometimes -- but only sometimes -- pick up a radio or TV transmission from a gospel station. Randomly, my computer starts singing praise songs or a preacher comes on. Just cracks me up, in a good way.