A very cool post from Mental Floss about the poisonous Manchineel Tree. Even standing under it during a rainstorm is dangerous.
http://mentalfloss.com/article/81958/why-manchineel-most-dangerous-tree-world
Showing posts with label trivia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label trivia. Show all posts
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Merry-Go-Round...or Carousel?
Ming and I did a 39 mile bike ride after work. I'm actually a little sore, although most of it is upper body, not legs, because I did some barbell and stomach work yesterday for the first time in about six months.
During the ride, Ming posed a question. "Scooter," said Ming. "Scooter...what is the difference between a merry-go-round and a carousel?" I took my best stab and said, "animals versus no animals?" Nope. "Motor powered versus manually powered?" Nope.
Ming said, "Carousels go counter-clockwise. Merry-go-rounds go clockwise." Or maybe he said the opposite. It doesn't matter. Because I said, "You made that up."
Ming assured me it was trivia he had on good faith, from like a barista or some other wise woman knowledgeable of fair-lore and carnies. I told him I still didn't believe him and said if he hadn't looked it up and had only accepted it on good faith, he could be sure I was going to look it up and blog about it because, while coffee-babes may seem wise with their chalkboard trivia, it does not translate into wicked-trivia abilities beyond the chalkboard.
So what is the difference? There is none. They're synonyms, despite the wisdom of baristas and the writers of Charmed (alternate source, directly from the site for Casfejian's Carousel at the Como Zoo in Minnesota). However, it is possible that she was mistaken in her focus on nomenclature and meant to imply there was a geographical difference, as "In the United States, a carousel goes counter-clockwise. In many EU-states (the UK, the Netherlands, etc.), the carousel goes the other way around; clockwise. The reason for this is subject of much speculation." But it's still just a carousel, or merry-go-round, in both places even though rotating in different directions.
Also: Galloper, Roundabout, and Flying Horses are appropriate, though I imagine most people who heard you talking about your ride on the galloper would assume you were an intimate, appropriately-aged, friend of G. Montgomery Burns.
During the ride, Ming posed a question. "Scooter," said Ming. "Scooter...what is the difference between a merry-go-round and a carousel?" I took my best stab and said, "animals versus no animals?" Nope. "Motor powered versus manually powered?" Nope.
Ming said, "Carousels go counter-clockwise. Merry-go-rounds go clockwise." Or maybe he said the opposite. It doesn't matter. Because I said, "You made that up."
Ming assured me it was trivia he had on good faith, from like a barista or some other wise woman knowledgeable of fair-lore and carnies. I told him I still didn't believe him and said if he hadn't looked it up and had only accepted it on good faith, he could be sure I was going to look it up and blog about it because, while coffee-babes may seem wise with their chalkboard trivia, it does not translate into wicked-trivia abilities beyond the chalkboard.
So what is the difference? There is none. They're synonyms, despite the wisdom of baristas and the writers of Charmed (alternate source, directly from the site for Casfejian's Carousel at the Como Zoo in Minnesota). However, it is possible that she was mistaken in her focus on nomenclature and meant to imply there was a geographical difference, as "In the United States, a carousel goes counter-clockwise. In many EU-states (the UK, the Netherlands, etc.), the carousel goes the other way around; clockwise. The reason for this is subject of much speculation." But it's still just a carousel, or merry-go-round, in both places even though rotating in different directions.
Also: Galloper, Roundabout, and Flying Horses are appropriate, though I imagine most people who heard you talking about your ride on the galloper would assume you were an intimate, appropriately-aged, friend of G. Montgomery Burns.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)