TIL: Today I Learned

GasBandit

Staff member
Formative years spent watching scooby doo have taught me to regard just about everything that looks like that as claw marks.
 

GasBandit

Staff member
Early morning power outage. Lasted longer than my UPS could stand, apparently. Dang computer wouldn't finish booting up. I was worried I'd have to get a new motherboard, or at least some new ram, when on a hunch I....

Today I learned my computer won't finish its boot up memory test if my cell phone is connected via USB.
 
We had a research seminar (I think is was about testicular cancer or something) that mentioned that effect. Anyhow, my wife tried it out on me when we got home. :unibrow: Science!
Mmhmm.

I recall my friend in med school saying, "We just learned about this test, the cremasteric reflex, and..." And I said, "Oh, I've done that, but not to test for anything..."
 
TIL: Alton Brown was the Director of Photography for the video for The One I Love by R.E.M.

I had the same reaction when I learned that the accordion player for Flogging Molly and my favorite street skater were one in the same. Mr. Matt Hensley.
 
Today I learned that Star Trek featured the first interracial kiss on television between Kirk and Uhura. Apparently this was common knowledge that I was unaware of.
 
Today I learned that Star Trek featured the first interracial kiss on television between Kirk and Uhura. Apparently this was common knowledge that I was unaware of.
Also, William Shatner and Nichelle Nichols were supposed to film two versions of the scene, one with the kiss, and one without, just in case some some TV networks or regions balked at the interracial kiss. However, they deliberately screwed up every take of the no-kiss version.
 
Also, William Shatner and Nichelle Nichols were supposed to film two versions of the scene, one with the kiss, and one without, just in case some some TV networks or regions balked at the interracial kiss. However, they deliberately screwed up every take of the no-kiss version.
Yeah he made funny faces at the camera in the no kiss version and since he was facing away from the director and towards the camera they didn't know
 
TIL more than I need to know about how to make the absolute best chocolate chip cookies ever.

http://sweets.seriouseats.com/2013/12/the-food-lab-the-best-chocolate-chip-cookies.html

I didn't say it was more than I wanted to know, just more than I needed to know.

--Patrick
If you like this sort of thing, you need to get yourself On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee. It is the book about the science behind basically all foods. It's not a cookbook, mind you; it's a reference book. I would also recommend these two: The Science of Cooking and Cooking for Geeks; these two are cookbooks, but walk you through the hows and whys of reactions in recipes and how to get the best results. The Science of Cooking is a bit drier to read, but the recipes are top-notch, and the sections on cookware are great.
 
If you like this sort of thing, you need to get yourself [book list]
I always have to be careful about stuff like this, because I never know what Kati already owns or "shares" with her dad.
I know she's really Jonesing for Charcuterie right now. I know she has had On Food and Cooking in the house, but I don't know if it was from the library, borrowed from Dad, purchased, dunno.

--Patrick
 
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TIL: Adding even a small amount of fluid to melted chocolate will ruin it through a process called "seizing." Like, it's not even that it will just taste bad, it's physically ruined. With as often as I make baked goods, I'm frankly not quite sure how I've made it this far into my adult life without finding this out before now.

Luckily we had another pack of chocolate that could be melted, so Christmas isn't canceled.
 
The other day, I was reading up on facts about Gremlins. I learned that the set for Kingston Falls (the name of the town in the movie) is the exact same set or sound stage as one of my other favourite movies from the 80s, Back to the Future. The movie theatre seen in both are the same and apparently the bank where Billy works was the fitness studio seen in Back to the Future.

This blows my mind as I had no idea two of my favourite movies were linked in any way.
 
TIL that I can assemble a kid's bicycle using only arm strength and a leatherman.

I also learn that the afore-mentioned bicycle will fit, with training wheels, in the back seat of a Crown Vic.

Now to "find" it on the front porch, having been left there by Santa.

When you're working overnight, you do what you must.
 
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the set for Kingston Falls (the name of the town in the movie) is the exact same set or sound stage as one of my other favourite movies from the 80s, Back to the Future.
That BTtF set (the clock tower/town square) was used again in Bruce Almighty. It's pretty obvious, too. That clock tower is pretty iconic.

--Patrick
 
TIL: You need to apply service pack 4 to sql server 2000 for a pc with windows 7 can connect to it.
 
TDBYIL(The day before yesterday I learned): Deep tissue massage has nothing to do with tissue paper. All this time I have had a weird confused image of how said massage was done, until my best friend who IS a masseuse told me the real meaning. If this definition were a snake, I'd be mummy.
 
The speed of light is defined. It cannot be measured, because it is something we use to measure other things from, so we've simply assigned it a number. Therefore there is no "error" in the speed of light.

The second is also defined. It, too, is not measured, nor does it have an error. It is something that we measure other things from, based on the resonant frequency of the cesium atom.

The length of a meter is defined by the speed of light and the second. So if our ability to time light speed increase by either sensing the light's speed, or more accurately measuring the vibrations of the cesium atom, then what actually changes is not the speed of light, or the period of a second, but every other physical measurement we make, starting with the length of a meter.

You may gain or lose height based on how accurately scientists are able to measure time and the speed of light.
As long as I don't get any shorter, I'm OK with this.
 
That would be the theory of Extra Special Relativity.
Considering that the Standard Kilogram has also changed weight, you may also unexpectedly gain or lose weight due to external factors.

--Patrick
I think the Standard Kilogram is now the only measure that's still based exclusively off a single physical object. From what I understand, they're working on coming up with a more permanent solution based on more mathematical formulas and atoms.
 
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