Today I Learned / Discovered…

TIL that the ‘drop of a hat’ line in the theme tune to Fingermouse is a pun.

What have you learned or discovered today?

The modern version of PMQs – with the Prime Minister answering questions on everything, rather than immediately referring qs to relevant secretaries of state – originated with Thatcher, who started doing it to exert her primacy over the whole cabinet.

TIL that Fingermouse had a best forgotten solo career post Fingerbobs.

I had no idea either. It might have been good though! I don’t remember ever seeing it.

All Canadian airport codes begin with the character Y. This is because their radio stations call signs all began with Y so when airports were invented they chose to continue the convention.

You’d think they would all end in “ey” instead

All Canadian airport codes begin with the character Y

Or a C… because today’s the day you learn that most airports have two codes, one 4 character that’s used for air traffic control (the ICAO code eg EGLL is Heathrow) and a 3 character code that’s used for baggage and ticketing (the IATA code eg LHR for Heathrow). Some countries, including Canada, just append a country code to the front of the IATA code to give the ICAO code so the codes for Vancouver are YVR or CYVR.

All Canadian airport codes begin with the character Y. This is because their radio stations call signs all began with Y so when airports were invented they chose to continue the convention.

Not quite true! 25 regional Canadian airport codes start with ‘Z’ – I’ve flown into one of them!

Listening to history podcast I learned that the “Puritans” didn’t called themselves that, they referred to each other as the “Godly”, other’s called them (at the time) Separatists, and they left the UK to go to Holland first, which they left because Holland had too much religious freedom for them to tolerate, and they didn’t like their children learning Dutch.

On scouting about, when they landed at Plymouth Rock, they came across some native graves, which they uncovered, and robbed for the corn that was buried alongside the dead, and the first actual live native that they met; Squanto, could speak passable English, he went to England, and when he came back, he found that most of his tribe had been killed by plague.

Blue lotus flowers are psychoactive and the Egyptians used to add it to their wine for funsies.

I’ve spent half the day at a lunch and talk by Joann Fletcher learning about all sorts of similar useful things.

We could post anything at all by Tom Scott here. Every day is a schoolday.

The oldest human remains in Britain were found in Boxgrove West Sussex. They date from around 480,000 years ago.

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2020/aug/analysis-boxgrove-how-we-found-europes-oldest-bone-tools-and-what-we-learned-about-their

Bubbles in pee is a thing that could be of concern.

A normal airfield traffic circuit is flown to the left by default and isn’t signed
If it changes to a right-hand pattern then a sign is laid out

I learnt about the Blue Lotus Flowers as well, but it was on What We Do In The Shadows and I didn’t realise it was true.

That ‘learned’ is more North American and ‘learnt’ is more British.

That a homophone is always a homonym but a homonym is not always a homophone. Because it could be a homograph.

My nine year old rolled her eyes at my stupidity.

The Japanese language has no word for “paper cut”.

My nine year old rolled her eyes at my stupidity.

It’s scary how they know all of the names for all the languagey things nowadays isn’t it?

thols2
Free Member
The Japanese language has no word for “paper cut”.

Pēpākatto (ペーパーカット)

Pēpākatto (ペーパーカット)

Does not mean the same as the English expression “paper cut”. This is a Japanese ペーパーカット. It’s for cutting paper, it’s not a cut inflicted by paper.

Damn, now I’m plagued with endless ads for Japanese office equipment.

The Japanese language has no word for “paper cut”.
And neither does Englih.😉

“Shut yer gob” originates from mining. It refers to filling a mined area back up with deads in order to control air flow

Even a corporate edict can be transcended when the Directors wife wants to steal your glory.

Reading, and enjoying ‘Revolution: How the Bicycle Reinvented Modern Britain’ by William Manners, I’ve discovered why Jasper is called a ‘Pathracer’ bicycle. Path was the old Victorian / Edwardian name for velodrome track, but a Pathracer was a track bike that was modified for the road with freehub and coaster brake. I did not know that.

Jasper, earlier in the year…

Speaking of airports, I learned recently that the runway numbers aren’t random, they’re approximate headings: e.g. runway 22 is at roughly 220deg. They’re referenced to magnetic north, so occasionally they need to be changed.

Reading, and enjoying ‘Revolution: How the Bicycle Reinvented Modern Britain’ by William Manners

Sounds fascinating, will be ordering a copy of that. Fine bicycle BTW.

Airports charge landing fees, but all the take-offs are free.

It’s scary how they know all of the names for all the languagey things nowadays isn’t it?

As someone with an A grade O level in English language, why have they taught my kids all this shit I never learnt or needed?

Airports charge landing fees, but all the take-offs are free.

I learnt that many years ago when someone leant me a cassette tape of a very funny after dinner speech by an air traffic controller. I need to trawl the Internet and see if it exists anywhere

I learnt that many years ago when someone leant me a cassette tape of a very funny after dinner speech by an air traffic controller. I need to trawl the Internet and see if it exists anywhere

That’s where I got it from too!

.

Speaking of airports, I learned recently that the runway numbers aren’t random, they’re approximate headings

Which then means that (most) airports technically have twice as many ‘runways’ as you think because for instance a pilot at Heathrow could be told to use 27L, 09R, 27R or 09L depending on whether the airport is operating to the East or West. So those two strips of concrete/tarmac/whatever actually count as four ‘runways’ in air traffic terms.

“Shut yer gob” originates from mining. It refers to filling a mined area back up with deads in order to control air flow

That sounds like an urban myth to me.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_coal_mining_terminology#G

The goaf, gove, gob, shut or waste is the void from which all the coal in a seam has been extracted and where the roof is allowed to collapse in a controlled manner.[1][20]The term possibly comes from Welsh language ogof, gof, “cave”.

But

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gob

From Middle English gobben, gabben (“to drink greedily”), of uncertain origin.

The original Chromecast model number was H2G2-42 – a likely reference to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

HtS – excellent, thank you

The tubes and pipes on the Starship Enterprise are labelled with a GNDN number.

GNDN meaning Goes Nowhere, Does Nothing.

Star Trek trivia – GNDN meaning

I Did Not Know That.

The crawl spaces are called Jeffries Tubes. Named after set designer Matt Jeffries.

Today I discovered this is a thing… what a great but simple Idea!

https://odditymall.com/crapstrap-hands-free-tree-pooping-strap

It’s basically just a strap/ratchet… but It’s a QOL boost for sure hahah!

I learned where the secret door in the library is after working here for the last week.