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Geek Culture / Random, strange facts of the world...

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Jacava
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Posted: 2nd Oct 2004 18:24
Anybody got anything weird-but-true to put here? 4 simple rules:
1. Nothing personal.
2. Nothing provocative.
3. Must be a little-known fact, or this is gonna get boring.
4. Must be true.

To start off with:
"Most toilets flush in E-Flat."

(The Book of Useless Information - An official Useless Information Society Publication)

Simple.
Mentor
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Location: United Kingdom
Posted: 2nd Oct 2004 23:41
out of a group of 41 people the odds are that at least two people will share the same birthday

http://www.csicop.org/si/9809/coincidence.html

Mentor.

PC1: P4 3ghz, 1gig mem, 3x160gig hd`s, Radeon 9800pro w cooler (3rd gfx card), 6 way speakers.
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Mini ATX cases suck.
Teh Go0rfmeister
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Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 00:34
what about on a leap year?

In austria theres a town called "f**king" which is actually pronounce "fooking" which comes from the 6th century, as its founder was called "focko".

this town has a major sign-stealing problem

Neofish
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Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 00:36
heh heh, where is it exactly?

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Zero Blitzt
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Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 01:58



Come to #coding. We promise we wont kick you!
DISCLAIMER: Promises may not actually be upheld.
Ian T
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Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 02:01
There's a city called Pis Pis Lake/River (forget) in China, too

[center]
"Humans are useless they can only give you questions."
Teh Go0rfmeister
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Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 04:26
i've been to f*cking austria!!!

well.. no i havent...

pis is japanese for hello or something like that. you'll find jokes about it on takeshis castle a lot.

Killswitch
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Location: School damnit!! Let me go!! PLEASE!!!
Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 07:52
You are more likely to be killed by your trousers than in a plane crash.

~It's a common mistake to make, the rules of the English langauge do not apply to insanity~
Manticore Night
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Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 10:25
You can't smell your own smell! Maybe that's why people faint around me.

It's amazing how much TV has raised us. (Bart Simpson)
Flashing Blade
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Posted: 3rd Oct 2004 10:41
In Iceland tipping at a restaurant is considered an insult.


The word "Gullible" cannot be found in any English Dictionary.
Neofish
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 00:29 Edited at: 4th Oct 2004 01:36
So I have to make sure that I tip in Icelanc and no-where else...got it.

EDIT: Not a lot of people know this but...believe it or not, around 1/3 of the Earth's surface is land, they knew about the water but not the land

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Powersoft
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Location: United Kingdom
Posted: 4th Oct 2004 01:59
lol.

1=2 in some cases


Scorched Turf --> Project Thread
flibX0r
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 02:08
2+2=5 for extremely large values of 2

Quote: "1=2 in some cases"


yeah, but usually they're algebraically correct but mathematically incorrect. Eg:



Algebraically its correct, but mathematically incorrect, because you cannot divide both sides by a^2 - ab, because it is equal to 0


Current Project: Cube3 Arena (TGC Compo Entry)
Kentaree
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Location: Clonmel, Ireland
Posted: 4th Oct 2004 02:19
Quote: "
Let a = b
Then a^2 = ab
a^2 + a^2 - 2ab = ab + a^2 - 2ab
2a^2 - 2ab = a^2 - ab
2(a^2 - ab) = 1(a^2 - ab)
2 = 1
"


a^2 + a^2 - 2ab = ab + a^2 - 2ab

This is not algebraicly correct, because ab + a^2 - 2ab = 0, and unless both a and b are 0, a^2 + a^2 - 2ab does not equal 0

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Lost in Thought
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 02:28
OMG not this again lol

flibX0r
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 02:41
@Kentaree

I was just making a point. And i did say that it is not correct. Specifically, I said
Quote: "Algebraically its correct, but mathematically incorrect"
. Its mathematically incorrect because for the algebra to be correct you must evaluate the variables, which is what you said. There is no need for an argument here


Current Project: Cube3 Arena (TGC Compo Entry)
Jeku
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Location: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Posted: 4th Oct 2004 06:31
What is the easternmost state? Alaska.

How about the westernmost? Alaska.

Manticore Night
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 07:22
How about: Spelling number's in english the first "A" you'll write is in the number 1000. In french it's in 4.

It's amazing how much TV has raised us. (Bart Simpson)
Neofish
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 09:19 Edited at: 4th Oct 2004 09:21
un deux E is the fourth!?! unless im confused

EDIT: Oh I see what you mean, the fourth number that it is in...

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BatVink
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 20:56
Flies take off backwards.

remember that next time you want to swat a stationery fly.

BatVink
http://biglaugh.co.uk/catalog AMD 3000+ Barton, 512Mb Ram, 120 Gig Drive space, GeForce 5200 FX 128 Mb, Asus A7N8X Mobo.
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Benjamin
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Posted: 4th Oct 2004 21:15
bears make good pets.

remember that next time you see philip

Peace sells
Jacava
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 01:04
In 1981, a man had a heart attack while playing BERSERK - Currently video gaming's only known fatality.

The longest place name still in use is: Taumatawhakatangihangaoauauotameteaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu - a hill in New Zealand.

Simple.
Chris K
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 01:47
Quote: "unless both a and b are 0, a^2 + a^2 - 2ab does not equal 0"


Just to be annoying -

No, that is true just so long as a=b as said in the first equation. Choosing a=5 and b=5:

5^2 + 5^2 - 2*5*5 = 0

Da da!

It is algerbraically correct.

spooky
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 01:55
Quote: "How about: Spelling number's in english the first "A" you'll write is in the number 1000. In french it's in 4."


I say thats wrong. UK 'English' spell 101 as 'One hundred AND one'

Boo!
Neofish
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:01
lol very clever, but and itsnt a number

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Dazzag
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:24 Edited at: 5th Oct 2004 02:24
Quote: "You can't smell your own smell! Maybe that's why people faint around me."
I tried your theory out today. It was extremely stressful in work and I didn't really have time for anything else but programming. So aided by your insight I soiled myself whilst in the middle of a particularly hard function. I defended myself from the angry mob by constantly repeating your fact, and because I could myself smell a really horrible eggy poo smell, I was in the right that it wasn't me. To cut a long story short I will be suing you for the cost of a new pair of trousers and the loss of my job once I get out of emergency ward C.

Quote: "lol very clever, but and itsnt a number"
Good point. So, how do you spell 101 then?

Cheers

I am 99% probably lying in bed right now... so don't blame me for crappy typing
Neofish
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:27
yes but AND is not used as a number, he was pointing out the spelling of the numbers themselves

+ he means your BO, the smell that is there wether you soil yourself or not + dont ever code near me!

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Dazzag
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:35
Quote: "he means your BO, the smell that is there wether you soil yourself or not + dont ever code near me!"
Rats, should read all posts before I attempt such things....

Quote: "yes but AND is not used as a number, he was pointing out the spelling of the numbers themselves"
Hmmm. Seems a bit naff at this point then. Once a fact has got to have amendments to it to work properly then they aren't anywhere near as good.

Cheers

I am 99% probably lying in bed right now... so don't blame me for crappy typing
Neofish
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:44
Still 4 against 101 is still quite high...

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Dazzag
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:49 Edited at: 5th Oct 2004 02:49
Ach, the French have always got to be awkward. Half of my family come from a welsh town that has no English vowels in it : Ynysybwl. Class. And you don't need a bucket of spit like normal. Christ, just found it even has a website http://www.ynysybwl.com/

Cheers

I am 99% probably lying in bed right now... so don't blame me for crappy typing
Neofish
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:53
lol

but why is it .com - it's welsh thats odd

or .cwm lol

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Dazzag
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:56
Quote: "but why is it .com - it's welsh thats odd"
Yeah. Although .com is company isn't it? And since it costs like peanuts to have a .com rather than a .co.uk or somesuch, then I don't know why people bother, apart from if the .com exists already.

Oh, and being welsh it would more likely be .co.uk than a country code as wales is in the uk.

Cheers

I am 99% probably lying in bed right now... so don't blame me for crappy typing
Neofish
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 02:58
True, but is the town a company? funny if it was....

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Dazzag
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 03:00
Nope. But then I bet a serious percentage of .com are not companies. Mine isn't for example.

Cheers

I am 99% probably lying in bed right now... so don't blame me for crappy typing
BatVink
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 04:58
The big question is, why do the US think they own the right to .com domains? There have been numerous cases where American companies have gone to court on the assumption that .com is an acronym for USA!?!?!?!

Random, Strange fact...the internet TLD for American sites is .us. Anyone seen one yet? Ever?

BatVink
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Teh Go0rfmeister
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 05:26
lol- dam yanquis want it all

i spell is "one hundred n one" btw.

Flashing Blade
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 06:05
The longest MONOPOLY game ever played was 1,680 hours - that's 70 straight days!


The word "Gullible" cannot be found in any English Dictionary.
Chris K
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 07:27
The UK is the best because we have two bits - .co.uk

Andy Igoe
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 09:55
Quote: "EDIT: Not a lot of people know this but...believe it or not, around 1/3 of the Earth's surface is land, they knew about the water but not the land "

Very few people would now 1/3 of the Earth's surface is land. This is because most of them know it to be a quarter, which is 1/4. This is because 1/4 is what is left over from the 3/4 of the Earths surface that is water.

You are more likely to be killed playing Golf than you are playing Paintball.


Which is the biggest tool? The computer, or the muppet who invented it?
Phaelax
DBPro Master
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Location: Metropia
Posted: 5th Oct 2004 11:18
Quote: "heh heh, where is it exactly?"

Latitude (DMS): 48° 2' 60 N
Longitude (DMS): 12° 50' 60 E

Quote: "You can't smell your own smell! Maybe that's why people faint around me."

That's bull. Don't shower for a few days, and if you can't smell your own B.O. by then, you've got problems!

Quote: "In Iceland tipping at a restaurant is considered an insult."

I could learn to love Iceland I think.


Quote: "In 1981, a man had a heart attack while playing BERSERK - Currently video gaming's only known fatality."

Have we forgotten about the Diablo related death that recently happened?

Quote: "the internet TLD for American sites is .us. Anyone seen one yet? Ever?"

Yes actually. mostly used by official government websites.


1. The most popular first name in the world is Muhammad!
2. The Nobel Peace Prize medal depicts three naked men with their hands on each other's shoulders! (interesting)
3. The worlds oldest piece of chewing gum is over 9000 years old! (wonder what that went for on ebay)
4. There are more plastic flamingos in the U.S, than real ones
5. It was once against the law to slam your car door in a city in Switzerland!
6. Of all the words in the English language, the word set has the most definitions!
7. A toothpick is the object most often choked on by Americans! (hahahahahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahaha)

Quote: "bears make good pets."

"In Ohio, one must have a license to keep a bear."


"It is against the law to mispronounce the name of the State of Arkansas in that State."
Sounds like a way to legally bug tourists.

"eureka" - Archimedes
Torrey
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Location: New Jersey
Posted: 5th Oct 2004 14:42
Here's a cool site with fun facts:

http://www.nationmaster.com/facts.php

There should be enough goodies there to keep this thread going a long time.
BearCDPOLD
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Location: AZ,USA
Posted: 5th Oct 2004 15:14
There's this one place in Death Valley or something like it. There are these rocks that move. Nobody goes out and pushes them around, but you go to bed one evening and wake up the next and all the rocks have moved. They're these huge frickin giant bolders, and they move around this area of dirt.

Crazy Donut Productions, Current Project: Project Starbuks
Sony stole our name!
The Videogameaholic
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 15:18 Edited at: 5th Oct 2004 15:20
In USA English, it is "one hundred one." "And" signifies a decimal point as in "one hundred one and one hundredth" (101.01)

.com was originally intended to be a global, generic domain, however more Americans have jumped on it.

.us is used mainly by the government (http://www.state.in.us/) and public schools (http://www.peru.k12.in.us/PHS/). However, some individuals do use it too (http://www.yoshi.us/)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The very first bomb dropped by the Allies on Berlin during World War II killed the only elephant in the Berlin Zoo."

"In 1963, baseball pitcher Gaylord Perry remarked, "They'll put a man on the moon before I hit a home run." On July 20, 1969, a few hours after Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, Gaylord Perry hit his first, and only, home run."

"Despite the many rat-infested slums in New York City, rats bite only 311 people in an average year. But 1,519 residents are bitten annually by other New Yorkers."

"If you are in the ocean and a shark comes up to you, you should pee because the scent will scare it away."

"An ant can lift 50 times its own weight, can pull 30 times its own weight, and always falls over on its right side when intoxicated."

"When the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers play football at home to a sellout crowd, the stadium becomes the state's third largest city."

"The most common place to be bitten by a black widow spider is on the tip of the penis."

"When Bob Marley died, there were 62 species of living creatures found in his hair."

"A Pontiac Sunfire has less air resistance than a stealth bomber."

"The reason firehouses have circular stairways is from the days of yore when the engines were pulled by horses. The horses were stabled on the ground floor and figured out how to walk up straight staircases."

"The fingerprints of koala bears are virtually indistinguishable from those of humans, so much so that they could be confused at a crime scene."

"In England, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak."

"On a Canadian two dollar bill, the flag flying over the Parliament Building is an American flag."

"The Commodore 64 (C-64) was released in early 1982, and quickly became known as a gamer's computer. More than 17,000 games eventually harnessed the awesome power of its 1-MHz CPU, 64-Kb RAM, 320x200 graphics, and 3-channel sound. In some retro geek circles, "Beachhead," "California Games," and "Karateka" are still popular. To others, the C-64 wedge still makes a good doorstop."

RMPVG (Real Men Play Video Games)
Dazzag
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 17:10
Quote: ""one hundred one.""
What you *actually* say that when you say 101????? Arf.

Quote: ""In England, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak.""
Although I think in reality they cannot bring up or argue a subject. They do basically tell people to shut up etc. They control the place or somesuch, like a judge. Otherwise whats the point?

Cheers

I am 99% probably lying in bed right now... so don't blame me for crappy typing
flibX0r
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Location: Western Australia
Posted: 5th Oct 2004 20:08
Quote: "The fingerprints of koala bears are virtually indistinguishable from those of humans"


Just once I wish someone would NOT call them koala bears. They are NOT bears. And they are not cute. They're visious little buggers, and they lead the laziest life in existance (they eat a few gum leaves, and then go into a 2 day coma)

And the Commodore 64 r0x0rz teh big one111!!


Current Project: Cube3 Arena (TGC Compo Entry)
OSX Using Happy Dude
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 20:51
Quote: "More than 17,000 games eventually harnessed the.."

I would have thought it was much more...
The C64 was the best selling home computer, unfortunately now beaten by the PC


Come to the UK Convention on the 23rd & 24th of October
Jacava
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Location: Somewhere. Sometime. Somehow. No Reason.
Posted: 5th Oct 2004 20:58
In 'Saturday Night Fever' in the room with the mirrors, you can see the reflection of the film crew. (Apparently. I've never seen it.)

Simple.
Jacava
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Posted: 5th Oct 2004 22:50
There are 119 ridges along the circumference of a quarter, and 118 around a dime. (Unless it's round a nickel. I don't live in America.)

Simple.
Peter H
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Posted: 6th Oct 2004 00:37
In texas, if you publicly declare three times that somebody is your wife...then by law...they are

no joke

"We make the worst games in the universe."

Dazzag
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Posted: 6th Oct 2004 02:17
Quote: "In texas, if you publicly declare three times that somebody is your wife...then by law...they are"
Erm, I assume with the woman in question not denying it. ie. you say it once and never say it again cos you have to have surgery on your nads. Otherwise I'm coming to visit, and just wait for that bird out of dark angel to walk past.... candyman, candyman... no wait...

Cheers

I am 99% probably lying in bed right now... so don't blame me for crappy typing

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