Let’s hear it for element number 83 on the periodic table, BISMUTH!
It may sound more like a Cornish fishing village, but this brittle pinkish metal actually lends its name to a famous product – Pepto-Bismol, soother of sore tums the world over. It has been used as a medical ingredient for curing indigestion for over a century.
It’s the bismuth! (business)
Monday, 20 September 2010
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
Tuesday, 14 September 2010
Fast Food
Ever eaten something fast? Of course you have. Perhaps you found yourself cramming a prawn and mayonnaise sandwich into your maw, as you hurried to a court appearance. Or maybe you were forced to hastily swallow a mouthful of broccoli when you thought of something witty to say during a family dinner.
But did you know that, by eating so fast, you were engaging in an act of TACHYPHAGIA? That is the posh word for eating fast.
But did you know that, by eating so fast, you were engaging in an act of TACHYPHAGIA? That is the posh word for eating fast.
Monday, 13 September 2010
Thursday, 9 September 2010
Bringing Cess-y Back
For a long time, the fact pond has been little more than a muddy puddle.
BUT HERE COMES A THUNDERSTORM.
Picture, if you will, a common train track. You've got the tracks themselves; those marvellous wooden sleepers in between the tracks; and of course, the loveable rogue that is the ballast or gravel, snugly filling the gaps and spilling onto the ballast shoulder, either side.
But that bit just beyond the ballast shoulder - the bare earth section where workers stand when a train rattles past - what's that called?
It's called a CESS. That's right. A cess. "Stand on the cess, Cyril, here comes the train." That's what a railwayman might say to his pal, as the 10:07 to Totteridge and Whetstone hoves into view.
I have enjoyed a number of romantic liaisons with total strangers in train toilets, after imparting this fact to them. Try it!
BUT HERE COMES A THUNDERSTORM.
Picture, if you will, a common train track. You've got the tracks themselves; those marvellous wooden sleepers in between the tracks; and of course, the loveable rogue that is the ballast or gravel, snugly filling the gaps and spilling onto the ballast shoulder, either side.
But that bit just beyond the ballast shoulder - the bare earth section where workers stand when a train rattles past - what's that called?
It's called a CESS. That's right. A cess. "Stand on the cess, Cyril, here comes the train." That's what a railwayman might say to his pal, as the 10:07 to Totteridge and Whetstone hoves into view.
I have enjoyed a number of romantic liaisons with total strangers in train toilets, after imparting this fact to them. Try it!
Friday, 15 May 2009
Catty Country
Sorry about the big paws. To make up for it, here is a fact about small paws.
New Zealand has the highest ownership of cats per capita in the world.
"Alroight brew! Lotts of kitts in en zid, eh!" said a government spokesman, yesterday.
New Zealand has the highest ownership of cats per capita in the world.
"Alroight brew! Lotts of kitts in en zid, eh!" said a government spokesman, yesterday.
Tuesday, 5 May 2009
The Wicket Truth
Where did the first test cricket match take place, PRAY TELL? Was it upon the hallowed turf of Lords? Some dusty, palm-fringed pitch outside old Madras? Perhaps amidst the nascent city centre of Sydney? Nein, nein, and thrice nein. It was in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA, in 1844.
And while you're reeling from this horrendous blow to everything you held dear, have this: the two countries represented were those well-known cricketing hubs, Canada and the USA.
And while you're reeling from this horrendous blow to everything you held dear, have this: the two countries represented were those well-known cricketing hubs, Canada and the USA.
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