The Dirty Etymology of 9 Everyday Words. Within our lexicon lives a library of forgotten stories, developed over centuries and tucked away in words.
Thanks to the dirty impulses of our forefathers, quite a few of them also contain filthy chapters, making us the unwittingly foul-mouthed butt of their humor. Here are some of our language’s naughtier practical jokes. 1. Orchid Oops, you just said: Testicles Take a look at certain orchids’ roots, and you’ll probably notice that they look like testicles. 2. Oops, you just said: Pig’s vagina The word “porcelain” comes from the material’s Italian name, porcellana, which literally translates as a “cowrie shell” and refers to porcelain’s similarly smooth surface. 3.
Julie Spira: Cell Phone Etiquette. We know that digital manners could probably use some improvement, as three out of four people think cell phone etiquette has gotten worse in the past two years.
But did you know that 10 percent of singles under 25 text during sex and 15 percent of adults actually answer their mobile phone during sex? This latest infographic from OnlineCollege.org shows that 3.5 million text messages are sent per minute. It's no wonder that people everywhere are breaking the Rules of Netiquette without knowing there were even rules to begin with. Eavesdropping on someone's conversation on their mobile phone isn't a challenge anymore as it appears that people talk three times louder while using their cell phones. As a netiquette expert, it doesn't surprise me that 90 percent of cell phone users think they have good mobile manners.
Remember, your mobile phone isn't always an accessory and you shouldn't go into a panic attack if your battery dies. 11 New Uses for Old Churches. With so many churches around the world, it stands to reason that some will end up unused from time to time. But there's no reason to call in the demo crew. There are a lot of good ways to repurpose the House of God. 1. Restaurant & Brewery The Church Brew Works in Pittsburgh pays special homage to the former occupant of its location with a beer called Pious Monk. 2. Image credit: City-Data Kids were actually encouraged to run and scream in the church after the South Williamsport (PA) Methodist Church was converted into an indoor maze of playgrounds , slides, climbing walls and video games.
10 Shocking Secrets of Flight Attendants. By Heather Poole Heather Poole has worked for a major carrier for more than 15 years and is the author of Cruising Attitude: Tales of Crashpads, Crew Drama, and Crazy Passengers at 35,000 Feet.
We begged Poole to reveal 10 workplace secrets. (In return, we promised to buy her something nice from SkyMall.) You know all that preflight time where we’re cramming bags into overhead bins? None of that shows up in our paychecks. Airlines aren’t completely heartless, though. 11 Weird and Wonderful Webcams. In the go-go 90s, the Internet was new and we were all excited about the potential of "webcams," a new technology allowing tiny images, almost-live, to be viewed online. Nearly twenty years after the advent of the technology, the bloom is off the webcam rose, and today the webcam landscape is a bit barren. But fear not, dear reader: I've combed through the remaining sites and collected 11 fun webcams for your amusement (and/or bemusement). Fire up Mosaic and follow me! 1. Live Bubbles On Command One of the more technically impressive webcams is the Garden Bubble Cam .
The technical explanation is impressive (the bubble sprayer holds seven gallons of bubble solution!) 2. This cam looks into a London flat through a keyhole. Why Some Civil War Soldiers Glowed in the Dark. By the spring of 1862, a year into the American Civil War, Major General Ulysses S.
Grant had pushed deep into Confederate territory along the Tennessee River. Random, Interesting, Amazing Facts - Fun Quizzes and Trivia - Mental Floss. 15 Wonderful Words With No English Equivalent. The Global Language Monitor estimates that there are currently 1,009,753 words in the English language. Despite this large lexicon, many nuances of human experience still leave us tongue-tied.
And that’s why sometimes it’s necessary to turn to other languages to find le mot juste . Here are fifteen foreign words with no direct English equivalent. The 11 Geekiest Tattoos Ever Inked. 1. Shoulder to Shoulder Math Equations Anyone who claims tattoos are for idiots should take up their issues with Joe, a molecular biophysicist/biochemist . While there are plenty of math tattoos out there, this one is special thanks to the sheer quantity of space given up in prime tattoo real estate.
In case you were wondering, the first line is the Born Oppenheimer Approximation, the second is the same equation in the form of a 3-Dimensional Schrödinger Equation, and the final line is the solution in the form of a Schrödinger Equation. 2. Yes, this particular blue screen text, from a Windows 98 OS, may already be outdated, but Paul, the tattooee, wanted to reflect how fleeting technology can be in our modern lives.