Ringclock.swf (application/x-shockwave-flash Object) Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Pythagorean cup. Cross section Cross section of a Pythagorean cup. A Pythagorean cup (also known as a Pythagoras cup, a Greedy Cup or a Tantalus cup) is a form of drinking cup that forces its user to imbibe only in moderation. Credited to Pythagoras of Samos, it allows the user to fill the cup with wine up to a certain level.
If he fills the cup only to that level, the imbiber may enjoy a drink in peace. If he exhibits gluttony, however, the cup spills its entire contents out of the bottom (onto the lap of the immodest drinker).[1] Form and function[edit] A Pythagorean cup looks like a normal drinking cup, except that the bowl has a central column in it – giving it a shape like a Bundt pan in the center of the cup. When the cup is filled, liquid rises through the second pipe up to the chamber at the top of the central column, following Pascal's principle of communicating vessels.
Common occurrences[edit] A Pythagorean cup sold in Crete A Pythagorean cup sold in Samos See also[edit] References[edit] Science stunts for parties. Seventeen Ways to Tie Your Shoelaces | Pictures. A Well-Planned Retirement - And no one even knows his name. Outside England's Bristol Zoo there is a parking lot for 150 cars and 8 buses. For 25 years, its parking fees were managed by a very pleasant attendant.
The fees were £1 for cars ($1.40), £5 for busses (about $7). Then, one day, after 25 solid years of never missing a day of work, he just didn't show up; so the Zoo Management called the City Council and asked it to send them another parking agent. The Council did some research and replied that the parking lot was the Zoo's own responsibility. The Zoo advised the Council that the attendant was a City employee. The City Council responded that the lot attendant had never been on the City payroll. Meanwhile, sitting in his villa somewhere on the coast of Spain (or some such scenario), is a man who'd apparently had a ticket machine installed completely on his own; and then had simply begun to show up every day, commencing to collect and keep the parking fees, estimated at about $560 per day -- for 25 years. And no one even knows his name. Tips For Talking To Police Searching Your Computer or Phone.