Ripper
Зичу Вам успіхів
- Joined
- November 8, 2014
- Messages
- 12,085
"Aphonopelma johnnycashi"
Less amusing, is that false widows seems to have taken a liking to my house, and the area under my bath in particular.
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2014
- Messages
- 12,085
"Aphonopelma johnnycashi"
Less amusing, is that false widows seems to have taken a liking to my house, and the area under my bath in particular.
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pibbur who
Guest
Don't know about Trasher, but my "like" applies to the message, not the fact behind it.
Pibbur who doesn't want spiders named after him, only new elements.
Pibbur who doesn't want spiders named after him, only new elements.
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pibbur who
Guest
So, we've got:
- Boris Yeltsin
- Boris the spider, a russian brand of stout beer.
- Boris Zakharov, a spider researcher
- Boris Johnson
- …
pibbur who, despite trying hard, couldn't find any spider actually named Boris, but who knows about the sea snail Bufonaria borisbeckeri i.
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pibbur who
Guest
Corpse flowers. No, it's not the name of a black/death metal band (AFAIK).
It's a group of plants known for their really bad odor, like the smell of, surprise, surprise rotting flesh. Now, why would a flower choose a smell like that, in stead of a sweet fragrance of nectar? The answer is to attract insects typically found feeding on corpses. For pollination purposes.
One of them is the Amorphophallus titanum. (For some reason the immage link doesn't work, so here's the url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amorphophallus_titanum#/media/File:Titan-arum1web.jpg)
The name, which translates to "giant misshapen penis", derives from the shape of it's flower,. Which BTW is (according to Wikipedia) the "largest unbranched inflorescence in the world", measuring up to 3 meters.
The odor from this plant contains among other, the following ingredients:
Another group of corpse flowers are the orchids in the Bulbophyllum genus. These are said to smell like "a herd of dead elephants", making it "difficult to walk into a greenhouse in which they are being cultivated if the plants are in bloom because of their overpowering floral odor". Which of course begs the question: Why on earth would anyone want to cultivate plants like this? In greenhouses!!! I thought biological weapons were illegal. Apparently they are sought by collectors. Something that probably should be covered in one of the many hoarders-with-problems reality shows.
Now, where does these plants grow? The obvious answer would of course be Australia, but that seems not to be the case. They are mainly found in places like Indonesia, Sumatra, New Guinea… Which after all is the close neighbourhood. And there is one Bulbophyllum fletcherianum in the Melbourne Royal Botanic Gardens.
Typically for these plants is that they rarely flower, it takes years between their episodes of bloom. The one in Melbourne has flowered only 3 times, in 1980, 2002 and 2005. Recently 7 Amorphophallus titanum plants have been found flowering at the same time in the US, which according to this youtube link may be a sign of the, for almost 2000 years, imminent upcoming of end of the world.
pibbur who hopefully smells a bit better.
It's a group of plants known for their really bad odor, like the smell of, surprise, surprise rotting flesh. Now, why would a flower choose a smell like that, in stead of a sweet fragrance of nectar? The answer is to attract insects typically found feeding on corpses. For pollination purposes.
One of them is the Amorphophallus titanum. (For some reason the immage link doesn't work, so here's the url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amorphophallus_titanum#/media/File:Titan-arum1web.jpg)
The name, which translates to "giant misshapen penis", derives from the shape of it's flower,. Which BTW is (according to Wikipedia) the "largest unbranched inflorescence in the world", measuring up to 3 meters.
The odor from this plant contains among other, the following ingredients:
- Dimethyl trisulfide (smells like limburger cheese)
- Trimethylamine (like rotting fish)
- Isovaleric acid (like sweaty socks)
- Phenol (like the analgesic Chloraseptic - "Does anyone else cringe at the smell of chloraseptic spray?")
- Indole (like human feces)
- Dimethyl disulfide (cabbage-like smell, highly disagreeable at even quite low concentrations)
Another group of corpse flowers are the orchids in the Bulbophyllum genus. These are said to smell like "a herd of dead elephants", making it "difficult to walk into a greenhouse in which they are being cultivated if the plants are in bloom because of their overpowering floral odor". Which of course begs the question: Why on earth would anyone want to cultivate plants like this? In greenhouses!!! I thought biological weapons were illegal. Apparently they are sought by collectors. Something that probably should be covered in one of the many hoarders-with-problems reality shows.
Now, where does these plants grow? The obvious answer would of course be Australia, but that seems not to be the case. They are mainly found in places like Indonesia, Sumatra, New Guinea… Which after all is the close neighbourhood. And there is one Bulbophyllum fletcherianum in the Melbourne Royal Botanic Gardens.
Typically for these plants is that they rarely flower, it takes years between their episodes of bloom. The one in Melbourne has flowered only 3 times, in 1980, 2002 and 2005. Recently 7 Amorphophallus titanum plants have been found flowering at the same time in the US, which according to this youtube link may be a sign of the, for almost 2000 years, imminent upcoming of end of the world.
pibbur who hopefully smells a bit better.
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pibbur who
Guest
Been there, done that. We've all (well, some of us) had accidents involving (usually unintended) close encounters between cell phones and toilets. From my personal experience (with an iPhone), said devices aren't too happy about this, and may refuse to operate as expected afterwards. At least here in Norway, loosing cell phones in toilets is a relatively common explanation behind assurance claims, some of them even legit.
Usually, damage is limited to the phone. But not always. Here's the story of Cato, who in order to help his somewhat overweight cell-phone-lost-in-toilet-friend, jumped into said facility. Now this was an old-fashion toilet, no water for flushing, instead the droppings dropped into a tank, which he knew. But said tank was emptied only once a year. Which he didn't know. So, after picking up the phone, he found himself stuck up to his thighs in matured dung, with more than two meters up to the opening by which he entered. So he couldn't get out, which turned out to be a rather unpleasant experience, smelly and yecky. And there were large, unspecified, animals down there.
After 1 hour the fire departement came by, and got him out of it. But only after some serious surgical intervention on the toilet, unfortunately rendering it useless.
In some ways dropping a phone in a toilet like is still better than dropping it in a regular one, since the thingy most likely will remain on the surface, not drowning. So, all in all, a happy ending.
pibbur who realizes that the story does not say what type of poo (of the ones presented by the Eye) were present, most likely there were many different ones. He won't go down to find out.
Usually, damage is limited to the phone. But not always. Here's the story of Cato, who in order to help his somewhat overweight cell-phone-lost-in-toilet-friend, jumped into said facility. Now this was an old-fashion toilet, no water for flushing, instead the droppings dropped into a tank, which he knew. But said tank was emptied only once a year. Which he didn't know. So, after picking up the phone, he found himself stuck up to his thighs in matured dung, with more than two meters up to the opening by which he entered. So he couldn't get out, which turned out to be a rather unpleasant experience, smelly and yecky. And there were large, unspecified, animals down there.
After 1 hour the fire departement came by, and got him out of it. But only after some serious surgical intervention on the toilet, unfortunately rendering it useless.
In some ways dropping a phone in a toilet like is still better than dropping it in a regular one, since the thingy most likely will remain on the surface, not drowning. So, all in all, a happy ending.
pibbur who realizes that the story does not say what type of poo (of the ones presented by the Eye) were present, most likely there were many different ones. He won't go down to find out.
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GothicGothicness
SasqWatch
- Joined
- October 25, 2006
- Messages
- 6,292
Good for him the cellphone wasn't broken, otherwise I guess he could not have called the fire department....
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2006
- Messages
- 6,292
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pibbur who
Guest
Yes. Shows how dependent we are of these devices (from hell), how useful they are.
pibbur who after this, will never go down into a tank full of poo without a working cell phone.
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pibbur who
Guest
A ganglion is a collection of nerve cells outside the central nervous system (CNS), that is the brain and the spinal cord. They are mostly (but not completely) associated with the autonomic system which control our internal organs. We have for instance lots of them in the wall of the intestines.
Unfortunately, and a bit confusing, the term "ganglion" is also used for lumps near joints and tendons, caused by leakage of fluids from the spaces surrounding these structures. They are completely benign and usually require no treatment. But if they cause practical problems for patients, they can be removed surgically.
Another term used for this type of ganglion is "Bible cyst". Why? Because they also have been treated by the Word of God, in the shape of a large heavy book used to strike the lesions. This would cause them to rupture and quite often they didn't come back. Admittedly the Q'uran could probably also be used, in fact any large heavy book. Gray's Anatomy comes to mind (Below is the one owned by me). The treatment is no longer recommended (probably not for religious reasons).
Btw: Another Biblical name for it is "Gideon's disease", after Gideon in the Book of Judges.
pibbur who wonders if a hammer could be used as well. He has a couple of these ganglia (on his left index finger), Hammers as well, even a sledgehammer, so… *ponders*
PS. Gray's anatomy is THE book of anatomy. First published in 1858, followed by numerous revised edtions - the current one, published in 2015, is number 41. Mine is number 35, published in 1973. I think it's the only book from med school I've kept. And yes, Grey's Anatomy with an 'e' (TV series) refers to the name of the book". DS.
Unfortunately, and a bit confusing, the term "ganglion" is also used for lumps near joints and tendons, caused by leakage of fluids from the spaces surrounding these structures. They are completely benign and usually require no treatment. But if they cause practical problems for patients, they can be removed surgically.
Another term used for this type of ganglion is "Bible cyst". Why? Because they also have been treated by the Word of God, in the shape of a large heavy book used to strike the lesions. This would cause them to rupture and quite often they didn't come back. Admittedly the Q'uran could probably also be used, in fact any large heavy book. Gray's Anatomy comes to mind (Below is the one owned by me). The treatment is no longer recommended (probably not for religious reasons).
Btw: Another Biblical name for it is "Gideon's disease", after Gideon in the Book of Judges.
pibbur who wonders if a hammer could be used as well. He has a couple of these ganglia (on his left index finger), Hammers as well, even a sledgehammer, so… *ponders*
PS. Gray's anatomy is THE book of anatomy. First published in 1858, followed by numerous revised edtions - the current one, published in 2015, is number 41. Mine is number 35, published in 1973. I think it's the only book from med school I've kept. And yes, Grey's Anatomy with an 'e' (TV series) refers to the name of the book". DS.
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pibbur who
Guest
tl,dr: some useless gender stereotyping.
For couples that for some reason want children, but have problems initiating necessary intra-uterine development, determining the time of ovulation may prove useful. There are several parameters available. One is measuring hormone levels, especially the lutinizing hormone and levels of progesterone. Another one is measuring body temperature as it tends to increase at peak conceivability. Some people find this to be simpler. But you have to measure the parameter everyday, which can be cumbersome.
Another measure is descibed in the paper "Ovulation, Female Competition, and Product Choice: Hormonal Influences on Consumer Behavior", published in the "Journal of Consumer Research": Make her buy shoes. Why? Because females have a tendency to buy shoes with higher heels at the moment of interest. Now, this is easy, you only need a one time measure of her collections, and then examine the new ones when she returns. This may also put her in a more exciteable mood, since, according to unreliable rumours, women are known for hoarding said equipment. Doesn't apply to all women though. I usually don't observe that part of her body closely, but I don't think the wife has any high-heeled devices. She collects bags.
Speaking of clothes and accessories. I just read a piece in our local newspaper, about how to keep husbands under control. Several issues were mentioned, some of them useful, most of them meaningless. One in particular caught my attention. Rule number 4: "Make him renew his wardrobe regularly". As a man I in general find this ridiculous, and I may react hostilely to attempts at enforcing it. Still the wife tries that all the time, I'm proud to say with little (no) success.
This year I've (intentionally) lost so far 19 kg of body weight. Which means that trousers and shirts that at one time had a tendency to obstruct respiration and bowel movements, now are very comfortable. Unfortunately, this also means that the wife is now on overdrive, requesting that I get something more fitting. I'm not sure what she means by that. When it for instance comes to trousers, I have a couple of simple, rational rules, the most important one is that they must have 3 holes, so I can get into them. And I throw them away when they have twice as many (to some degree depending on location). So I'll keep my trousers. Resistence is futile.
I promise she won't get away with this. Hah!!!
pibbur who suspects that she may resort to dirty tricks, by sneakingly removing assets from where he expects to find them (in the wardrobe, on the floor, in a basket somewhere, and near the washing machine. Probably several other places as well). He has a long list of objects she has made him lose.
For couples that for some reason want children, but have problems initiating necessary intra-uterine development, determining the time of ovulation may prove useful. There are several parameters available. One is measuring hormone levels, especially the lutinizing hormone and levels of progesterone. Another one is measuring body temperature as it tends to increase at peak conceivability. Some people find this to be simpler. But you have to measure the parameter everyday, which can be cumbersome.
Another measure is descibed in the paper "Ovulation, Female Competition, and Product Choice: Hormonal Influences on Consumer Behavior", published in the "Journal of Consumer Research": Make her buy shoes. Why? Because females have a tendency to buy shoes with higher heels at the moment of interest. Now, this is easy, you only need a one time measure of her collections, and then examine the new ones when she returns. This may also put her in a more exciteable mood, since, according to unreliable rumours, women are known for hoarding said equipment. Doesn't apply to all women though. I usually don't observe that part of her body closely, but I don't think the wife has any high-heeled devices. She collects bags.
Speaking of clothes and accessories. I just read a piece in our local newspaper, about how to keep husbands under control. Several issues were mentioned, some of them useful, most of them meaningless. One in particular caught my attention. Rule number 4: "Make him renew his wardrobe regularly". As a man I in general find this ridiculous, and I may react hostilely to attempts at enforcing it. Still the wife tries that all the time, I'm proud to say with little (no) success.
This year I've (intentionally) lost so far 19 kg of body weight. Which means that trousers and shirts that at one time had a tendency to obstruct respiration and bowel movements, now are very comfortable. Unfortunately, this also means that the wife is now on overdrive, requesting that I get something more fitting. I'm not sure what she means by that. When it for instance comes to trousers, I have a couple of simple, rational rules, the most important one is that they must have 3 holes, so I can get into them. And I throw them away when they have twice as many (to some degree depending on location). So I'll keep my trousers. Resistence is futile.
I promise she won't get away with this. Hah!!!
pibbur who suspects that she may resort to dirty tricks, by sneakingly removing assets from where he expects to find them (in the wardrobe, on the floor, in a basket somewhere, and near the washing machine. Probably several other places as well). He has a long list of objects she has made him lose.
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I disapprove of the name of this thread.
Tomas who thinks alot of the facts in this thread are pretty damn awesome and somewhat hilarious.
Tomas who thinks alot of the facts in this thread are pretty damn awesome and somewhat hilarious.
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pibbur who
Guest
Thanks. I'm quite happy with the results so far.
It started when my doctor told me that my blood sugar approached diabetic levels, which really p''''d me off. No way I was going to become a diabetic!!!!
And that was the kick I needed.
pibbur who has still got a few kilos to get rid of, but his blood sugar level is as it should be now.
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pibbur who
Guest
Heh. There are two similar threads, the science thread and the "things you might like to know" thread. What's posted where is mostly left to the poster's discretion. But in general, things that might be awarded a Nobel prize should go to the science thread. And things that might be awarded an Ignobel prize goes here.
What should be posted in the TYMLTK thread is anyone's guess.
pibbur who appreciates the appreciation
Thrasher
Wheeee!
My triglycerides were through the roof, so I had a similar situation. Lost of about 8 pounds (nothing compared to 19 kg), and cut out carbs for a few months, and that brought them down to normal. Vacation reversed that a bit though.
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pibbur who
Guest
Good.
Ahh, vacations. They tend to do that, don't they. But you know what worked for you, so it's possible to rereverse.
Good luck.
pibbur who chose other methods to go down, those worked for him.
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pibbur who
Guest
The spotted pardalote aka "Pardalotus punctatus" is a tiny, tiny bird with a supposedly big, big voice. It knows the importance of not being seen. But not the importance of not being heard. During breeding season (Duck Season!!!!!) it utters a very characteristic song. Again and again and …
Like this:
while(true) {spottedPardalote.sing();}
This is said to be very annoying, so annoying that the bird is unofficially called the "headache bird".
Here it is:
Hmm… Didn't hear much annoying bird song there. What we do hear is a very annoying commentator.
Let's try again:
Hmmm Doesn't seem particular annoying to me. Then again, if you hear it continuously 24/7… maybe.
pibbur who leaves it to the audience to guess where the bird is nesting. The answer is obvious.
Like this:
while(true) {spottedPardalote.sing();}
This is said to be very annoying, so annoying that the bird is unofficially called the "headache bird".
Here it is:
Hmm… Didn't hear much annoying bird song there. What we do hear is a very annoying commentator.
Let's try again:
Hmmm Doesn't seem particular annoying to me. Then again, if you hear it continuously 24/7… maybe.
pibbur who leaves it to the audience to guess where the bird is nesting. The answer is obvious.
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Wabbit season!!!
E
Eye
Guest
As you all know the beard is back - pity if you ask me.
Nevertheless, the history of the beard is quite interesting:
Beards, Past and Present.
The "Piccadilly Weepers", or "Mutton chops", are awful to see but best to kiss if you ask me, no distracting crumbs or tickling hairs.
My favourite: "La mouche"/"A la royale", because somehow I always assume the man wearing it is well-mannered.
Most fascinating: Mesopotamian beard style.
Nevertheless, the history of the beard is quite interesting:
Beards, Past and Present.
The "Piccadilly Weepers", or "Mutton chops", are awful to see but best to kiss if you ask me, no distracting crumbs or tickling hairs.
My favourite: "La mouche"/"A la royale", because somehow I always assume the man wearing it is well-mannered.
Most fascinating: Mesopotamian beard style.