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2361/
A science fiction writer named Lafayette
Ronald Hubbard invented a sort of do-it-yourself
psychiatry called Dianetics in
1950. To avoid litigation, he changed this to the self-proclaimed "religion," Scientology,
in 1955. Scientology makes
use of a simple galvanometer (called an "E-meter" by Hubbard).
Two empty tin cans (some models of which they sell
for over £2500!) are wired to a battery and to
a gauge. When a person holds a can in each hand, the
needle registers the skin's varying resistance to the
battery's current. An "auditor" (a
person somewhat further up the ladder than the patient
or "pre-clear" who
is holding the cans) asks questions, and when the needle
wiggles, supposedly a matter of the gravest importance
is being suppressed. (Money problems most likely I
would guess)
Editor's
Note - I myself had a 'run-in' with a 'scientologist'
recently and spent a good while explaining to him
why no-one should be giving his organisation the time
of day. Do yourself a BIG favour
and MAKE TIME to visit
the fabulous site set-up by Andreas Heldal-Lund called Operation
Clambake at http://www.xenu.net/.
Funny name, but a very serious subject that explores
what scientology is
really about. Check it
out.
2362/
If the Earth could not radiate energy
away into the near-vacuum of space, heat from radioactive
elements would build up until the planet melted.
Since the Earth can radiate surplus energy, its temperature would drop to absolute
zero ( -460 degrees F) if it were not also receiving energy through space in
the form of electromagnetic radiation from the sun.
2363/
Electromagnetic energy exists as waves, with an extremely wide range of wavelengths.
Gamma rays, which are produced by atomic decay, have the shortest wavelengths.
Next are X-rays, with wavelengths of around 1/250,000,000,000 inch to 1/25,000,000
inch.
2364/
The wavelengths between X-rays and about 1/64,000 inch are called ultraviolet
radiation.
2365/
Wavelengths from 1/25 inch to several
miles can be grouped as radio waves.
2366/ Finally, our eyes
respond to the narrow band from 1/30,000 inch to 1/64,000
inch, which we call light. The wavelengths in this band
are perceived as different colours, with 1/30,000 inch
being red and 1/64,000 inch being violet.
2367/
During the day, there is an upper limit to the distance at which objects can
be discerned on the earth's surface that is about 200 miles under ideal
conditions.
2368/ Because the Allies
would not sell helium to Germany, the Germans were forced
to rely on hydrogen as the lifting gas in their Zeppelins,
Hydrogen, being the lightest element, is the ultimate
lifting gas and, being flammable, can be used for fuel
as well. Its flammability, of course, is what led to
the destruction of the Hindenburg at Lakehurst, New Jersey,
in 1937.
2369/
Consider a raindrop falling from 10,000 feet. In a vacuum, it would arrive at
the ground with a velocity in excess of 565 miles per hour.
That's positively lethal, but in the actual situation, the small size and weight
of a raindrop and the presence of the atmosphere limit its terminal velocity
to only about 15 miles per hour.
2370/
The terminal speed of a baseball
is about 95 miles per hour.
2371/
It was not until 1906 that Congress in the USA got around to passing a law that
required a modicum of accuracy on patent medicine labels.
Until then, anybody could market any brand of snake oil
that promised to cure any ailment from baldness to catarrh.
2372/ The sky is blue
because tiny air molecules reflect blue light more effectively
than the other colours, "scattering" it by reflecting
it back and forth between molecules. When we see a bright
sun in a blue sky, the longer wavelengths of light are
coming almost directly through the atmosphere to us,
but the blue light has been bounced all over the place.
It is coming at us from all directions, and so a bright sky
seems uniformly blue.
2373/
Sunlight contains the whole spectrum of visible light. Since it is a mixture
of all the colors, it appears to be white, or nearly so. But when the sun is
low in the morning and evening, the light must travel a longer pathway through
the atmosphere than it does at noon. Because light of longer wavelengths can
do this more easily, the sun--and the sky near it--appear orange or red.
2374/ To duplicate the airflow pattern of a full-size car around a 1/10 scale model, a wind velocity 10 times as great as the actual highway speed must be used.
2375/
The silver was eliminated from common U.S. coins in 1968.
2376/
Athelstan, King of Wessex from 925 to 935, ordained
that the penalty for forgery (counterfeiting currency) should be the loss of
only one hand. Under such royal leniency, matters got
worse. So in 1125, King Henry I, by some circuitous reasoning,
called in almost 100 mint officials to the castle and
chopped a hand off each of them.
2377/ The Chinese during
medieval times
took a somewhat different approach. After having failed to stem the tide of forgery
they instead hired the most skillful forgers for the
royal mint!
2378/ The Golden Ratio consists of the two numbers 1.618034 and 0.618034, each of which is the reciprocal of the other. Rectangles with sides proportioned 0.618034 to 1 (or 1 to 1.618034) are often the shape taken by such commonplace items as picture frames and playing cards.
2379/ The earliest evidence of human appreciation for the pleasing qualities of these proportions is found in the pyramids at Giza, which appear to have been built with a 5 to 8 ratio between height and base. This is a close approximation (0.625) to the "perfect" ratio, although scholars disagree over whether the Egyptians were actually aware of it.
2380/ Platinum has a
much higher melting point than Gold - 3,216 degrees F.
- as compared with 1,944 F. for gold.
Click on the links below for more great
facts...
More
next week...
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