FrontPage Archive - July 2009
Created | Updated Aug 1, 2009
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1 July 2009
The Birmingham Canal Network - The canal system began in the Black Country in the 18th Century but soon spread throughout the UK.® A Guide to Icelandic Pronunciation - You can learn to pronounce the language very quickly, even if you haven't a clue what you are saying.
® Greyhounds - These dogs are built to be fast and have been recorded as reaching speeds of up to 41.83 miles per hour.
QOTD: Can he actually win Wimbledon?
2 July 2009
The Boston Smallpox Epidemic of 1775 - 1776 - During the epidemic, thoughts were on the American Revolutionary War.® Cooking with Carrots: Victorian Style - All the recipes within this entry were used, cooked and eaten by the Victorians.
® The Humble Thimble - The earliest known 'purpose-made' thimbles were made of bronze and were found at Pompeii.
QOTD: Why have humans evolved from wearing nothing to wearing clothing especially which cover the private areas?
3 July 2009
Elevator/Lift Etiquette - There is no evidence to support the belief that pressing a lit button again will make a lift come more quickly.Uterine Fibroids - These are overgrowths of muscular and connective tissue that commonly occur in the wall of the uterus.
® Route 66 in New Mexico - Hispanic heritage intertwines with indigenous Native American cultures on this stretch of road.
QOTD: I am currently looking for a book for my almost eight years old niece. … Any suggestions?
6 July 2009
Friendly Numbers - Mathematicians have created a whole world of imaginary friends in the numbers they study.® 'Who Will Buy?': The Song - The words and music were written by Lionel Bart, and the song appears in most stage productions of Oliver!
® Surrey, England, UK - Kent may be 'the garden of England' but Surrey has been referred to as 'the Cockney's back garden'.
QOTD: I'm Scottish - anything over 0 Deg and the permafrost under my skin starts to thaw …
7 July 2009
Grey Owl - He warned that commercial hunting and logging were threatening the environment, but he was not all that he seemed.® How To Understand Statistics - The world is littered with them: in fact, the average person is bombarded with five statistics a day.
® The Manchineel Tree - Hippomane mancinella looks like an apple tree, but is an extremely poisonous plant.
QOTD: Get to know yourself better? You mean like; take yourself out for dinner. A bottle of wine maybe, chat away to yourself for hours, then take yourself off to bed for an early night after twilight coffee...
8 July 2009
Archimedes - Archimedes was an ancient Greek scientist and probably one of the greatest mathematicians of all time.® You're the One by Paul Simon - It might not have the revelatory rhythms of Graceland, but it's still a fine work.
® Organising a Congratulations Card from the UK Sovereign - You may be entitled to a card from a very special person.
QOTD: If you started a covers band, what would you call it?
9 July 2009
Death at Duffy's Cut - In the 1830s the mortality rate of Irish workers on the Philadelphia railway was high - but was cholera really to blame?® Waltham Abbey, Essex - Edward I and his wife, Eleanor, both lay in state here while their funerals were prepared in London.
® Arthur Furguson - A curious man who managed to 'sell' both Nelson's Column and the Eiffel Tower during his infamous career.
QOTD: my favorite number is 142857. It's special quality is that if you multiply by any number except 7 (and multiples of 7) you get the same numbers but in a different order
10 July 2009
Ill-Fitting Bras: A Medical Perspective - The ill-fitting bra is thought to affect at least 70% of women regardless of their size.® Origins of the Days of the Week - Most societies have some form of 'week', though its number of days can vary from three to 16.
® Silver Surfer: Comic Book Hero - The Silver Surfer first came to prominence in comics as an enemy of the Fantastic Four.
QOTD: which genre of music came first?
13 July 2009
Things To Do When Stranded In Shrewsbury - The castle, the library, the marketplace and more are all a short walk from the station.® Tips for Backpackers: Planning and Packing - First-timers may find the prospect of leaving home daunting. This Entry's here to help.
® Paneer Bhurji: A Simple Recipe - As its name suggests, this simple, mouth-watering recipe uses paneer, an Indian cottage cheese.
QOTD: Isaac Newton did some cool stuff. … Among other things, he invented the cat flap.
14 July 2009
The History Of Bollywood Cinema: Beginnings to 1949 - Mumbai, previously known as Bombay, is famous for its Hindi film industry.® Food and the Colour Blue - The rarity of blue colours in edible plants and animals menas that humans have a bit of an aversion to blue food.
® Mozart's Requiem - Mozart got increasingly sick when writing his Requiem which eventually proved to be his last ever piece of music.
QOTD: Why do some people … get headaches in thundery weather?
15 July 2009
How to Enjoy a Beach Holiday - A few tips on how to make the most of your time on a sandy coastline.® Swallowing - Choking isn't much fun: luckily, deglutition is quite a streamlined, if complex, process.
® Common Ragwort - Senecio Jacobaea is a tall, but sadly poisonous, plant with lovely yellow flowers.
QOTD: I was serving a customer last night when he told me that he was involved in something secret, but once it's happened it will be in the news. This has me intrigued....does anyone have any ideas?
16 July 2009
The Language of Snobbery - A fascinating collection of snooty words and idioms which can be used to describe one's inferiors.® An Introduction to Winemaking - In these parsimonious times, the attractions of making your own wine have not gone unnoticed.
® Aardvarks - Everybody knows that aardvarks are the first entries in animal encyclopedias, but there's more to them than that.
QOTD: Predictive tuxt. I don't know why i use ti
17 July 2009
Attack Of The Mutant Expressions - The English language contains a wealth of often-misunderstood idioms, proverbs, and collocations.® Netball - This fast-paced, highly skilful sport requires speed, athleticism and tactical thinking; but curiously, not a net.
® Briançon, Hautes Alpes, France - The highest town in the EU is often overlooked in favour of others in the region, but is well worth a visit.
QOTD: I read books while watching the cricket,: Now what other sport can you do that too and still know how Kafka ended his book and the last English wicket never fell (blantant timewasting to the side)?
20 July 2009
Internationalised Domain Names - One of the most fundamental parts of the design of the Internet is the domain name, or website address.® Bacillus 2-9-3 - In 2000 a microscopic bacterium came out of a state of suspended animation and made itself known to the world of science.
® Doctor Snuggles: Animated TV Series - Snuggles is a kind and portly inventor who is able to talk to anything including animals and trees.
QOTD: What was the best thing before sliced bread?
21 July 2009
Spell Checkers: A Warning - Fetch out your old-school dictionary; the spell checker may have missed something.® Sea Monkeys - Artemia salina is a relative of the brine shrimp, and looks like a very hairy version of a mosquito larva.
® Coin Flipping: Conflict Resolution on the Cheap - Flipping a coin is still one of the most popular methods of settling disputes.
QOTD: What exactly *is* American food?
22 July 2009
Anglophilia in the US - For those American Anglophiles still left, affection towards their former colonial overlords runs deep.® The Pressure Cooker - No other kitchen item divides the opinion of chefs in the way the pressure cooker does.
® Goats' Cheese and Onion Frittata - A simple but very effective recipe which requires loads of onions, a few herbs and some goats cheese.
QOTD: I was just wondering that, whether through generations of only marrying people with large noses, a descendant far down the line could have some kind of supernose?
23 July 2009
The Museum Insel Hombroich - Its founder's vision was of a decentralised museum showing 'art parallel to nature'.® What Happens When You Drop a Slinky - The physics behind a behaviour that some find counter-intuitive to the point of disbelief.
® Scold's Bridle - This device was used to control, humiliate and punish gossiping, troublesome women by effectively gagging them.
QOTD: I have a TV in full working order … but … The remote is of the .... "Can you change it to BBC 1 Darling" .. type.
24 July 2009
Yawning - There's nothing like a good yawn and just reading this Entry is bound to set you off: Oaaaaaaarrrrrgh .® Recorders - A musical instrument of great antiquity, producing a high-pitched, breathy sound with a range of about two octaves.
® The Euler Equation - This is rated by many as one of the most elegant formulae in maths, whose consequences are 'diverse and shocking'.
QOTD: Being British, I can only offer [tea] and sympathy. … Take a brolly.
27 July 2009
The Walker - Walkers are usually middle or late aged, in spirit if not in body, are distinctly attired, almost always with a hump on the back.® George C Scott - A look at the career of the first man to turn down the Academy Award for Best Actor.
® Jenny Greenteeth, Folklore Character - Be sure to look out for her if you go walking by any pool, pond or river at night.
QOTD: Jazz is probably the oldest music genre. It predates rhythym, melody, tune or musical ability.
28 July 2009
The Grammy Awards - Established in 1958, and held annually in the US, they are generally held to be the most prestigious awards in music.® The 'Hello World!' Programming Tradition - It is customary when testing an unfamiliar programming environment to follow this.
® The Lennon-McCartney Songwriting Partnership - These two close friends were perhaps the greatest songwriting team ever.
QOTD: I once played through an rpg (the Hobbit, I think) very very quickly after I realised that you could simply run away from everything - I was trailing a huge mob by the end, but didn't fight anyone
29 July 2009
Blue Eyes - They are caused by a gene mutation which creates a lower level of production of the substance melanin.® The Chernobyl Disaster - The worst nuclear accident in history left the world painfully aware of the risks of nuclear power.
® Papaya - When European explorers first encountered this fruit in the New World, they called it a tree melon.
QOTD: I don't recall anything that survived two cildren.
30 July 2009
Velvet Worms - Some of the most unusual and interesting of creepy-crawlies: and among the least well-known and hardest to find.® How to Speak Brummie - For a small country, the UK has an incredible diversity of regional dialects; here's one of the best known.
® The Åland Islands, Finland - This region is an archipelago of about 7,000 islands, although fewer than 100 are inhabited.
QOTD: he thought Noddy was Zeus!
31 July 2009
Colonel Percy Harrison Fawcett and the Lost City of Z - The intriguing tale of a unique and intrepid individual.® Flies - There are around 100,000 kinds of them worldwide, which form the largest part of the insect family.
® Micronavigation - These techniques are they only way to be really confident in navigating in all conditions.
QOTD: Gojira (Godzilla) was originally to be a giant gorilla/whale monster.
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