Fun Friday Fact - hope you respond weekly to give us all a smile

[miz miranda]

@Marcie JensenThe so called Big Five came from big game hunters. Hippos are generally in water so difficult to hunt so I can see why they weren't on the list. Hippos do require rivers to migrate and water in general. There are plenty of Hippos in South Africa as well as the southern part of the continent in general. The Zambezi river seem to be a primary habitat.

 

They can be very fast over a short distance, check out video below (video does contain a bit of profanity):

 

 

[Marcie Jensen]

Hey @miz miranda, thank you for the info and the very cool video.  And, I'd cuss too if I was being charged by a critter that big!

[Heather Shay]

The English name Friday comes from the Old English Frīġedæġ, meaning “Day of Frige.” This is as a result of the Old English goddess Frigg (an Anglo-Saxon interpretation of the Norse goddess Freya) being associated with the Roman goddess Venus.

 

In the U.K. and Australia, Friday is sometimes referred to by the acronym “POETS Day,” which stands for “Piss Off Early Tomorrow’s Saturday.”

 

Friday the 13^th, although considered lucky in some parts of the world, is often a day of superstition for most people in the western world, and the fear of Friday the 13^th is known as paraskavedekatriaphobia.

[_Kira_]

Never mind Friday the 13th, I'm afraid of the word for the phobia 😵‍💫

 

[Marcie Jensen]

And I'm afraid of being afraid. LOL.

 

In a side note, Friday the 13th being unlucky stems from early Christianity--it was deemed unlucky because of Jesus+the 12 disciples made 13, and the 13th one (Judas Iscariot) betrayed him as well as Jesus being crucified on a Friday.

[miz miranda]

Well, there may be some rationale for fearing Friday

 

The idea of Fridays being unlucky also seems to strangely lend itself to accident data from insurance companies. Research and data collation appears to suggest that more people have accidents on a Friday than any other day of the week.

 

Fridays are, statistically, supposed to be the days of the week where war is mostly likely to be declared. Seems as though leaders prefer starting conflicts at weekends, though we can’t really figure that logic out.

 

On the hand

Friday, on the whole, seems to be the most successful day to apply for a job. Therefore, it might be worth starting your weekend right and filing that application as soon as you can before you clock out. Unless you're afraid of work

 

[Heather Shay]

Prince's real name was Prince.

 

Born to two musical parents, Prince Rogers Nelson was named after his father's jazz combo.

Prince wrote a lot of hit songs for other artists.

In addition to penning several hundred songs for himself, Prince also composed music for other artists, including "Manic Monday" for the Bangles, "I Feel For You" for Chaka Khan, and "Nothing Compares 2 U" for Sinéad O'Connor.

[Heather Shay]

The word prison comes from the Latin “poenitentia,” meaning repentance or penance.

 American Psychologist Timothy Leary, upon his arrival at prison in 1971, was given a battery of psychological tests designed to aid in placing inmates in jobs that were best suited to them. Leary himself had designed a few of them and used that knowledge to get a gardening assignment, which he used to escape the prison shortly after.

[Marcie Jensen]

That's wild, Heather! Wasn't Timothy Leary one of the first to experimenr with LSD?

[LaurenA]

Timothy Leary's son Zack is now doing guided trips.

[Marcie Jensen]

13 minutes ago, LaurenA said:

Timothy Leary's son Zack is now doing guided trips.

Being of a warped sense of humor I've gotta ask, are they "tripping out?" And what constitutes a bad tip? 😁

[LaurenA]

3 hours ago, Marcie Jensen said:

Being of a warped sense of humor I've gotta ask, are they "tripping out?" And what constitutes a bad tip? 😁

As an answer to the first question...Yes

As far as an answer to the second... I've always felt anything less than 20% is a bad tip. 😃

 

Bad trips on the other-hand are something else. That differs according to each person.  To some the visual experience becomes too much and it becomes a bad trip.  To others it's an internal physiological thing where feeling become too intense and more than they can handle.  And there are also the bad trips because some external person or experience triggers a negative response. 

 

All of these reasons are why a trip guide or mother should always be there.  The guide people tripping from a bad trip to one that is enjoyable, uplifting, and informative about yourself.  I have known several outstanding guides and will never trip again unless one is there with me.

 

And yes, I did meet Timothy Leary.  I regret that we didn't trip together.

[miz miranda]

Just trippin on some LS

 

LSD is so powerful that only a small amount produces long-lasting effects as opposed to other stimulants. Therefore, if measured in the extent of its effects, LSD is comparatively a cheaper drug. It’s cheaper in more populous cities on the east and west coasts, and more expensive in the Midwest.

 

It takes about 20-60 minutes to kick the LSD. The total trip on LSD lasts between 6.5 and 13 hours.

 

Once a group of scientists, funded by NASA, gave dolphins the hallucinogenic drug LSD. It was an attempt to communicate with dolphins. They found that more than 70% dolphins were more vocal after they were administered with LSD.

 

LSD has been interwoven with music since the Grateful Dead participated in the Merry Pranksters’ acid tests in the 1960s. Recently, a Swiss research team used lysergic acid to pinpoint the brain regions that attribute significance to music. They found that music appreciation is located in the part of the brain associated with sense of self. Aimed at the treatment of psychiatric illnesses, the study revealed which cells, chemicals, and brain regions “are involved when we perceive our environment as meaningful or relevant.”

Researchers noted that songs which were normally meaningless became charged with significance to listeners under the influence of LSD, due to the drug’s binding to the hardware involved in our sense of self. The effect was diminished in test subjects who were administered LSD and ketanserin, which counters the hallucinogen’s effect. The team believes that these revelations might be the key to treating psychosis, in which a patient loses touch with reality.

 

 

In March 2014, a Swiss psychiatrist published results of the first controlled trial of LSD in over 40 years. Dr. Peter Gasser was studying the effect of lysergic acid on talk therapy for 12 terminally ill patients. After LSD dosing, the patients reported that “their anxiety went down and stayed down.” Peter, a test subject with a degenerative spine condition, was happy with the therapy and believed that it created “mystical experiences.”

Using LSD to treat the anxiety of dying is not a new idea. In 1958, Aldus Huxley, the author of The Doors of Perception, advocated administering LSD to terminally ill cancer patients. The goal was to make death a “more spiritual, less strictly physiological process.” Five years later, Huxley’s wife, Laura, gave him a dose of acid on his deathbed in Los Angeles. She reported that his passing was “the most serene, the most beautiful death.”

 

[Ivy]

I've had some experience with street "acid" in my younger days.  All in all, I consider it a positive experience.  But there were some moments I did not enjoy.  To be honest, I would consider it again, but only in a safe environment.

[awkward-yet-sweet]

I guess drugs are the theme for this Friday?🙄

 

People's responses to substances can vary tremendously.  For example, some (like my husband) don't feel the effects of THC, but can be much more sensitive to other things...the myristicin in nutmeg, for example.    

[LaurenA]

24 minutes ago, Ivy said:

I've had some experience with street "acid" in my younger days.  All in all, I consider it a positive experience.  But there were some moments I did not enjoy.  To be honest, I would consider it again, but only in a safe environment.

I agree.  Although I always knew the source and quality.  And a guide was essential.

 

Are we close to breaking the forum rules?

[Sally Stone]

1 minute ago, LaurenA said:

Are we close to breaking the forum rules?

I wouldn't think so Lauren.  After all, these are just comments about traveling, right?

[Charlize]

I was fortunate as an intern to Senator Montoya of NM to take notes at the hearing on LSD where Timothy Leary testified during senatorial hearings on a bill to ban its sale.  I think it was the spring of 1965.  While at Princeton i was able to participate on LSD research.  It is a pity that further research has ceased as in carefully controlled situations it can be a useful drug.  Of course as a wild young thing then i was not always careful.

Like any drug, if legalized, its use should be carefully monitored by an MD.  Too many drugs are used for "recreation" with sometimes terrible results.

 

Hugs,

 

Charlize

[Heather Shay]

1. In Sicily, women travel to the garden of Adonis at the start of each spring. While there, they plant seeds and decorate the garden with a blue and crimson ribbon.
2. Years ago, it became a popular myth that you could balance an egg on its head during the spring equinox. Unfortunately, it’s just a myth.
3. “Spring fever” may be a real (and good) thing! Scientists believe that longer days cause people to be more active, creative, and happy.

[miz miranda]

Usually, the earliest spring flowers to bloom each year are tulips, daffodils, sunflowers, primrose, and lilies.

 

If you were to stand on the equator during either the spring or fall equinox, you would see the sun pass directly over the top of your head.

 

Spring was formerly referred to as lent, which was changed to springtime around the 1300s, and eventually was shortened to spring. Spring is derived from the time of year when plants begin to grow again or spring from the earth.

 

Attention all lovebirds! We hate to say it, but we may have some bad news for you. According to a Facebook study, early spring is when couples are the most likely to break up.

 

[Heather Shay]

names of animal groups - heard this week a group of pandas is called an embarrassment and it got me thinking...

Mammal	Animal Group Names
apes	shrewdness
badgers	cete
bats	colony, camp, cloud (in flight)
bears	sleuth, sloth
camels	caravan, train, scorn
cats	clowder
dogs	pack
donkeys	drove
elephants	parade
elk	gang
ferrets	business, fesnyng
foxes	skulk
giraffes	tower
gorillas	troop
hippopotami	pod, bloat
horses	team, harras
hyenas	clan, cackle
kangaroos	mob, troop, court
lemurs	conspiracy
leopards	leap, prowl
lions	pride
moles	labor, company, movement
monkeys	troop, barrel
otters	bevy, family, romp, raft (when floating together)
oxen	team, yoke
pigs	drift, drove
porcupines	prickle
rabbits	colony, fluffle
rats	pack, colony, swarm, mischief
rhinoceroses	crash
skunks	surfeit
squirrels	scurry, dray
tigers	ambush, streak
whales	pod, gam
wolves	pack
zebras	dazzle, zeal

[Mirrabooka]

I love collective nouns. I used to think that a flock of seagulls was totally made up due to that new wave UK band, but apparently it is true. There is also a murder of crows and a mischief of magpies.

 

Not animal related, but I have also seen one proposed by an author, can't remember who - a giggle of schoolgirls!

[Jani]

Your chances of being hunted by a turkey are low, but never zero.  They can be aggressive.  Wild turkey may be the most recognizable bird in the US.  Turkey’s can run 18 MPH on foot and up to 50 MPH in flight.  

 

Also turkey droppings tell the sex and age of the bird.  Male droppings are j-shaped and female droppings are spiral shaped.  The larger the diameter, the older the bird. 

[Mirrabooka]

Wombat droppings are cube shaped!

[miz miranda]

1 hour ago, Mirrabooka said:

Wombat droppings are cube shaped!

Ouch! More on wombat poop.

 

The shape of poop is not something that comes to mind very often, but if we do stop to consider the shape of waste, cubes probably aren’t our first image. For wombats, however, having cube-shaped poop makes their lives much more convenient.

Wombats communicate with their poop. They are burrowing creatures, and stack their poop up as high as they can on the surface to advertise their presence to other wombats. A wombat’s tiny poop mountain is like a smelly flag telling other wombats that they are there, which can help when mating season comes around. Having cube-shaped poops makes saying “hello” in wombat much easier since their poop won’t roll around and send their fecal mountain toppling over.

That said, they are the only animal scientists know of to have cubed poop. It was a mystery, albeit a mystery few cared enough about to solve. Fortunately for the world of wombat defecation, a few scientists were up to the task. They found that while the fluid in the wombat’s digestive tract solidified in the last 25% of their intestines, the elasticity of the last 8% varied in such a specific way that it turned their poop into cubes. Evolution at its finest.

 

Poop Into Paper

Pandas pretty much spend the entire day eating, which means they also spend a lot of time pooping. Pandas can create upwards of 10kg (22lbs) of poop per day. For panda conservation centers and zoos, disposing of the immense amount excrement can get expensive. While looking for a way to mitigate the cost of panda’s prolific colons, they took a page from elephant conservatories.

Elephants produce as much as 50kg of poop per day, and a lot of it is fibrous plant material. Once their dung undergoes sanitization, the fibers can easily be turned into paper, and then sold. Due to panda poo’s composition being 70% indigestible bamboo remains, it can likewise be made into a variety of products, including toilet and tissue paper. And who wouldn’t want to wipe their own behind (or their nose) with what came out of a cute animals’ butt? Right?