10 Random Facts - May 2020 Edition
1. You can't get lead poisoning from lead pencils.
Forget everything you've ever heard. It isn't possible because, and you better sit down for this one, lead pencils were never made with lead. They are actually made out of graphite. So why are they called lead pencils? The answer lies in the early 1500s at which time people actually thought that graphite was a form of lead, and they named the pencils accordingly.
Of course there is one exception, if the pencil was made before 1978 then you could get lead poisoning from it but not by poking yourself. In 1978 the United States stopped allowing lead to be an ingredient in paint, but the pencils made before then would still have lead in the paint and you could get lead poisoning from sucking on it.
2. Spring is one of many names used to describe this time of year.
Nowadays spring is definitely the most frequently used term, but in the old days they called it Lent in some parts of the world. Lent came from the Old English word lencten, and was used to refer to spring until the 14th century when they started using the phrase "springing time". Then in the 15th century it was shortened to "spring-time" until finally in the 16th century it became simply "spring".
3. In Finland new mothers get gifts from the government.
I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. Finnish mothers receive government issued "baby boxes". These are meant to provide mothers and their babies with all the essentials they need, including clothes, toys, and personal care items. Even the box itself can be used as a crib. The original tradition started in 1938 for low income families, but since 1949 the service became available for all new moms.
4. Pugs are brachycephalic.
If you're a pug owner you don't need to worry. Although there are some potential health concerns for brachycephalic dogs it isn't as dangerous as it probably sounds, the term literally means "short-headed". It's basically just a fancy name for the flat face your puppy has. Other sufferers include dogs like shih tzus, Boston Terriors, boxers, etc.
5. Different colored tulips mean different things.
All tulips bring with them thoughts of spring and sometimes even love, but there are more specific meanings for every color. Red tulips are associated with true love, purple with royalty, white with apologies, yellow with friendship, and pink can signal happiness or confidence.
6. When you cry you're shedding psychogenic tears.
Psychogenic tears are one of three types of tears: continuous(basal) tears, reflex tears, and of course psychogenic tears. Continuous tears are produced for lubrication and other basic eye functions, and are always present. In fact even if you don't cry you produce about 5 to 10 ounces of tears per day. We're all familiar with reflex tears, they happen to me whenever I'm at the eye doctor. They happen when the eyes are exposed to things like wind, cold, irritating gases (onions anyone?), and really bright lighting. As you may have already guessed psychogenic tears are the ones you shed for purely emotional reasons, and some think that crying might actually get rid of certain stress-related chemicals.
7. Isaac Newton and his stepfather were not on good terms.
Newton never knew his biological father, who was also named Isaac Newton, because he died a few months before his birth. When he was three years old Isaac's mother left him to be raised by his maternal grandmother because she had remarried, and her new husband, Reverend Barnabas Smith didn't want anything to do with the child. This left Isaac emotional scarred, and later he wrote in his journal that he had once made threats to burn down his mother and stepfather's house while they were still in it.
8. Booger flavored jelly beans are a thing.
Gross but true. It's all a part of the BeanBoozled Challenge created by the company Jelly Belly. They created a box with 20 different flavors ranging from blueberry to barf. So if you buy the pack and bite into a bean it could taste like chocolate pudding or canned dog food, tutti-fruitti or stinky socks, toasted marshmallows or stink bugs. I'll stop here, you probably get the point. ;)
9. There are lots of bans in Hawaii.
If you're looking to rent some advertising space on a billboard in Hawaii then think again. Hawaii has outlawed billboards and is one of only four states to do so, the others being Alaska, Maine, and Vermont. Hawaii also became the first state to ban the use of plastic bags in 2015. And unless you're a zoo, you're not allowed to keep snakes in the state of Hawaii either.
10. When you sniff the air after a good rain you're smelling "Petrichor".
I don't know a single person who doesn't love the smell of rain, and now that smell has a name, "Petrichor". We have a soil-dwelling bacteria called geosmin to thank for that. When rain falls it creates air pockets with small amounts of geosmin, and then when the air pockets are released it spreads that wonderful rain smell.
Forget everything you've ever heard. It isn't possible because, and you better sit down for this one, lead pencils were never made with lead. They are actually made out of graphite. So why are they called lead pencils? The answer lies in the early 1500s at which time people actually thought that graphite was a form of lead, and they named the pencils accordingly.
Of course there is one exception, if the pencil was made before 1978 then you could get lead poisoning from it but not by poking yourself. In 1978 the United States stopped allowing lead to be an ingredient in paint, but the pencils made before then would still have lead in the paint and you could get lead poisoning from sucking on it.
2. Spring is one of many names used to describe this time of year.
Nowadays spring is definitely the most frequently used term, but in the old days they called it Lent in some parts of the world. Lent came from the Old English word lencten, and was used to refer to spring until the 14th century when they started using the phrase "springing time". Then in the 15th century it was shortened to "spring-time" until finally in the 16th century it became simply "spring".
3. In Finland new mothers get gifts from the government.
I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. Finnish mothers receive government issued "baby boxes". These are meant to provide mothers and their babies with all the essentials they need, including clothes, toys, and personal care items. Even the box itself can be used as a crib. The original tradition started in 1938 for low income families, but since 1949 the service became available for all new moms.
4. Pugs are brachycephalic.
If you're a pug owner you don't need to worry. Although there are some potential health concerns for brachycephalic dogs it isn't as dangerous as it probably sounds, the term literally means "short-headed". It's basically just a fancy name for the flat face your puppy has. Other sufferers include dogs like shih tzus, Boston Terriors, boxers, etc.
5. Different colored tulips mean different things.
All tulips bring with them thoughts of spring and sometimes even love, but there are more specific meanings for every color. Red tulips are associated with true love, purple with royalty, white with apologies, yellow with friendship, and pink can signal happiness or confidence.
6. When you cry you're shedding psychogenic tears.
Psychogenic tears are one of three types of tears: continuous(basal) tears, reflex tears, and of course psychogenic tears. Continuous tears are produced for lubrication and other basic eye functions, and are always present. In fact even if you don't cry you produce about 5 to 10 ounces of tears per day. We're all familiar with reflex tears, they happen to me whenever I'm at the eye doctor. They happen when the eyes are exposed to things like wind, cold, irritating gases (onions anyone?), and really bright lighting. As you may have already guessed psychogenic tears are the ones you shed for purely emotional reasons, and some think that crying might actually get rid of certain stress-related chemicals.
7. Isaac Newton and his stepfather were not on good terms.
Newton never knew his biological father, who was also named Isaac Newton, because he died a few months before his birth. When he was three years old Isaac's mother left him to be raised by his maternal grandmother because she had remarried, and her new husband, Reverend Barnabas Smith didn't want anything to do with the child. This left Isaac emotional scarred, and later he wrote in his journal that he had once made threats to burn down his mother and stepfather's house while they were still in it.
8. Booger flavored jelly beans are a thing.
Gross but true. It's all a part of the BeanBoozled Challenge created by the company Jelly Belly. They created a box with 20 different flavors ranging from blueberry to barf. So if you buy the pack and bite into a bean it could taste like chocolate pudding or canned dog food, tutti-fruitti or stinky socks, toasted marshmallows or stink bugs. I'll stop here, you probably get the point. ;)
9. There are lots of bans in Hawaii.
If you're looking to rent some advertising space on a billboard in Hawaii then think again. Hawaii has outlawed billboards and is one of only four states to do so, the others being Alaska, Maine, and Vermont. Hawaii also became the first state to ban the use of plastic bags in 2015. And unless you're a zoo, you're not allowed to keep snakes in the state of Hawaii either.
10. When you sniff the air after a good rain you're smelling "Petrichor".
I don't know a single person who doesn't love the smell of rain, and now that smell has a name, "Petrichor". We have a soil-dwelling bacteria called geosmin to thank for that. When rain falls it creates air pockets with small amounts of geosmin, and then when the air pockets are released it spreads that wonderful rain smell.
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