One Thing

This one’s going to take some ‘splainin. Until 1920, Major League Baseball had a rule...

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 20:04:00 -0400

This one’s going to take some ‘splainin. Until 1920, Major League Baseball had a rule that made it legal to steal bases in reverse order. If you were on second and wanted to go back to first, you could steal it. Which can, in some convoluted ways, make strategic sense.

During the September 4th, 1908, game between the Tigers and Cleveland Indians, Schaefer was on first and a teammate was on third. The Tigers wanted to do a double steal — Schaefer would break for second, and, when the Indians tried to throw him out, his teammate would steal home. But when Schaefer broke for second, the Indians’ catcher didn’t make the throw, so Schaefer stole the base without the run scoring.

That wasn’t the plan so, on the next pitch, he broke back for first… and successfully stole it without a throw. Then, on the next pitch, he broke for second AGAIN, to try to make the double steal work… but again, the Indians didn’t throw.

That makes him the only player in MLB history to steal the same base twice in one inning. (And one of only two players to ever steal first base from second.)

via 11 Major League Baseball Feats That Have Only Happened Once

DIDYOUKNOW

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 19:51:39 -0400

natface:

Ray Bradbury fun fact! He refuses to learn how to drive in Los Angeles, which loosely translated means, City of Traffic. He used to hitchhike more, but now he takes the bus around. I do not kid when I say he is a personal hero.

David Hayter started out as Bryan Singer’s assistant and ending up contributing so much to...

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:15:12 -0400

David Hayter started out as Bryan Singer’s assistant and ending up contributing so much to X-Men that yada yada yada he was given the sole screenwriting credit. He was the most successful first time writer of all time, with X-Men bringing in $54 million in it’s first weekend. He went on to co-write Watchmen.

If you rub an onion on your foot – within 30 – 60 minutes you will be able to taste it – this is...

Sat, 13 Jun 2009 20:18:07 -0400

If you rub an onion on your foot – within 30 – 60 minutes you will be able to taste it – this is because it travels through the blood stream.

via

Orbital Path of the Earth Around the Sun

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:17:23 -0400

Orbital Path of the Earth Around the Sun:

The moon orbits earth 13 times year. More info in the short video on the click-through.

Also, from my bottle of juice: Nantucket had a railroad on the...

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:20:47 -0400

Also, from my bottle of juice: Nantucket had a railroad on the island until 1917.

George Washington and John F. Kennedy are the only American Presidents to have declined a...

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:21:00 -0400

George Washington and John F. Kennedy are the only American Presidents to have declined a salary.

More very interesting stuff about Presidential Perks here.

Of is required when couple quantifies an amount or time period, like “a couple of...

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 10:45:08 -0400

Of is required when couple quantifies an amount or time period, like “a couple of hours”, but not when its quantifying another quantifier, as in “a couple hundred people”.

Rhett Butler’s People, the side-quel to Gone With the...

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 23:30:11 -0400

Rhett Butler’s People, the side-quel to Gone With the Wind, was published in 2007.

The fastest growing nail is on the middle finger. And the nail on the middle finger of your dominant...

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 22:55:12 -0400

The fastest growing nail is on the middle finger. And the nail on the middle finger of your dominant hand will grow the fastest of all. Why is not entirely known, but nail growth is related to the length of the finger, with the longest fingers growing nails the fastest and shortest the slowest.

via

Anton Yelchin’s parents were going to compete in the 1972 Olympics (figure skating) for the...

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 20:07:00 -0400

Anton Yelchin’s parents were going to compete in the 1972 Olympics (figure skating) for the USSR but were banned becaused they were Jewish.

danhacker: New ‘Metal Gear’ game announced! ‘Hideo Kojima...

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:45:08 -0400

danhacker:

New ‘Metal Gear’ game announced!

‘Hideo Kojima popped up at Microsoft’s keynote, and announced that the Metal Gear Solid franchise is coming to Xbox 360 with an all-new title.

This game is called “Metal Gear Rising”, is a completely-new title, and rather than starring Solid Snake, will star Raiden.”

(via:kotaku)

Most orange cats are Male. The orange color gene is on the...

Fri, 29 May 2009 09:19:42 -0400

Most orange cats are Male. The orange color gene is on the “x” chromosome.

Food Companies Don't Want You to Know

Thu, 28 May 2009 14:32:00 -0400

… that Your Food Can Legally Contain Maggots.

Sure, the FDA limits the amount of rodent droppings and other appetite killers in your food, but unfortunately that limit isn’t zero. The regulations below aren’t harmful to your health—but we can’t promise that the thought of them won’t make you sick.

Canned pineapples can contain up to: 20 percent positive mold tests

Canned tomatoes can contain up to: 5 fly eggs and 1 maggot per 500 grams

Frozen broccoli can contain up to: 60 mites per 100 grams

Ground cinnamon can contain up to: 400 insect fragments and 11 rodent hairs per 50 grams

Peanut butter can contain up to: 30 insect gragments or 1 rodent hair per 100 grams

Popcorn can contain up to: 20 gnawed grains or 2 rodent hairs per pound

Potato chips can contain up to: 6 percent rotten chips

via Eat This Not That

On Oct. 15, 1910, the airship America took off from Atlantic City in a bid to cross the Atlantic....

Wed, 27 May 2009 21:51:28 -0400

On Oct. 15, 1910, the airship America took off from Atlantic City in a bid to cross the Atlantic. The six crewmembers took along a cat, Kiddo, for luck.

The frightened tabby was still underfoot when chief engineer Melvin Vaniman tried to send a historic wireless message back to shore. So officially the first radio communication ever made from an airship in flight was:

“Roy, come and get this goddamn cat.”

Donald Knuth is so revered among computer scientists that they...

Tue, 26 May 2009 22:23:56 -0400

Donald Knuth is so revered among computer scientists that they won’t cash his checks.

Knuth offers a standard reward of $2.56 (one “hexadecimal dollar”) to the first finder of each error in his published books. Since 1981 he has written more than $20,000 in checks, but most of the recipients have simply framed them as points of pride.

via

On True Blood the wig that Arlene wears is the same one worn by Gwenyth Paltrow as Pepper Potts in...

Wed, 20 May 2009 20:30:31 -0400

On True Blood the wig that Arlene wears is the same one worn by Gwenyth Paltrow as Pepper Potts in Iron Man.

A group of cats is called a “Clowder”.

Tue, 19 May 2009 09:34:49 -0400

A group of cats is called a “Clowder”.

In Japan, seasons 2 and 3 of the American version of So You Think You Can Dance have aired as...

Mon, 18 May 2009 14:03:50 -0400

In Japan, seasons 2 and 3 of the American version of So You Think You Can Dance have aired as American Dance Idol.

Margaret Mitchell took 10 years to write Gone With the Wind, and it was in her will to burn her...

Thu, 14 May 2009 22:49:51 -0400

Margaret Mitchell took 10 years to write Gone With the Wind, and it was in her will to burn her notes when she died, which her husband did.