The 1894 kinetoscope of Fred Ott sneezing after inhaling a pinch of snuff, taken by Thomas Edison’s laboratory, was one of the first human acts ever committed to film. If you believe the internet rumors concerning the relationship between sneezing and sex, it might also have been the first movie orgasm.
No wonder nasal snuff was so popular for hundreds of years – and small wonder, too, that Pope Urban VIII threatened to excommunicate Catholics who took snuff in church….
We’ve all received the emails, posts and tweets from well-meaning friends: “It takes fewer muscles to smile than to frown. Why tire yourself?” But is it true? Has anyone actually tallied up the facial forces involved? If so, did they account for the full range of smiles we express when amused, contented, excited, proud, satisfied or relieved? And is it true that the very act of smiling can make us happy?
The economy being what it is, 99 percent of us are probably not in the position to light our $2 cigars with $50 bills – but could we? Is it within our legal rights to make a statement by tearing up a dollar, or could we be clapped in irons for crushing a zinc penny in a carnival souvenir machine? Reading the answer won’t cost you one red cent.
Is it Legal or Illegal to Destroy U.S. Coins and Paper Money?
If you’re an Aussie dag and some bogan is giving you a dunnyflushing, why not spend the time constructively? Watch which way the water swirls down the bog, and then call one of your nerdier Yank mates and compare notes on swirlie physics. Will this settle the age-old argument? Hardly. But, hey, it’s something to pass the time.
Does Water in a Drain Go a Different Direction in the Southern Hemisphere?
Mrs. O’Leary’s cow; David’s sling-stone; the thorn in a lion’s paw.
We relish tales of the mighty being felled by seemingly insignificant objects. But could a penny placed on railroad tracks really derail a train, or is this myth just a load of pig iron?