Today I Learned

  • Thread starter Thread starter Greg Bernhardt
  • Start date Start date
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The thread invites participants to share daily lessons or interesting facts they have learned, encompassing a wide range of topics from personal experiences to historical facts, scientific insights, and humorous observations. The scope includes casual learning, trivia, and personal anecdotes.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants share personal insights, such as learning about the cleaning of hats or the time spent with medical specialists.
  • Others discuss historical techniques like "oyster veneering" and its revival, with one participant clarifying it is not a food-preparation method.
  • Mathematical observations are made regarding factorials, specifically that 23! has 23 digits, with some participants exploring the implications of this coincidence.
  • Several participants mention humorous or trivial facts, such as the number of microbes transferred in a kiss or the age of Cambridge University compared to the Aztecs.
  • Some participants express personal reflections on learning new words or concepts, such as "hyperacusis" and its effects on their music-making.
  • There are repeated claims about the impact of television on body image, with some participants sharing personal experiences related to this topic.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

The discussion features a variety of viewpoints and personal anecdotes, with no clear consensus on any specific topic. Participants express differing opinions and experiences, particularly regarding the effects of television and the historical context of various facts shared.

Contextual Notes

Some claims made in the discussion are based on personal experiences or anecdotal evidence, and there are instances of participants correcting or refining each other's statements without reaching a definitive conclusion.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in casual learning, trivia, personal anecdotes, or exploring a variety of topics in a light-hearted manner may find this thread engaging.

Messages
19,881
Reaction score
10,890
Every day we learn new things. Sometimes it's just a small fact or realization. No matter how trivial or random, let's start recording our daily lessons.

Please start off with "Today I learned". Keep commentary to a minimum and just LIKE posts. I'll start!

Today I learned that you clean up a white hat by spraying some cleaner with bleach on it (rinse before putting it back on your head!)
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: user14920251, mayflowers, Shovon00000 and 14 others
Physics news on Phys.org
Today I learned that "oyster veneering", a wood working technique invented in the late 1600's in England but dropped after about 50 years as being just too damned labor intensive in addition to being a bit gaudy, is having a very slight revival these days presumably by people with too much time on their hands. I had thought it was just a historical curiosity.

I found this out when I did some research to make a slight update to the entry on oyster veneering in my woodworking glossary, here:

http://hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/_g_NO.htm
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: DrDu, tobyr65, jtbell and 2 others
Today I learned that 23! is 25,852,016,738,884,976,640,000 which has, coincidentally, 23 digits. The same coincidence does not occur in any other factorial except 1!.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: user14920251, mommckinney, AlexB23 and 31 others
Today I learned that TV makes people more fat than they are in real.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: desertshaman, Math100, phoenix95 and 8 others
zoki85 said:
Today I learned that TV makes people more fat than they are in real.
Yeah, but I've tried adjusting my personal aspect ratio and I'm STILL fat !
 
  • Like
  • Love
Likes   Reactions: CalcNerd, Keith_McClary, tobyr65 and 3 others
Today I learned that the list of threads similar to the "today I learned" thread is most hilarious.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: joneall, Viona, ISamson and 8 others
Today I learned that a medical specialist will spend less than 10 minutes in the examination room with me. I also learned that after three minutes they start typing on the computer even if I am still talking. I did not learn if they can actually multitask.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: norobinhood, Tom.G, tobyr65 and 6 others
Today I learned that I can make it across a swimming pool of more than 1 km in front crawling style without stopping to rest.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: norobinhood, tobyr65 and HiggsBoson1
Today I learned how bloody expensive it is to get decent business suits
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Viona, tobyr65, CollinsArg and 2 others
  • #10
Today I learned 9 posts worth of mildly amusing and competely trivial information.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: HiggsBoson1
  • #11
Today my 72 year old brain learned just how correct my 25 year old brain was, about how pretty this picture was and still is:cool:

i+dream+of+jeannie.png


PS. After all these years, I still can't follow directions:(:(
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: tellmesomething, Janosh89, 2milehi and 4 others
  • #12
Today I learned that "oyster veneering" is not a food-preparation technique.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Jodo, Lynch101, tobyr65 and 4 others
  • #13
Today I learned that "chasing the dragon" is slang for smoking heroin.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Albertus Magnus, Math100, baruch60610 and 5 others
  • #14
Today I learned the Linux error message: "eth0: UDP Checksum error" can mean the Ethernet cable is loose on the server NIC card.

DOH!
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: mommckinney, Buzz Bloom, Shano and 1 other person
  • #15
Today I learned what to do if a GENeco bus is out of fuel.
Bio-Bus-Press-1-1024x740.jpg
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Likes   Reactions: Bosko, MevsEinstein, norobinhood and 9 others
  • #16
Today I learned that Muhammad Ali, although sentenced in 1967 to 5 years in prison for draft evasion, never served time in jail and his conviction was overturned on appeal in 1971.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: tellmesomething, Janosh89, xAxis and 1 other person
  • #18
Today I learned bureaucracy is a pain.

In essence a law passed to "protect employees" is causing them to be fired and prevents them to be rehired by any other employer. Thanks to the government and the National Academy of Science *sigh*
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: joneall, MevsEinstein and Greg Bernhardt
  • #19
zoobyshoe said:
Today I learned that 23! is 25,852,016,738,884,976,640,000 which has, coincidentally, 23 digits. The same coincidence does not occur in any other factorial except 1!.
If you divide that number by 23 doesn't that mean that 22! Is a 22-digit number?
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: desertshaman, xAxis and Medicol
  • #20
PeroK said:
If you divide that number by 23 doesn't that mean that 22! Is a 22-digit number?
Congratulations! You are correct. Also, 24! is a 24 digit number. It's a hat trick: 22!, 23!, 24! .
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Janosh89 and (deleted member)
  • #21
I learned the mtDNA is passed down from the mother mainly
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Medicol
  • #22
Today I learned that my part time Hispanic housekeeper is not Hispanic. She is a Member of the Hopi Nation (Native American Indian) and a student at the University of Arizona.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: mcknia07 and Medicol
  • #23
Today I learned that Cambridge University is older than the Aztecs
 
  • Like
  • Wow
Likes   Reactions: mommckinney, Math100, Janosh89 and 3 others
  • #24
Today I learned that under Similar Threads, there is a thread titled "I had sex today" the year 2005 (nasty times at PFoo)) :D...Gee! I miss Moonbear :(:L.
 
  • #25
Today I learned that a single kiss may transfer 80 million microbes!:rolleyes:
 
  • Like
  • Wow
Likes   Reactions: sbrothy and (deleted member)
  • #26
Greg Bernhardt said:
Today I learned that Cambridge University is older than the Aztecs
Certainly the Aztec empire, but I think the peoples were in the region in order to migrate into the valley which became the foundation for the empire.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Stavros Kiri
  • #27
Lisa! said:
Today I learned that a single kiss may transfer 80 million microbes!:rolleyes:
More details...please:k

Was that 80 million worth ?:eek:oo):cool:
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Lisa!
  • #28
Today I learned in this thread that a single kiss may transfer 80 million microbobes. Somewhere else today I learned that over a hundred people were killed in the Thammasat University Massacre.
 
  • Like
  • Informative
Likes   Reactions: sbrothy and Greg Bernhardt
  • #29
Today I learned the things from Today I learned today.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Math100, HiggsBoson1 and StevieTNZ

Similar threads

  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
3K
  • · Replies 14 ·
Replies
14
Views
2K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
4K
  • · Replies 22 ·
Replies
22
Views
8K
Replies
4
Views
3K
Replies
26
Views
6K
Replies
26
Views
5K