Today I Learned

[sbrothy]

We're nearing the time when fruits are fermenting and bees get inebriated and as we all know they're mean drunks!

Turns out bee hives have females on guard duty screening out those that return home in a stupor and can't do "the dance" properly. The punishment is instant and quite medieval:

"When a bee is drunk, it’s not hard for other members of the colony to notice it in their waggle dance.

Once spotted, the guard bees of the hive will immediately begin their investigation and punishment.

Honeybees are quite strict, and their reaction to a criminal offense is borderline medieval.

Without question, the guard bees will bite off the drunken bee’s legs, leaving it with little to no chance of survival. Pretty harsh for an accidental buzz.

This punishment serves as a warning to the rest of the hive."

---- Random Bee Blog

"To prevent the negative effects of drunken bees, guard bees act as vigilant bouncers.

They detect intoxicated intruders attempting to return to the hive and refuse entry, even resorting to aggressive measures like biting off legs if necessary.

These measures ensure that order is maintained and the impact of inebriated members is minimized, ultimately protecting the hive’s integrity."

---- easyscienceforkids

The morale of the story?

Don't drink and pollinate?
Don't drink and fly?
Don't drink and dance?

Take your pick.

EDIT: That should've been "moral" as opposed to "morale", right?

 

[fresh_42]

TIL that FB censors photos of a 29,500-year-old neolithic sculpture, the Venus of Willendorf.

 

[sbrothy]

TIL that FB censors photos of a 29,500-year-old neolithic sculpture, the Venus of Willendorf.

Is there a reason? Is it because FB find it pornographic?!

 

[sbrothy]

This one is more morbid and solemn than outright funny. Then again "funny" was never a prerequisite for a post in this thread was it?

It seems judges in "civilized" countries which still practices capital punishment (this sounds all wrong, but I mean as a relative term, as opposed to countries like Iran which dismembers people for stealing and hangs people in bundles from construction cranes) break their pen after handing down a death sentence. It's apparently a 2-500 year old tradition originating in the Indian Mughal Empire:

Just one of the links out there.

 

[fresh_42]

Is there a reason? Is it because FB find it pornographic?!

Depends on your definition or who you ask. In a European sense: no, in an American sense: yes.

 

[sbrothy]

I’ve always wondered what an adrenalin kick it must be to be a passenger in a rally race car. You know the type of racing where there’s a navigator in the passenger seat saying things like “120 meters, 40 degree right. 100 meters, 10 degrees left, elevation plus 15 degrees.” and so on. It’s actually possible to buy such a trip. It’s even within the reach of “ordinary” people (although it may take some saving up). If you’re really nasty you could give someone a giftcard to such a tour and watch them squirm. I’m not sure what’s more scary, that or a parachute jump.

Scary as that might be I just now read about the Blue Angels Air Show that:

“[…] Usually, two back seats rides are available at each air show; one goes to a member of the press, and the other to the "Key Influencer". […]”

Now, perhaps these seats can’t be bought in the same sense (at the very least it’s much more expensive). On the other hand I’m not sure my brain can handle that much adrenalin anyway!

 

[gmax137]

Many years ago I had a ride in a Steerman biplane. Stalls, rolls, flying upside down... It was quite a rush. I can't imagine a Blue Angels ride.

 

[fresh_42]

Italian businessman Marco De Veglia, known as one of the most vocal anti-vaccine activists who advocated that the coronavirus pandemic was a "pharmaceutical conspiracy," died of COVID-19. This was reported by Página 12 on August 4, 2021.

Source: https://www.elcomercio.com/actualidad/mundo/empresario-negacionista-vacunas-muerte-covid19/

 

[DaveC426913]

Italian businessman Marco De Veglia, known as one of the most vocal anti-vaccine activists who advocated that the coronavirus pandemic was a "pharmaceutical conspiracy," died of COVID-19. This was reported by Página 12 on August 4, 2021.

I'd be interested to hear his last words.


Speaking of Covid, I read an amusing note recently that said this offers an excellent litmus test for dating:
"Did you mask during Covid?"
You can learn a lot about someone by their answer to this simple question.

 

[Hornbein]

I'd be interested to hear his last words.

 

[Klystron]

I'd be interested to hear his last words.

In the 'irony is not dead but ubiquitous' category:

" 'cough'. They said ... I was stupid and a danger to others. 'cough, cough'. Could both be true? 'cough, gasp...".

 

[Hornbein]

Today I learned that the fluegelhorn is in the tuba family.



I also learned how to distinguish a sousaphone from a tuba. The s-phone wraps around the body.

 

[Swamp Thing]

TIL how an aha moment yielded a key insight into the analogy between electrical and mechanical systems, leading to a secret device that contributed to McLaren's success in Formula-1 for several years.

Apparently that video drew a lot of interest, but many people still had questions or had trouble understanding it.

The presenter has uploaded a second video in order to clear everything up...

 

[pinball1970]

I'd be interested to hear his last words.


Speaking of Covid, I read an amusing note recently that said this offers an excellent litmus test for dating:
"Did you mask during Covid?"
You can learn a lot about someone by their answer to this simple question.

Speaking of Covid. I watched this last night. I do not think you should be told what a film is before you watch it, it spoils the he surprise.
I think it may have helped me with this though.

 

[pinball1970]

T.I.L. something about axions/dark matter.I have heard of them so looked them up at wiki, then CP violation, then parity (edit) then some other stuff then gave up.

Article here https://phys.org/news/2025-08-intergalactic-mysterious-dark-particle-clever.html

Paper here.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-025-02621-8/figures/3

 

[fresh_42]

T.I.L. something about axions/dark matter.I have heard of them so looked them up at wiki, then CP violation, then CP violation, parity then gave up.

Article here https://phys.org/news/2025-08-intergalactic-mysterious-dark-particle-clever.html

Paper here.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-025-02621-8/figures/3

I heard yesterday, I think it was Michelle Thaller, that there is a running gag among astrophysicists: "With an impact, you can explain everything."

I wonder whether there is an analogy among quantum physicists: "With a new particle, you can explain everything."

 

[DaveC426913]

Speaking of Covid. I watched this last night. I do not think you should be told what a film is before you watch it, it spoils the he surprise.
I think it may have helped me with this though.

Me, I need a hook - something about a show to intrigue me.

 

[jack action]

TIL:

'Nickname' is not 'nick' + 'name.'
It was originally 'ekename.' 'Eke' was the Middle English word for "also" or "in addition."
Since 'ekename' began with a vowel, people used 'an' before it.
Over time, 'an ekename' became 'a nickname.'

 

[symbolipoint]

TIL:

'Nickname' is not 'nick' + 'name.'
It was originally 'ekename.' 'Eke' was the Middle English word for "also" or "in addition."
Since 'ekename' began with a vowel, people used 'an' before it.
Over time, 'an ekename' became 'a nickname.'

Unsure if related or not, L.N.I.L. about "exonym" and "endonym".

What a people calls itself/themselves is the endonym. What other peoples call it is the exonym.

 

[Ibix]

Today I learned that the most prolific actress ever was Bess Flowers, who made a career as an extra. Wikipedia says she appeared in over 350 films including 23 Best Picture Oscar nominees, and her IMDB entry has 1121 items.

 

[gmax137]

@jack action

Is that the same "eka" mendeleev used in his table (e.g. eka aluminum, aka gallium)?

 

[symbolipoint]

Fit in a different board or subforum here but I found this which I did not earlier have a very clear concept:
T.I.L.

Five Laws of Library Science
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_laws_of_library_science

 

[DaveC426913]

TIL of an eggcorn.

An eggcorn is much like a mondegreen, except that the substituted word doesn't cause the phrase to stop making sense, whereas in a mondegreen it usually does. Mondegreens tend to live in song lyrics, whereas eggcorns not so much.

And also TIL, 'eggcorn' is, itself, an eggcorn. Apparently a mishearing of 'acorn'.

 

[jack action]

@jack action

Is that the same "eka" mendeleev used in his table (e.g. eka aluminum, aka gallium)?

Apparently, no:

To give provisional names to his predicted elements, Dmitri Mendeleev used the prefixes eka-, dvi- or dwi-, and tri-, from the Sanskrit names of digits 1, 2, and 3, depending upon whether the predicted element was one, two, or three places down from the known element of the same group in his table.

 

[sbrothy]

TIL about Historical Tech Tree - visualize the entire history of technologies, inventions, and (some) discoveries, from prehistory to today.
https://www.historicaltechtree.com/

Atomic Rockets has a page on those too. It might be a funnier read. As always YMMV:

Atomic Rockets: Tech Tree

 

[pinball1970]

T.I.L The moons of Uranus are named after characters created by William Shakespeare and Alexander Pope

 

[gmax137]

Lime and limpid green, a second scene
Now fights between the blue you once knew
Floating down, the sound resounds
Around the icy waters underground
Jupiter and Saturn, Oberon, Miranda and Titania
Neptune, Titan, stars can frighten

 

[jack action]

Lime and limpid green, a second scene
Now fights between the blue you once knew
Floating down, the sound resounds
Around the icy waters underground
Jupiter and Saturn, Oberon, Miranda and Titania
Neptune, Titan, stars can frighten

I know that!

Astronomy Domine

Good original from Pink Floyd:

​

Better cover from Voivod:

​

 

[gmax137]

RIP Syd!

If you like the pre-Dark Side Floyd, check out the Nick Mason videos on youtube. He was (is?) touring under the 'Saucer Full of Secrets' name.

 

[BWV]

Another hip early PF cover