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Andrew Johnson was the President drunk at his inauguration (he didn't miss it though). He was recovering from malaria and drank 'medicinal' whisky to bolster himself for the occasion.
Iīll look it up, promise. But another completely useless fact (a giggle for someoneone in your job): Sweden was the first European country to have a sattrite in space. Guesses without checking your files?
Satellite! I ought not type in half dark
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Posted Feb 17, 2010 by toybox
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I think one of the Krupps (possibly Alfred) got a speeding ticket on a horse too.
| | Subject: useless facts
Posted Feb 17, 2010 by pedro
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'Gymnasium' and 'gymnast' both derive from the Ancient Greek word for 'naked'.
Speeding tickets...thereīs still a veteran motorbike rally in England, first run to celebrate the Emancipaion Act - any comers?
Pedro - we had high hopes when our grammar school admitted females.
When we saw the first volunteeresses...OK...
Thanks, pedro. Now I can claim that when I say that they should have to perform naked I'm making a cultured remark.
| | Subject: useless facts
Posted Feb 19, 2010 by Yelbakk
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"Naked" is "Dekan" backwards. "Dekan" is the post at German universities which in Englisch speaking countries is called "dean". (As in: dean of students = Studiendekan)
Y.
Sweden was the first European country to have a satellite in space 
We did have Swedish-made instruments onboard the first European satellite ESRO-1 in 1968 but the satellite itself was made by ESRO (later ESA) so more of a joint venture.
The first Swedish satellite was Viking and was sent up in 1986.
I hope none of the above was useful 
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So many pub names have "Lion" or "Eagle" or "Man" in them because the old taverns were often placed at the gates to the old towns, where most guests were to be expected. The East, West, North and South gates were traditionally dedicated to saints - most commonly the evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. (Even for this there was a system, but I can't remember which saint faced which way)
Still with me?
OK
The symbols of the evangelists, the lion for Mark, the Ox for Luke, the Eagle for John and Man(or sometimes an Angel) for Matthew, were therefore often used for the signs to hang outside the doors of the inns.
So this was quite useful in the Middle Ages. If, on leaving town you passed the Red Lion, and you knew (a) that the lion symbolised St Mark, and (b) that the e.g. West gate was always dedicated to St Mark, you could work out that you were leaving the West gate and heading West.
There are lots of other reasons for pub names - for example, an eagle or a lion might easily have become a pub name because it features in a local coat of arms - and it's all very fascinating and interesting, but, these days, quite honestly, it's not a very useful thing to know, let alone life-saving.
Unless you're dying of thirst.
| | Subject: useless facts
Posted Feb 19, 2010 by kuzushi
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A very interesting post about pub names.
<<So this was quite useful in the Middle Ages. If, on leaving town you passed the Red Lion, and you knew (a) that the lion symbolised St Mark, and (b) that the e.g. West gate was always dedicated to St Mark, you could work out that you were leaving the West gate and heading West.
>>
Yes, it would have been useful.
Does that mean it's not a useless fact?
| | Subject: useless facts
Posted Feb 19, 2010 by Xanatic
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Luckily most places donīt have city walls anymore, so itīs not useful these days.
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Posted Feb 19, 2010 by kuzushi
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Hmm. Might still be useful, but who cares, it's interesting
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Posted Feb 19, 2010 by kuzushi
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<<
The symbols of the evangelists, the lion for Mark, the Ox for Luke, the Eagle for John and Man(or sometimes an Angel) for Matthew, were therefore often used for the signs to hang outside the doors of the inns.
>>
A bit of a coincidence this. Randomly opening the bible this evening I happened across this passage from the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel:
"Their faces looked like this: Each of the four had the face of a man, and on the right side each had the face of a lion  , and on the left the face of an ox; each also had the face of an eagle." Ezekiel 1:10
This is apt to be my last post on mathematics here. What's that I hear? 
The prime numbers that translate from base 2 to base 10 twice and from base 3 to base 10 twice as primes are the issue. There should be infinitely many of them. The first is the uninteresting 33660109. The first one that translates from base 4 once as a prime is 4th on the list, the first one that translates twice from base 4 as a prime is 44th on the list, these two start with 234 in base ten (234099253 and 2348568403) and the 10th on the list starts with 365 (365431051). The investigation began by computing that that fourth one is particularly neat. It translates twice also as primes from base 5 to base 10, then does not translate again into a prime until base 20 (not counting the tautology at base 10, and allowing 'digits' greater than 9 for the translation), at which base it translates to base 10 as primes five times. It then translates again into primes from base 22 four times and from base 25 twice (not once at bases 21, 23 or 24), and then seems not to be interesting (but that's enough).
The preceding post is correct, but 33660109 has one to many 3s.
Ops!
| | Subject: useless facts
Posted Feb 20, 2010 by Xanatic
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