h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Not an unfortunate toilet incident, but something I heard about in connection with Alfred Nobel. I believe he once owned/ran a dynamite factory in Scotland (but I could be wrong. I'm new here!). Anyway, the way the dynamite was produced meant that there was a big vat of nitro-glycerine which had to be watched constantly to make sure it didn't get too hot and blow up. There had to be someone sitting next to it 24 hours a day. The guy on the night-shift was apparently notorious for falling asleep, so they needed to find some way to keep him awake. (Dunno why they couldn't just sack him and hire an insomniac, but hey, it makes for a good story). The method they came up with was to redesign the stool he was given to sit on, so that, instead of the traditional 3 or 4 legs, it only had 1. This meant that if he started dozing, he would fall of his stool and wake up, to continue watching the dynamite. The design then became known as a dynamite stool. I don't know if anyone else has heard this, or if it's true, but it would be nice if it was, don't you think?

Crazy

That would keep you awake - imagine falling asleep and then falling onto the vat wall *shudder* Until later.....
BCNU - Crescent