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

The Ford Model T (production started in 1913) got 25 miles to the gallon.

I've seen ads for hybrid vehicles that barely get that much.

Off-Topic Alert - FWIW ...

Good point on the Model T. I heard a lecture recently on "Titans of Industry" or some such. Along with the founders of McDonald's, Mary Kay Cosmetics, etc., one of the "heroes" was the founder of General Motors. His paradigm shifting idea was to make autos a style statement, unlike Ford who created machines to last indefinitely (bad marketing - once everybody had one ...) So people wanted a new car every year or so to show their "coolness". And who do we "save" when it hits the fan? General Motors.

Reminds me of a John Hiatt song "Perfectly Good Guitar", presumably inspired by a "Who" concert ...

- Steve K., proud owner of a 17 year old Honda Accord, purchased new, runs great, and gets 30 mpg.

1913 Model 'T' Ford.

Advertising catchphrase was 'You can have any colour you like....As long as it is black!




GT

Was that actually used? Wasn´t that just some urban legend about Henry Ford?

Could be Urban Legend, but on all the old newsreels, all tha cars are black. Something to do with having to handpaint each and every one?

Dunno!!!!



GT

Or to do with the old newsreels being in black and white?

He said that in his 1922 autobiography.

Xantic!!!

But even in 'Black and White' film, you can usually guess 'real' black!!!




GT

'Or to do with the old newsreels being in black and white?'

< Something to do with having to handpaint each and every one?>

In the days before spray paint every car had to be brush painted then hand polished then painted again and polished again. The process was repeated as many times as it took to get a hard smooth finish.

Painting was a skill and the painters had a union which Henry detested. The colour black required the least amount of paint and the smallest amount of labour.

Never thought of it in that way Tumsup!!

Thanx for the info!!




GT

Also, coloured pigments can involve pricey minerals while black is just soot.

Henry Ford was a brilliant engineer but, like many engineers, he was completely clueless about human nature.

He put his workers on an assembly line with no consideration of the frailties of the human body or nervous system and then was amazed when his annual labour turnover rate was 99%.
He had to raise the pay to twice the average rate to attract enough workers to keep his plants running.

According to a book I have, James Burke's 'Connections', Henry Ford is credited with the invention of the modern day production line!!!




GT

Not exactly. The idea of a division of labour skills is older than that, Adam Smith said a lot about it in the eighteenth century, pointing out it's economic efficiency.

What Ford did was to realize that idea on a giant scale by breaking down the steps to manufacturing something to the point that it required no skill at all, just a pair of hands and the ability to not go insane from the monotony.

Xactly what I posted, Tumsup!!!!





GT

In the film The Matrix, the passport of Thomas A. Anderson (Neo) expires on 11 September, 2001.

http://imgur.com/3WW53.jpg

"Whoa!"

Ayesha (think of the film She starring Ursula Andress) should be pronounced Assha, not Eye-eesha. That's what it says in the novel, and H. Rider Haggard ought to know.

My mug of tea has gone cold .

~*~The passport of Thomas A. Anderson (Neo) expires on 11 September, 2001.~*~

That's interesting.

~*~The passport of Thomas A. Anderson (Neo) expires on 11 September, 2001.~*~

That's interesting.

That's what I was thinking . Hence my post about my mug of tea . Topic drift and all that . Perhaps we could do with an ' Interesting facts ' thread .