Founded : December 2000 Created By : Esther Aquino and Joseph Garcia
DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF ESPERANZA AQUINO
Founded : December 2000 Created By : Esther Aquino and Joseph Garcia
DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF ESPERANZA AQUINO
September 8th, 2005
In Today's Edition
Well, that wraps up another week here at the ranch.
Only 9 more days till the Annual Piknik.
I hope everybody has a safe and pleasant weekend. Remember who loves you.
Born on September 8th
Comedian Sid Caesar is 83.
Actor David Arquette is 34.
Actor Henry Thomas (E.T.) is 34.
Actor Martin Freeman (The Office) is 34.
Actor Larenz Tate (Crash) is 30.
Singer Pink is 26.
Actor Jonathan Taylor Thomas (Home Improvement) is 24.
How'd You Do That?
During a recent vacation in Las Vegas, a man went to see a popular magic show. After one especially amazing feat, a man from the back of the theater yelled, "How'd you do that?"
"I could tell you, sir", the magician answered, "But then I'd have to kill you."
After a short pause, the man yelled back, "Ok, then... just tell my wife!"
Today's useless fact - Why is the gas tank on the right in some cars and the left on others?
Apparently, this question has plagued car owners for some time. We found a number of theories by visiting the links in the Automotive category. Here are a few:
* Car makers place the fuel door on arbitrary sides so everyone doesn't try to pull up to the same side of the pump at gas stations.
* On German vehicles, the gas door is always on the right so people don't have to stand in a traffic lane when fueling on a roadway.
* The gas filler will almost always be on the opposite side of the vehicle from the exhaust pipe.
This last theory appears to be correct. There is no universal standard for placement of the gas filler, but "the exhaust system has to go down one side of the car, and the gasoline filler tube generally goes on the other." So it's the vehicle's engineering design that determines the location of the gas tank. And who knows -- perhaps in the future gas tanks will only be available as an option.
Just kidding about that last part.
The Buzzword for September 8th
defenestration \dee-fen-uh-STRAY-shun\ noun
What does it mean?
: a throwing of a person or thing out of a window
How do you use it?
Johnson felt much better after the defenestration of his
homework assignment.
Are you a word wiz?
"Defenestration" is a strange word with a strange beginning.
What event do you think popularized "defenestration"?
A. an assembly where some people were thrown out of a window
B. a Viking ritual where a new cloak was thrown out of a barn
window
C. the medieval custom of throwing trash out of windows for
collection
D. the Boston Tea Party, where English tea was thrown out of a
window
Answer:
"Defenestration" traces to the Latin word for "window," but it
was popularized by the Defenestration of Prague. In 1609,
Hapsburg Emperor Rudolf II granted religious freedom to the
Protestants in his lands. In 1618, some officials closed
Protestant churches despite the Emperor's decree. The
Protestants called an assembly at which two imperial
officials were tried and found guilty of violating the
decree. As punishment, they were thrown out the window of the
room. Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt, and the word
"defenestration" is now best used for tossing inanimate
things (rather than people) out of windows.
Today's Jigsaw Puzzle
CLICK HERE
Field of Dreams
That's all for now. Tune in Monday for more stuff.
The following is what appeared in Wednesday's edition.
In Today's Edition
Another good thing about being poor is that when you are seventy your children will not have declared you legally insane in order to gain control of your estate.
~Woody Allen
Born on September 7th
Jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins is 75.
Actor John Philip Law is 68.
Singer Gloria Gaynor is 56.
Singer Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders is 54.
Actress Julie Kavner (The Simpsons) is 54.
Actor Corbin Bernsen is 51.
Saxophonist Leroi Moore of the Dave Matthews Band is 44.
Model Angie Everhart is 36.
Actress Shannon Elizabeth (American Pie) is 32.
Actor Devon Sawa (Slackers) is 27.
Agustin Rillon Aquino
Online Newspapers
Joey: My friend Glen reads all his newspapers on-line.
Larry: Well, that sounds convenient.
Joey: Yeah, but I tried it, and it's too hard for me to hold the computer while I'm on the toilet.
Today's useless fact - What is Chaos Theory?
According to the links in the LUKOL Chaos and Fractals category, this mathematical field of study attempts to "explain the fact that complex and unpredictable results can and will occur in systems that are sensitive to their initial conditions." Such systems include weather patterns, the stock market, fractals, and planetary physics.
The classic paradigm of chaos theory is the Butterfly Effect -- a butterfly in China flutters its wings, which triggers a huge, complex series of events that results in a tornado in Texas. Chaos Theory explores how a tiny aberration in initial conditions can drastically change the long-term behavior of a non-linear, dynamic system.
In mathematics, chaotic systems aren't random -- they're just very hard to predict. Like any branch of higher mathematics, Chaos is pretty complex.
The Buzzword for September 7th
biodegradable \bye-oh-dih-GRAY-duh-bul\ adjective
What does it mean?
: capable of being broken down especially into harmless
products by the action of living things (as bacteria)
How do you use it?
Although newspapers are usually biodegradable, some have been
found completely intact after being buried in landfills for
30 years.
Are you a word wiz?
"Biodegradable" includes the prefix "bio-," which also appears
in words such as "biology" and "biosphere." Based on what you
know about those words, what does "bio-" mean?
A. nature
B. scientific
C. made of paper
D. life
Answer:
Live it up if you picked answer D! The prefix "bio-" comes
from the Greek word for "life." When you see a word with
"bio" in it, think of something having to do with living
things. As you probably know, "biology" is the study of
living things, and the "biosphere" is the part of the earth
where organisms can live. The definition of "biodegradable"
shows that "living things" are an important part of the
meaning of that word, too.
Today's Jigsaw Puzzle
CLICK HERE
That's all for today. Tune in tomorrow for more stuff.
The following is what appeared in Tuesday's edition.
In Today's Edition
According to a poll in USA Today, 40% of Mexicans say they would move to the United States if they had the chance.
The other 60% are already here. ~ Jay Leno
Born on September 6th
Comedian JoAnne Worley is 68.
Singer-bassist Roger Waters (Pink Floyd) is 62.
Comedian-actress Jane Curtin is 58.
Actor-comedian Jeff Foxworthy is 47.
Actress Rosie Perez is 41.
Singer Macy Gray is 35.
Singer Dolores O'Riordan of The Cranberries is 34.
Actor Justin Whalen (Lois and Clark) is 31.
Singer Nina Persson of The Cardigans is 31.
Rapper Foxy Brown is 26.
Alicia and Keith Rooney's Third Anniversary
Irreconcilable Differences
A man and woman were having marriage problems, and decided to end their union after a very short time together. After a most brief attempt to reconcile, the couple went to court to finalize their break-up.
The judge asked the husband, "What has brought you to this point, where you are not able to keep this marriage together?"
The husband said, "In the six weeks we've been together, we haven't been able to agree on one thing."
The wife said, "Seven weeks."
European Correspondents
Today's useless fact - Can I copyright my own word?
We've often wondered if the unique word we utter after stubbing our toe was copyrightable. Certainly, we wouldn't want others using it -- at least not without attribution.
We turned to the links in the Copyrights category, for guidance. According to the U.S. Copyright Office, "titles, names, short phrases, and slogans" are "generally not eligible for federal copyright protections." We're not legal experts, but we assume that your word qualifies as a "short phrase."
Copyright laws were developed to encourage creativity and stifle plagiarism. WhatIsCopyright.org tells us that copyrights can protect literary, scientific, and artistic work -- "provided such works are fixed in a tangible or material form." That generally means that it has to be recorded in some way: written on paper, preserved on tape or film, or saved on your computer. Copyright offers protection for authors of original works, whether or not the works are published.
If you want to string some words together to create a song, poem, or story and write them down, then you'd potentially have material protected by copyright laws.
The Buzzword for September 6th
oblivion \uh-BLIV-ee-un\ noun
What does it mean?
1 : the state of forgetting or having forgotten or of being
unaware or unconscious
2 : the state of being forgotten
How do you use it?
Although their names may be known, the habits and
personalities of most of our ancestors have faded into
oblivion.
Are you a word wiz?
Only one of the writers we asked came up with a sentence that
uses "oblivion" correctly. Which of the following do you
think it is?
A. Graham has filled a shoe box with oblivion and mementos.
B. Margaret is determined to rescue the old folk song from
oblivion.
C. Carson wasn't under any oblivion to help, but he did anyway.
D. Eleanor's main oblivion here is to explain how the game works.
Answer:
The sentences may all fall into oblivion, but B is the one
that works. By rescuing a song from oblivion, Margaret will
be stopping the song from being forgotten. "Oblivion" comes
from the Latin word "oblivisci," meaning "to forget."
Although the definite origin of "oblivisci" has fallen into
oblivion, language scholars think it may come from the prefix
"ob-," meaning "in the way," and "levis," meaning "smooth."
Other offspring of "levis" include "levity" and "alleviate."
Today's Jigsaw Puzzle
CLICK HERE
That's all for today. Tune in tomorrow for more stuff.
The following is what appeared in Monday's edition.
In Today's Edition
Today is Labor Day in the US, a day to honor those who labor. Which is, as far as I can tell, just about everybody. I'm not sure quite what it means to honor labor by canceling one day of it, but then a lot of us get to work today anyway. Whatever labor you do, and whether or not you get to stop doing it today, I salute you.
~ G. Armour Van Horn
The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina is even more devastating than any one of us could have imagined.
I have been watching on the news and I cannot believe how unprepared our country is in meeting the needs of the people who are the victims of this disaster. President Bush was on TV the other day and I listened as he said "The results of our efforts are unacceptable".
I hope to God that he does something to make the efforts acceptable and that he does it immediately. It is amazing to me that the United States government finds ways to help other countries in their time of need, but when we have a disaster like this right here at home, we fail so miserably. Something is not right with this picture.
I received an e-mail from one of our readers who asked me to post a message. I have never refused a reader's request and so here it is.
Just a reminder to Neen:
Hi Neen,
Please come back to school on Sept 7, 2005 and Please don't be absent on that day !!! OK !! Please don't be late, if you late you will be squared !! LOL !!
From: Dora
Welcome back Home !!
Born on September 5th
Dweezil Zappa (1969)
Cathy Guisewaite (1950)
Freddie Mercury (1946)
Raquel Welch (1940)
Carol Lawrence (1934)
Bob Newhart (1929)
John Cage (1912)
Jesse James (1847)
Sex Objects
Bob: "So, how's it going with the ladies?"
Joey: "Women to me are sex objects."
Bob: "Really?"
Joey: "Sure. Whenever I mention sex, they object."
Today's useless fact - Where did the expression "break a leg" come from?
According to the links in the Acting category, stage actors are a particularly superstitious lot -- they don't say "Macbeth" in a theater, they don't whistle backstage, and they never wish each other "good luck" before a performance. This last tradition is a form of reverse psychology. They don't want to tempt fate by talking about positive outcomes in advance. So instead, they tell each other to "break a leg."
While the idea behind the phrase is quite old, possibly dating from medieval belief in malevolent spirits, "break a leg" itself is fairly recent. It was whispered in theater circles starting in the 1920s, and first appeared in print around 1954 or 1957.
The exact origin of "break a leg" isn't clear. Several etymology resources note the phrase's similarity to a German saying hals und beinbruch, meaning "neck and leg break." It's used to mean good luck. One theory is that German-speaking or Yiddish-speaking Jews brought the saying with them to America early in the 20th century. Many of these immigrants worked in theater, so the translated phrase spread.
Now you know why breaking a leg is a good thing...on stage, that is.
The Buzzword for September 5th
ratify \RAT-uh-fye\ verb
What does it mean?
: to give legal or official approval to
How do you use it?
The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787 and
ratified in 1788.
Are you a word wiz?
"Ratify" doesn't have many English cousins, but it has two
that are well-known. Which words below are related to
"ratify"?
A. reason, rational
B. decide, chisel
C. vote, veto
D. rat, fie
Answer:
You've got our official approval if you chose A! "Ratify,"
"reason," and "rational" all trace back to the Latin verb
"reri," meaning "to calculate or think." "Ratify" came from
"ratus," the Latin participle of "reri" which means
"determined." "Reason" and "rational" both came from a noun
derived from "reri," "ration," or "ratio," meaning "reason"
or "computation." All three words were taken into
Anglo-French (a kind of French spoken in medieval England),
and from there into Middle English and Modern English.
Today's Jigsaw Puzzle
CLICK HERE
That's all for today. Tune in tomorrow for more stuff.
