Interesting little facts...

[Taipan]

Went for a hike up one of the cross-country ski trails in Banff and happened upon a toilet block (why it was out there in the woods I dunno) - on the door was a sign suggesting you don't just charge in....

(I can't really remember but there was probably a door latch of some sort but they're pretty canny them bears. They were all over the place, small ones not grizzlys, even sat in small groups on the grass verges at the roadside. I assume people would throw 'treats' out of the car window Did a hike around an old/historic site of interest - an old mining settlement - and you really had to keep your eyes open and make a bit of noise.They're supposed to be mainly nocturnal but they seemed pretty wide awake during the day and definitely not all hibernating!).

My Aunt and Uncle lived on Vancouver Island in Canada. Feeding bears would really get you in trouble as they then associated humans with food. They had a saying, "A fed bear is a dead bear" as that's what often ended up happing to them if they kept approaching humans.

[Count Steer]

Went for a hike up one of the cross-country ski trails in Banff and happened upon a toilet block (why it was out there in the woods I dunno) - on the door was a sign suggesting you don't just charge in....

(I can't really remember but there was probably a door latch of some sort but they're pretty canny them bears. They were all over the place, small ones not grizzlys, even sat in small groups on the grass verges at the roadside. I assume people would throw 'treats' out of the car window Did a hike around an old/historic site of interest - an old mining settlement - and you really had to keep your eyes open and make a bit of noise.They're supposed to be mainly nocturnal but they seemed pretty wide awake during the day and definitely not all hibernating!).

My Aunt and Uncle lived on Vancouver Island in Canada. Feeding bears would really get you in trouble as they then associated humans with food. They had a saying, "A fed bear is a dead bear" as that's what often ended up happing to them if they kept approaching humans.

Wish I'd got relatives on Vancouver Island. They'd be sick of the sight of us! I could happily up-sticks and live there.

[Taipan]

Went for a hike up one of the cross-country ski trails in Banff and happened upon a toilet block (why it was out there in the woods I dunno) - on the door was a sign suggesting you don't just charge in....

(I can't really remember but there was probably a door latch of some sort but they're pretty canny them bears. They were all over the place, small ones not grizzlys, even sat in small groups on the grass verges at the roadside. I assume people would throw 'treats' out of the car window Did a hike around an old/historic site of interest - an old mining settlement - and you really had to keep your eyes open and make a bit of noise.They're supposed to be mainly nocturnal but they seemed pretty wide awake during the day and definitely not all hibernating!).

My Aunt and Uncle lived on Vancouver Island in Canada. Feeding bears would really get you in trouble as they then associated humans with food. They had a saying, "A fed bear is a dead bear" as that's what often ended up happing to them if they kept approaching humans.

Wish I'd got relatives on Vancouver Island. They'd be sick of the sight of us! I could happily up-sticks and live there.

Sadly they are long gone now and regrettably I never got to go and see them, despite the open invitation. My stupid pride wouldn't let them pay for me, despite multiple offers, and i couldn't afford it back then, so I never went. I have hardly any regrets in life, but not seeing my Aunt and Uncle and indeed Vancouver Island is one of them.

[Taipan]

2 interesting facts about me.
1. My knob is as long as 2 Argos pens.
2. I'm barred from Argos.

[slowhare]

Have you seen the clip of Richard Feynman explaining how magnets work?

His point is, you can get deeper and deeper into the physics but at some point you always reach a level where you have to accept "they just do".

It's the same with electricity IME

In my head, I can hear him now. He is one of my favourite physicists ever, bar none.

An extraordinary chap greatly missed.

Richard Feynman was not the genius he’s made out to be.

[Taipan]

Siri has Harry Potter commands. "Hey Siri, lumos" turns the torch on and "Hey Siri, Nox" to turn it off. Also "Hey Siri Assios" followed by the app name you want it to open.

[Yorick]

Siri has Harry Potter commands. "Hey Siri, lumos" turns the torch on and "Hey Siri, Nox" to turn it off. Also "Hey Siri Assios" followed by the app name you want it to open.

I didn't understand any of that

[Taipan]

Siri has Harry Potter commands. "Hey Siri, lumos" turns the torch on and "Hey Siri, Nox" to turn it off. Also "Hey Siri Assios" followed by the app name you want it to open.

I didn't understand any of that

Do you need a hand to tie your laces?

[Yorick]

Siri has Harry Potter commands. "Hey Siri, lumos" turns the torch on and "Hey Siri, Nox" to turn it off. Also "Hey Siri Assios" followed by the app name you want it to open.

I didn't understand any of that

Do you need a hand to tie your laces?

I've never used Siri and never seen Harry Potter

And no laces in me flip flops

[Mr. Dazzle]

Siri has Harry Potter commands. "Hey Siri, lumos" turns the torch on and "Hey Siri, Nox" to turn it off. Also "Hey Siri Assios" followed by the app name you want it to open.

Tiepin's iPhone tomorrow:

It's "open WHATs app" not "open what's AAAAPP".

[Cousin Jack]

I am beginning to worry that the younger generations are losing track of what is real and what is imagined.

[Slenver]

never seen Harry Potter

FYI, they're books

[Yorick]

never seen Harry Potter

FYI, they're books

Never seen the books

[KungFooBob]

What about Harry Pita, the chili saucerer?

[gremlin]

Siri has Harry Potter commands. "Hey Siri, lumos" turns the torch on and "Hey Siri, Nox" to turn it off. Also "Hey Siri Assios" followed by the app name you want it to open.

I didn't understand any of that

Me neither. I suspect it's because we're not 12 year olds who believe in wizards, spells and the existence of unicorns*....



*I was going to type 'and the non-existence of transsexuals' to be all edgy, satirical and topical, but then thought the better of it given the shenanigans of the past few weeks on 'ere.

[Demannu]

Discovered that bee venom does not make a very good cosmetic filler when injected around the eye socket!

[Taipan]

James Bond has his martini shaken not stirred, because when you stir a martini the drink contents mix. When you shake them the water from the ice sits on top of the alcohol, so he sits there sipping water and not getting drunk. Super Spy!

[gremlin]

James Bond has his martini shaken not stirred, because when you stir a martini the drink contents mix. When you shake them the water from the ice sits on top of the alcohol, so he sits there sipping water and not getting drunk. Super Spy!

Bond's top tipple is actually Scotch. Somebody, presumably with nothing better to do, went through all the novels and counted what he drank. Scotch came top, followed by champagne. The Martini came a poor third.

[Taipan]

Beatrice Shilling OBE (8 March 1909 – 18 November 1990)[1] was a British aeronautical engineer, motorcycle racer and sports car racer. In 1949, Shilling was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.

As a motorcycle racer Shilling was one of only three women to receive the British Motorcycle Racing Club Gold Star for lapping the Brooklands circuit at over 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) on a motorcycle. In sports car racing, she scored several podium finishes at the Goodwood Circuit Members' Meetings

The RAE Restrictor

During the Battle of France and Battle of Britain in 1940, RAF pilots discovered a serious problem in fighter planes with Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, such as the Hurricane and Spitfire. When the plane went nose-down to begin a dive the resulting negative g-force would flood the engine's SU carburettor, causing the engine to stall. German fighters used fuel injection engines which avoided this problem. So in action a German fighter could evade a pursuing RAF fighter by flying a negative g manoeuvre which the RAF plane could not follow.[8]

Shilling devised a restrictor plate to solve this problem. It was a brass thimble with a hole in the middle (later further simplified to a flat washer), which could be fitted into the engine's carburettor without taking the aircraft out of service. The restrictor limited maximum fuel flow and prevented flooding. By March 1941 she had led a small team on a tour of RAF fighter stations, installing the devices in their Merlin engines. The restrictor was immensely popular with pilots and the device was nicknamed Miss Shilling's orifice (an inaccurate nickname, since Shilling was married three years prior and therefore her legal name was "Mrs Naylor") by Sir Stanley Hooker, the engineer who led supercharger development at Rolls-Royce at the time.[9] It continued in use as a stop-gap until the introduction of the pressure carburettor in 1943.[10]

Shilling went on to design the RAE-Hobson injection carburettor which overcame the problem of the Rolls-Royce Merlin aeroplane engines losing power during negative-g manoeuvres. Shilling also worked on the Blue Streak missile, researched the effect of a wet runway upon braking, and helped design and build a bobsled for the Royal Air Force's Olympic team.

[ZRX61]

Beatrice Shilling OBE (8 March 1909 – 18 November 1990)[1] was a British aeronautical engineer, motorcycle racer and sports car racer. In 1949, Shilling was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.

As a motorcycle racer Shilling was one of only three women to receive the British Motorcycle Racing Club Gold Star for lapping the Brooklands circuit at over 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) on a motorcycle. In sports car racing, she scored several podium finishes at the Goodwood Circuit Members' Meetings

The RAE Restrictor

During the Battle of France and Battle of Britain in 1940, RAF pilots discovered a serious problem in fighter planes with Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, such as the Hurricane and Spitfire. When the plane went nose-down to begin a dive the resulting negative g-force would flood the engine's SU carburettor, causing the engine to stall. German fighters used fuel injection engines which avoided this problem. So in action a German fighter could evade a pursuing RAF fighter by flying a negative g manoeuvre which the RAF plane could not follow.[8]

Shilling devised a restrictor plate to solve this problem. It was a brass thimble with a hole in the middle (later further simplified to a flat washer), which could be fitted into the engine's carburettor without taking the aircraft out of service. The restrictor limited maximum fuel flow and prevented flooding. By March 1941 she had led a small team on a tour of RAF fighter stations, installing the devices in their Merlin engines. The restrictor was immensely popular with pilots and the device was nicknamed Miss Shilling's orifice (an inaccurate nickname, since Shilling was married three years prior and therefore her legal name was "Mrs Naylor") by Sir Stanley Hooker, the engineer who led supercharger development at Rolls-Royce at the time.[9] It continued in use as a stop-gap until the introduction of the pressure carburettor in 1943.[10]

Shilling went on to design the RAE-Hobson injection carburettor which overcame the problem of the Rolls-Royce Merlin aeroplane engines losing power during negative-g manoeuvres. Shilling also worked on the Blue Streak missile, researched the effect of a wet runway upon braking, and helped design and build a bobsled for the Royal Air Force's Olympic team.

His biog should be on everyone's reading list.