Admit your ignorance - things you've only just realised/learned

[Beebo]

Talking of things you didn't know the word for ...

A capitonym is a word that changes its meaning (and sometimes pronunciation) when it is capitalized;
e.g.
polish / Polish

Like reading the ballad of Reading Gaol.

 

[Seevio]

In the 1990s there was a song with the lyrics, "What's she going to look like with a chimney on her?"
I recently found out that 'chimney' is slang for a black-eye. It makes sense now.

Chimney does indeed appear to be slang for a black eye. In Northern Ireland. Urban dictionary has some very different ideas about what a chimney is slang for. All online connections to the song appear to be reasonably recent.

The song was made by Italian house producers who may or may not have been familiar with Ulster Slang. While the tune relied heavily or the Jackson 5, the words, if not the actual vocals, were lifted from Urban Discharge's song, Drop a House. The chorus of which goes "wanna drop a house on that B...." This imagery is more like wizard of oz where famously a house is dropped on the witch.
Unfortunately, I was unable to find out which was the original mix of drop a house. Some versions have the chimney line in and some don't. Possibly the line was taken from the tamperer song and added back in to the original.

Either way, sometimes a chimney is just a chimney.

 

[Chris S]

Chimney does indeed appear to be slang for a black eye. In Northern Ireland. Urban dictionary has some very different ideas about what a chimney is slang for. All online connections to the song appear to be reasonably recent.

The song was made by Italian house producers who may or may not have been familiar with Ulster Slang. While the tune relied heavily or the Jackson 5, the words, if not the actual vocals, were lifted from Urban Discharge's song, Drop a House. The chorus of which goes "wanna drop a house on that B...." This imagery is more like wizard of oz where famously a house is dropped on the witch.
Unfortunately, I was unable to find out which was the original mix of drop a house. Some versions have the chimney line in and some don't. Possibly the line was taken from the tamperer song and added back in to the original.

Either way, sometimes a chimney is just a chimney.

In that case she would look like Wile E. Coyote after an encounter with Road Runner.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

I knew that an A4 piece of paper folded in half makes an A5 etc, but I didn't know that, if you go backwards, then an A0 piece of paper is 1 square metre.

Many thanks to the goddess Hannah Fry for that one (via my facebook feed).

 

[matticus]

I knew that an A4 piece of paper folded in half makes an A5 etc, but I didn't know that, if you go backwards, then an A0 piece of paper is 1 square metre.

Many thanks to the goddess Hannah Fry for that one (via my facebook feed).

Cool - I didn't know the size of A0 either. I'm pleasantly surprised that there is a sensible baseline size!

Now if we could only get rid of "US Letter" - perhaps a couple of aircraft carriers (+ escort) need to be dispatched ...

 

[lazybloke]

I knew that an A4 piece of paper folded in half makes an A5 etc, but I didn't know that, if you go backwards, then an A0 piece of paper is 1 square metre.

Aha, but how many times can you fold a piece of paper in half?
I just tried with a high GSM A4 sheet from my printer and could only do 6.

I think Mythbusters managed 8 folds (by hand) , but that was with a massive sheet of paper the size of a football field; almost "A(-12)"
Then they got the steamroller out and managed 2 or 3 more folds!

It's a good example of exponential growth. You'd fill the observable universe with little more than 100 folds.

Many thanks to the goddess Hannah Fry for that one (via my facebook feed).

She was a good contestant on the New Year Taskmaster special. Hurrah for maths nerds/nerdettes!

 

[Tail End Charlie]

Aha, but how many times can you fold a piece of paper in half?
I just tried with a high GSM A4 sheet from my printer and could only do 6.

I think Mythbusters managed 8 folds (by hand) , but that was with a massive sheet of paper the size of a football field; almost "A(-12)"
Then they got the steamroller out and managed 2 or 3 more folds!

It's a good example of exponential growth. You'd fill the observable universe with little more than 100 folds.



She was a good contestant on the New Year Taskmaster special. Hurrah for maths nerds/nerdettes!

And @matticus The other thing I didn't know in addition to A0 being 1 square metre is that you can go backwards i.e. A-1 is two square metres, A-2 four etc etc. She reckoned that A-45 would be big enough to wrap the earth in. She also mentions the ridiculous American paper sizes. Apparently the A method of paper sizing came about after WW2 so an early example of EU standardisation.

 

[lazybloke]

And @matticus The other thing I didn't know in addition to A0 being 1 square metre is that you can go backwards i.e. A-1 is two square metres, A-2 four etc etc. She reckoned that A-45 would be big enough to wrap the earth in.

In my technical drawing days, i had a drawing board big enough to comfortably fit an A0 sheet. Getting that board up the stairs and round the corners into my loft room, it felt large enough to wrap Earth..

iSO 216 /DIN 476 describe the sizes.
Apparently negative numbers aren't used.

Numbering goes from A10 down to A0, then you get 2A0 (not A-1), 4A0 (not A-2), and presumably 8A0 (not A-3).

So familiar sizes follow an arithmetic progression (which doesn't make much sense) while very large sizes are named using a geometric progression (which actually does make sense).

Although that does mean that your example of A-45 would actually be called "35184372088832A0". Viking Direct don't stock it!

 

[Chris S]

There is a herd of water buffalo just outside Berlin.

 

[Chris S]

Yoga bands make good neck warmers. They're a lot more compact than a scarf as well.

 

[Beebo]

There is a herd of water buffalo just outside Berlin.

They are commercially farmed in Italy and the Balkans region.

Similarly, there is a herd of Bison in a wood near Canterbury!

 

[swee'pea99]

I knew that an A4 piece of paper folded in half makes an A5 etc, but I didn't know that, if you go backwards, then an A0 piece of paper is 1 square metre.

Many thanks to the goddess Hannah Fry for that one (via my facebook feed).

Um...except it isn't. The whole point of the A system is that each is its neighbour doubled/halved, depending on which way you're going. Eg:

Sorry.

 

[figbat]

Um...except it isn't. The whole point of the A system is that each is its neighbour doubled/halved, depending on which way you're going. Eg:

View attachment 759051

Sorry.

84.1x118.9 = 9999.49 = let's say that's close enough to 1m2.

 

[figbat]

Many thanks to the goddess Hannah Fry for that one (via my facebook feed).

As far as I am aware, Prof Hannah Fry doesn't have a Facebook presence. There is or are impostors posting her content from Instagram or other sources. Sorry.

 

[swee'pea99]

84.1x118.9 = 9999.49 = let's say that's close enough to 1m2.

Ah! Well there's me told! Interesting. It's one square metre, not one metre square - as originally advised.