TIL: Today I Learned

[Hrothbern]

TIL that Herodotus described also a "baris". A kind of boat that has now been found for the first time.

In the fifth century BC, the Greek historian Herodotus visited Egypt and wrote of unusual river boats on the Nile. Twenty-three lines of his Historia, the ancient world’s first great narrative history, are devoted to the intricate description of the construction of a “baris”.
For centuries, scholars have argued over his account because there was no archaeological evidence that such ships ever existed. Now there is. A “fabulously preserved” wreck in the waters around the sunken port city of Thonis-Heracleion has revealed just how accurate the historian was.
In 450 BC Herodotus witnessed the construction of a baris. He noted how the builders “cut planks two cubits long [around 100cm] and arrange them like bricks”. He added: “On the strong and long tenons [pieces of wood] they insert two-cubit planks. When they have built their ship in this way, they stretch beams over them… They obturate the seams from within with papyrus. There is one rudder, passing through a hole in the keel. The mast is of acacia and the sails of papyrus...”
https://www.theguardian.com/science...eck-herodotus-archaeologists-thonis-heraclion

 

[Zkribbler]

The Beatles wanted to make a Lord of the Rings movie with themselves playing the four hobbits. Tolkien kaboshed the proposal.

 

[Cutlass]

TIL that actor, producer, writer, Kevin Smith named his daughter Harley Quinn.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0808410/

 

[Lohrenswald]

Harley Quinn Smith

 

[Kaitzilla]

TIL that as far as history is concerned, Catholic Saints outnumber NHL hockey players.

NHL hockey players from 1917 to 2019: 7,883
Catholic Saints in history: More than 10,000

Skaters
http://www.nhl.com/stats/player?agg...e=2&filter=gamesPlayed,gte,1&sort=gamesPlayed
Goalies
http://www.nhl.com/stats/player?agg...e=2&filter=gamesPlayed,gte,1&sort=gamesPlayed
Saints
https://www.britannica.com/story/roman-catholic-saints-hallowed-from-the-other-side

Kind of cool every NHL hockey stat can now be checked with a mouse click.
Took 6 years to enter in all the data.

 

[Birdjaguar]

TIL Novameme is a thing.

http://alfields.co/inventions/novamene/

 

[Mouthwash]

TIL oral sex correlates with a reduced chance of miscarriage and may be a natural part of human reproduction.

We need to get this to the Vatican, stat.

 

[Takhisis]

More importantly than that, TIL that there is a new Indiana Jones film in pre-production, scheduled to be released in 2021.

 

[MagisterCultuum]

TIL oral sex correlates with a reduced chance of miscarriage and may be a natural part of human reproduction.

We need to get this to the Vatican, stat.

I remember reading years ago that the risk of preeclampsia was reduced both by oral and even more so by unprotected anal sex with the unborn child's father.

 

[Lemon Merchant]

Moderator Action: We're straying into overly adult territory here. Remember that this is a family oriented forum.

 

[Takhisis]

(just to clarify, my Indiana Jones post wasn't related to the other two)

 

[Broken_Erika]

Mm-Hmm. Sure it wasn't....

 

[hobbsyoyo]

TIL that if you are granted stock options and you buy them, you have to report the difference between the purchase price and current market value for the alternative minimum tax (AMT) - even if you don't sell them. I received stock options and I was putting off starting to save for retirement through a 401k or IRA until I had bought them all. I'm glad I looked up the rules because now I have to run an AMT calculation and see if I can even afford to buy them this year due to the tax hit I may face. I may have to split my savings between a traditional savings vehicle and stocks instead.

 

[Takhisis]

Mm-Hmm. Sure it wasn't....

Of course. Definitely.

TIL that if you are granted stock options and you buy them, you have to report the difference between the purchase price and current market value for the alternative minimum tax (AMT) - even if you don't sell them. I received stock options and I was putting off starting to save for retirement through a 401k or IRA until I had bought them all. I'm glad I looked up the rules because now I have to run an AMT calculation and see if I can even afford to buy them this year due to the tax hit I may face. I may have to split my savings between a traditional savings vehicle and stocks instead.

Regressive taxation FTW.

 

[hobbsyoyo]

Of course. Definitely.

Regressive taxation FTW.

The crazy thing is that the AMT was supposed to ensure very rich people paid a minimum tax but it hasn't kept up with inflation. Now it mostly hits middle and lower-upper class people while the very wealthy still don't pay it. I learned that last night as well.

And even when I buy the stocks, I can't sell them and I may never be able to sell them. But I'm on the hook for taxes on them. Oh well.

 

[AdamCrock]

More importantly than that, TIL that there is a new Indiana Jones film in pre-production, scheduled to be released in 2021.

Will Harrison Ford be in it ?

 

[Takhisis]

The crazy thing is that the AMT was supposed to ensure very rich people paid a minimum tax but it hasn't kept up with inflation. Now it mostly hits middle and lower-upper class people while the very wealthy still don't pay it. I learned that last night as well.

And even when I buy the stocks, I can't sell them and I may never be able to sell them. But I'm on the hook for taxes on them. Oh well.

I told you, you're not paranoiac enough.

Will Harrison Ford be in it ?

Quoting from TVTropes:

A fifth film has been announced for a Summer 2019 release, with Harrison Ford set to reprise the role.​

Edit: I got the dates wrong and they now say it's for 2019?!?!

 

[BenitoChavez]

TIL that biodegradable plastic can be made out of lobster shells. Good for the environment. Bad for lobsters

 

[hobbsyoyo]

I read a while back that lobsters have benefited somewhat from global warming, at least for now. Their populations have exploded in US fisheries which is why in the past 5 years the dish has exploded in popularity and availability. Lobster Mac N' Cheese is pretty popular and a lot of restaurants feature lobster on their menu. I've seen it for sale at Aldi's (discount grocery) consistently for a few years which is telling - especially since Aldi's is famous for their rotating selection of non-basic foodstuffs.

 

[Takhisis]

Lobster Mac'n'cheese?

Is this some sort of fusion cuisine?

TIL that biodegradable plastic can be made out of lobster shells. Good for the environment. Bad for lobsters

PET has become biodegradable, or, more accurately, somebody's developed a way to degrade it in a short while rather than a couple centuries. So there's still hope that scientific progress can lead to good things.

Hang in there, lobsters!