It’s Element-ary, Number Thirty-Three!

This month we move on to the next of the transition elements: silver. Silver is very shiny (until exposed to air which can cause silver to tarnish over time) and is used for money (coins), jewelry, and silverware. Silver is very soft and easy to use and is highly conductive. Dentists use small amounts for fillings.

silver – discovered in circa 3000 B.C.

Symbol: Ag
Atomic number: 47
Atomic weight: 107.87
Density: 10.490 g/cm³
Melting point: 961.78°C (1,763.2°F)
Boiling point: 2,162°C (3,924°F)
Color: silver
Standard state: solid at 25°C (77°F)
Classification: metallic

Source: The Complete Periodic Table: Elements with Style, by Adrian Dingle and Dan Green.

Fun Fact Friday, Number 279!

The category for today’s trivial imponderable is “food.”  Do you know . . . what is the difference between cocoa and chocolate?

Well, both are derived from the seeds of the Theobroma cacao. The seeds are then roasted, shelled, and ground and as it cools, becomes a paste (at first) and then ultimately a solid bar that consists partly of a fat called cocoa butter. The combination of cocoa butter and cocoa is what we call chocolate; if the paste is pressurized, the fat separates from the mixture and produces cocoa.

Source: Sorry, Wrong Answer: Trivia Questions That Even Know-It-Alls Get Wrong, by Dr. Rod L. Evans.

A Winter Setting!

Here is one of my latest acquisitions from one of my favorite local artists (note: I have several favorites). It was entered into the Women Artists of the West 51st National Exhibition in early 2021. Positively stunning! The artist: Joey Frisillo, the title: A Winter Setting, the medium: oil and cold wax, the size: 12×16. The painting depicts “. . . an Indiana farm home but represents rural America with its beautiful warm grasses peeking out from below a  blanket of snow” (this description is from the artist’s website). This stark winter scene is very reminiscent of my time growing up in northern lower Michigan. Lots of fond memories.

Samuel Finley Breese Morse!

Samuel Morse was born on this date in 1741. And while his main “claim to fame” was his being a co-developer of Morse code, Samuel Morse was also an accomplished artist (painter). Morse studied under Washington Allston in England from 1811-1815 where he established his reputation as a portrait painter, here is one of his non-portrait paintings entitled “Dying Hercules.” This particular painting is considered Morse’s masterpiece. Morse returned to Europe to improve his painting skills (between 1830-1832) and visited Italy, Switzerland, and France. While in Paris, he started a project to paint miniature copies of the Louvre’s 38 most famous paintings onto a single canvas (measuring 6 ft x 9 ft). He finished this painting upon his return to the United States and entitled it The Gallery of the Louvre.

Amazing Adjectives, Number 101!

From English xero-, a combining form meaning “dry,” + -philous, a combining form meaning “having an affinity for.” As exemplified in The Highly Selective Dictionary of Golden Adjectives for the Extraordinarily Literate.

“A southern window in my dry, overheated apartment is hospitable to cacti and other xerophilous plants in my collection”

xerophilous

\ zi-rof–uh-luhs \, adjective;

1. Botany. growing in or adapted to dry, especially dry and hot, regions.
2. Zoology. living or flourishing in a dry environment.

Source: The Highly Selective Dictionary of Golden Adjectives for the Extraordinarily Literate by Eugene Ehrlich and http://www.dictionary.com

A Library, A Bridge!

I’m not sure why I hadn’t heard of this architectural marvel earlier, but in Germany, when a town was lacking the real estate to build a new library, they went with a design that built the structure over a river that runs through the city. Here is a photo. And, in case you are interested, here are some of the fun facts . . .

• Work began in 2011 and was completed in 2013.
• Structure type: Simply-supported Warren truss bridge
• Function/use:
  • Library
  • Bicycle/pedestrian bridge
• Material: steel
• Location: Bad Vilbel, Wetteraukreis, Hesse, Germany

Technical information:

• Width: 23.7 meters
• Height: 9.7 meters
• Span: 30.0 meters
• Length: 40.9 meters
• Building area: 970 square meters
• Gross floor area: 2,367.6 square meters
• Gross cubic volume: 10,703 square meters

Gulfstream!

Here is a wonderful pattern for creating an origami gulfstream jet. Happy folding!

Source: https://youtu.be/Iea–mJ5nEE

A Young Woman From Niger!

Limericks are always so much fun. Often times totally improbable in their stories, but so very entertaining (and clever).

There was a young woman from Niger,
Who rode on the back of a tiger.
They returned from the ride,
With the lady inside,
And a smile on the face of the tiger.

Source: A Bundle of Birdbrains…Lots of Limericks (selected by Myra Cohn Livingston)

Fun Fact Friday, Number 278!

Today’s real facts (courtesy of http://www.snapple.com) are about snakes.  Did you know that . . .

• the only continent without reptiles or snakes is Antarctica? (Real Fact #120)
• snakes can see even with their eyes closed? (Real Fact #1395)

Source: http://www.snapple.com/real-facts

English: a Difficult Language!

I have seen a variety of humorous poems and essays exemplifying the subtleties of the English language. Here is yet another that more specifically deals with singular versus plural and their inconsistencies. Unfortunately, the author is anonymous and I cannot give proper attribution.

Why English Is Hard To Learn

We’ll begin with box; the plural is boxes,
But the plural of ox is oxen, not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, and two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose is never called meese.

You may find a line mouse or a house full of mice;
But the plural of house is houses, not hice.
The plural of man is always men,
But the plural of pan is never pen.

If I speak of a foot, and you show me two feet,
And I give you a book, would a pair be a beek?
If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,
Why shouldn’t two booths be called beeth?

If the singular’s this and the plural is these,
Should the plural of kiss be ever called keese?

We speak of a brother and also of brethren,
But though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his, and him;
But imagine the feminine . . . she, shis, shim!