What DON'T we know here? (A trivia thread)

A recent thread I posted has me wondering. I posted about buying a piece of strange aluminum I-beam that defied identification, and within a few hours it was identified, a forum member texted me with an answer, and someone posted a link to a source. The answer is; it was a piece of I-beam for sunroom/patio installations and I now know where to buy more.

I turn to this forum for so much more than how to supercharge the answer and alignment specs. I have talked pet adoption, divorce, recipes, vacation spots, legal issues, favorite restaurants in Baltimore, and some of you have offered free parts brought to my town just because you were on your way to my neck of the woods. I have received boxes of holiday swag from people I've never met and sent swag on to the next schmuck who doesn't know me. (sorry if you received from me... you're not really a schmuck, I was just making a point ) We have a proven track record of being awesome to each other in every way we know how.

So I thought I'd start a new kind of trivia thread. Let's see if we can stump each other. Let's ask obscure questions about what we always wanted to understand and see if we can provide clarity.

I'll start.

How were metals discovered? I often wondered who dug up clay that we now call Bauxite and mix it with lye, then smelt it to make aluminum? Who figured out that copper could be extracted from pyrite by using chemicals?

Why does Swiss cheese have holes when it's the Gorgonzola that needs the ventilation?

Jerry From LA wrote: Why does Swiss cheese have holes when it's the Gorgonzola that needs the ventilation?

I know that one! It's due to gasses given off by a bacteria that consumes the lactose. The gas forms small pockets or Bubbles in the cheese.

This is exactly what I'm talking about!!! Keep it going.

In reply to curtis73:

No one really knows who did it, but it started with copper. Then bronze, around 3000 BC. Then iron, around 1000 BC.

Does Lightning McQueen get auto insurance or health insurance?

Does mike wazowski blink or wink?

rustyvw wrote: Does mike wazowski blink or wink?

A wink would require two eyes, one opened, one closed. Therefore, he only has the ability to blink.

Why did the chicken cross the road?

What is the velocity of an unladen swallow?

In all seriousness and with respect to the OP, this board does have an amazing ability to produce some fascinating facts. I look forward to this discussion.

Quick without looking it up: What is the definition of a British Thermal Unit otherwise known as a BTU?

How do you get a glossy boiled linseed oil finish on walnut? I've seen it done, but have no idea how.

BTU is the amount of heat required to raise one pound of water one degree. Think its one degree F but could be C. In case your wondering there is 8.33 pounds of fresh water in one gallon... at sea level.

In reply to tr8todd:

Yup, and °F it is. I was also told a standard wooden match burned completely is roughly one BTU.

All Hass avacados are from the same plant! Of course, its only possible with grafting, but technically its still the same plant.

In reply to RossD:

So are apples. By variety, of course but all Macintosh are genetically identical, all Galas are genetically identical, etc etc.

Who are the two actors that each played characters that were killed by an Alien, a Predator, and a Terminator?

I know how to knit, but what I don't know is how the machines that make the knits for T-shirts and the like work. Do they have teeny tiny knitting needles moving really fast?

How do you make RAM? Like, how did the concept, and then hardware combination, evolve to become RAM? BUILDING A computer from parts is easy, building parts for a computer is magic.

How about if we supply an answer, and then somebody has to provide the appropriate question? For example, if the answer was "Amy."

BTW Curtis, great thread!

RossD wrote: Who are the two actors that each played characters that were killed by an Alien, a Predator, and a Terminator?

Lance Henriksen and Michael Biehn?

This is such a diverse group of people, I doubt there is much we don't know.

As a group, we also tend to spend most of our time learning. Not in a official way, but just satisfying curiosity. And with that insatiable curiosity, comes the love of sharing what we learn.

This is the only group I know that has this dynamic, and the only reason I still spend a fair amount of time on here.

So the true question, and the one we probably will never answer completely, is why. Why this place, and why it has stayed cohesive for so long.

In reply to The_Jed:

Lance Henriksen and Bill Paxton.

RossD wrote: Who are the two actors that each played characters that were killed by an Alien, a Predator, and a Terminator?

Ooh ooh, Lance Henrikson and Bill Paxton.

EDIT: You were typing just a bit faster than me, Ross.