Fun Facts You Might Not Know Thread

[CaptainMattJ.]

Well i always loved the fact that the only "naturally" occurring elements are hydrogen and helium, and that every other element had to be fused inside of a star. Stars the size of our own sun can only fuse up to iron before they die. The moment a star fuses iron it has seconds before it violently goes through its phases of death.

Every element above iron had to be made in the biggest explosions known to mankind: Supernovas. Stars many times more massive than our sun collapse under the astronomical gravitational forces, and are crushed to a tiny volume for miniscule amounts of time before exploding in the biggest boom in the universe since the big bang. The reason stars cant fuse anything past iron is because iron is so stable that fusion of iron doesnt release energy, it absorbs it. The only thing keeping a star from collapsing inward from gravity is the energy of fusion pushing outwards. Its like an arm wrestling competition between gravity and fusion energy. The second fusion energy starts losing, the star will fail under the gravitational forces and die. BIG BIG stars will explode into supernovas.

Based off of this, that means that the iron in your blood and your regular old skillet once destroyed a star. It also means that Every human and everything we use is stardust. Hows that for special?

http://aether.lbl.gov/www/tour/eleme...stellar_a.html

http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/question.php?number=77

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Platapus

Did you know that African Ground Squirrels masturbate?

Did you know that someone actually studied it to find out why they do it?

Did you know that a journal actually published the study?

Waterman, J. (2010). The Adaptive Function of Masturbation in a Promiscuous African Ground Squirrel PLoS ONE, 5 (9) DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0013060

How would you like to have that on your CV?

How would you liked to be the peer reviewer of that article?

Charmed...I'm sure

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by garren

Platapus can take about masturbation but I get infracted for lesser things. You're a very biased moderator Jim. But it was an interesting fact that I didn't know about - nor do I think I really wanted to know about either or anyone else for that matter.

Only a matter of time bonny lad

[frau kaleun]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

Only a matter of time bonny lad

I can't help thinking that this is the Geordie copper's way of saying "watch your head" as he oh-so-gently loads you in the back of the cruiser.

[Takeda Shingen]

Seriously, why is this being permitted to continue?

[Onkel Neal]

Garren, I think we've worked with you to sort this out several times over the last week. I can't imagine you think we have that much time to expend. Nothing personal, but when I've asked you several times in PM to give it a rest, and you come back swinging at the moderator.... Congrats for setting a new record for trolling.

[BrucePartington]

Originally Posted by CaptainMattJ.

Well i always loved the fact that the only "naturally" occurring elements are hydrogen and helium, and that every other element had to be fused inside of a star. Stars the size of our own sun can only fuse up to iron before they die. The moment a star fuses iron it has seconds before it violently goes through its phases of death.

Every element above iron had to be made in the biggest explosions known to mankind: Supernovas. Stars many times more massive than our sun collapse under the astronomical gravitational forces, and are crushed to a tiny volume for miniscule amounts of time before exploding in the biggest boom in the universe since the big bang. The reason stars cant fuse anything past iron is because iron is so stable that fusion of iron doesnt release energy, it absorbs it. The only thing keeping a star from collapsing inward from gravity is the energy of fusion pushing outwards. Its like an arm wrestling competition between gravity and fusion energy. The second fusion energy starts losing, the star will fail under the gravitational forces and die. BIG BIG stars will explode into supernovas.

Based off of this, that means that the iron in your blood and your regular old skillet once destroyed a star. It also means that Every human and everything we use is stardust. Hows that for special?

http://aether.lbl.gov/www/tour/eleme...stellar_a.html

http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/question.php?number=77

Hence the expression "we are made of star dust". Some people think it's a pick-up line, when in reality it is scientifically accurate.

Very often I think about this, and try to imagine the sheer size of the dust cloud that coalesced into our solar system.

Other star and planetary systems existed before ours came into existence.
Currently, cosmologists believe our dust cloud started to coalesce due to a nearby supernova explosion, which compressed us all (the cloud), kick-starting the gravity driven coalescence process.

And then there's us, killing each other over dead plants, before returning to the ashes.

Stating the obvious, cosmology is one of my passions. It chalenges the mind.

[Platapus]

How many years did the Hundred Years War last?




116 From 1337 to 1453

[Betonov]

Duct tape is like the force

It has a dark side and a light side and it holds the universe together

[Platapus]

Is a coconut a fruit, a nut, or a seed?


Yes.

[Jimbuna]

Arithmetic in abundance.

[Platapus]

In which state are the Arkansas Hills located?





Colorado