Factoid

Here is an interesting fact that I just came across...

American casinos pump synthetic human pheromones into the air to encourage aggressive gambling.

"According to a 2004 press release from Enhanced Air Technologies, a firm based in British Columbia, at least one major Las Vegas casino also pumps synthetic human pheromones into the air to increase business. The company claims its 'Commercaire' pheromone instills a sense of comfort and security in humans, which makes them feel more at ease and increases the likelihood of repeat visits."

Who knows what other interesting human emotions and desires can be artificially stimulated this way?

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Food for Thought

On a recent trip on IcelandAir with a stopover in Reykjavík, my wife Willemien ordered a vegetarian in-flight meal. The food wrapper on her veggie wrap included the following tidbit of information:

One of the specialities of the Icelandic cuisine is "Hrútspungar." It's ram testicles pressed in blocks, boiled and cured in lactic acid. While the taste is not particularly distinct, the texture is. Some say the testicles taste sour due to the lactic acid. Others think they're just tasteless, no matter what they taste like. Many Icelanders really have a ball munching on "hrútspungar" at the annual feast called Þorrablót.

Besides Súrsaðir hrútspungar, the cuisine includes many other popular menu items:

Sivð - burned or boiled sheep heads (your choice)

Selshreifar - seal's flippers cured in lactic acid

Lifrarpylsa - a pudding of liver sausage

Also consider, blood pudding, smoked sheep's thoracic diaphragm, or you could just have some fresh whale meat.


I'm seriously considering becoming a vegetarian. :-)


Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%9Eorramatur

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Dutch Invasion

For March Madness, a Sports Factoid...

Towering at 6 feet - 10 inches, Dutchman Kenneth van Kempen plays basketball for the Ohio Bobcats. He is a Senior at Ohio University, but his hometown is Weert in the Netherlands.

http://www.ohiobobcats.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/vankempen_kenneth00.html

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Factoid

Japan consumes 10 percent of the world's fish. 40 percent of that is imported.

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Factoid

There are approximately 6.8 billion people living in the world today.

About 5 billion of them have cell phones.

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Factoid

- It is estimated that 62 Lego bricks exist for every person on the planet.


- Since 1958, over 400 billion Lego bricks have been produced.

- During the Great Recession of 2008-09, Lego has seen a resurgence of sales in the United States market.

Link: www.lego.com

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Factoid

Here is a story comparing how things were done at the Russian Federal Space Agency verses NASA....

NASA was spending millions of dollars to solve the ball-point pen problem. Pens don't work well in space. They leak, and the need gravity to push the ink down to the tip. It was an aggravating technical problem, and the best NASA engineers couldn't figure out how to solve it. During the cold war they puzzled, "How is it that the Russian's could make it work when NASA could not?"

After the cold war ended and communication between the Soviet Union and the USA improved, there was free scientific dialog between the two space agencies. The American scientists asked their Russian counterparts, "how do you write in space?"

The answer was simple, "with pencils."

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The above story is a good one, but it is an urban myth. Currently a "Zero Gravity Pen" is available from the Fisher Space Pen Company. It uses pressurized ink cartridges. The hi-tech pen was developed independently of NASA with 11 million R&D dollars by inventor Paul C. Fisher. Today Fisher sells different models of his hi-tech zero gravity pens to both the Russian and American space agencies. The Russian Space program ordered 100 Fisher Space pens for the Soyuz mission in 1969. You can purchase a consumer version of these pens online for $25 or less.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Pen
http://www.spacepen.com/zerogravitypen.aspx
http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl_zero_gravity_pen.htm
http://space.about.com/od/spaceexplorationhistory/a/spacepen.htm

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Factoid

Have you ever wondered if it is possible to bake a loaf of bread in a microwave oven?


I've researched this question on the Internet, and the experts say that bread can be baked in a microwave, however...




- Microwaves cook from the center outwards, so you should gradually decrease the power in stages.

- Do not knead the dough. If you do it will not rise.

- Make sure your bread is completely enveloped in wet paper towels or it will dry out and taste like cardboard.

- Take care when you remove the wet towels from your loaf after it is cooked, since it will be very hot.

Bon Appétit!

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Factoid

PBS's NOVA aired a program about botany that discussed the classification of plants. It has recently been determined that groups of plants are related to each other according to their genetic makeup. It's all about DNA.

As it turns out, "strawberries and marijuana are closely related."

=

"Strawberry Fields Forever" -John Lennon, 1967

Link: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/flower/about.html

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Karlheinz Stockhausen Platz

I have posted about public streets that have been named after composers previously on this blog...

http://deconstructing-jim.blogspot.com/2008/08/composer-streets.html

Here is an addition to the list from Kuerten-Kettenberg, Germany.




Composer Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928–2007) would have been 80 years old on August 22nd, 2008. Stockhausen lived in Kuerten-Kettenberg for 42 years where each summer he presented his international Stockhausen Concerts and Courses for New Music.

The street Rathausplatz in Kuerten was renamed to Karlheinz-Stockhausen-Platz in his honor by the town council of the community. The town council decreed, “Karlheinz Stockhausen felt at home in the whole world, but he liked to live and work in Kuerten. He thus made Kuerten known world-wide.”

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Factoid

Each year the orbit of the Moon widens by one and a half inches (3.8 cm). At an approximate average distance of 385,000 km, it gradually increases it's distance from earth.

The gradually increasing earth-moon distance is related to the slowing of the Earth's rotation as a result of the conservation of angular momentum law in physics.

Above is a photo of the earth and moon taken by the Galileo spacecraft from 3.9 million miles away in space. The white line was added to indicate the path of the orbit.

But what would happen if the moon broke away from the earth's orbit and went it's own way?

I think people would be bummed. It would have a dramatic impact on the physical and psychological well-being of humans everywhere on the planet.

If this were to happen, I'd propose that NASA take on a project to construct and place into orbit an artificial moon to aid humanity. It's simpler than it sounds.

Several flat and circular geo-stationary satellites could be erected in space above each of the major continents. The lower surface of the huge satellites would house white LEDs on the earth-facing side, and solar cells would be installed on the outer sun-facing side. The substitute moons would store energy during the day, and switch on at night to create a lunar illusion for the benefit of people living below. It could be remote controlled by computer to simulate the changing lunar phases, and even be shut off where we anticipate that a lunar eclipse would normally occur. If the LEDs and solar cells were small enough and could be mounted on a grid, then during the day sunlight would be able to shine through the open spaces down to the earth. The massive project could be paid for with occasional electronic banner advertising - done tastefully of course.

True, the Moon wouldn't move around the sky like it does today, but if it were done well, it could look pretty realistic.

Think about it.

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Factoid

The number of McDonald's eateries in France is about to reach 1,135.

In 2007, France became McDonald's biggest market outside of the US.

The newest French restaurant addition will open in Paris directly inside of the Louvre.

The French call it McDo (pronounced Mac Dough), and from the track record of Ray Kroc's prior fast food establishments, it will be well-received by the French population, but perhaps not by all.


Years ago a French farmer/activist named José Bové, in a defiant act of culinary terrorism, drove his tractor into a McDonalds under construction near his home town of Millau. It was said to be in protest of U.S. trade policy, but I think he just doesn't care for the sesame seed buns. Bové was sentenced to three months jail, but is now a hero of the organic food and international anti-globalism movements.

Controversy aside, the majority of French seem to love their "McDo" (pronounced Mac Dough), especially the "French Fries" which head sales on the menu.


Ray Kroc enjoying one of his hamburgers (photo on left).

The first McDonald's in France was built in 1979 and is located in Strasbourg's Les Hall shopping center. It's been downhill from there.

Three cheers for the export of American culture! (Now you know one reason why it is difficult for American-born musicians, composers, and artists to be taken seriously abroad).

The good news is that there may be a reversal of this global trend. Word has arrived that Iceland will shed itself of its' McDonald's franchises by the end of the month. Iceland's first McDonald's opened in 1993 in Reykjavik, and it's initial customer was Prime Minister David Oddsson. But the devaluation of the Icelandic Krona and high tariffs has made imports too expensive to be profitable (McDonald's Corporation follows a centralized top-down distribution model). As a result, customers would have to pay 780 Krona - the equivalent of $6.36 - for a Big Mac, nearly double what it cost a year ago.

Iceland will soon be a McDonald's Free Zone.

Although McDonald's currently operates in more than 119 countries on six continents, it has pulled out of seven countries including Barbados and Bolivia.

Some would consider that progress.

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Factoid

15,000 American households have adopted monkeys as surrogate babies.

(the number could be much higher for unregistered adoptions)

According to a recent TV documentary on TLC, thousands of American couples who can't conceive children on their own have adopted monkeys instead. Monkey babies can cost up to $4,500 to adopt.


The show profiles various couples who care for simians and literally treat them like little children - dressing them up in cute clothes, and even applying lipstick and makeup in some cases.

How strange is that?

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San Gennaro, Patron Saint

(painting of San Gennaro above is by Girolamo Pesce)

San Gennaro is the Patron Saint of Naples, Italy. He is also the Patron Saint of my ancestral village of Cervinara in the Campania region of Italy not far from Naples. Given the proximity of both of these cities to Mount Vesuvius, this Saint has played a key role in protecting the region from a modern day cataclysmic natural disaster.

San Gennaro is also the martyred Saint of Prisoners. He was arrested by the Romans in 305 A.D. when he visited imprisoned Christian deacons. After being tortured (thrown to the lions and incinerated), the Roman's had him beheaded. A vial of his scared blood has been preserved at the Cathedral in Naples, and the blood miraculously liquefies three times a year and protects the city from calamity. The"Liquification" of his blood occurs each year on September 19th, and if it does not, people fear that something terrible is imminent: plague, war, or natural disaster.

Since 1926, a "Feast of San Gennaro" takes place every September 19th in Little Italy around Mulberry Street in lower Manhattan. The ritual of carrying a statue of San Gennaro through the streets is mirrored in NY city, Naples, and in the village of Cervinara (AV).

Here is a link to an interesting 10 minute mini-documentary video on YouTube about San Gennaro....


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NvMAD6Dgg8

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Factoid

They are called collective nouns: a swarm of bees, a brood of chickens, a herd of buffalo, a flock of geese.




What would you call a collection of owls?

Answer: a parliament

Link: http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Pointless/AnimalGroups.html

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Factoid

Rock star Phil Lesh (b. 1940) who played electric bass in The Greatful Dead for 30 years started out as an avant garde composer and free jazz musician. He studied with Luciano Berio at Mills College where one of his classmates was the minimalist composer Steve Reich.

Lesh is still a big fan of new music. He befriended, supported (via his Rex Foundation), and interviewed the composer Elliott Carter in January of 1994. In 1991 the Rex Foundation subsidized a recording of Carter's orchestral music.

http://www.counterstreamradio.org/specialprograms/default.asp

Returning to his roots, Lesh conducted the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Stravinsky and Carter's "A Celebration (of 100 X 150 Notes)."

Even during his years with The Greatful Dead...

"Phil turned his band mates onto works by the likes of Charles Ives and Elliott Carter and helped nudge the Dead into areas of experimentation and adventure which characterized the band's work throughout its history." (excerpt from the Grateful Dead Almanac)

Just like me, Lesh made the pilgrimage to Tanglewood last July to attend the five-day Elliott Carter Festival. Oliver Knussen and the TMC Orchestra delivered a spectacular performance of Carter’s massive Concerto for Orchestra, and Lesh reportedly dropped by afterward to congratulate the bass section of the orchestra.

I guess that makes Phil Lesh and myself "Carterheads."

Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Lesh

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Skitch

A number of people from the generation of Americans my age and older still remember Skitch - the bandleader who was a prominent musician in the new medium of television. He was identified by his well-maintained goatee and strange laugh. His real name was Lyle Russell Cedric Henderson (1918-2005), but was commonly referred to as "Skitch" by his friends - a nickname he acquired for his uncanny ability to sketch and transcribe complex music directly onto score paper by ear.


"Skitch" Henderson had a rather amazing career in music and he accomplished it without formal conservatory training. Known for his pianistic abilities and great ear, he studied conducting privately with Fritz Reiner, Albert Coates, and Arturo Toscanini (who invited him to conduct the NBC Orchestra).

What I find interesting is that he studied with some prominent composers of the day too - notably Ernst Toch and Arnold Schoenberg. I really wonder how he got along with Schoenberg, and what they talked about.

Here are a few bullet items from his illustrious career:

* During WWII flew for both the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Corps

* Played piano for Bob Hope's "The Pepsodent Show"

* Accompanied Judy Garland singing "Over the Rainbow"

* Musical director for "Lucky Strike" radio show and"The Philco Hour" with Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra

* He made three films (1948, 1959, and 1952)

* Composed "Baby Made a Change in Me" for the 1948 movie "On Our Merry Way"

* Bandleader for NBC's the "Tonight Show" (1954 to 1957) with hosts Steve Allen, Jack Paar, and Johnny Carson

* Frequent guest conductor with orchestras around the world, including the Boston Pops where he was rumored to be a possible successor to Arthur Fiedler (John Williams got the job).

* Conductor of the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra (1971)

* Owned a restaurant in Manhattan called "Daley's Dandelion"

* From 1972 until his death in 2005 ran (with his wife) an art gallery and cooking school in New Milford, CT called "The Silo."

* Founded the New York Pops in 1983

A less known fact is that Skitch Henderson spent six months in Federal prison in 1975 and was fined $10,000 for his crime. He had donated his personal papers to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and allegedly claimed a deduction of $350,000 for it on his 1969-70 tax return. Once walking up Seventh Ave with a colleague, Henderson met someone he had known while in prison. Later he explained "prison friends are the best friends."

Here is a short interview about his early days at MGM studios...

Here is Skitch on the Tonight Show playing "Stump the Band" with Johnny Carson in 1963...

Link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skitch_Henderson

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Factoid

Yahoo!

is an acronym for...

Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle

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Amsterdam!

On a recent trip...

Amsterdam, NY 12010.

Population 18,355.

The city was settled in 1710 by the Dutch, who initially called the community Veedersburgh (named after a mill owner named Albert Veeder). It was renamed to Amsterdam in 1803.

It is situated along the Mohawk River and Erie Canal.

Amsterdam NY is the birthplace of Issur Danielovitch, better known as the famous Hollywood actor Kirk Douglas.

I wasn't able to visit the original Amsterdam this year, but you can read my blog post from exactly a year ago today when I last visited that great city.

http://deconstructing-jim.blogspot.com/2008/08/amsterdam.html

Links:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=amsterdam+NY&oe=UTF-8&ie=UTF8&split=0&gl=us&ei=SphxSuGJKuG_tgeoipiNBA&ll=42.938724,-74.189284&spn=0.005757,0.009624&t=h&z=17

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amsterdam_(city),_New_York

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Factoid

Katharina Wagner was not well received at the month-long Bayreuth Festival in Bavaria Germany on Sunday after making her debut as Director of the annual summer music celebration which was begun by her great-grandfather, Richard Wagner. After the performance of "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg" the audience booed her for staging a production of the opera where the part of Walter (the young knight) was cast as a graffiti artist.

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