Did you know that Stonehenge is about 1500 years older then the Colosseum ?
The unique structure was built of large rocks (megaliths) about 3.000 to 2.500 years BC. The exact use by the people of the Bronze Age is unclear, as well as whether the rocks were brought to Wales (by glaciers, for example) or whether they were shipped. There are dozens of theory’s how and what for and by whom it was build.
Sunrise at Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England.
What is certain, however, is that on the morning of Mittsommertag (midsummerday or summer solstice, between 19th and 25th of June each year) the sun rises above the individual outer rock and radiates into the interior of the plant. Perhaps Stonehenge, besides the cultural / religious component, also had an astronomical significance. It also could be a burial place. Stonehenge is still an unsolved mystery.
The Colosseum in Rome, Italy.
The Colosseum in the center of Rome was built about 1.500 years later as a Circus ( to display all kind of games). It took about 50.000 people and thus resembles modern stages.
Circus Maximus in Rome. Left: As tourists can visit it today. Right: As it would have looked like in Roman Ages, rendering by Alan Sorell. It’s worth to click on pics to receive a better view.
The largest circus in Rome, however, was Circus Maximus, which was mainly used for car racing. It accommodated 300.000 visitors. Today, the only big meadow is a part of the Forum Romanum (Roman Forum). The grandstands were used as building materials for St. Peter’s Cathedral, Vatican.
Did you know that one can have the Bible in Klingon language ?
The Klingon Language Institute is currently working on a translation of the Old and New Testaments, which is quite advanced.
Beautiful old Hebrew Bible, left. And right, the ultra rare Gutenberg Bible from 1554.
Klingon is officially recognized as an ISO-normalized language under the name „tlh“. As a character set it uses Latin characters since Paramount holds the copyright to the symbols used in „Star Trek“.
Left, the Klingon alphabet and right an excerpt from the upcoming Klingon Bible. Click on pics to supersize.
The Bible is, by the way, not only the most widely printed book in the world, but also the most widely translated. The whole is translated into 450 languages, parts of it in 2480.
Not bad, but who is going to have one and read it ?
The Klingon language is a constructed language spoken by the fictional Klingons in the Star Trek universe.
Described in the 1985 book The Klingon Dictionary by Marc Okrand and deliberately designed to sound „alien“, it has a number of typologically uncommon features. The language’s basic sound, along with a few words, was first devised by actor James Doohan („Scotty“) and producer Jon Povill for „Star Trek, The Motion Picture“.
Are these teens really as dumb as they show ?
Did you know that 15% of British teenagers believe that they do not get pregnant when they have their eyes closed during sex.
Open your eyes kids, now its to late.
At the same time, the UK is the country with the most unintended pregnancies among teenagers. Is there a connection?
Closing your eyes won’t provide safe sex. And holding your hands „down there“ won’t help either.
To think of, gives one this disrespectful deal with one’s own body, but also with regard to sex diseases. Currently, 2 people are infected daily with the HIV virus in Austria, the majority of new infected persons with heterosexual contacts. Did you know that ?
Did you know that giraffes sleep only a few minutes per day?
Sleeping giraffe.
This is what almost all large herbivores do, so they can not be surprised by enemies. Also, they are busy ruminating all the time. And you thought your day would never end?
Extremely rare drawing of Napoleon Bonaparte „SLEEPING“. And a dolphin baby.
Napoleon, by the way, never slept more than four hours a day. Dolphins only sleep with one half of the brain and one eye, so they can watch for predators and other threats.
Did you know that the Eiffel tower is 15cm higher in summer than in winter ?
The Eiffel tower is a landmark, constructed from 1887–89, as the entrance to the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris, France. It is a popular postcard motif, a street artist’s suggestion and a place to make a request for marriage, so as much much more.
Photo collection of building the Eiffel tower, Paris.
This was not always the case. Already the planning was accompanied by protests by artists, intellectuals and architects. Shortly after the opening, however, the Parisian population turned a corner and was almost unanimously proud of the then-tallest building in the world. So proud that the originally only temporarily imagined construction should remain permanent. Nowadays visited by millions.
Eiffel tower, pic taken from the other side of river Seine.
This, however, posed challenges for the steel construction: parts had to be renewed regularly, and the entire tower had to be repainted every 7 years, each time weighing 15 tonnes. In case the tower was painted exact every seven years, then he would be in the 128 years of existence some 270 tonnes heavier now then his opening year. (18 times painting x 15 tonnes each = 270 tonnes in total). Can you imagine ?
Painting the Eiffel tower, then and now. Each time about 15 tonnes of paint. I don’t know how many tonnes are washed off during the painting intervals. Definitely the tower gets heavier and heavier every time.
The difference in height results from the principle of thermal expansion: substances expand when heated by the stronger movement of the contained atoms. With gases, this expansion is quite strong, the gas pressure increases. However, this effect – but much weaker – can also be observed in solids. In constructions such as the Eiffel Tower, which consist entirely of the same metal, the expansion usually results in no problem.
The tower now 15 cm shorter than in summer.
A material mix with substances of varying thickness or buildings that have no room for expansion, such as pull rails, is more dangerous. You will get expansion joints for safety. When the wheels travel over them, the typical monotonous traction ratios turn up.
The typical „old“ rail connection. Same symptoms one has on bridges, see the right picture.
The „khat khat khat“ sound is due to the gaps between the two rails which are joined by the fish plates. Whenever there are gaps between the rails, the bogies passing over it makes that kind of sound.
Much more modern and silent CWR connection.
The tapered joint allows the wheels to roll smoothly over from one section to another. This style of construction greatly reduces the noise levels in normal running. It’s called
„Continuous Welded Rail“ (CWR).
I hope that you enjoyed this part 6 of the „did you know“ series. Stay tuned !
