Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Article of the Month
FROM Instant Genius
EVOLUTION WITNESSED
In 1971 an international team of biologists took five male and five female Italian wall lizards from Pod Kopiste, a tiny, rocky island off the coast of Croatia in the South Adriatic Sea, and transferred them to a nearby, lushly vegetated island called Pod Mrcaru. They monitored the lizards for more than 20 years and then were suddenly cut off from the islands when civil war broke out in Croatia. In 2004 the biologists were finally allowed back in.
Here's what they found: The transplanted lizards had thrived.beyond expectations. There were virtually thousands on Pod Mrcaru, and genetic testing proved that all of them were descendants of the original 10.but they had changed.
Italian wall lizards (at least the original ones) are small, quick-running insect-eaters who occasionally eat leaves; about 5% of their diet is vegetarian. This is logical, given that Pod Kopiste is rocky and barren of plant life. But Pod Mrcaru is lush. The biologists were stunned to find that the vegetation portion of the lizards' diet on Pod Mrcaru had jumped to about 35% in the spring and up to more than 60% in the summer. Along with this, their heads had become bigger and their jaws more powerful-something necessary for plant-eaters, since plants are tougher to eat than insects. And there was more.
The "new" lizards were equipped with cecal valves, a digestive feature that allows sections of the gut to close off, holding food longer and allowing for better digestion. The "original" lizards on Pod Kopiste didn't have cecal valves-in fact almost no lizards in the world have them. These were entirely new anatomical features.
The environmental change had affected the lizards' social structure as well. On Pod Kopiste, where the insect diet made food harder to come by, lizards staked out territories and defended them fiercely. On Pod Mrcaru, where food was abundant and easy to procure, they no longer did this-instead, they shared territories. All of these new features appeared in the species after just 30 years-and 30 generations-an amount of time most evolutionary biologists had, before the study, considered much too short a period of time to result in such drastic and demonstrable changes.
ANIMAL GROUP NAMES
You probably know that a group of fish is called a "school" and a bunch of lions is a "pride." But there are dozens more:
A murder of crows
A scurry of squirrels
A volery of birds
A cry of hounds
A pod of dolphins
A leash of foxes
A pod of seals
A bevy of swans
A pack of wolves
A gam of whales
A flock of sheep
A skein of geese
A sleuth of bears
A swarm of bees
A tribe of goats
A sedge of cranes
A kettle of hawks
A labor of moles
A troop of kangaroos
A team of horses
A nide of pheasants
A crash of rhinoceroses
A charm of finches
A herd of elephants
A knot of toads
A covey of quail
An army of caterpillars
A sounder of boars
A smack of jellyfish
A rhumba of rattlesnakes
A flange of baboons
A cete of badgers
****************************************************************************
BRI CONTACT INFO
****************************************************************************
As always, we're here for you.
The Bathroom Readers' Institute
PO Box 1117
Ashland, OR 97520
phone: (888) 488-4642
fax: (541) 482-6159
For order inquiries: orders@bathroomreader.com
For general correspondence: mail@bathroomreader.com
www.bathroomreader.com
Thanks again for being a regular reader. As always...
Go with the Flow!
****************************************************************************
THE BOTTOM LINE
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Quotes about life from Uncle John's Quintessential Collection of Notable Quotables for Every Conceivable Occasion.
"The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it."
-W. M. Lewis
"Life is a rollercoaster. Try to eat light."
-David A. Schmaltz
"I love living. I have some problems with my life, but living is the best thing they've come up with so far."
-Neil Simon
"Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you respond to it."
-Lou Holtz
"If we take care of the moments, the years will take care of themselves."
-Maria Edgeworth
"People do not grow old, no matter how long we live. We never cease to stand like curious children before the great mystery into which we were born."
-Albert Einstein
Showing posts with label Uncle John's Bathroom Reader. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Uncle John's Bathroom Reader. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Monday, December 1, 2008
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Article of the Month
From Instant Genius
THE NORTH CELESTIAL POLE
If you stood exactly on the spot that is Earth's geographic North Pole and looked straight up into the sky, you would be looking at what astronomers refer to as the North Celestial Pole (NCP).
• Very near to that imaginary pole in the sky, with a little variation due to Earth's rotational tilt, you would find the star Polaris, also known as the "North Star" or the "Pole Star." It's part of the constellation Ursa Minor, the "Little Bear," also known as the "Little Dipper." (Polaris is the last star in the dipper's handle.)
• Because of its location relative to Earth's rotation, Polaris appears to us to stay in the same spot all night long, every night (in the daytime, too, if we could see it). And because, from our perspective, Earth rotates clockwise relative to that pole star, all the other stars in the sky seem to move around it in a counterclockwise direction. That phenomenon is known as diurnal motion-from the Latin for "daily" (and it can be seen graphically in time-lapse photography).
• This made Polaris extremely useful for ancient navigators (it still does), since no matter where you are, if you draw a line down from Polaris to the horizon-that point is almost exactly north. It is, however, only visible from the Northern Hemisphere.
• Polaris was not always nor will it always be our North Star. For various reasons concerning the movement of celestial bodies, our positional relationship to the stars changes on an approximately 25,765-year cycle. Two thousand years from now, the star known as Gamma Cephei will become our North Star. And about 3,000 years after that, Iota Cephei will take its place.
• To find Polaris, first locate the Big Dipper (Ursa Major, which is often easier to spot than the Little Dipper). The two stars that make up the front of the cup (farthest from the handle) are known as the "pointer stars." Follow them out from the cup, and the next bright star you see is Polaris.
*******************************************************************************
BRI CONTACT INFO
*******************************************************************************
As always, we're here for you.
The Bathroom Readers' Institute
PO Box 1117
Ashland, OR 97520
phone: (888) 488-4642
fax: (541) 482-6159
For order inquiries: orders@bathroomreader.com
For general correspondence: mail@bathroomreader.com
www.bathroomreader.com
*******************************************************************************
THE BOTTOM LINE
*******************************************************************************
From Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Jingle Bell Christmas
Bah Humbug!
Here are some nominees for Scrooge of the Year.
• A dentist gave a $30 gift certificate to his dental assistant for Christmas. She found the certificate could only be redeemed at an upscale boutique owned by the dentist's wife that carried nothing even close to $30.
• The Great Dickens Christmas Fair in San Francisco decided not to hand out cash bonuses to its employees at Christmas. Instead, each employee received a white painter's cap with the words "Bah Humbug" printed on it.
• Every year, a consumer electronics company in the English town of Grimsby gives its workers the same Christmas bonus: a sack of potatoes. (The owner's cousin owns a potato farm.)
• Andy Grove, the former CEO of Intel, became notorious for his "Scrooge Memo," in which he pointedly reminded employees of their obligation to work a full day on Christmas Eve-or else.
• Richard Martin, a 71-year-old apartment manager in Bay Ridge, New York, got upset one year when someone tore down the Christmas decorations he'd put up in the lobby of his apartment building. So he wrote the following note and sent it to all his tenants: "Dear scumbag: If I catch you, I will kill you where you are. You don't want to f*** with the Irish."
• Colin Wood hated Christmas so much that he rented a fallout shelter for $600 so he could lock himself away for the holidays. He said Christmas provoked too many family arguments and he preferred to avoid the whole thing. His brother gave him a copy of Dickens' A Christmas Carol to read while underground.
THE NORTH CELESTIAL POLE
If you stood exactly on the spot that is Earth's geographic North Pole and looked straight up into the sky, you would be looking at what astronomers refer to as the North Celestial Pole (NCP).
• Very near to that imaginary pole in the sky, with a little variation due to Earth's rotational tilt, you would find the star Polaris, also known as the "North Star" or the "Pole Star." It's part of the constellation Ursa Minor, the "Little Bear," also known as the "Little Dipper." (Polaris is the last star in the dipper's handle.)
• Because of its location relative to Earth's rotation, Polaris appears to us to stay in the same spot all night long, every night (in the daytime, too, if we could see it). And because, from our perspective, Earth rotates clockwise relative to that pole star, all the other stars in the sky seem to move around it in a counterclockwise direction. That phenomenon is known as diurnal motion-from the Latin for "daily" (and it can be seen graphically in time-lapse photography).
• This made Polaris extremely useful for ancient navigators (it still does), since no matter where you are, if you draw a line down from Polaris to the horizon-that point is almost exactly north. It is, however, only visible from the Northern Hemisphere.
• Polaris was not always nor will it always be our North Star. For various reasons concerning the movement of celestial bodies, our positional relationship to the stars changes on an approximately 25,765-year cycle. Two thousand years from now, the star known as Gamma Cephei will become our North Star. And about 3,000 years after that, Iota Cephei will take its place.
• To find Polaris, first locate the Big Dipper (Ursa Major, which is often easier to spot than the Little Dipper). The two stars that make up the front of the cup (farthest from the handle) are known as the "pointer stars." Follow them out from the cup, and the next bright star you see is Polaris.
*******************************************************************************
BRI CONTACT INFO
*******************************************************************************
As always, we're here for you.
The Bathroom Readers' Institute
PO Box 1117
Ashland, OR 97520
phone: (888) 488-4642
fax: (541) 482-6159
For order inquiries: orders@bathroomreader.com
For general correspondence: mail@bathroomreader.com
www.bathroomreader.com
*******************************************************************************
THE BOTTOM LINE
*******************************************************************************
From Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Jingle Bell Christmas
Bah Humbug!
Here are some nominees for Scrooge of the Year.
• A dentist gave a $30 gift certificate to his dental assistant for Christmas. She found the certificate could only be redeemed at an upscale boutique owned by the dentist's wife that carried nothing even close to $30.
• The Great Dickens Christmas Fair in San Francisco decided not to hand out cash bonuses to its employees at Christmas. Instead, each employee received a white painter's cap with the words "Bah Humbug" printed on it.
• Every year, a consumer electronics company in the English town of Grimsby gives its workers the same Christmas bonus: a sack of potatoes. (The owner's cousin owns a potato farm.)
• Andy Grove, the former CEO of Intel, became notorious for his "Scrooge Memo," in which he pointedly reminded employees of their obligation to work a full day on Christmas Eve-or else.
• Richard Martin, a 71-year-old apartment manager in Bay Ridge, New York, got upset one year when someone tore down the Christmas decorations he'd put up in the lobby of his apartment building. So he wrote the following note and sent it to all his tenants: "Dear scumbag: If I catch you, I will kill you where you are. You don't want to f*** with the Irish."
• Colin Wood hated Christmas so much that he rented a fallout shelter for $600 so he could lock himself away for the holidays. He said Christmas provoked too many family arguments and he preferred to avoid the whole thing. His brother gave him a copy of Dickens' A Christmas Carol to read while underground.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Article of the Month
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Article of the Month
From Uncle John's Unsinkable Bathroom Reader
POLITICAL ANIMALS
Think your elected representative is a turkey? You're not alone. From ancient to modern times, all kinds of critters have entered politics. And some have had been more popular than their human counterparts.
Incitatus
The brief reign of Roman emperor Caligula (37-41 A.D.) was marked by eccentric behavior (some historians call it insanity), some of which involved Incitatus, his prize stallion. Caligula was a passionate racing fan, and Incitatus was the fastest horse in the Roman Empire. Caligula came to believe that his horse was victorious because he possessed not only speed, but also a high intelligence. The Emperor provided a house, furniture, and servants for Incitatus so that the horse could meet and entertain dignitaries. Sitting at Incitatus's table, senators and nobles were forced to toast his health and respectfully speak to him about state business. Declared a full citizen of Rome, Incitatus was even given the title of Deputy High Priest. The horse got a hefty salary for "supervising" temples built in honor of the Emperor. The steed was even appointed senator, and he was in line for more high honors when real senators-tired of their emperor's horsing around-helped assassinate Caligula in 41 A.D. Most historians say that Caligula's appointment of a horse to public office was a sign of his progressive mental illness, but others believe Caligula was just humiliating his enemies in the Senate.
PIGASUS
During the 1968 presidential election, the United States was deeply divided over the war in Vietnam. That August thousands of antiwar activists gathered at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago to protest. Among them were members of the Youth International Party, or "Yippies." They bought a young boar at a local farm (folk singer Phil Ochs paid for it), named him Pigasus the Immortal, and made him their candidate for president. On August 23, with great media fanfare, Yippie leader Jerry Rubin stood in front of the Chicago Civic Center and announced Pigasus's candidacy. Along with the nomination, Rubin was about to announce the pig's first press conference, where (according to Rubin) Pigasus would not only answer reporter's questions but also demand a White House foreign policy briefing. But before Rubin could say anything, Chicago cops converged on the news conference and arrested him and his friends on charges of disorderly conduct and bringing livestock into the city. As for Pigasus, photos show policemen surrounding the captured candidate-right before they took him to the local humane society. (He was later adopted by members of the commune known as the Hog Farm.)
Cacareco
The saying that politicians need to be thick-skinned might explain why this female rhinoceros won Sao Paulo, Brazil's 1958 city council election in a landslide. With a population of well over three million, the city suffered from such problems as unpaved streets, open sewers, food shortages, and rampant inflation, but officials had ignored them for years. When the city council elections were held, local college students decided to run a protest campaign and picked Cacareco, who lived in the Sao Paulo Zoo, as their candidate. (Part of the attraction might have been that her name means "garbage" in Portuguese.) In all, 540 candidates-including many well-known incumbents-participated in the election, but voters were so eager to embarrass the failed city government that Cacareco won easily with a spectacular 100,000 votes. And even though the city hastily disqualified her from serving, Cacareco's win made news around the world. "Better a rhinoceros than an ass," a voter explained, and the quote made Time magazine. Cacareco's election left a legacy: Today in Brazil, a protest vote is still known as a voto Cacareco.
*******************************************************************************
BRI CONTACT INFO
*******************************************************************************
As always, we're here for you.
The Bathroom Readers' Institute
PO Box 1117
Ashland, OR 97520
phone: (888) 488-4642
fax: (541) 482-6159
For order inquiries: orders@bathroomreader.com
For general correspondence: mail@bathroomreader.com
https://www.bathroomreader.com
*******************************************************************************
THE BOTTOM LINE
*******************************************************************************
From Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Jingle Bell Christmas
Space-Age Santa
On December 25, 1968, Apollo 8 Astronauts James Lovell, Frank Borman, and William Anders emerged from the dark side of the moon. Here's Lovell's transmission with the mission control in Houston:
Lovell: . . . we have a bogey at 10 o'clock high.
Mission Control: Is that the booster or is that an actual sighting?
Lovell: We have several . . . actual sightings.
Mission Control: Estimated distance or size?
Lovell: We also have the booster in sight . . .
Lovell: Mission Control, please be informed, there is a Santa Claus.
From Uncle John's Unsinkable Bathroom Reader
POLITICAL ANIMALS
Think your elected representative is a turkey? You're not alone. From ancient to modern times, all kinds of critters have entered politics. And some have had been more popular than their human counterparts.
Incitatus
The brief reign of Roman emperor Caligula (37-41 A.D.) was marked by eccentric behavior (some historians call it insanity), some of which involved Incitatus, his prize stallion. Caligula was a passionate racing fan, and Incitatus was the fastest horse in the Roman Empire. Caligula came to believe that his horse was victorious because he possessed not only speed, but also a high intelligence. The Emperor provided a house, furniture, and servants for Incitatus so that the horse could meet and entertain dignitaries. Sitting at Incitatus's table, senators and nobles were forced to toast his health and respectfully speak to him about state business. Declared a full citizen of Rome, Incitatus was even given the title of Deputy High Priest. The horse got a hefty salary for "supervising" temples built in honor of the Emperor. The steed was even appointed senator, and he was in line for more high honors when real senators-tired of their emperor's horsing around-helped assassinate Caligula in 41 A.D. Most historians say that Caligula's appointment of a horse to public office was a sign of his progressive mental illness, but others believe Caligula was just humiliating his enemies in the Senate.
PIGASUS
During the 1968 presidential election, the United States was deeply divided over the war in Vietnam. That August thousands of antiwar activists gathered at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago to protest. Among them were members of the Youth International Party, or "Yippies." They bought a young boar at a local farm (folk singer Phil Ochs paid for it), named him Pigasus the Immortal, and made him their candidate for president. On August 23, with great media fanfare, Yippie leader Jerry Rubin stood in front of the Chicago Civic Center and announced Pigasus's candidacy. Along with the nomination, Rubin was about to announce the pig's first press conference, where (according to Rubin) Pigasus would not only answer reporter's questions but also demand a White House foreign policy briefing. But before Rubin could say anything, Chicago cops converged on the news conference and arrested him and his friends on charges of disorderly conduct and bringing livestock into the city. As for Pigasus, photos show policemen surrounding the captured candidate-right before they took him to the local humane society. (He was later adopted by members of the commune known as the Hog Farm.)
Cacareco
The saying that politicians need to be thick-skinned might explain why this female rhinoceros won Sao Paulo, Brazil's 1958 city council election in a landslide. With a population of well over three million, the city suffered from such problems as unpaved streets, open sewers, food shortages, and rampant inflation, but officials had ignored them for years. When the city council elections were held, local college students decided to run a protest campaign and picked Cacareco, who lived in the Sao Paulo Zoo, as their candidate. (Part of the attraction might have been that her name means "garbage" in Portuguese.) In all, 540 candidates-including many well-known incumbents-participated in the election, but voters were so eager to embarrass the failed city government that Cacareco won easily with a spectacular 100,000 votes. And even though the city hastily disqualified her from serving, Cacareco's win made news around the world. "Better a rhinoceros than an ass," a voter explained, and the quote made Time magazine. Cacareco's election left a legacy: Today in Brazil, a protest vote is still known as a voto Cacareco.
*******************************************************************************
BRI CONTACT INFO
*******************************************************************************
As always, we're here for you.
The Bathroom Readers' Institute
PO Box 1117
Ashland, OR 97520
phone: (888) 488-4642
fax: (541) 482-6159
For order inquiries: orders@bathroomreader.com
For general correspondence: mail@bathroomreader.com
https://www.bathroomreader.com
*******************************************************************************
THE BOTTOM LINE
*******************************************************************************
From Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Jingle Bell Christmas
Space-Age Santa
On December 25, 1968, Apollo 8 Astronauts James Lovell, Frank Borman, and William Anders emerged from the dark side of the moon. Here's Lovell's transmission with the mission control in Houston:
Lovell: . . . we have a bogey at 10 o'clock high.
Mission Control: Is that the booster or is that an actual sighting?
Lovell: We have several . . . actual sightings.
Mission Control: Estimated distance or size?
Lovell: We also have the booster in sight . . .
Lovell: Mission Control, please be informed, there is a Santa Claus.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Article of the Month
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Article of the Month
From Uncle John's Bathroom Reader BEST OF THE BEST
The FUN IN A CAN AWARD
Play-Doh
The smell of Play-Doh is a staple in classrooms, playrooms, and nurseries around the country. It's also worthy of a Golden Plunger.
A FUN DISCOVERY
The story of Play-Doh is quintessentially American, from invention to patent to market success. When her husband Cleo died in 1949, Irma McVicker hired son Joseph to run his company, Kutol Products, which specialized in the manufacture of soap and wallpaper cleaner. On May 17, 1960, a patent was granted to Noah McVicker (a relative and company manager) and Joseph McVicker for a "plastic modeling composition of a soft, playable working consistency." They got the patent, but they hadn't been searching for modeling clay at all. Joseph was investigating wallpaper cleaner and stumbled onto an alternate use for the substance.
Joseph's sister-in-law Kay was a teacher in New Jersey. After seeing an article in a magazine about making Christmas tree ornaments out of wallpaper cleaner, she drove to the nearest hardware store and bought their only can (which happened to be Kutol's . . . small world). Her nursery class had a great time playing with the "dough."
When word about the success of the cleaner with the school children reached Joseph, he and Noah proceeded to test the product in numerous nursery and elementary schools around the country. Once its properties as a toy had been established (it was clean, easy to model, and could be reused), Noah and Joseph founded Rainbow Crafts to start manufacturing the new product. Play-Doh made its official debut in 1956 at the Woodward & Lothrop department store in Washington, D.C. The white compound came
A LOT OF DOUGH
For nearly 20 years, Play-Doh came in just four colors: white, red, yellow, and blue. White, of course, was introduced in 1956, and the three primary colors-red, blue, and yellow-appeared a year later. It wasn't until 1983 that four more colors were introduced. Now the kiddie modeling compound is available in 50 colors (including gold and silver), and more than 900 million pounds have been sold in the past 50 years. Factories produce about 95 million cans of Play-Doh annually for 6,000 U.S. stores and 75 different countries.
SECRET RECIPE
No one has ever revealed Play-Doh's exact formula, but Hasbro (the company that now manufactures it) does let people know that the dough contains water, salt, and flour-and no peanuts, peanut oil, or milk, all well-known allergens. (It does contain wheat, though.) According to its current patent, the stuff also is made with water, a starch-based binder, retrogradation inhibitor, salt, lubricant, surfactant, preservative, hardener, humectant, fragrance, and color. Not exactly a wholesome snack-but ultimately harmless.
PLAY-DOH FACTS
• Play-Doh was put into plastic cans in 1986, which kept the tightly capped dough soft and pliable for longer periods of time.
• In 1960, the first Play-Doh Fun Factory was introduced. Basically just a souped-up pasta maker made out of plastic, the lever-based device allowed kids to make different kinds of ropes and discs of Doh.
• For years, Play-Doh cans and labels were graced with the impish cartoon of Play-Doh Pete, who morphed from an elf to a beret-wearing boy in 1960 and then traded his headgear for a baseball cap in the 1970s.
• One of the most popular sets ever made was 1977's Fuzzy Pumper Barber and Beauty Shop Playset (known from the start simply as the Play-Doh Barber Shop). The barbershop exists today in a new incarnation-the Fuzzy Pumper Pet Parlor.
********************************************************************************
BRI CONTACT INFORMATION
********************************************************************************
As always, we're here for you.
The Bathroom Readers' Institute
PO Box 1117
Ashland, OR 97520
phone: (888) 488-4642
fax: (541) 482-6159
For order inquiries: orders@bathroomreader.com
For general correspondence: mail@bathroomreader.com
www.bathroomreader.com
********************************************************************************
THE BOTTOM LINE
********************************************************************************
From Uncle John Takes a Swing at Baseball
N is for.NICE GUYS FINISH LAST, a phrase coined by Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher on July 6, 1946, and familiar worldwide today. His actual quote, according to his autobiography: "Take a look at them. All nice guys. They'll finish last. Nice guys. Finish last." (He was referring to the 1946 New York Giants. They finished last.)
From Uncle John's Bathroom Reader BEST OF THE BEST
The FUN IN A CAN AWARD
Play-Doh
The smell of Play-Doh is a staple in classrooms, playrooms, and nurseries around the country. It's also worthy of a Golden Plunger.
A FUN DISCOVERY
The story of Play-Doh is quintessentially American, from invention to patent to market success. When her husband Cleo died in 1949, Irma McVicker hired son Joseph to run his company, Kutol Products, which specialized in the manufacture of soap and wallpaper cleaner. On May 17, 1960, a patent was granted to Noah McVicker (a relative and company manager) and Joseph McVicker for a "plastic modeling composition of a soft, playable working consistency." They got the patent, but they hadn't been searching for modeling clay at all. Joseph was investigating wallpaper cleaner and stumbled onto an alternate use for the substance.
Joseph's sister-in-law Kay was a teacher in New Jersey. After seeing an article in a magazine about making Christmas tree ornaments out of wallpaper cleaner, she drove to the nearest hardware store and bought their only can (which happened to be Kutol's . . . small world). Her nursery class had a great time playing with the "dough."
When word about the success of the cleaner with the school children reached Joseph, he and Noah proceeded to test the product in numerous nursery and elementary schools around the country. Once its properties as a toy had been established (it was clean, easy to model, and could be reused), Noah and Joseph founded Rainbow Crafts to start manufacturing the new product. Play-Doh made its official debut in 1956 at the Woodward & Lothrop department store in Washington, D.C. The white compound came
A LOT OF DOUGH
For nearly 20 years, Play-Doh came in just four colors: white, red, yellow, and blue. White, of course, was introduced in 1956, and the three primary colors-red, blue, and yellow-appeared a year later. It wasn't until 1983 that four more colors were introduced. Now the kiddie modeling compound is available in 50 colors (including gold and silver), and more than 900 million pounds have been sold in the past 50 years. Factories produce about 95 million cans of Play-Doh annually for 6,000 U.S. stores and 75 different countries.
SECRET RECIPE
No one has ever revealed Play-Doh's exact formula, but Hasbro (the company that now manufactures it) does let people know that the dough contains water, salt, and flour-and no peanuts, peanut oil, or milk, all well-known allergens. (It does contain wheat, though.) According to its current patent, the stuff also is made with water, a starch-based binder, retrogradation inhibitor, salt, lubricant, surfactant, preservative, hardener, humectant, fragrance, and color. Not exactly a wholesome snack-but ultimately harmless.
PLAY-DOH FACTS
• Play-Doh was put into plastic cans in 1986, which kept the tightly capped dough soft and pliable for longer periods of time.
• In 1960, the first Play-Doh Fun Factory was introduced. Basically just a souped-up pasta maker made out of plastic, the lever-based device allowed kids to make different kinds of ropes and discs of Doh.
• For years, Play-Doh cans and labels were graced with the impish cartoon of Play-Doh Pete, who morphed from an elf to a beret-wearing boy in 1960 and then traded his headgear for a baseball cap in the 1970s.
• One of the most popular sets ever made was 1977's Fuzzy Pumper Barber and Beauty Shop Playset (known from the start simply as the Play-Doh Barber Shop). The barbershop exists today in a new incarnation-the Fuzzy Pumper Pet Parlor.
********************************************************************************
BRI CONTACT INFORMATION
********************************************************************************
As always, we're here for you.
The Bathroom Readers' Institute
PO Box 1117
Ashland, OR 97520
phone: (888) 488-4642
fax: (541) 482-6159
For order inquiries: orders@bathroomreader.com
For general correspondence: mail@bathroomreader.com
www.bathroomreader.com
********************************************************************************
THE BOTTOM LINE
********************************************************************************
From Uncle John Takes a Swing at Baseball
N is for.NICE GUYS FINISH LAST, a phrase coined by Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher on July 6, 1946, and familiar worldwide today. His actual quote, according to his autobiography: "Take a look at them. All nice guys. They'll finish last. Nice guys. Finish last." (He was referring to the 1946 New York Giants. They finished last.)
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