Love the Manneken Pis postcards. Very interesting was the liberal translations, or rather English re-writes.
Literal translation from the French:
1: What a troubling sight!2: To see such things at my age!3: Everything that’s small and nice.4: (Accurate translation)5: boches = Krauts6: (… to pee in the air with.)
The “Magic Table” is a simple application of binary (base 2) arithmetic. The top number in each column is a power of 2: 2^0 = 1 2^1 = 2 2^2 = 4 2^3 = 8 2^4 = 16 2^5 = 32 The other numbers are arranged so they appear under the 2^n columns needed for the addition to work. With 6 columns you can represent all integers from 1 to 63 (2^6 – 1). With one more column, you can set up a table to go up to 127 but you would need 64 lines. On a related topic, after seeing this sequence on a vanity license plate I inferred the owner’s occupation (computer geek of some sort) and amatory interests: 1000101
Yesterday, I unthinkingly put an ALUMINUM travel mug full of coffee in my microwave. The rubber handle caught fire. The whole house smelled like burning rubber.
How To Distinguish Death (from the blog)- Fear of being buried alive and waking up was very very common in the late 1800s. Probably it was all Edgar Allen Poe’s fault. This is why Bell (co)-invented the phone: you could have something to yell into when you woke up.
Sisyphos about 13 years ago
Sounds like a job for…The Exorcist!
Mad-ge Dish Soap about 13 years ago
THIS SIDE UP
The Old Wolf about 13 years ago
Love the Manneken Pis postcards. Very interesting was the liberal translations, or rather English re-writes.
Literal translation from the French:
1: What a troubling sight!2: To see such things at my age!3: Everything that’s small and nice.4: (Accurate translation)5: boches = Krauts6: (… to pee in the air with.)
grapfhics about 13 years ago
How often do you expel them?
post hoc Premium Member about 13 years ago
The “Magic Table” is a simple application of binary (base 2) arithmetic. The top number in each column is a power of 2: 2^0 = 1 2^1 = 2 2^2 = 4 2^3 = 8 2^4 = 16 2^5 = 32 The other numbers are arranged so they appear under the 2^n columns needed for the addition to work. With 6 columns you can represent all integers from 1 to 63 (2^6 – 1). With one more column, you can set up a table to go up to 127 but you would need 64 lines. On a related topic, after seeing this sequence on a vanity license plate I inferred the owner’s occupation (computer geek of some sort) and amatory interests: 1000101
lunchtimelooker about 13 years ago
I was under the impression that a magic table was always full of food.
iced tea about 13 years ago
That’s the reason I’d rather have an airpopper for popcorn. Do they still carry them anywhere?
pogodog7 about 13 years ago
I think I know that Demon.
FLIGHT SUIT about 13 years ago
Yesterday, I unthinkingly put an ALUMINUM travel mug full of coffee in my microwave. The rubber handle caught fire. The whole house smelled like burning rubber.
JackParsons about 13 years ago
How To Distinguish Death (from the blog)- Fear of being buried alive and waking up was very very common in the late 1800s. Probably it was all Edgar Allen Poe’s fault. This is why Bell (co)-invented the phone: you could have something to yell into when you woke up.