Till 1864 which items were known as timbres poste?
Timbre-poste is French for postage stamp.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/french-english/timbre-poste
The first French postage stamps were issued in the 1840s, but I have not found any official change to the name for them - they are still called timbres-poste in France - so maybe this was in a French colony? Or the Canadian province of Quebec, which would have had its own postal system before the establishment of the Dominion in 1867. New stamps for the nation were issued in 1868.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postage_stamps_and_postal_history_of_Canada#Canada (looney_tunes)
1 answer
Jul 10 26 by pehinhota
Twenty years after the conquest by William the Conqueror, which Danish king planned a campaign to claim the crown of England?
King Cnut IV of Denmark planned an invasion of England in 1085 to reclaim the English crown. As the grandnephew of Cnut the Great, he considered William the Conqueror a usurper.
[quote]In 1085 he reasserted the Danish claims to England and, with the count of Flanders and King Olaf III of Norway, prepared a massive invasion fleet... Canute's plan, however, had to be abandoned suddenly, for those aristocrats who opposed his tax policy revolted.[/quote]
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Canute-IV
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_attacks_on_Norman_England#Invasion_plans_of_1085%E2%80%931086 (wellenbrecher)
1 answer
Jul 10 26 by pehinhota
2 answers
Jul 08 26 by ozzz2002
1 answer
Jul 09 26 by pehinhota
How many species of leech are terrestrial?
Leeches are not confined to aquatic environments; about 90 species have adapted to terrestrial life, and 100 species inhabit the oceans. Terrestrial leeches, primarily from the family Haemadipsidae, are common in the damp, high-humidity forests of tropical and subtropical zones.
https://scienceinsights.org/where-are-leeches-found-from-ponds-to-forests/#:~:text=Leeches%20are%20not%20confined%20to%20aquatic%20environments%3B%20about,damp%2C%20high-humidity%20forests%20of%20tropical%20and%20subtropical%20zones.
(pehinhota)
1 answer
Jul 08 26 by serpa
2 answers
Jul 08 26 by ozzz2002
Are elephants fossorial mammals?
No - they are not adapted to burrowing and do not live primarily underground. Moles, meerkats and wombats are considered fossorial.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fossorial (looney_tunes)
1 answer
Jul 08 26 by serpa
Who was Qin Shi Huang?
Qin Shi Huang was a Chinese emperor, the first in the Qin dynasty. He was born in 259B.B. and reigned from 221B.C. to 210B.C. He also ruled over a China that was briefly unified. It was during his reign that the terracotta army was created, although construction did continue into his successor's reign.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Qin-Shi-Huang (Buddy1)
1 answer
Jul 08 26 by serpa
2 answers
Jun 28 26 by Sandpiper18
Who is(n't) buried next to Lee Harvey Oswald?
You're not Robinson Crusoe. I've lost 3 or 4 over the years as well, and have no idea why they were zapped. I've dug through the admin forum hoping to find a thread by Terry re this (my memory is no longer what it used to be). I didn't find anything. I'll keep looking in there over the next few weeks and see if I get lucky. In the interim, if I had to hazard a guess, maybe Terry ran a routine re google popularity, number of page visits, or something similar.
btw your question had two replies. This is what your question looked like back then:
https://web.archive.org/web/20171026174513/http://www.funtrivia.com/askft/Question144231.html
(gtho4)
6 answers
Jun 29 26 by serpa
What country was the first to recognise the United States of America as an independent nation?
Right,
But that is not de jure, just de facto. We need to recognize that France was the first official treaty made with the USA, and therefore the first on paper acknowledgement that the USA was soverign this was six YEARS before Morocco officially recognized the USA. The first official "living" recognition was by the Netherlands on April 19, 1782 with a salute, four YEARS before Morocco officially recognized. Therefore, while the sultan might have talked a good game, he didn't do much but spit until 1786.
As above
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_date_of_recognition_of_the_United_States
Treaty of 1786
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moroccan%E2%80%93American_Treaty_of_Friendship
(misdiaslocos)
3 answers
Jul 01 26 by elvislennon
How do experts decide where one mountain range ends and another begins?
There would be many factors that go into determining this. Though two mountain ranges may appear continuous, they are often geologically distinct, perhaps in their origin, or in the composition and thus shape of the mountains. They may be separated by other significant geographic features like rivers. There may be historical or cultural reasons to refer them as different ranges even without a geological reason. Ultimately, it's not a clean-cut decision, but rather a general consensus.
I'll look at one good example, though I'm sure there are many more interesting ones out there (Himalayas, Karakoram and Hindu Kush for example). Each one will have its own unique distinctions.
The Great Dividing Range of Australia, which extends for over 3,500km (2,175 miles) along the east coast of the continent, is often considered to be a single mountain range or chain, but to geographers and geologists it is more of a collection of mountain ranges, plateuas and hills. It was formed together 300 million years ago from a collision between Australia, South America and New Zealand. In that sense it is one range. However, the underlying rocks and geology across its length vary quite significantly. With the continent being the oldest landmass on Earth, with rocks that are billions of years old in many places, there has been plenty of time for different forces to shape the large stretch of land that was more recently pushed up into the Great Dividing Range. There are sections of volcanic rock and volcano remnants, escarpments, former sedimentary river basins. Climate varies widely from north to south, altering the vegetation, with everything from tropical rainforest to high altitude alpine vegetation.
So there is a lot of objective variation, but ultimately it's a subjective choice on where the lines are drawn. A good example of this is the Blue Mountains region west of Sydney. Its boundaries are not fixed but rather vague. Further up and down the Range, at least to the untrained eye, there are many sections with a very similar appearance and vegetation, yet they attract their own names. The proximity to a major city in Sydney gives the Blue Mountains their lustre, even when the geographic features are not so distinct from other areas. (patrickk)
2 answers
Jun 28 26 by Sandpiper18
The Greek letter 'pi', describes the mathematical relationship between the radius and circumference of a circle, but how is it actually calculated?
The calculation of pi and what pi actually is are two totally different things. Starting with Archimedes they use what was called the method of exhaustion. Take a square put it outside and inside the circle. Check the perimeter of both squares. And now you know that pi is in between those two values. Now just crank up the number of sides of each polygon, and you get a better and better approximation. The largest number of sides to a polygon that was used is astronomical. Here I'm going to copy and paste from a source.
Ludolph van Ceulen completed his calculations using the 2^62-sided polygon in the early 1600s, shortly before his death in 1610.
http://docmadhattan.fieldofscience.com/2016/03/ludolph-van-ceulen-in-searching-of-pi.html
Then along came Isaac Newton. I'm only going to throw out the titles of stuff so that it doesn't go down too big a mathematical rabbit hole. But the tools are surprisingly basic, at least they're all very visual. He started with the binomial theorem then worked his way into the graph of a circle. Combine that with the formula for the area of circle which contained pi, he ended up doing a little bit of basic algebra to isolate pie and came up with a very short sweet formula to calculate pi. Instead of having to do all of the crazy calculations with a billion sided polygon, he could get 16 places of accuracy with about five or six steps. No one messed with polygons after that. My guess would be that the supercomputers that are running today trying to figure out even more decimal places are using some form of Newton's method.
I know this is all very hand wavy, but it's not a bad thumbnail description of how to calculate pi. The concept of what pi is and how it is treated in mathematics is a totally different story.
(Jyrosolve)
3 answers
Jun 29 26 by ozzz2002
What country was the first to recognise the United States of America as an independent nation?
Morocco on June 23, 1777 - more than six months before France recognised the United States of America as an independent nation.
[quote]Morocco implicitly recognized the United States in 1777, after Sultan Mohammed III signed a decree granting American ships protection and free access to Moroccan ports. The Sultan previously expressed his desire to be a "friend of the Americans". Morocco formally recognized the United States on June 23, 1786, when a treaty of peace and friendship was signed.[/quote]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_date_of_recognition_of_the_United_States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moroccan%E2%80%93American_Treaty_of_Friendship (wellenbrecher)
3 answers
Jul 01 26 by elvislennon
What country was the first to recognise the United States of America as an independent nation?
Relations between the Kingdom of Morocco and the United States of America date back to the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) and specifically since 1777 when Morocco under Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah became the first country in the world to recognize the independence of the United States.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Morocco-and-recognition-of-the-United-States
(pehinhota)
3 answers
Jul 01 26 by elvislennon
Who is(n't) buried next to Lee Harvey Oswald?
Question #144231. Back in June 2017 I asked, "Who is Nick Beef?" The question has been deleted due to insufficient responses although I'm pretty sure it was answered by someone. Could anyone please explain why it would be deleted.? (elvislennon)
6 answers
Jun 29 26 by serpa
6 answers
Jun 29 26 by serpa
Which type of 88 key piano, grand or upright, contains the most strings to produce its sound?
The above is mostly correct in that 230 is the most common number of strings (the lowest 12 notes have 1 string each, the next 10 have 2 each and the remaining 66 have 3). However, pianos can be built with fewer strings (down to about 215-220, usually extending the 2-string range) or, in rare cases, more (adding a 4th string to the highest notes).
These adjustments are usually based on the desired size and volume, so concert grands tend to have the full 230 (or more) while baby grands or uprights might have slightly fewer.
The string count per note not only provides for a consistent volume and sound quality across the entire range but also influences the effect of the "soft" pedal which slightly shifts the hammers so that fewer strings are struck while playing.
https://www.musicalinstrumentworld.com/archives/23802
https://pianotechniciantuner.com/blog/strings-a-piano-has-how-and-why (WesleyCrusher)
2 answers
Jun 30 26 by odo5435
2 answers
Jun 30 26 by odo5435
Who is(n't) buried next to Lee Harvey Oswald?
The plot on the RH side of Oswald's is marked NICK BEEF, but it's empty. The plot is owned by Patric Abedin [quote]For the last 15 years, this curious name has vexed the obsessive assassination buffs who make regular pilgrimages to the Oswald plot here in Fort Worth. That is because a pinkish granite marker suddenly appeared beside the assassin's grave sometime in 1997. And all it said was Nick Beef ... he says, he came by it innocently, even accidentally. But now, with the 50th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination less than four months away, he has decided to reveal himself, sort of, to The New York Times ... And to prove that he is who he says he is, Mr. Beef reaches into a small satchel and pulls out a contract from 1975 for Burial Plot 258 in the Fairlawn section of Rose Hill ($175), as well as a receipt from 1996 for the purchase and installation of a granite stone to be engraved NICK BEEF ($987.19). Mr. Beef, 56, is a writer and "nonperforming performance artist" with a penchant for the morbid, he says, who has never done stand-up comedy - an important point. He says that Nick Beef is a long-held persona; his given name is Patric Abedin. [/quote] https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna52723602
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2013/08/how-nick-beef-became-lee-harvey-oswalds-neighbor/312295/
(gtho4)
6 answers
Jun 29 26 by serpa
3 answers
Jun 29 26 by ozzz2002
3 answers
Jun 29 26 by ozzz2002
6 answers
Jun 29 26 by serpa
1 answer
Jun 29 26 by pehinhota
The Praslin parrot was the mascot of which sport event in 2011?
The Praslin parrot (also called the Seychelles black parrot) was used for the 8th Indian Ocean Island Games. The mascot's name was Toto!
https://www.nation.sc/archive/231258/8th-indian-ocean-island-games-august-5-14-games-torch-tours-baie-ste-anne-praslin (salami_swami)
1 answer
Jun 29 26 by pehinhota
Who is(n't) buried next to Lee Harvey Oswald?
If I understand the question correctly, who is and who isn't buried next to Lee Harvey Oswald? His mother is buried next to him, his father, brother and half-brother are not. [quote]Mother of accused assassin of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and Dallas, Texas Police Officer J. D. Tippit. Widow of Oswald's father Robert E. Lee Oswald d. 19 August 1939 and divorced from Edward John Pic, Jr. and Edwin A. Ekdahl.
Claimed to her death that her son was innocent of the assassination, and he was instead an agent of the Central Intelligence Agency of the USA. She is buried next to her son Lee Harvey Oswald.[/quote] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/59563475/marguerite_frances-oswald
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/29264820/robert_edward_lee-oswald
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/204935970/robert_edward_lee-oswald
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/32062078/john_edward-pic
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/781/lee_harvey-oswald
(elburcher)
6 answers
Jun 29 26 by serpa
FIFA World Cup: Why is Iran called "Team Melli"?
The Iran National Football Team is called "Team Melli," which translates to "National Team" in Persian. The term "Melli" signifies the team's representation of the entire nation, carrying the pride and unity of the Iranian people.
https://irandoostan.com/iran-national-football-team/#:~:text=The%20Iran%20National%20Football%20Team%20is%20called%20%E2%80%9CTeam,the%20pride%20and%20unity%20of%20the%20Iranian%20people.
(pehinhota)
1 answer
Jun 28 26 by chabenao1
6 answers
Jun 25 26 by odo5435
1 answer
Jun 27 26 by pehinhota
6 answers
Jun 25 26 by odo5435
The unofficial rule of awarding the Nobel Prize only to authors who have previously been nominated for it at least once is still referred to in the cultural pages as the "Lex ..."?
Hey pehinhota,
So this seems to be the "Buck Rule" named for Pearl S Buck who was awarded the Nobel in Literature, but was seen as a lightweight who just wrote popular fiction. The rule is totally unofficial, but basically says that the committee will only aware authors with proven gravitas and the best way to get that is that they are nominated more than once before receiving.
Not a lot on it on the net, to be fair, and I needed to translate a Wiki in German to get what I needed. Here is the relevant quote in English, and the site/cite below.
"In 1938, the American became Pearl S. Buck awarded the Literature Prize. This award was received with incomprehension at the time and is still often regarded as a wrong decision until the present, since Buck's works would have little literary value. From this criticism emerged the so-called "Lex Buck". It is the unwritten rule to award only authors who had been nominated at least once before."
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobelpreis_f%C3%BCr_Literatur
J (misdiaslocos)
2 answers
Jun 26 26 by pehinhota
2 answers
Jun 26 26 by pehinhota
What hunting weapon is designed to return to its owner?
I don't believe that the Harpoon would be correct, the harpoon doesn't return, it's retrieved / recovered either by reeling it in or by swimming and picking it up, the object in question is "designed to return" which means the object returns to who or where it was launched.
Thinking a bit outside the box...
How about a hunting bird (Falcon or Hawk)...
https://www.britannica.com/sports/falconry (elburcher)
6 answers
Jun 25 26 by odo5435
What hunting weapon is designed to return to its owner?
So, neither poster answered the question. I posit, from my experience as a scuba diver, that the answer is a harpoon with a retrieval line.
Unlike a projectile you throw away and hope to find later, like the aforementioned hunting boomerang, a traditional hunting harpoon relies on a mechanical tether. It is designed to maximize the hunter's chances of recovery. When the harpoon strikes an animal (like a seal, whale, or large fish), the sharp point detaches from the heavy wooden shaft. The head is securely tied to a long, braided line made of sinew, leather, or rope held firmly by the hunter.
When the animal is struck, the hunter pulls the line to reel the prey back in. If the hunter misses entirely, they simply haul the line back to recover the more valuable weapon-head immediately without losing it to deep water or a current. A shaft is a dime a dozen; the head is attached to your next meal... if you're a decent hunter. (LeoDaVinci)
6 answers
Jun 25 26 by odo5435
What hunting weapon is designed to return to its owner?
The question is partly incorrect. The returning boomerang is considered to be a toy or plaything while the non-returning type is considered a weapon.
[quote]Essentially, there are two types of this ancient Aboriginal device: the returning boomerang, and the non-returning. The former (designed to return to the thrower) was often used as a plaything - in tournaments and by hunters to imitate the sound of birds to drive them from trees; coastal Aboriginal communities favoured these lighter tools. The non-returning boomerang, however, was designed as a weapon, to be thrown straight. It's longer, straighter and heavier than its returning variety, and traditionally used by inland and desert Indigenous communities.[/quote]
https://www.discoveraboriginalexperiences.com/article/guide-to-the-boomerang-in-aboriginal-cultures
(elburcher)
6 answers
Jun 25 26 by odo5435
What hunting weapon is designed to return to its owner?
It's the boomerang.
Notably not from Australia, but widely used in several cultures from all over the world and as early as the paleolithic: the oldest specimen was found in Poland and is dated around 23000 BC. (onunodnumiar)
6 answers
Jun 25 26 by odo5435
1 answer
Jan 01 26 by DomiNeyTor
1 answer
Jun 23 26 by pehinhota
Where does a forgotten thought go?
Forgotten thoughts do not necessarily disappear. Instead, the neural connections associated with them can weaken, making the memories more difficult to access. However, under the right circumstances, these memories can become accessible again.
[quote]In a sense, thoughts memories may not go anywhere, they may just become more difficult to access. It may seem pointless, but forgetting is very important. We believe it allows our brains to only retain information that may be important for our existence and survival, and leaving room to learn more and acquire other equally important memories in the future.[/quote]
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/culture-online/case-studies/2022/feb/where-does-thought-go-when-its-forgotten (wellenbrecher)
4 answers
Jun 20 26 by misdiaslocos
4 answers
Jun 20 26 by misdiaslocos
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