November 1, 2015

On six instances an MLB player has been intentionally walked with the bases loaded

1. On six instances an MLB player has been intentionally walked with the bases loaded. In all six cases, the pitching team won the game.

--Abner Dalrymple (1881)
--Nap Lajoie (1901)
--Del Bissonette (1928)
--Bill Nicholson (1944)
--Barry Bonds (1998)
--Josh Hamilton (2008)

September 28, 2015

The indentation at the bottom of a wine/champagne bottle is called a punt

1. The indentation found at the bottom of a wine/champagne bottle is called a punt.













Image Credit: NewAir

September 23, 2015

San Jose was the first capital of California

1. When California gained statehood on September 9, 1850, San Jose served as the first capital for a short time until 1851.

September 21, 2015

A growing moon is said to be "waxing" and a shrinking moon is said to be "waning"

1. A growing moon is said to be "waxing" and a shrinking moon is said to be "waning." The left side of the picture is of a waxing moon and the right is of a waning moon. A mnemonic device to help remember the waxing vs. waning phase is to think of the moon as making a "C" shape during the waning phase and associate the "C" with the word "Ceasing," a synonym for waning.

September 16, 2015

Only Cardinals under the age of 80 are eligible to be part of the Papal Conclave that elects the next pope

1. Staring in 1970, resulting from a decree of Pope Paul VI, cardinals over the age of 80 when the papacy becomes vacant are not eligible to be part of the Papal Conclave that gathers to elect the next pope. Pope Paul VI also set the maximum number of cardinals that may vote to 120. This number has been changed several times prior to 1970.

September 5, 2015

In 2006, No. 5, by Paul Jackson Pollock became the 5th most expensive painting ever sold--$164M adjusted for inflation

1. Paul Jackson Pollock (born 1912, died 1956) was a painter and influential figure in the abstraction expressionist movement. His 8ft x 4ft mural, No. 5 (painted in 1948) sold in 2006 for $140M ($164M adjusted to 2015 dollars). He stopped naming his works and began just numbering them because he felt it allowed people to look at his work without preconceived ideas.

No. 5, 1948" by Taken from Art Market Watch.com.
Licensed under 
Fair use via Wikipedia.



















August 23, 2015

After US DoD and China's People's Liberation Army, Walmart has the world's 3rd most employees in the world

1. After the United States Department of Defense's 3.2 million employees and China Liberation Army's 2.3 million, Wal-Mart employs the most people in the world at 2.1 million people. McDonald's is fourth with 1.7 million employees if the employees of the franchised locations are counted.

August 8, 2015

There are 12 animals making up the Chinese Zodiac (Shēngxiào)

1. There are 12 animals that make up the Chinese Zodiac (Shēngxiào). In order they are: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.

July 15, 2015

William Howard Taft was the only president to serve on the Supreme Court

1. William Howard Taft was the only president (1909-1913) to serve on the Supreme Court (1921-1930).

April 7, 2015

A prolate spheroid is the name for shape of ball used in Rugby

1. The shape of the ball used in Rugby is called a "prolate spheroid." This shape is characterised by a polar radius (a) that is greater than equatorial radius (b).


2. An American Football can more accurately be describe by the term "vesica piscis." In Latin it literally means "fish bladder," and is a term for the shape formed by the intersection of two equal circles whose centers are offset by a distance equal to the circle radii.

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