I am shocked, absolutely shocked

[Alidar Jarok]

Well, Central America is a region of North America, not its own continent. The dividing line is a matter of opinion, not fact. As a practical matter, there's very little difference between Belize, Guatemala, and the very southern part of Mexico. So it's not wrong to say Mexico is part of Central America. Many Americans do tend to associate Central America with Latin America, which I tend to think is counterproductive. However, given that this conversation exists, I think the term "Central America" is probably counterproductive by itself.

 

[RJDiogenes]

I have a friend, who insisted the South Pole was warm, because it was south of the equator.

Well, just give it a few more years....

 

[JarodRussell]

 

[Miss Chicken]

Richard Branson posted a picture on his Facebook page saying "Sunset on Mars. Quite an amazing photo."

One of the comments was

"So pretty. I never knew Mars had a sun"

 

[TorontoTrekker]

I saw that on my newsfeed this evening, and immediately thought of this thread. *sigh*

 

[RJDiogenes]

Oh, bloody hell. Sometimes I despair.

 

[Rincewiend]

I suspect a lot of us here share that spark of curiosity. However, a good number of people I interact with on a daily basis have hardly given it a second thought. Odd. We've all found ourselves in this thing we call The Universe. Yet, there have been times I've been ridiculed for not having more grounded interests.

Different people are curious about different things...
I have relatives who know more about engines than me and i know a bit more about space than they do because those other things don't interest them or me...

 

[scotpens]

Well, Central America is a region of North America, not its own continent. The dividing line is a matter of opinion, not fact. As a practical matter, there's very little difference between Belize, Guatemala, and the very southern part of Mexico. So it's not wrong to say Mexico is part of Central America. Many Americans do tend to associate Central America with Latin America, which I tend to think is counterproductive. However, given that this conversation exists, I think the term "Central America" is probably counterproductive by itself.

Hey, South America stole our name!

 

[Data's Cat]

I am reminded of Jay Walking!

For those of you who don't understand the reference, Jay Leno is a late night talk/variety show host (here in the USA), who does this thing called Jay Walking. He takes a cameraman and microphone out in the street and stops people to ask them the simplest of questions that should be common knowledge- things that 3rd and 4th grade children learn in school.

The questions cover a variety of subjects, but examples are things something like this:

At what temperature does water freeze?
How many states are there?
Is California a state or a country?
What did Christopher Columbus discover?

and so on.

Sometimes he'll show people pictures of famous people or famous landmarks to see if they can identify them.

It's incredible what idiotic answers he gets from people. And ironically, sometimes the person he stops will be a teacher, and they can't answer any more than the average joe.

No doubt there are plenty of people who know the answers, but they aren't going to air those, because smart people aren't going to be entertaining.

 

[Miss Chicken]

We had an Australian poster here who stated that Tasmania was not a state of Australia. However i wasn't convinced she was for real, I think she might have been a sock puppet.

 

[TorontoTrekker]

I am reminded of Jay Walking!

Which was ripped off from Rick Mercer's "Talking To Americans" spot on the show "This Hour Has 22 Minutes".

 

[RJDiogenes]

I am reminded of Jay Walking!

I think he's the one who once had a commercial featuring a clip of some goon answering proudly, "I don't read books."

We had an Australian poster here who stated that Tasmania was not a state of Australia. However i wasn't convinced she was for real, I think she might have been a sock puppet.

There was somebody on TrekBBS who once tried to educate me on the fact that Alaska is not a state, but a "financial transaction."

 

[Sigokat]

I thought Alaska was a pie.

 

[MacLeod]

I am reminded of Jay Walking!

I think he's the one who once had a commercial featuring a clip of some goon answering proudly, "I don't read books."

We had an Australian poster here who stated that Tasmania was not a state of Australia. However i wasn't convinced she was for real, I think she might have been a sock puppet.

There was somebody on TrekBBS who once tried to educate me on the fact that Alaska is not a state, but a "financial transaction."

I suppose they would classify some 15 other US states as a finacial transation as well, given that the US Purchased them from France during what is known as the Lousiaina Purchase.

 

[Miss Chicken]

Wasn't there decades between the purchase and Alaska becoming a state?

 

[MacLeod]

i could google it, but that would defeat the purpose of a lazy sunday afternoon. I'm sure one of our American cousins will know the date Alaska received statehood.

 

[Miss Chicken]

I just Googled it. The purchase was in 1867 and Alaska became a state in 1959.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Wasn't there decades between the purchase and Alaska becoming a state?

Quite a few states were decades between purchase and statehood. There was a territory stage in between. Oklahoma was part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and got statehood in 1907, for example.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

I just Googled it. The purchase was in 1867 and Alaska became a state in 1959.

which was a remarkably quick action by the bureaucracy!
The other day I came across a file labeled "for re-evaluation after our final victory" (it dated from 1939). Since we haven't won yet, I put it back into the archieve

 

[Data's Cat]

I am reminded of Jay Walking!

Which was ripped off from Rick Mercer's "Talking To Americans" spot on the show "This Hour Has 22 Minutes".

I've seen clips of that on Youtube. Funny stuff!