May 4th, 2008, 06:40 AM
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#2 (permalink) |
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Urban legend.
(Wiki) The earliest citation comes from Sir William Hope’s The Compleat Fencing-Master, second edition, 1692, page 157: "What he doth, he doth by rule of thumb, and not by art."[3] The term is thought to originate with wood workers who used the length of their thumbs rather than rulers for measuring things. It is often claimed that the term originally referred to a law that limited the maximum thickness of a stick with which it was permissible for a man to beat his wife, but this has been fully discredited.
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------------------ When people ask what I hope to see before I die, I answer that I've already seen too much. Last edited by jtur88; May 4th, 2008 at 06:44 AM. |
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May 5th, 2008, 01:15 AM
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#5 (permalink) | |
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The irony of discrediting a certain website before checking that the website has referenced better sources for said information is perfect. BBC NEWS | Technology | Wikipedia survives research test And to think that this was in 2005. It would be pretty simple to believe that the accuracy has increased even just a little bit in 3 years. IMO Wikipedia has essentially become The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. |
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May 5th, 2008, 06:28 AM
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#6 (permalink) | |
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------------------ When people ask what I hope to see before I die, I answer that I've already seen too much. |
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May 5th, 2008, 07:12 AM
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#7 (permalink) |
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It's probably another silly site like those that he uses to support his insane and inane 9/11 conspiracy theories
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Reagan in 08... Even though he's dead, he's the better choice! Superdelegates - Because even the Democratic party knows it's base is too stupid to make really important decisions. |
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May 5th, 2008, 07:14 AM
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#8 (permalink) |
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There is more salt in breakfast cereal than in potato chips. Check the nutrition panel on the package. Most regular cereals (Corn flakes, Total, etc.) have around 220 mg of sodium per ounce, while most regular (unflavored) potato chips, depending on brand, have less than 200 mg per ounce. In my kitchen, Nature's Crunch Bran Flakes, 210 mg, and Mission Tortilla Strips, 150 mg. Saltine crackers, 170 mg.
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------------------ When people ask what I hope to see before I die, I answer that I've already seen too much. |
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May 5th, 2008, 07:23 AM
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#9 (permalink) |
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Maybe I should put in some 'Cliffisms"
 
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Reagan in 08... Even though he's dead, he's the better choice! Superdelegates - Because even the Democratic party knows it's base is too stupid to make really important decisions. |
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May 5th, 2008, 09:13 AM
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#10 (permalink) | |
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"There are plenty of blacks who do not look like monkeys... Obama, however, does sort of look like a monkey..." Zen, May 18, 2008. |
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May 5th, 2008, 09:34 AM
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#11 (permalink) | |
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Well you see, Norm, it’s like this…A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members. In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Now, as we know, excessive intake of alcohol kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine. And that, Norm, is why you always feel smarter after a few beers.
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------------------ When people ask what I hope to see before I die, I answer that I've already seen too much. |
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May 5th, 2008, 02:20 PM
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#12 (permalink) |
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The origin story that I first heard for "rule of thumb" agrees with jtur's. For adult males, the distance from the tip of the thumb to the first knuckle is about one inch (mine's 1.25"). Thus, one can use one's thumb to get an approximate measure of things.
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May 5th, 2008, 03:04 PM
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#13 (permalink) | |
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It was a joke! Sheeeesh! |
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May 5th, 2008, 05:04 PM
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#14 (permalink) |
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HaHa
Joking about beating wives is so funny
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I'm sorry I left for a while. I needed a vaction, and then work changed substantially. I'm over 50 hour weeks, plus two hours a day of commuting time. A few weeks ago I launched my own blog about Seattle Sounders FC and Life in Puget Sound. I won't be by these parts often as my focus has changed. Sorry about the unannounced retirement. |
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