The useless information thread

silvermouse · October 29

Female Aedes mosquitoes mate only one in their lifetimes, but are pursued by males relentlessly. This led researchers to theorize that the insects have a mechanism of stopping copulation. Using fluorescent sperm and some careful camera work, the team found that when a male Aedes mosquito initiates contact, the female must extend the tip of her genitals by a fraction of a millimetre to initiate the act. Without this subtle movement, the male’s efforts fail.

Nature | 5 min read

IndustMech · October 31

@silvermouse said:
Female Aedes mosquitoes mate only one in their lifetimes, but are pursued by males relentlessly. This led researchers to theorize that the insects have a mechanism of stopping copulation. Using fluorescent sperm and some careful camera work, the team found that when a male Aedes mosquito initiates contact, the female must extend the tip of her genitals by a fraction of a millimetre to initiate the act. Without this subtle movement, the male’s efforts fail.

Nature | 5 min read

B!+ch

Rhamlin · November 3

Last direct descendant: Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith was the great-grandson of Abraham Lincoln and the last known direct descendant. He died in 1985, and the family line ended with him.

Rhamlin · November 3

@ShawnOL said:
I don't like that so many presidents start construction on the white house (on our dime) just to suit themselves. It should not be allowed unless its actually necessary. And on their own dime.

From what I have read it’s not. It’s being done through donations and his own dime.
But just like any house sometimes you have to make improvements on it.

silvermouse · November 6

A new study sheds light on how male Onthophagus orpheus dung beetles use their horns to battle for access to females, and how varying horn sizes lead to varying battle strategies. The findings help researchers “see how evolution keeps working, even in a city park.” Shown here is a male O. orpheus with prominent horns atop its thorax. (Photo by Steven King)

https://entomologytoday.org/2025/11/06/battles-beneath-city-park-urban-dung-beetles-sexual-selection/

edz · November 6

@silvermouse said:

A new study sheds light on how male Onthophagus orpheus dung beetles use their horns to battle for access to females, and how varying horn sizes lead to varying battle strategies. The findings help researchers “see how evolution keeps working, even in a city park.” Shown here is a male O. orpheus with prominent horns atop its thorax. (Photo by Steven King)

https://entomologytoday.org/2025/11/06/battles-beneath-city-park-urban-dung-beetles-sexual-selection/

Wife always said guys are better at getting into "dung" and starting fights.

Yakster · November 13

silvermouse · November 13

yes

Yakster · November 14

More fun than jumping over a lazy dog.

Yakster · November 17

Makes me want a New World Cameroon.

silvermouse · November 17

During World War II, the U.S. Mint changed the composition of nickels to conserve metals for the war effort. From mid-1942 to 1945, nickels were made of 56% copper, 35% silver, and 9% manganese, known as "war nickels."

silvermouse · November 17

100 years ago they were teaching Latin and Greek in high school, now they are teaching remedial English in college.

Rdp77 · November 18

With all the talk of the “penny” no longer being minted I find it ironic that the US has never actually minted a penny. The first coin minted in the US was the “flowing hair” cent in 1787 that was designed by Benjamin Franklin. It was called a cent to separate it from the British penny. The first coin issued by the US government was the Fugio cent in 1797. Also a cent. Now even the US mint is referring to them as “pennies”. The US has never made a penny.

OmgFrigginMike · November 18

@Rdp77 said:
With all the talk of the “penny” no longer being minted I find it ironic that the US has never actually minted a penny. The first coin minted in the US was the “flowing hair” cent in 1787 that was designed by Benjamin Franklin. It was called a cent to separate it from the British penny. The first coin issued by the US government was the Fugio cent in 1797. Also a cent. Now even the US mint is referring to them as “pennies”. The US has never made a penny.

Thanks for sharing your two cents er.... um cent and pennie. That's actually pretty neat.

silvermouse · November 19

Looking for a job? Start a flea circus. Here's how:

Training Fleas

“Mr. Bertolotto, the well-known educator of the flea, is now in New York exhibiting his curious success. The insect he employs appears to be the species of flea common to dogs. The first lesson, he says, is to put the fleas in a small circular glass box, where, by jumping and knocking their heads against the glass for a day or two, the idea is finally beaten into them that it is useless to jump. During the remainder of their natural lives—about eight months—they are content to crawl.

The instructor then fastens a delicate pair of wire nippers to the middle of the flea’s body; to the nippers any desired form of miniature vehicle, such as a wheelbarrow, car or wagon, is attached, and the flea trots away with the load. The professor harnesses his insect pupils to perform many curious duties, such as the operation of a fortune-telling wheel, orchestra playing or racing. The fleas are allowed to feed twice daily upon the instructor’s arm.”
--Scientific American Magazine, 1875

peter4jc · November 19

In my earlier days, I came across what I called 'The Invisible Flea Trick'. It had a small box as a platform, maybe 8"Lx4"Wx2"H, with an open bottom. On the platform was a ladder, 12" tall, with a diving board at the top. Next to the ladder was a small swimming pool with water in it.

The diving board had a small string attached to it, running up the side of the ladder, hidden from the viewers, which would make the board go down and spring back to its resting position. The swimming pool had a spring-loaded flipper under it, which would make the water splash.

The operator would convince the crowd that his trained fleas were circus performers and so tiny they were practically invisible. He would announce that the flea was ready for the act and describe how it was climbing the ladder. Then, once the flea was "on the diving board", you guessed it; he would pull the string, making the board bounce, and flip the flipper to splash the water.

Truth be told, I don't know if this was an actual memory or an idea I came up with as a young hippy. But it would be an awesome thing to pull our with grandkids or the children in the neighborhood, right?