what I have learned today.

[pcolbeck]

That if you press the power button on a Samsung mobile for too long it autodials 112 which is the same as 999.
Was trying to reboot the phone whilst talking to someone and did this by accident.

[rogerzilla]

Scunthorpe is twinned with Clamart.

[PeteB99]

In Real life Dads army star Captain Mainwaring was actually a Sgt Major in WW2 (REME). Sgt Wilson was actually a Captain in the Royal Tank corps.

[Bledlow]

I first came across that in Henry Fielding's Tom Jones (mid-18th century - obviously something they were all into back then). He uses it *a lot*, so it has stuck, even though it's quite a few years since I read it.

Gutenberg says only twice in Tom Jones. But the first one is in the first sentence. Unusual words in first sentences can have quite an impact. I learnt 'catamite' from the first sentence of Anthony Burgess' Earthly Powers:

"It was the afternoon of my eighty-first birthday, and I was in bed with my catamite when Ali announced that the archbishop had come to see me." (Who wouldn't want to read on after a first sentence like that?)

It is now in fairly common use at work - so much more acceptable than the 'bitch' it replaced.

One of my favourite opening sentences. 

[T42]

In Real life Dads army star Captain Mainwaring was actually a Sgt Major in WW2 (REME). Sgt Wilson was actually a Captain in the Royal Tank corps.

And one of the scriptwriters made it to Major.

[Mr Larrington]

Today I are learning the word “presbycusis”.

Pardon?

[Jurek]

Today I are learning the word “presbycusis”.

Pardon?

I have recently realised that I have this.
But didn't know what to call it.

[T42]

Chambers sez Greek presbys = old man.  French près = near + Gk. abyssos = abyss

Meanwhile, I is learning that metformin impairs muscle function and possibly recovery, which maybe explains why my quads still hurt three days after a measly 100k.

It also maketh you to fart like a Harley with a busted silencer.

I'm taking a week off it and to see what happens to my legs when I ride every day.

[diapsaon0]

I've always thought that it meant a Priest - ie Presbyter.

Interesting to know that about metformin - explains a lot.

[barakta]

Today I are learning the word “presbycusis”.

Pardon?

I have recently realised that I have this.
But didn't know what to call it.

RNID stats on prevalence are quite scary, 40% of people over 50 rising to 70% of people over 70 https://rnid.org.uk/about-us/research-and-policy/facts-and-figures/

Although their definition point is slightly lower than most hearing aid provision which usually waits till the deafness is at 30dB.

My sign name for RNID is <WHAT> cos they had that silly name for a while (Action on Hearing Loss) and no one could remember what it was, so <WHAT> seemed like a good snark.

[Kim]

Today I are learning the word “presbycusis”.

Pardon?

I have recently realised that I have this.
But didn't know what to call it.

RNID stats on prevalence are quite scary, 40% of people over 50 rising to 70% of people over 70 https://rnid.org.uk/about-us/research-and-policy/facts-and-figures/

Although their definition point is slightly lower than most hearing aid provision which usually waits till the deafness is at 30dB.

I assume that's 25/30dB across all the frequency bands^[1]?


_{[1] In the audiology universe, hearing takes place at 250, 500, 1000, 2000, 4000 and 8000Hz.  Anything above 8kHz is teenager repellent, anything below 250Hz doesn't exist, and whatever you do don't mention the gaps.}

[T42]

I've always thought that it meant a Priest - ie Presbyter.

C.f. senator, from L. senex = old man.  Taken together, they tell you something about equal opportunities in days gone by - and one of the Latin words for old woman is anus.

Interesting to know that about metformin - explains a lot.

I'd suggest doing a bit of poking around for yourself, I'm going by results from a couple of Google searches that support what I've thought for a good while:

1. effect of metformin on muscle recovery
2. effect of metformin on athletic performance

[barakta]

I assume that's 25/30dB across all the frequency bands^[1]?


_{[1] In the audiology universe, hearing takes place at 250, 500, 1000, 2000, 4000 and 8000Hz.  Anything above 8kHz is teenager repellent, anything below 250Hz doesn't exist, and whatever you do don't mention the gaps.}

Depends if you live in Staffordshite or not (they had a thing for ages where unless you were more than 40dB deaf in BOTH ears, presumably across frequencies, they didn't do hearing aids which is really evil and dangerous and got protested/litigated heavily).

Most older people would start out with high frequency losses with lower frequencies unaffected and as the hearing loss developed would lose lower and lower frequencies over time. Modern hearing aids and moulds can do a good job of mixing hearing aid input with natural hearing as much as possible.

[Cudzoziemiec]

My sign name for RNID is <WHAT> cos they had that silly name for a while (Action on Hearing Loss) and no one could remember what it was, so <WHAT> seemed like a good snark.

Oh, I'd always assumed it was just a "What did you say?" sort of what.

[ian]

Today I are learning the word “presbycusis”.

Pardon?

I have recently realised that I have this.
But didn't know what to call it.

It's a fairly standard part of ageing, alas. I also cannot climb trees any more, though I'm not letting this stop me trying. I can't and won't out-age stupid.

[Cudzoziemiec]

That there is a place called Monopoly, or at least Monopoli. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/28/too-provocative-mermaid-statue-causes-stir-in-southern-italy

[Canardly]

That Parisi Celts gave rise to the city of Paris.

[T42]

Stalin purged his own parrot.  He got infuriated with the bird imitating his crude hawking and spitting and whacked it on the head with his pipe.  He also once plucked a live bird to make a political point.

[T42]

That Parisi Celts gave rise to the city of Paris.

I used to drive to work through Villeparisis, on the edge of the Parisi tribal lands.

[Peter]

Stalin purged his own parrot.  He got infuriated with the bird imitating his crude hawking and spitting and whacked it on the head with his pipe.  He also once plucked a live bird to make a political point.

He didn't need to do that - everyone already knew.

[Asterix, the former Gaul.]

The Army  beret was introduced under the direction of the Secretary of State for War in the summer of 1939. The MP for Stockport* voiced his opposition, suggesting that a good British felt hat would be preferable.  The Secretary of State for War would be dismissed because he upset the Nazis.

* a hat-making town.

[rafletcher]

That what is now known as Memorial Day in the US, and serves as our Armistice Day does (remembrance, not the start of summer) was a post civil war Union tradition called Decoration Day first officially held at Arlington National Cemetery in 1868, itself the start of the American tradition of “repatriating” their war dead.

Garnered from “Death and the Civil War” on PBS, a programme that I suspect owes a large debt to Ken Burns’ “Civil War” documentary.

[rogerzilla]

Andy Summers from The Police is 80.  He is quite a lot older than the other two.

[T42]

That Parisi Celts gave rise to the city of Paris.

I used to drive to work through Villeparisis, on the edge of the Parisi tribal lands.

In the middle of the woad, of course.

[Canardly]

Ah not a no threw woad then?