# Another "how could anyone not know that?" thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 8, 2003, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056 "2003-11-08T07:38:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/41 "2003-11-10T03:33:36Z")
**Me** : I grew up just a couple miles away from Three Mile Island. Have you ever heard of the Three Mile Island nuclear accident that happened in 1979? **Friend** : No. I’m not sure what you’re talking about. **Me** : Hmm. Okay, then, well have you ever heard of the Chernobyl disaster in Russia? **Friend** : No, I never really read the news. **Me** : Nuclear power. Do you know what nuclear power is? Do you know what a nuclear reactor is? Maybe you’ve seen pictures of the massive cooling towers? **Friend** : (_very puzzled look on his face_) Huh? Um, no. **Me** : The Simpsons. Have you ever watched the Simpsons? **Friend** : Yeah. **Me** : It’s the place where Homer works. **Friend** : (_hesitantly_) Oh, I see. ---
**Author:** ![Kyomara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8edcca/32.png) [@Kyomara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyomara)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/42 "2003-11-10T07:32:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Hamadryad \* > \*\*What was probably being referred to was the word “humorous,” which is NOT a specifically Cananadian spelling, where “humourous” would be. > > So, in other words, nothing. \*\* OH!!! Shock and embarrassment. Yes, my brain must have subconsciously repositioned the “ou” in the ending so I thought it was spelled “humourous.” I get it. So it was an American doofus. Kinda like me. :o ---
**Author:** ![Tir\_Tinuviel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@Tir\_Tinuviel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tir_Tinuviel)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/43 "2003-11-10T15:26:52Z")
I only just worked out the “How do you get down from an Elephant? You don’t, you get down from a duck” joke… ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/44 "2003-11-10T15:36:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tir Tinuviel \* > \*\*I only just worked out the “How do you get down from an Elephant? You don’t, you get down from a duck” joke… \*\* You’re not alone. I didn’t get that joke for years. It wasn’t till I was in college that I suddenly figured it out as I was putting on my down jacket. It was like a revelation. “Oh, I get it! You get **down** from a duck!” :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/45 "2003-11-10T15:56:30Z")
😕 Canadians don’t spell it “humourous” either. Nobody spells it “humourous”. ---
**Author:** ![Gorgon\_Heap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f475e1/32.png) [@Gorgon\_Heap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorgon_Heap)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/46 "2003-11-10T16:38:18Z")
Before I say my two cents, I just want to tell you, **Usram** , your quip about the centimoons nearly killed me. That’s one I just have to remember. Anyway, the other night there was an eclipse, and as we hadn’t known about it beforehand, it was interesting to go out and watch to moon go a dark red. Now, when I got outside, my wife asked me to clarify for her just what an eclipse is and how it happens. Just as I finish telling her, I overhear our nextdoor neighbor announce that she was confused about it as well, and thought it happened when the Sun came between the Earth and the moon. Of course, I completely lost it, much to my wife’s chagrin. ---
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Bruce\_Daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Daddy)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/47 "2003-11-10T16:47:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Gorgon Heap \* > \*\*, and thought it happened when the Sun came between the Earth and the moon. > > Of course, I completely lost it, much to my wife’s chagrin. \*\* That’s funny. It was pretty chilly here on Saturday. . . ---
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Bruce\_Daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Daddy)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/48 "2003-11-10T16:50:53Z")
I’ve got one that only people with a little musical theory knowledge will get/understand. I’ve recently joined a new band. The songwriter guitar player took music lessons (bass, I believe) from the age of 5 on. He also got a degree in music, some sort of jazz. Anyway, he is totally oblivious to the concept of I-IV-V rock and roll. I tried to explain it but I don’t think it took. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9dc877/32.png) [@Mr\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Jim)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/49 "2003-11-10T17:03:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Usram \* > \*\*😕 Canadians don’t spell it “humourous” either. Nobody spells it “humourous”. \*\* Actually I do…lol. Am I wrong? I’ve yet to be corrected. ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/50 "2003-11-10T17:05:17Z")
You mean he didn’t know what you meant by a IV chord, or he didn’t know about the ubiquitous I-IV-V progression? Either way, pretty damn surprising. On the subject of not getting jokes, it was only a few months ago that I got “Why did the chicken cross the road?” All this time, I just thought the ‘joke’ was that there was no joke. In my defence, it’s a pretty crappy joke. ---
**Author:** ![swannguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@swannguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swannguy)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/51 "2003-11-10T17:06:10Z")
I’m still amazed at how many americans, year after year, ask me what we , dutch, do for 4th of July? If we have fireworks and bbq as well…never stops to amaze me ---
**Author:** ![Cornelius\_Fudge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Cornelius\_Fudge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cornelius_Fudge)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/52 "2003-11-10T20:28:37Z")
The worst one I ever heard was one time when my dad was in the United States (we’re Canadian) and he was trying to explain where we lived in relation to Denver because the person my dad was talking to didn’t have a clue where we lived with to begin with. And then the guy says, “Where’s Denver?” I find that pretty sad. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/53 "2003-11-10T20:31:06Z")
I’ll admit I have no idea what an I-IV-V progression is either, but I’ve never claimed to be a musician. I read an interview with Michael Stipe, who is a musician, in which he says he only recently learned what the role of the bass guitar is. He apparently thought a bass made the same sound as a regular guitar. But he knew that all bands had bass players, so he worked with them anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Hubajube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c37758/32.png) [@Hubajube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hubajube)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/54 "2003-11-10T20:42:55Z")
Here’s an old favorite of mine. Quite a few years ago, a contestant on Jeopardy got a Daily Double wanting to know “the only two places on your skin hair cannot grow”. At the last second, the guy blurted out “your back and your buttocks”. Alex responds, “Well I guess you haven’t been looking at my body lately.” The audience was dead silent. ---
**Author:** ![velvetjones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f9b8f/32.png) [@velvetjones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velvetjones)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/55 "2003-11-10T21:25:18Z")
**Hubajube** that was hilarious. The best one so far. I can’t believe that the studio audience didn’t laugh. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/56 "2003-11-10T21:27:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mr Jim \* > \*\*Actually I do…lol. Am I wrong? I’ve yet to be corrected. \*\* My _Oxford Canadian_ gives the only spelling of “humorous” as “humorous,” and doesn’t even offer “humourous” as an alternative British spelling. (Naturally, it gives “humour,” with “humor” as a variant.) I’ve seen “humourous” from time to time, but I think it’s a misspelling. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/57 "2003-11-10T21:33:37Z")
“Humourous” is VERY common misspelling, a Google Search gets about 137,000 hits. ---
**Author:** ![InquisitiveIdiot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3ec8ea/32.png) [@InquisitiveIdiot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InquisitiveIdiot)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/58 "2003-11-10T21:50:59Z")
Wait… so the “chicken that crossed the road” joke is an actual joke? I too have always thought that the joke was that it wasn’t a joke. Enlighten me, please. ---
**Author:** ![Hamadryad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6de8d8/32.png) [@Hamadryad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamadryad)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/59 "2003-11-10T22:01:43Z")
o/t #1: I didn’t know no one spelled it “humourous”…just seemed like that could have been what the person asking “are you Canadian?” might’ve meant (and it was, so I can’t have been TOO stupid)…I’ve never seen it spelled “humourous” either, but I’m an ugly 'Merkin. o/t #2: In a gaming magazine recently, they had a November calender within. Game releases, theater releases, DVDs, etc. On the 27th they printed, “Happy Thanksgiving! And if you’re Canadian, happy Thursday!” I thought it was funny. When I was in high school I was in choir, and a girl in there said one day, “I love food. I could practically LIVE on food.” And then didn’t understand why we all laughed. Her last name was - I shit you not - “Ditzel.” ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2003, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056/60 "2003-11-10T22:17:59Z")
One of my sorority sisters asked where I was from. ME: “Seattle.” HER: (pause) “Seattle… Nebraska?” Wtf? Another weird geographical knowledge hole: The sister of one of my friends didn’t know that Chicago was a city, not a state. She is from Wisconsin, and lives about 1.5 hours from Chicago, and goes there frequently. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-how-could-anyone-not-know-that-thread/212056.md?page=4)