# Most Useless Thing Memorized? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 25, 2003, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244 "2003-11-25T20:06:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![PigArcher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@PigArcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PigArcher)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/81 "2003-11-26T19:42:32Z")
A Scout is: Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Couteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverant. Of course, I can only remember it if i run through the whole list quickly, which I had to do about 5 times to type them all. BTW, I’ll be 32 next week. I quit scouts when I was 15. Oh, and the beginning of MacBeth: _Double, double, toil and trouble Fire burn and cauldron bubble!_ ---
**Author:** ![gooti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/eb8c5e/32.png) [@gooti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gooti)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/82 "2003-11-26T19:57:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gonzoron \* > \*\*The 50 States, alphabetically. (Thanks “50 nifty united states”) \*\* Well, corn my pone! Me too. I had to sing that song in middle school. I still remember most of the words, and now it’ll be playing in my head for the rest of the afternoon. I guess I’ll have to go find some sort of machine press and stick my head in it a la _The Fly_ for it to stop playing. Thanks **gonzoron** …no, really…thanks a lot. I also know all the words to the old _Zorro_ tv show starring Guy Williams along with countless lyrics to old songs (mostly 80’s). I can also rattle off the categories of biological classification: kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species. Haven’t used that one since AP biology 12 years ago, but it’s still in my brain for some reason. Go figure. ---
**Author:** ![BuckleberryFerry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5f9b8f/32.png) [@BuckleberryFerry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BuckleberryFerry)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/83 "2003-11-26T20:21:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MeanJoe \* > \*\*…today I am lucky to memorize my wife’s birthday, angel day, and our anniversary. \*\* Forgive my ignorance, but…angel day? ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/84 "2003-11-26T20:57:28Z")
**K** ings **P** lay **C** hess **O** n **F** unny **G** reen **S** quares. [ul]Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![beeftrax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@beeftrax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beeftrax)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/85 "2003-11-26T22:24:51Z")
All the bridges in New York. ---
**Author:** ![TheNerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@TheNerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheNerd)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/86 "2003-11-26T22:25:37Z")
For some reason, I keep finding that I’ve memorized my co-workers licence plates. I don’t make an effort to do it, but there they are in my head. ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/87 "2003-11-26T22:39:11Z")
**NurseCarmen** , I learned that as King Philip Came Over From Greece Sunday. “Nin o Cithaeglir, lasto beth daer: Rimmo nin Bruinen dan in Ulaer. Nin o Cithaeglir, lasto beth daer: Rimmo nin Bruinen dan in Ulaer.” – Arwen at the Ford of the Bruinen And of course, “Ash nazg thrakatuluk / Ash nazg gimbatul / Ash nazg durbatuluk / Agh burzum-ishi krimpatul.” The whole thing in English: “Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky / Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone / Nine for mortal Men doomed to die / One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne / In the land of Mordor where the Shadows lie. One Ring to rule them all / One Ring to find them / One Ring to bring them all / and in the Darkness bind them / in the land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.” Lots of other trivia about LOTR, too. I can ID any ST:TNG episode (title, plot summary, guest characters’ names) within 10 seconds of seeing it. Usually faster. My phone numbers at every house I’ve ever lived at. Best friends’ phone numbers from ages ago – useful for passwords. My locker combo senior year – 3 - 17 - 25. Also, the standard accompaniment of ancient song lyrics. Capitals of almost every country in the world. Where every country is on a blank globe. The fact that Damascus is the longest continually inhabited city. Lots of Trivial Pursuit stuff, to be honest. ---
**Author:** ![MC\_Master\_of\_Ceremonies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bb73d2/32.png) [@MC\_Master\_of\_Ceremonies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MC_Master_of_Ceremonies)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/88 "2003-11-26T22:41:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Max\_Castle \* > \*\*A Scout is: > Trustworthy, > Loyal, > Helpful, > Friendly, > Couteous, > Kind, > Obedient, > Cheerful, > Thrifty, > Brave, > Clean, > and Reverant. > > Of course, I can only remember it if i run through the whole list quickly, which I had to do about 5 times to type them all. > > BTW, I’ll be 32 next week. I quit scouts when I was 15. > > Oh, and the beginning of MacBeth: > _Double, double, toil and trouble > Fire burn and cauldron bubble!_ \*\* [pedant]the actual first lines of Macbeth are: \*When shall we three meet again In thunder, lightning, or in rain? \* The scene with the lines “Double, doube, etc.” is generally agreed to be a later additon to the play not written by Shakespeare and it’s quite often left out of performances, also it occurs in Act IV[/pedant] ---
**Author:** ![saramamalana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/74df32/32.png) [@saramamalana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saramamalana)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/89 "2003-11-26T22:50:47Z")
“On my honor I will try to serve G-d and my country, to help people at all times, and to live by the Girl Scout law.” (with middle three fingers up) **NurseCarmen** - King Phillip Came Over From Great Spain was how I learned it. ---
**Author:** ![Katisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bcef8e/32.png) [@Katisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katisha)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/90 "2003-11-26T22:51:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MC Master of Ceremonies \* > \*\*The scene with the lines “Double, doube, etc.” is generally agreed to be a later additon to the play not written by Shakespeare and it’s quite often left out of performances, also it occurs in Act IV[/pedant] \*\* Not the whole scene, just the appearance of Hecate. She also appears earlier in the play, in another scene thought to be spurious and almost never performed (though I saw a production last summer that left it in). ---
**Author:** ![shelbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@shelbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shelbo)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/91 "2003-11-26T23:44:00Z")
“This is the famous Budweiser beer. We know of no other brand produced by any other brewer that costs so much to brew and age. Our exclusive beechwood aging produces a taste, a smoothness and a drinkability you will find in no other beer at any price.” Umm, one long weekend in high school. Seemed “cool” at the time. Yes, I know. ---
**Author:** ![badmana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@badmana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badmana)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/92 "2003-11-27T00:51:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Call me Frank \* > \*\ ***badmana** , if that is the code to get 50 lives in Contra for NES, I thought it was: up up, down down, left right, left right, B A, B A, select, start \*\* Nah, it’s for super mario bros, but I think it was a generic code used those days… **Small Clanger** Holy cow…DOOM codes! I used to remember them but like most codes on the keyboard, I tend to remember the positions of the keys and not the code itself (like my ATM pin, it’s only a pattern to me). I remember playing with a calculator one day on the school bus (15+ years ago) and punching in phone numbers then multiplying them by weird amounts. One of the results became a password I still use today. ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/93 "2003-11-27T02:15:27Z")
I learned the kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species as “King Philip, come out for goodness’ sake!” I know Euler’s number to 19 decimal places: 2.7182818284590452353 I have the “Nations of the World” song from The Animaniacs memorized. So I’m one of those people that can’t just sing, “United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama” and stop. Nay, I can keep going and get to, “Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Liberia, Egypt, Benin and Gabon” and all the way to the end. 🙂 Not useless to me (because I’m in German now), but: bis durch für gegen ohne um (prepositions used with the accusative case) aus außer bei mit nach seit von zu (prepositions used with the dative case) an auf hinter in neben über unter vor zwischen (prepositions used with dative or accusative, depending) Heh, I’m sitting here and thinking, “come on, I know more useless stuff!” ---
**Author:** ![A\_Curious\_Writer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@A\_Curious\_Writer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_Curious_Writer)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/94 "2003-11-27T02:54:46Z")
Shelbo, you just reminded me of another one, sadly enough (as I don’t drink so I don’t like that it would be associated in my mind with these ads, but oh well): “This game is brought to you by major league baseball and may not be reproduced, retransmitted, or reconstructed in any way, sahpe, or form without the express written consent of major league baseball.” Joe Gargiola and Vin Scully. Joe waxing nostalgic about the horrid '52 Pirates. I coulda told you a dozen of his stories even before you reminded me of that disclaimer. “What ho, what ho, what men are these, who wear their legs in parentheses.” Vin on a very lanky pitcher. In honor of those many who seem to have poems as their useless piece. ---
**Author:** ![wakimika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f08c70/32.png) [@wakimika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wakimika)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/95 "2003-11-27T03:07:12Z")
Forever stuck in my head since I was 10: _One bright day In the middle of the night Two dead soldiers Got up to fight Back to back They faced eachother Drew their swords And shot eachother The deaf policeman Heard the noise And came and shot The two dead boys If you don’t believe me Ask the blind man Who saw it all_ Ack. There is much, much more crud like that stored in b sector of my anterior drive. ---
**Author:** ![Osbie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/cdc98d/32.png) [@Osbie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Osbie)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/96 "2003-11-27T04:10:35Z")
In my ag. class in jr. high (mid-80’s), I learned that, at one point in time, Illinois led the world in swiss cheese production. ---
**Author:** ![aahala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a88e4f/32.png) [@aahala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aahala)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/97 "2003-11-27T05:22:03Z")
The sizes of olives, like “jumbo”, “large” or why I ever memorized them. The subject never came up while I still remembered them or since either. ---
**Author:** ![Shemem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de053/32.png) [@Shemem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shemem)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/98 "2003-11-27T05:59:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Chicago Faucet \* > \*\*The refrain to “The Jabberwocky.” \*\* I know the whole thing. Also “The Lobster Quadrille.” And I could probably dredge up “You Are Old, Father William” if needed. **Lsura** , I had the same German book. I wouldn’t have remembered that conversation without prompting, but thanks to the class I took some 10 years ago, I can still sing “My Hat, It Has Three Corners” and parts of “Silent Night” and (naturally) “O Tannenbaum” in German. ---
**Author:** ![quiltguy154](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/ad7895/32.png) [@quiltguy154](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quiltguy154)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/99 "2003-11-27T08:15:57Z")
All the letters in the Greek alphabet, of which the seventh word in this sentence contains two. ---
**Author:** ![Dutch\_George](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dutch\_George](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dutch_George)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244/100 "2003-11-27T08:24:58Z")
Alphanumeric civil aircraft registration prefixes used for every country in the world, all the way from A2 (Botswana) to ZU (S. Africa) and 3A (Monaco) to 9Y (Trinidad and Tobago). So I don’t need any more traumas like the explosion of new states which followed the collapse of the USSR… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-useless-thing-memorized/215244.md?page=6)