# Trivia Dominoes: Play Off the Last Bit of Trivia **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [February 4, 2010, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657 "2010-02-04T08:12:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2212
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44229 "2019-08-02T13:39:02Z")
The standard gauge for a railroad track is 4 feet 8.5 inches in the United States. In metric countries it is defined as 1435 mm which is a difference of less than 4-thousandths of an inch from the American definition. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44230 "2019-08-02T14:41:25Z")
Common Internet glurge for the origins of Standard Gauge: > [@](#): > > Because that’s the way they built them in England, and English expatriates designed the U.S. Railroads. > > Why did the English build them like that? Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the pre-railroad tramways, and that’s the gauge they used. > > Why did ‘they’ use that gauge then? Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they had used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing. > > Why did the wagons have that particular Odd wheel spacing? Well, if they tried to use any other spacing, the wagon wheels would break on some of the old, long distance roads in England, because that’s the spacing of the wheel ruts. > > So, who built those old rutted roads? Imperial Rome built the first long distance roads in Europe (including England) for their legions. Those roads have been used ever since.And the ruts in the roads? Roman war chariots formed the initial ruts, which everyone else had to match > for fear of destroying their wagon wheels. Since the chariots were made for Imperial Rome, they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing. > > Therefore, the United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches is derived from the original specifications for an Imperial Roman war chariot. In other words, bureaucracies live forever. So the next time you are handed a specification, procedure, or process, and wonder, ‘What horse’s ass came up with this?’, you may be exactly right. > > Now, the twist to the story: When you see a Space Shuttle sitting on its launch pad, you will notice that there are two big booster rockets attached to the sides of the main fuel tank. These are solid rocket boosters, or SRBs. The SRBs are made by Thiokol at their factory in Utah. The engineers who designed the SRBs would have preferred to make them a bit larger, but the SRBs had to be shipped by train from the factory to the launch site. > > The railroad line from the factory happens to run through a tunnel in the mountains and the SRBs had to fit through that tunnel. The tunnel is slightly wider than the railroad track, and the railroad track, as you now know, is about as wide as two horses’ behinds. > > So, a major Space Shuttle design feature of what is arguably the world’s most advanced transportation system was determined over two thousand years ago by a couple of horse’s asses. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44231 "2019-08-02T14:48:42Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Common Internet glurge for the origins of Standard Gauge: Great info, thanks! In the stone streets of ancient Pompeii, Italy, the stones are worn with ruts from the chariot wheels. gImages — [chariot wheel ruts pompeii stone streets - Google Search](https://is.gd/i3biJ2). ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44232 "2019-08-02T15:07:49Z")
The current President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, took office in February 2015. His brother Piersanti served as President of the Regional Government of Sicily and was assassinated by the Mafia in 1980 after attempting to clean up public contracting and to reform the Christian Democracy party on the island. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44233 "2019-08-02T15:12:30Z")
Benito Mussolini, prime minister of Italy from 1922-1943, was removed from that post after a series of humiliating military defeats in early 1943. Early on the 25th of July of that year, the Grand Council of Fascism passed a motion of no confidence for Mussolini; later that day the King dismissed him as head of government and had him placed in custody. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44234 "2019-08-02T15:15:33Z")
Il Duce’s granddaughter Alessandra Mussolini, who is also a niece of Sophia Loren, currently serves as a Member of the European Parliament for Forza Italia. She earlier had an abortive career as a film actress and singer. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44235 "2019-08-02T15:15:37Z")
Gerard Alessandrini is best known for creating the award-winning off-Broadway musical theatre parody revue Forbidden Broadway. He is the recipient of Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, an Obie Award, four Drama Desk Awards (including the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics and the Drama Desk Special Award), an Outer Critics Circle Award, and two Lucille Lortel Awards, as well as the Drama League Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44236 "2019-08-02T15:20:14Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Gerard Alessandrini is best known for creating the award-winning off-Broadway musical theatre parody revue Forbidden Broadway. He is the recipient of Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, an Obie Award, four Drama Desk Awards (including the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics and the Drama Desk Special Award), an Outer Critics Circle Award, and two Lucille Lortel Awards, as well as the Drama League Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre. On July 3, 2019, it was reported that _Mad_ Magazine would no longer be sold on newsstands by the end of the year. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44237 "2019-08-02T15:29:52Z")
Well, MAD is a parody magazine. To repost what I posted before I was ninja’ed Sergio Aragonés convinced editor Al Feldstein to use his cartoons by creating a dummy sample issue with his Marginals drawn along the edges. The staff of Mad enjoyed his marginals, but did not expect him to be able to maintain the steady stream of small cartoons needed for each issue.Aragonés has provided marginals for every issue of Mad since 1963 except one (his contributions to that issue were lost by the Post Office). Associate Editor Jerry DeFuccio said, “Writing the ‘Marginal Thinking’ marginals had always been a pain in the butt. Sergio made the pain go away.” Aragonés is a very prolific artist; Al Jaffee once said, "Sergio has, quite literally, drawn more cartoons on napkins in restaurants than most cartoonists draw in their entire careers ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44238 "2019-08-02T17:17:30Z")
Thanks Annie, yeah, well my play really didn’t make sense. Thanks for the save. In 1799, Congress deemed that stealing mail for first-time offenders was punishable by a public whipping and a prison sentence of up to 10 years. Second offenders were subject to death(!). That remained unchanged until 1872. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44239 "2019-08-02T17:22:56Z")
In Singapore, [the canes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caning_in_Singapore#Cane) used for judicial sentences have a prescribed composition and dimensions. A rattan cane no more than 1.27 cm (0.5 inches) in diameter and about 1.2 m (3.9 feet) in length is used for judicial and prison canings. It is about twice as thick as the canes used in the school and military contexts. The cane is soaked in water overnight to make it supple and prevent it from splitting and embedding splinters in the wounds. The Prisons Department denies that the cane is soaked in brine, but has said that it is treated with antiseptic before use to prevent infection. A lighter cane is used for juvenile offenders. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44240 "2019-08-02T18:06:30Z")
Rattan and bamboo are superficially similar, but belong to different plant families. Rattan is a climbing palm with solid stems from the _Calamoideae_ family. Bamboo (from the subfamily _Bambusoideae_ of the grass family _Poaceae_) is a hollow giant grass. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44241 "2019-08-02T18:11:04Z")
Strand woven bamboo flooring is 2-3X harder than oak flooring. Bamboo has a greater tensile strength than steel. Bamboo is the fastest growing plant on earth. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44242 "2019-08-02T18:30:21Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > Strand woven bamboo flooring is 2-3X harder than oak flooring. Bamboo has a greater tensile strength than steel. Bamboo is the fastest growing plant on earth. According to Guiness, certain species of bamboo have been observed to grow as much as 35 inches per day. (0.00002 mph!!) In play: There are over 1,400 species of bamboo around the world, but all members of the same species will flower at the same time, no matter what part of the world they are in. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44243 "2019-08-02T18:36:10Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > According to Guiness, certain species of bamboo have been observed to grow as much as 35 inches per day. (0.00002 mph!!) Wow! A grove of bamboo releases 35% more oxygen than an equivalent stand of trees. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44244 "2019-08-02T22:43:42Z")
The _ **Tinikling** _, a folk dance of the Philippines, is notable for its use of pairs of bamboo poles which are tapped against each other while dancers step over and between them. The dance imitates the movements of the long-legged _tikling_ bird (the buff-banded Rail, _Gallirallus philippensis_, or the barred rail, _Gallirallus torquatus_) as it hops over the grass or dodges bamboo traps set by farmers in the rice fields. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44245 "2019-08-02T23:38:39Z")
NM ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44246 "2019-08-02T23:43:15Z")
The _ **tinikling** _ originated on the island of Leyte, in the central Visayan Islands of the Philippines (map image, [Leyte - Wikipedia](https://is.gd/XACgV4)). The tinikling can be danced with either one pair or two pairs of bamboo poles. If two pairs are used, the second pair is perpendicular to the first pair. Each pair of bamboo poles is held by two people, one at each end, with the poles lying on the floor. Holding the poles with their hands and, to the beat of music, the people lift then tap the poles downward to the floor twice in parallel about 12" apart and about 4-6" vertically, and then they lift the poles about 4"-6" vertically and tap them together twice. This is done with either one pair or two pairs of poles. Then the dancers take steps either beside the poles or in between the poles, timing their steps to the rhythm of the music and the positions of the poles (either together or apart). The goal here is to avoid having the dancers’ feet in between the poles when the poles are being tapped together, which can result in pain. And bad form. YouTube, 2 dancers and one pair of poles (using 2"x4" wood): [Tinikling (National Dance of the Philippines) - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kckR6wf5xe8) You Tube, two pairs of poles (shown at beginning): [Tinikling Tutorial - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrSgRKhzjJ8) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2019, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44247 "2019-08-03T00:56:39Z")
The 1994 sentence of Michael Fay, an American in Singapore who pled guilty to vandalism, was commuted from six caning strokes to four after U.S. officials, including President Bill Clinton, interceded with Singaporean officials. Singapore is an island city-state. ETA: New page - revised for the save! ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2019, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/44248 "2019-08-03T02:29:10Z")
The term “Vandalism” comes from the East Germanic tribe, the Vandals, who were part of the barbarian invasions of the western Roman Empire. They acquired a reputation for wanton destruction. Whether that was accurate, or simply reflects the personal viewpoints of those Romans who took personal objection to the Sack of Rome by the Vandals, is up for discussion. Their peregrinations through the Empire eventually took them to North Africa, approximately 1500 years to early to assist their Germanic relatives in the Afrika Corps. Their language is barely known, as they apparently did not write anything done, somewhat ironic in light of their modern namesakes’ fondness for graffiti. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657.md?page=2211) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657.md?page=2213)