What are the origins of tarot?

Tarot’s origins are perhaps as misunderstood as the mystical symbols on the cards themselves. The promotional images and text on some of these divination decks claim ancient Egyptian origins or gypsy ancestry. But most serious sources say the roots of these symbolic cards can be traced to traditional playing cards.
The predecessors of the playing cards we use today first migrated to Europe from Islamic countries around the 14th century. The suits used on these early cards were coins, cups, swords, and sticks. These suits are still used in the tarot deck but were changed to hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades by French cardmakers in the 15th century. The earliest deck of tarot cards was a hand-painted set created around 1440 for the Duke of Milan. They were used for a game similar to bridge and to create amusing poetry.

It wasn’t until the 1700s that tarot cards became strongly connected to fortune telling or the occult. The writings of Antoine Court de Gebelin in 1781 were hugely influential on the image of the tarot deck. An amateur scholar, Gebelin suggested that the pictures on the tarot deck were related to occult Egyptian hieroglyphics. While the Rosetta Stone later proved him wrong, the idea stuck, and other occult writers and tarot-card artists expanded on Gebelin’s Egyptian interpretation.

Tarot divination gained in popularity during the 19th century, probably spurred on by a growing interest in all types of spiritualism. The Waite-Smith tarot deck, created in 1909, is often considered the “standard” deck, although the symbols are more a product of the late Victorian age than the Italian Renaissance (much less ancient Egypt). These days, you can find a tarot deck in any style or theme conceivable. We’ll leave the mystical interpretations up to you.

Source: Ask.yahoo.com

Why are German Shepherds used as police dogs?

The German Shepherd fact page on Yahoo! Pets notes that these dogs have long been valued for their strength and intelligence, two important factors in any type of guide dog.

The first German Shepherd breeding club was established in 1899, so it’s a relatively recent breed. The dog was originally intended as a herder, but was quickly promoted as a guide and police dog by its breeding club, the Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde (VS). This group bred the dog assiduously, promoting “utility and intelligence,” and trained it for “tracking, obedience, and protection.” These traits helped convince the German government to use the dog for military purposes and make them ideal companions for police officers today.

The two world wars cemented the dog’s reputation as a police or military breed, and the FAQ in the Yahoo! German Shepherd category notes that the German army used these canines during both wars. American soldiers returning home from Europe were primarily responsible for the breed’s popularity in the States. Perhaps the most famous German Shepherd of them all, Rin Tin Tin, was brought to America from Germany after World War I by an American soldier.

Source: Ask.yahoo.com

What is "new car smell"?

It doesn’t matter if you’re driving a luxurious Lexus or a sensible Fiat, all new vehicles come with “new car smell” free of charge. Most folks love the odour, but few know what it is.

Well, here’s the bad news — that aroma is actually a collection of noxious fumes caused by the various glues holding the car’s interior together. And while collectively it may smell good, it’s not at all good for you.

ABC News explains that the new car smell may cause “headaches, sore throat, nausea, and possibly cancer.” The United States doesn’t have a law against the “volatile organic compounds” that cause new car smell, but some countries do. In the U.S., “new car interiors can contain 128 times the legal limit” in Australia.

So should a gas mask come free with every new car? Maybe, maybe not. This article from CNN reports that environmental groups are calling for new regulations in the U.S. Like all things government-related, this may take a while. In the meantime, new car owners should use solar reflectors, open their car windows, and park out of the sun when possible.

Suddenly, used cars never smelled so good.

Source: ask.yahoo.com

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Why can’t you take the tag off your mattress?

Cut off your mattress tag already! Don’t worry, you won’t get locked up. As a consumer, it’s perfectly legal to remove the tag from your own mattress. So why is it there? Well, the answer is somewhat involved.

Back in the 1900s, mattresses often contained a host of vermin and disease-carrying materials. To protect consumers, the government required dealers to post tags on their mattresses listing the contents. Later, the Feds added a warning to the content tag with the ominous message, “Do not remove under penalty of law,” in big, black letters.

The move may have deterred duplicitous mattress dealers, but it only served to confuse consumers who didn’t know that the threat wasn’t meant for them. Confronted by fear of prosecution, consumers left the tags on their mattresses. Recently, the Feds addressed the misunderstanding by changing the label to: “This tag may not be removed except by the consumer.”

Since then, the Feds have long abandoned the pursuit of tag-tearing merchants, though states like Texas still inspect mattresses for tags in stores. They’re probably making sure their laws aren’t full of fluff
Source: ask.yahoo.com

What’s the origin of the word "picnic"?

The word “picnic” is especially interesting because many believe it originally referred to a horrifying and racist act.

A popular email forward claims the word refered to the act of lynching African Americans while spectators watched and ate packed lunches. It turns out this is just an ugly urban legend. Indeed, African Americans were the targets of lynch mobs, but the word “picnic” has nothing to do with that.

In reality, “picnic” is just a simple adaptation of the French word piquenique, which may have been based on the verb piquer, to pick or peck. And while nobody knows for sure, the “nique” may have been added simply because it rhymed.

All About History explains that the word originally meant an “outing with food” that was held indoors, much like a modern-day potluck. It wasn’t until the 19th century that picnics moved outside.

Source: ask.yahoo.com

Why do we have toenails and fingernails?

We find nail polish to be a good enough reason for having them but thought you might be looking for a more scientific answer. We set out to find one by consulting the always reliable Britannica.com.

According to the online encyclopedia, the human and primate nail corresponds to the claw, hoof, or talon of other animals. Human nails protect the tips of the toes and fingers, while fingernails help us pick up small objects and scratch ourselves.

On the other hand, the feet of primates are capable of gripping objects, just like their hands, so their toenails have much the same function as fingernails. However, human toenails seem to be an evolutionary leftover.

We searched the Web on ” toenails fingernails” and “toenail purpose.” Both of these searches turned up sites devoted to diseases of the nails, which provided more opinions. On one such site, podiatrist Michael Zapf agrees that nails are essential for manipulation and scratching (and he points out the importance of scratching in a primate or human’s life).

But the doctor debunks the notion that nails exist to protect the tips of toes and fingers. He argues that your digits wouldn’t be especially sensitive without nails. Dermatologist Mitch Bender appears to agree: “People can get along without nails — toenails more than fingernails — but they do make daily life a bit easier.”

So, though there’s some disagreement about whether or not toenails and fingernails serve to protect our digits, our resources all agree that our nails help us pick up little stuff like pencils, peanuts, and even bottles of nail polish.

Source: ask.yahoo.com

Is nicotine really as addictive as heroin?

Contrary to the sworn testimony of tobacco executives in 1994, nicotine is highly addictive. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, withdraw symptoms include “irritability, craving, cognitive and attentional deficits, sleep disturbances, and increased appetite.” So, it’s definitely addictive, but is it as addictive as heroin?

Britain’s Royal College of Physicians has argued that nicotine should be treated like a controlled substance because “it’s a powerful addictive substance like heroin and cocaine.” The same article mentions that Britain’s Tobacco Manufacturers Association disagrees. The tobacco group points out that unlike with hard drugs, people are able to give up tobacco every day.

Nevertheless, the American Heart Association states there are similarities between tobacco and heroin in terms of the “pharmacologic and behavioral characteristics that determine…addiction.” Canada’s Federal Health Department also agrees. Health Canada explains that “nicotine causes chemical or biological changes in the brain,” a psychoactive effect. “Although it is less dramatic than heroin or cocaine, the strength of the addiction is just as powerful.”

The moral? Don’t smoke. If you do, seek help quitting. The benefits of quitting are both immediate and long term. For example, a “35-year-old man who quits smoking will, on average, increase his life expectancy by 5.1 years.”

source: ask.yahoo.com

How do icebreaker ships cut through the ice without being crushed?

The Christian Science Monitor likens an icebreaker ship to a blocker on a football team — the icebreaker plows through the defense to get the ship where it needs to go. But these ships don’t use sheer force alone. A specially shaped hull, extra-strong steel plating, and powerful engines all work together to help ships break through thick Arctic and Antarctic ice.

Early icebreaker ships were made of wood, and the hull often had a rounded bow. These ships rammed into ice and tried to break it by brute force. Wood has some flexibility and resiliency, which helped the ships withstand some of the pressure of the ice. But the older shape and materials had their limits.

Modern icebreakers have a stepped hull designed to help the ship rise up on top of the ice and then crush downward through it. This allows the weight of the ship to break the ice like a giant sledgehammer. The hull is made of thick steel that has good low-temperature strength. Inside the hull is a massive support structure with closely spaced steel ribs. The thickness of the steel and the structure keep the ship from breaking under pressure.

The ship’s powerful engines propel the hull up and forward, then gravity does the hard work of breaking thick polar ice. As many as six diesel-powered generators may be needed to run an icebreaker, and some ships are even nuclear-powered.

Source: ask.yahoo.com

What’s the difference between ‘C’ and ‘CE’ on calculators?

While researching this question, we happened upon a word that made us feel old: vintage. It’s hard to believe that our trusty math buddy is now considered vintage machinery.

According to Vintage Technology, both buttons are a way to clear or cancel an entry. The C button will clear all input to the calculator. The CE button clears the most recent entry, so if you make a mistake in a long computation, you don’t need to start all over again.

Exactly when calculators began to use these buttons is hard to say. The Vintage Calculators Web Museum provides a timeline that seems to show that the Friden EC-130, which was introduced in 1964, included “clear entry” and “clear display” keys (as did its successor, the EC-132). Those may not be the exact C and CE keys we see today, but it sounds like they performed the same function.

Our nostalgia for the calculator led us to check out even older models — just for fun. The futuristic sounding Comptometer, invented in 1884, definitely wouldn’t fit into a pocket. And it looks like you could catch your tie in the 1874 Odhner. We’ll stick with the credit-card-size models. They’re less of a load.

Source: ask.yahoo.com