Blog Title: Interesting Thing of the Day

Pittsburghese / America's most underappreciated dialect

Residents of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (and its surrounding area) have their own distinctive dialect of English called Pittsburghese.

Hypercorrection / Taking the rules of language too far

When you try so hard to correct a grammatical error that you overcompensate and make another error in the process, you're experiencing the common phenomenon of hypercorrection.

The Klingon Language Institute / The final frontier of linguistic scholarship

A linguist developed a complete Klingon language for the Star Trek television shows and movies. Incredibly, a nonprofit scholarly organization exists to promote and study the language. Coming soon: the Bible in Klingon.

Ventless Clothes Dryers / Laundry without the hot air

Amazing but true: you can machine-dry clothes without venting hot, moist air (or indeed any air at all). You can even have a combination washing machine and ventless dryer in one. Clever engineering triumphs again.

Silicone Baking Products / The quiet revolution

Go into any kitchen store and you'll see an increasing number of products made out of (or coated with) silicone, an amazingly heat-resistant yet pliable substance.

Tabasco Sauce / The pickled pepper potion

The famous hot sauce from Avery Island, Louisiana, has a great deal in common with wine, and a history that's intertwined with that of a salt mining operation.

Heat-Resistant Chocolate / Defying the laws of confectionary

Milk chocolate melts in your hand, your pocket, or a hot glove compartment. Wouldn't it be great if it didn't? Keeping chocolate from melting when you don't want it to, while maintaining proper texture and taste, is a challenge of food science.

Powder Coating / Paint's shocking competitor

The brightly colored surfaces of metal objects in your home or office may not have come from paint, but from powder coating, a process based on technology similar to what a photocopier or laser printer uses.

Tabacón Hot Springs / The relaxing side of the Arenal Volcano

You haven't been to a hot spring until you've visited Tabacón, a resort in the shadow of (and heated by) Costa Rica's Arenal Volcano.

Revenge of the Analog Clock / Time for a pie chart

Digital clocks and watches enjoyed a surge of popularity for a while, but now analog models are once again more common. It's not just aesthetics; they actually make it much easier to tell time.

The Handshake / Coming to grips with gestures of greeting

Of all the ways we might have chosen to greet each other, we decided upon handshakes as the norm. This gesture has an uncertain history, and getting it just right may be harder than you think.

Giving Away the Razor, Selling the Blades / The curious strategy of loss-leader marketing

How can companies make money by giving away their products? Loss-leader marketing trades immediate profits for repeat sales over the long run.

The Theremin / Electronic music's original user interface

The world's first electronic musical instrument didn't have a keyboard or strings. Its user interface consisted of two antennas, and you played it by waving your hands.

The Truth About Bananas / Fingering the world's most popular tropical fruit

America's favorite fruit comes from an herb, not a tree. The life cycle of this plant, and the working conditions of the people who harvest its fruit, are among the little-known facts about bananas.

Quantifying Despair and Depression / Keep swimming

You may feel more happy or more depressed from one day to the next, but how might one go about measuring a person's level of despair or depression? Several clinical tools attempt to address this tricky question.