Strange BUT TRUE

* It was the great Russian author Leo Tolstoy who made the following sage observation: “A man is like a fraction whose numerator is what he is and whose denominator is what he thinks of himself. The larger the denominator, the smaller the fraction.”

* The earliest known brothel was located in Sumer (now southeastern Iraq), all the way back in 3300 B.C.E.

* The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, which took place in Tombstone, Arizona, at about 3 p.m. on Oct. 26, 1881, is probably the

most famous shootout in the history of the Old West. You might be surprised to learn, though, that the gunfight didn’t actually happen at the O.K. Corral, or even next to it — the gunfight took place in an empty lot six doors down.

* A futurist in the 1950s made the following prediction: “There will come a time when every country in the world will have a computer.”

* Etymology — the study of words’ history, their origins and how their form and meaning have changed over time — is fascinating. For example, take the term “shilly-shally,” meaning to vacillate. In the 18th century, “shill” was another form of “shall,” and people trying to make a difficult decision might ask themselves “Shill I? Shall I?” Over time it was shortened to the form we use today.

* If your scissors are getting dull, don’t waste time and effort with sharpening stones; all you have to do is cut up sheets of sandpaper to hone the cutting edges.

* Those who study such things say that if you added up the body masses of all the people on the planet right now, it would amount to roughly 750 billion pounds.

Thought for the Day:

“In any free society, the conflict between social conformity and individual liberty is permanent, unresolvable and necessary.” — Kathleen Norris (c) 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.