[Vhfcn-l] Monday musings

[Gary Thewlis]

When you are eight years old, nothing is any of your business. 

Lenny Bruce

 

I am prepared to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great
ordeal of meeting me is another matter. 

Sir Winston Churchill 

 

I'll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside the box when
there's evidence of any thinking going on inside it. 

Terry Pratchett

 

Virtue is its own punishment. 

Aneurin Bevan

 

There are several good protections against temptations, but the surest is
cowardice. 

Mark Twain 

 

Not to be absolutely certain is, I think, one of the essential things in
rationality. 

Bertrand Russell

 

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1. THERE ARE MULTIPLE CELEBRATIONS OF CHOCOLATE EACH YEAR.

 

Holiday makers are constantly on the hunt for a reason to munch on
chocolate, so the calendar offers plenty of excuses to buy a bar. July 7 is
also Chocolate Day, a nod to the historical tradition that the day marks
when chocolate was first brought to Europe on July 7, 1550, though a number
of sources argue that it might have hit the continent’s shores as far back
as 1504, thanks to Christopher Columbus. Official day or not, we do know
that chocolate first arrived in Europe some time in the 16th century.
There's also National Milk Chocolate Day on July 28, International Chocolate
Day on September 13, and, of course, National Bittersweet Chocolate With
Almonds Day on November 7.

 

2. CHOCOLATE IS ACTUALLY A VEGETABLE—KIND OF.

 

Milk and dark chocolate come from the cacao bean, which grows on the cacao
tree (Theobroma cacao), an evergreen from the family Malvaceae (other
members of the family include okra and cotton). This makes the most
important part of the sweet treat a vegetable.

 

3. WHITE CHOCOLATE IS NOT CHOCOLATE.

 

Because it doesn't contain cocoa solids or chocolate liquor, white chocolate
isn't chocolate in the strict sense. But it does contain parts of the cacao
bean—mainly cocoa butter.

 

4. THE CACAO BEAN IS NATIVE TO MEXICO AND BOTH CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA.

 

It’s believed that inhabitants of these areas first started cultivating the
bean as far back as 1250 BCE, and perhaps even earlier.

 

5. HOT CHOCOLATE WAS THE FIRST CHOCOLATE TREAT.

 

Cacao was brewed in both Mexican and Aztec culture, though the result was
nothing like today’s hot chocolate—it was a typically bitter concoction that
was often used for ceremonial occasions like weddings.

 

6. MARIE ANTOINETTE LOVED HOT CHOCOLATE (THE MODERN KIND).

 

Marie didn’t just love cake, she also loved chocolate, and hot chocolate was
frequently served at the Palace of Versailles. It wasn’t just the taste
everyone loved—it was also believed that the drink was an aphrodisiac.

 

7. CACAO WAS ONCE USED AS CURRENCY.

 

The Aztecs loved and valued the cacao bean so highly that they used it as
currency during the height of their civilization.

 

8. SPANISH FRIARS HELPED SPREAD THE LOVE.

 

After cacao and chocolate were introduced to Europe, traveling Spanish
friars took it to various monasteries, handily spreading it around the
continent.

 

9. A PAIR OF BRITISH CONFECTIONERS INVENTED SOLID CHOCOLATE.

 

The Fry and Sons shop concocted what they called “eating chocolate” in 1847
by combining cocoa butter, sugar, and chocolate liquor. This was a grainy,
solid form of the treat.

 

10. COCOA AND CACAO ARE THE SAME THING.

 

The words are interchangeable! It’s all one bean.

 

11. NAPOLEON LOVED CHOCOLATE.

 

The French leader demanded that wine and chocolate be made available to him
and his senior advisers even during intense military campaigns.

 

12. BAKER'S CHOCOLATE ISN’T JUST FOR BAKING.

 

Dr. James Baker and John Hannon founded their chocolate company—later called
Walter Baker Chocolate—in 1765. That’s where the term “Baker's Chocolate”
comes from, not to denote chocolate that’s just meant for cooking.

 

13. MILTON HERSHEY REALLY WAS A CANDY KING.

 

The Pennsylvania native may be best known for starting The Hershey Chocolate
Company in good old Hershey, PA, but he got his start in candy long before
hooking up with chocolate. His founded his first company, The Lancaster
Caramel Company, when he was 30 years old.

 

14. MILK CHOCOLATE WAS INVENTED IN SWITZERLAND.

 

Daniel Peter created the tasty treat in 1875—after eight years of trying to
make his recipe work. Condensed milk ended up being the key ingredient.

 

15. MAKING CHOCOLATE IS HARD WORK.

 

Despite its regal background and revered status, the cacao bean doesn’t just
magically turn into chocolate—it takes about 400 beans to make a single
pound of the good stuff.

 

16. THE FIRST CHOCOLATE BAR WAS MADE IN ENGLAND.

 

Way back in 1842, the Cadbury company made the very first chocolate bar. The
company is still in existence, and is perhaps most famous for their
delightful Easter-themed treats.

 

17. MOST CACAO IS NOW GROWN IN AFRICA.

 

Despite its Amazonian roots, most cacao—nearly 70 percent of the world’s
supply—comes from Africa. The Ivory Coast is the largest single producer,
providing about 30 percent of all the world’s cacao.

 

18. CACAO TREES CAN LIVE TO BE 200 YEARS OLD.

 

That may sound impressive, but the tropical beauties only make viable cacao
beans for just 25 years of their lifespan.

 

19. THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF CACAO.

 

Most modern chocolate comes from forastero beans, which are considered easy
to grow—though the crillo bean is believed to make much tastier chocolate.

 

20. CHOCOLATE HAS A SPECIAL MELTING POINT.

 

Chocolate is the only edible substance to melt around 93° F, just below the
human body temperature. That’s why chocolate melts so easily on your tongue.

 

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The Sikorsky S-51, the first helicopter to be built for civilian instead of
military use, made its first flight in 1946.

 

Dwight D. Eisenhower became the first US president to ride in a helicopter
on July 12, 1957.   The President needed a quick way to reach his summer
home in Pennsylvania, as Air Force One could not land at the White House.
Eisenhower instructed his staff to look into alternative modes of
transportation and a Sikorsky UH-34 Seahorse helicopter was commissioned.

 

The "Telecopter," the world's first TV news helicopter was introduced by
KTLA Channel 5 in Los Angeles. It made its first successful broadcast on
July 4, 1958. The "Telecopter" was a Bell Model 47 whose on-board video and
audio equipment communicated with a line of sight KTLA transmitter receiver
on top of Mount Wilson. For several years, KTLA was the only TV station with
a helicopter based TV camera crewed reporting platform.

 

The Russian Mil V-12 was the largest helicopter ever built. It could
transport 196 passengers.

 

The top speed of an Apache military helicopter is 176 mph — almost 20 per
cent slower than a Lamborghini sports car.

 

Marine One—the U.S. president's helicopter—has antimissile defenses,
ballistic armor, and a quiet interior, so the president needn't shout.