Strange and Wierd Facts

Jenny · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 16.35

Ronnie Rowlands wrote:There is also a very old law that they still haven't got rid of. Legally, a taxi driver must carry a bale of hay in his taxi for the horse to eat. Of course, this is from the days when taxis were horse drawn.

This only applied to London taxis, and was repealed by the 1973 London Cabs Act.

Jenny · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 16.53

Neil Jones wrote:It is a legal requirement (and has been so since the year 1551) that everybody in England must walk to church on Christmas Day. No exceptions. Bikes can be confiscated and sold for charity. No longer enforced but still on the statute books.

How foresightful of the legislators of 1551 to endorse the confiscation of bicycles - considering the bicycle wouldn't be invented for another three centuries. Ahem.

cdd · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 18.41

In Tokyo, a number* of people die every year standing at the platform in the Metro, bowing to a friend they have seen on the opposite platform while a train is coming.

* This number may include zero.

Jovis · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 18.58

Its illegal to eat mince pies at Christmas, because they have connotations of fun.

Alexia · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 20.13

The ratio of the circumference of a circle, to its diameter, is represented by pie.

Sput · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 20.51

The people of the UK solemnly wear poor-quality paper crowns from christmas crackers throughout christmas day

Jovis · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 21.43

I don't.

Jamez · Thu 27 Sep, 2007 23.40

Alexia wrote:The ratio of the circumference of a circle, to its diameter, is represented by pie.

3.14159265358979323846264338327950288419716939937510
58209749445923078164062862089986280348253421170679
82148086513282306647093844609550582231725359408128
48111745028410270193852110555964462294895493038196
44288109756659334461284756482337867831652712019091
45648566923460348610454326648213393607260249141273
72458700660631558817488152092096282925409171536436
78925903600113305305488204665213841469519415116094
33057270365759591953092186117381932611793105118548
07446237996274956735188575272489122793818301194912
98336733624406566430860213949463952247371907021798
60943702770539217176293176752384674818467669405132
00056812714526356082778577134275778960917363717872
14684409012249534301465495853710507922796892589235
42019956112129021960864034418159813629774771309960
51870721134999999837297804995105973173281609631859
50244594553469083026425223082533446850352619311881
71010003137838752886587533208381420617177669147303
59825349042875546873115956286388235378759375195778
18577805321712268066130019278766111959092164201989

all new Phil · Fri 28 Sep, 2007 01.30

Yeah isn't Google great?

Jamez · Fri 28 Sep, 2007 02.16

all new Phil wrote:Yeah isn't Google great?

No. It spies on its users.

I use Yahoo! *smug self-satisfaction stance with arms folded*

cwathen · Fri 28 Sep, 2007 20.01

In Victoria, where I live, it's illegal for yoof to buy or sell ciggarettes but perfectly legal for them to smoke them.

In a similar ilk, I believe in the UK it's illegal for a person under 18 to buy, attempt to buy, or be supplied with alcohol - but not actually illegal in itself to drink it.

Presumably then, Homebrew is a perfectly legal option which budding underage drinkers don't exploit, since the product as supplied contains no alcohol, and at no point would either the underage drinker buy or be supplied by another person with alcohol.