This has nothing to do with language but I found it too interesting not to share.

Twins Ronan and Samuel Peterson were born on 6 November 2016 - Ronan at 1.10 a.m and Samuel at 1.39 a.m. but Samuel is the elder. How is that possible?

(I got this fact from No Such Thing As A Fish again - this time from their new Christmas book. If I run across any language related facts I'll post them.)

And the very next one I looked at is language based!

Why is Christmas pudding sometimes called Plum Pudding when it contains no plums?
I'll answer it later.

quote:

Originally posted by BobHale:
This has nothing to do with language but I found it too interesting not to share.

Twins Ronan and Samuel Peterson were born on 6 November 2016 - Ronan at 1.10 a.m and Samuel at 1.39 a.m. but Samuel is the elder. How is that possible?

I'm guessing Samuel was born at 1:39 a.m. Daylight Saving Time. At 2 a.m. Standard Time clicked in, and Ronan was born at 1:10 a.m. Standard Time, 31 minutes after his brother.

quote:

Originally posted by tinman:

quote:

Originally posted by BobHale:
This has nothing to do with language but I found it too interesting not to share.

Twins Ronan and Samuel Peterson were born on 6 November 2016 - Ronan at 1.10 a.m and Samuel at 1.39 a.m. but Samuel is the elder. How is that possible?

I'm guessing Samuel was born at 1:39 a.m. Daylight Saving Time. At 2 a.m. Standard Time clicked in, and Ronan was born at 1:10 a.m. Standard Time, 31 minutes after his brother.

And you are, of course, perfectly correct.

Good one, Tinman! I would not have gotten it.

Tell us about Plum Pudding, Bob. It is probably something like mincemeat pie.

From "Funny You Should Ask... Again" (a QI book)

"Originally called "frumenty", plum pudding originated in the 14th century as a sort of porridge made of wheat boiled in milk with spices. It could be served plain, but some recipes included beef, mutton and even porpoise. In the 17th century, it began to be thickened with eggs and breadcrumbs. Dried fruit and spices were added and it began to resemble a sweet pudding. By the Victorian era the recipe had settled on what we know as Christmas pudding today. So why call it "plum pudding"? "Plum" was an Elizabethan term that described all dried fruit including sultanas, raisins and currents.

Interesting. It IS like mincemeat pie (which Shu loves, though I can't stand).

quote:

Originally posted by BobHale:
Twins Ronan and Samuel Peterson were born on 6 November 2016 - Ronan at 1.10 a.m and Samuel at 1.39 a.m. but Samuel is the elder.

(I got this fact from No Such Thing As A Fish.)

Bob, does your source give a source? It seems that the some in the British peerage saw it as a dangerous problem.

quote:

Lord Balfour of Burleigh, opposing daylight saving time, House of Lords, May 1916:
“Supposing some unfortunate lady was confined with twins and one child was born 10 minutes before 1 o’clock; if the clock was put back, the registration of the time of birth of the two children would be reversed. … Such an alteration might conceivably affect the property and titles in that house.”

No, it's a book of things from the series but I'll do some research and get back to you.

Apparently they were born at Cape Cod Health Centre which released the original story with pictures of the happy family. There are quite a lot of stories about it on the internet though I accept that that proves nothing. I don't imagine it's that rare an occurrence though as lots of twins are born in countries with Daylight Saving Time or its equivalent and statistically some must be born on either side of the resetting of the clocks.

As for the rules of the British peerage well they are arcane at best and probably serve a useful purpose in letting the high and mighty argue about such trivial stuff instead of causing more trouble for us peasants.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BobHale,

quote:

Originally posted by BobHale:
As for the rules of the British peerage well they are arcane at best and probably serve a useful purpose in letting the high and mighty argue about such trivial stuff instead of causing more trouble for us peasants.

Laughing here. I know of this from Gilbert & Sullivan’s Iolanthe. Quoting from two songs there:

When in that House M.P.'s divide,
If they've a brain and cerebellum, too,
They've got to leave that brain outside,
And vote just as their leaders tell 'em to.
But then the prospect of a lot
Of dull M.P.s in close proximity,
All thinking for themselves, is what
No man can face with equanimity.
——————-
When Wellington thrashed Bonaparte,
As every child can tell,
The House of Peers, throughout the war,
Did nothing in particular,
And did it very well:
Yet Britain set the world ablaze
In good King George's glorious days!