MOTnews 22 (24/08/2001)

DID YOU KNOW...?

When were matches invented?

Since time immemorial, man has tried to make fire, using various methods that seem far from simple to us with our cigarette lighters, matches and fire-lighter blocks for open fires and barbecues. Things changed in the 1820s, when Englishman John Walker invented matches, which ignited through friction. These matches were long splinters of wood soaked in a mixture of chemicals, including potassium chloride. When such a splinter was drawn across a folded strip of abrasive paper, it caught fire in a shower of sparks. Most matches could be lit on any sort of material - the small leather patch you find on the back of your jeans was originally there to strike a match on. Obviously, these matches were rather less safe than the ones we use today. The modern safety match was invented in Sweden by J.E.Lundstrom in 1845. It only ignites when you strike it against a special chemically treated surface (usually the side of the matchbox).

TRUE or FALSE

Petroleum was once responsible for saving the whale.

You can read the answer in the next MOT NEWS

ANSWER TO "TRUE or FALSE" in MOT NEWS 21 (August 3, 2001)

Children were generally brought up more strictly in the past, but children in the Middle Ages didn't have to clear their plate of endives.

TRUE

In fact it has nothing to do with a stricter upbringing. Children in the Middle Ages didn't actually have to clear their plate of endives for the simple reason that people didn't yet eat endives. The endive plant was already known, but endives only started to appear regularly on people's tables in the 19th century.

SAY WHAT?

In this MOT-news item we try to explain proverbs and sayings that have their roots in our technical history. Similar proverbs are found in different languages, but each language has it's own typical sayings. Therefore we do not translate this item in English.

KIDS-news: something to tell your children this evening.

Insects as domestic animals?

You know that bees make the honey you spread on your slice of bread, but did you also know that other insects are also raised as 'domestic animals' for the sake of the products they provide us with?

One example is the silkworm. Bombyx mori, as it is officially known, may not be kept as a pet, but these larvae have been bred by people for thousands of years for the sake of the silk they produce.

When the larvae pupate (the period before they turn into butterflies), they spin a thread about one kilometre long around themselves to make their cocoon. People use this thread to make a thicker thread, which is used to make silk cloth.