MOTnews 31 (08/03/2002)

MOT WEBSITE

We are still hard at work on our website. Internet users can once again visit www.mot.be to find out what's new. For those of you who are avid quiz fans, there's now also a MOT Quiz on line. You'll be served up a random series of questions about the Museum, the collection and previous editions of the MOT News, allowing you to test your knowledge of the MOT. We make sure that you can also find all the answers via our website.

You may also like to tell us what you think of the quiz in our brand-new guestbook.

TRUE OR FALSE

Herbal remedies.

Severe toothache can drive you to distraction. In the past, people had countless remedies for toothache, one of which was to put a clove against the sore tooth. This wasn't a bad idea, because cloves contain a natural pain-killer that is still used today by dentists as an anaesthetic.

True or false? You can read the answer in the next edition of MOT News.

ANSWER to TRUE or FALSE in MOT NEWS 29 (01/02/2002)

You know from your own experience and from physics lessons at school that a stone will sink if you throw it in the water, whereas wood will float. However, we maintain that this is not always true. Sometimes stones float and wood will sink.

TRUE

Although it is usually true to say that wood floats and stones sink, there are obviously some exceptions to the rule. Pumice stone, which you may be familiar with as that handy item you use to scrub your feet in the bath, is so light that it floats (try it out in your own bath). By contrast, some kinds of wood are famous because they are so heavy. Ebony, for example, which some readers may be familiar with because it is often used for ornaments, is so heavy that it sinks.

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

A 'rats' castle' isn't really a castle for rats ...

You may know the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, who charmed the rats by playing wondrous music on his flute, but our ancestors had plenty of nastier ways of getting rid of these pests. One device that was used in Flanders was the 'rats' castle'. This was a long, narrow wooden box divided into compartments. The rats would make their nests inside it, and once there was a nest of young rats in each compartment, the box would be shut and thrown into water to drown the creatures. Or the box would only be opened out in the village square, where all the dogs of the village were gathered, which would then chase the rats.