At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated,"If GM had kept up with the technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving
$25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."

In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:

1. 1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.
2. 2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.
3. 3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You  would have to pull over to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.
4. 4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. 5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.
6. 6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation" warning light.
7. 7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.
8. 8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. 9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again, because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
10. 10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.

REF: Snopes Urban Legends Reference Pages

More than a century after the creation of Coca-Cola, we're still as much in love with this most famous of soft drinks as our great-grandparents were. Hold up a Coke, and you proclaim all that's best about the American way of life: Coca-Cola is first dates and shy kisses, a platoon of war-weary GIs getting letters from home, and an old, rusted sign creaking in the wind outside the hometown diner. Coca-Cola is also one of the most successful companies the world has ever known; nothing can be that big and popular, so much a part of everyday life, without having legends spring up around it. Coca-Cola's uniquely influential position in our culture has led to a special set of legends we call 'Cokelore'; a collection of Coke trivia and tall tales sure to refresh even the most informationally-parched reader.

• The New Coke fiasco was actually a clever marketing ploy.
• Coca-Cola became carbonated by accident.
• The modern image of Santa Claus was created by Coca-Cola.
• A tooth left in a glass of Coca-Cola will dissolve overnight.
• Combining Coca-Cola and aspirin will get you high.
• Only two people in the company know Coca-Cola's formula, and each of them only knows half of it.
• Coca-Cola was originally green.
• The Mormons own the Coca-Cola Company.
• The cursive script of the Coca-Cola label includes an image of a person snorting cocaine.
• Coca-Cola used to send a salesman out to purchase a piece of Coca-Cola chewing gum once a year to protect its trademark on the product.
• Coca-Cola is giving away free cases of soda to people who forward an e-mail message.
• Coca-Cola's cursive script logo was designed to reveal anti-Islamic messages in its mirror image.
• The acids in Coca-Cola not only make it a handy household cleaning product, but harmful to drink as well.
• A kid who drank the liquid used as ballast in a MagiCan promotion died.
• A Middle Eastern advertisement created by Coca-Cola depicts the Coke logo emblazoned on the Dome of the Rock.
• Coca-Cola has announced that it will be donating four days' worth of income to Israel.
• Kindness performed for a stranger nets a warning not to drink Coca-Cola after a certain date.

• Coca-Cola used to contain cocaine.
• Coca-Cola was once considered anti-Semitic for refusing to do business in Israel.
• Coca-Cola is an effective spermicide.
• The shape of the Coca-Cola bottle was mistakenly based on the cacao tree seed pod.
• Coca-Cola's name was translated into Chinese as "bite the wax tadpole."

 

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Math through the ages

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Teaching Math in 1950: A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price. What is his profit?

Teaching Math in 1960: A logger sells a truckload of  lumber for $100. His  cost  of production is 4/5 of the price, or $80. What is his profit?

Teaching Math in 1970: A logger exchanges a set "L" of  lumber for a set"M" of money. The cardinality of set "M" is 100. Each element is worth one dollar. Make 100 dots representing the elements of the set "M."  The set "C", the cost of production contains 20 fewer points than set "M."  Represent the set "C" as a subset of set "M" and answer the  following question: What is the cardinality of the set "P" of profits?

Teaching Math in 1980: A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80 and his profit is $20. Your assignment: Underline the number 20.

Teaching Math in 1990: By cutting down beautiful forest trees, the logger makes $20. What do you think of this way of making a living? Topic for class participation after answering the question: How did the forest, birds and squirrels feel as the logger cut down the trees? There are no wrong answers.

Teaching Math in 2000: A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $ 100. His cost of production is $120. How does Arthur Andersen determine that his profit margin is $60?

Teaching Math in 2010:  El hachero vende un camion carga por $100. La cuesta de production es

One evening a grandson was talking to his grandmother about current events. The grandson asked his grandmother what she thought about the shootings at schools, the computer age, and just things in general.

The Grandma replied, "Well, let me think a minute, I was born, before television, penicillin, polio shots, frozen foods, Xerox, contact lenses, Frisbees and the pill. There was no radar, credit cards, laser beams or ball-point pens.

Man had not invented pantyhose, air conditioners, dishwashers, clothes dryers, and the clothes were hung out to dry in the fresh air and man hadn't yet walked on the moon.

Your Grandfather and I got married first-and then lived together. Every family had a father and a mother. Until I was 25, I called every man older than I, 'Sir'- and after I turned 25, I still called policemen and every man with a title, "Sir.' We were before gay-rights, computer-dating, dual careers, daycare centers, and group therapy. Our lives were governed by the Ten Commandments, good judgment, and common sense.

We were taught to know the difference between right and wrong and to stand up and take responsibility for our actions. Serving your country was a privilege; living in this country was a bigger privilege. We thought fast food was what people ate during Lent.

Having a meaningful relationship meant getting along with your cousins. Draft dodgers were people who closed their front doors when the evening breeze started. Time-sharing meant time the family spent together in the evenings and weekends - not purchasing condominiums.

We never heard of FM radios, tape decks, CDs, electric typewriters, yogurt, or guys wearing earrings. We listened to the Big Bands, Jack Benny, and the President's speeches on our radios. And I don't ever remember any kid blowing his brains out listening to Tommy Dorsey.

If you saw anything with 'Made in Japan' on it, it was junk. The term 'making out' referred to how you did on your school exam.

Pizza Hut, McDonald's, and instant coffee were unheard of. We had 5 & 10-cent stores where you could actually buy things for 5 and 10 cents. Ice-cream cones, phone calls, rides on a streetcar, and a Pepsi were all a nickel. And if you didn't want to splurge, you could spend your nickel on enough stamps to mail 1 letter and 2 postcards.

You could buy a new Chevy Coupe for $600 but who could afford one? Too bad, because gas was 11 cents a gallon.

In my day, "grass" was mowed, "coke" was a cold drink, "pot" was something your mother cooked in, and "rock music" was your grandmother's lullaby. "Aids" were helpers in the Principal's office, "chip" meant a piece of wood, "hardware" was found in a hardware store, and "software" wasn't even a word.

And we were the last generation to actually believe that a lady needed a husband to have a baby. No wonder people call us "old and confused" and say there is a generation gap.....