Friday, July 13, 2018

Greetings Infomaniacs,

Congratulations to Bill Plumer who won this week's "Mind Scrambler". Here was the scrambler:

Phil asks his friend Stan when his birthday is. Stan replies that he was 32 the day before yesterday, and next year he'll be 35. When is his birthday and how is this possible?

ANSWER:

Today is January 1 and his birthday is on December 31. He was 32, then he turned 33 on December 31, and then this year on December 31 he will turn 34, so next year he will be 35.

Enjoy!

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WHO SAID IT?
QUOTE: "Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources of cruelty. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom."

HINT: A British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, writer, social critic, and political activist who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1950.

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RANDOM TIDBITS
Paraskevidekatriaphobia is the fear of Friday the 13th. The term was first coined in the early nineties by Dr. Donald E. Dossey, an American psychotherapist specialising in phobias and stress management. The term is based on the Greek words paraskevi ('Friday') and dekatria ('thirteen') with -phobia as a suffix to indicate 'fear'.

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Though folklorists claim there is no written evidence for the superstition about Friday the 13th before the nineteenth century, the date has long been connected to notorious events in history and religion.

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According to Catholic belief, one of the most significant events in their religion - the crucifixion of Jesus Christ - took place on a Friday the 13.

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One of the most popularised myths attempting to explain the origin of the Friday 13 superstition stems from events on Friday 13 October 1307, when hundreds of Knights Templar were arrested and burnt across France.

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It is said that if you have thirteen letters in your name you will have the "Devil's luck." There may be some truth in that as Jack the Ripper, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Theodore Bundy and Albert De Salvo all had thirteen letters in their names.

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There is no 13th Avenue in San Francisco, instead Funston Avenue is between 12th and 14th Avenues.




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*** Weekly Mind-Scrambler ***
Look for a new mind scrambler in Monday's issue of Trivia!

Submit your answer by clicking: TheDailyTease

Answer will be posted in Friday's Trivia Today. Good Luck! If your name appears in Friday's newsletter, EMAIL MICHELE your complete name and address to be shipped your prize.

Be sure to put "Winner" in the subject line.

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WHO SAID IT?
QUOTE: "Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources of cruelty. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom."

ANSWER: Bertrand Russell