This is a rule that I know what it is and I understand why it is a rule. I just never figured out the basics of the rules.
The reason why baseball has an infield fly rule is to prevent unfair play that would benefit the defense but not the offense. My understanding of this rule is that if a runner is on base with less than two out and the ball was hit into the air within the infield, the umpire would call the infield fly rule. Why do you ask? Reason for this is to prevent the infield to let the ball drop so they can pick it up, throw the hitter out at first and then tag the runner on base out because the runner shouldn’t be running on a fly ball. It’s an easy double play for the defense. That would be unfair. Hence the rule!
And since I live by Wikipedia, the definition of the Infield Fly Rule is this: The infield fly rule applies only when there are fewer than two outs, and there is a force play at third or home. In these situations, if a fair fly ball is a hit that, in the umpire's judgment, is catchable by an infielder with ordinary effort, the batter is out regardless of whether the ball is actually caught in flight.
So, a runner has to be on first and second base for the rule to go into effect on an infield fly. That I didn’t know.
In a game earlier this year between the Cincinnati Reds and the St. Louis Cardinals, the rule was applied but the runner on first, Albert Pujols, trotted to second base. Red’s second baseman, Brandon Phillips, caught the ball and then tagged Pujols out because the runner never tagged up at first baseman to advance. They gave an explanation that the runner had the option to go back or go to second but he was tagged out going back to first. So I understood it as the runner could continue or stay where he was. But that wouldn’t make sense since there is a runner on second already and the runner at first would have to stay at first.
I did read that there are miconceptions of the rule and I think this was the case in the Reds/Cardinals game: if an infield fly is not properly caught, no tag up is required and the runners may try to advance. Which is what I think Pujols was trying to do.
That better understand it for me. I’m more aware of this rule now and the next time one is called, I could exlain it to my kids.
If you are interested about this topic and would like to read into it further, go to the wikipedia site. It goes into a definition of an umpire’s “judgement call”.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infield_fly_rule
Friday, April 23, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
The Boiling Point in Celsius
My 11 yr old daughter asked me the other day what the boiling point in Celsius degrees was since she was boiling water for her Ramen noodles. Before I could muster out an “I’m not sure,” my 9 year old daughter quickly answered with an answer of “100 degrees”.
A 9 year old just showed me up!! But I wasn’t going to admit that. Again, she recently learned it being in the 3rd grade. It kind of made me feel stupid that I didn’t know the answer to a simple question like that. So, I had to look it up for verification.
Let’s start with a definition of what a boiling point is. Per Wikipedia, a boiling point of an element or a substance is the temperature at which the vapor pressure of the liquid equals the environmental pressure surrounding the liquid.
The boiling point of water is 100 °C (212 °F) at standard pressure. And if you ask what standard pressure is, it’s all based off of sea level. The higher the altitude, the boiling point temperature decreases because there is less pressure.
On top of Mount Everest, at 8,848 m elevation, the pressure is about 260 mbar and the boiling point of water is 69 °C. (156.2 °F). The boiling point decreases 1°C every 285 m of elevation.
Interesting!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_point
A 9 year old just showed me up!! But I wasn’t going to admit that. Again, she recently learned it being in the 3rd grade. It kind of made me feel stupid that I didn’t know the answer to a simple question like that. So, I had to look it up for verification.
Let’s start with a definition of what a boiling point is. Per Wikipedia, a boiling point of an element or a substance is the temperature at which the vapor pressure of the liquid equals the environmental pressure surrounding the liquid.
The boiling point of water is 100 °C (212 °F) at standard pressure. And if you ask what standard pressure is, it’s all based off of sea level. The higher the altitude, the boiling point temperature decreases because there is less pressure.
On top of Mount Everest, at 8,848 m elevation, the pressure is about 260 mbar and the boiling point of water is 69 °C. (156.2 °F). The boiling point decreases 1°C every 285 m of elevation.
Interesting!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_point
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
The 13 Colonies
Who can name the 13 colonies?
I’m aware of the 13 colonies by learning about them in grade school. But is someone asked me today to name them, I might be able to pull it out of my a**, but more than likely, I couldn’t. When was the last time I had to know them?
So, for those of you who do not know the 13 colonies, here they are:
Delaware
Pennsylvania
New Jersey
Georgia
Connecticut
Massachusetts
Maryland
South Carolina
New Hampshire
Virginia
New York
North Carolina
Rhode Island.
Per Wikipedia, the Thirteen Colonies were British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America, which declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States. At the time of the Revolution, these colonies contained territory now outside of the borders of the modern states.
And that is what I’ve learned today.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/13_colonies
I’m aware of the 13 colonies by learning about them in grade school. But is someone asked me today to name them, I might be able to pull it out of my a**, but more than likely, I couldn’t. When was the last time I had to know them?
So, for those of you who do not know the 13 colonies, here they are:
Delaware
Pennsylvania
New Jersey
Georgia
Connecticut
Massachusetts
Maryland
South Carolina
New Hampshire
Virginia
New York
North Carolina
Rhode Island.
Per Wikipedia, the Thirteen Colonies were British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America, which declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States. At the time of the Revolution, these colonies contained territory now outside of the borders of the modern states.
And that is what I’ve learned today.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/13_colonies
Celebrity Names
Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You!
A double feature featuring two iconic actors of all-time.
At 7:30 p.m., Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece, “North by Northwest”, starring Archibald Alexander Leach. Followed by “Some Like it Hot”, featuring the likes of Norma Jean Baker at 9:30 p.m.
Can you guess who these famous actors really are?
Well, they really are Archibald and Norma Jean, but their stage names were Cary Grant and Marilyn Monroe. Shocked!!
Sometimes when one wants to become a celebrity, their given birth name might not fit the bill as Hollywood star power. Studio execs were powerful in the hay-day and if they said you need to change your name, you changed it, for the sake of selling. Their job was to sell and if Norma Jean doesn’t sell, say goodbye to your career. Or you can change it to the voluptuous Marilyn Monroe and wahlah, you have one of the most iconic actresses ever.
If your name was John Smith and there already was a John Smith, the movie star, you had to change your name to distinct yourself from him. And you need a name that flows, has glamour and sells. Does Archibald Leach sell? Is it glamorous? Does it flow? No, which is why we have one of the greatest actors of all-time – Cary Grant!
Cary Grant’s name was actually chosen by Paramount Pictures because at that time, he was using Cary Lockwood but it was too close to another actor working at that time, per Wikipedia. And he thought that the letters C and G were lucky with the success of Clark Gable and Gary Cooper. I did not know that.
Now I do! And that is what I have learned today.
Here are a few more examples of name changes in Hollywood. But for more, check out the link at the bottom.
John Wayne = Marion Morrison
Judy Garland = Frances Gumm
Rita Hayworth = Margarita Cansino
http://specials.msn.com/A-List/celebrity-name-changes.aspx?cp-documentid=23827203&imageindex=1&cp-searchtext=Celebrity%20name%20changes&FORM=MSNIIT
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stage_name
At 7:30 p.m., Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece, “North by Northwest”, starring Archibald Alexander Leach. Followed by “Some Like it Hot”, featuring the likes of Norma Jean Baker at 9:30 p.m.
Can you guess who these famous actors really are?
Well, they really are Archibald and Norma Jean, but their stage names were Cary Grant and Marilyn Monroe. Shocked!!
Sometimes when one wants to become a celebrity, their given birth name might not fit the bill as Hollywood star power. Studio execs were powerful in the hay-day and if they said you need to change your name, you changed it, for the sake of selling. Their job was to sell and if Norma Jean doesn’t sell, say goodbye to your career. Or you can change it to the voluptuous Marilyn Monroe and wahlah, you have one of the most iconic actresses ever.
If your name was John Smith and there already was a John Smith, the movie star, you had to change your name to distinct yourself from him. And you need a name that flows, has glamour and sells. Does Archibald Leach sell? Is it glamorous? Does it flow? No, which is why we have one of the greatest actors of all-time – Cary Grant!
Cary Grant’s name was actually chosen by Paramount Pictures because at that time, he was using Cary Lockwood but it was too close to another actor working at that time, per Wikipedia. And he thought that the letters C and G were lucky with the success of Clark Gable and Gary Cooper. I did not know that.
Now I do! And that is what I have learned today.
Here are a few more examples of name changes in Hollywood. But for more, check out the link at the bottom.
John Wayne = Marion Morrison
Judy Garland = Frances Gumm
Rita Hayworth = Margarita Cansino
http://specials.msn.com/A-List/celebrity-name-changes.aspx?cp-documentid=23827203&imageindex=1&cp-searchtext=Celebrity%20name%20changes&FORM=MSNIIT
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stage_name
Friday, April 16, 2010
What causes Thunder?
So we hear thunder outside as a storm passes and someone says, “God just bowled a strike!” Ever hear that saying? Did God bowl a strike? Or is thunder the cause of another weather phenomenon? Time for today’s learning session.
Thunder is caused by lightning! In a nutshell, the sudden increase in air pressure and temperature from lightning produces rapid expansion of the air surrounding and within a bolt of lightning, per Wikipedia. In turn, this expansion produces a sonic shock wave which produces the sound of thunder.
Closer the lightning is = the louder the crack of thunder.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thunder
Thunder is caused by lightning! In a nutshell, the sudden increase in air pressure and temperature from lightning produces rapid expansion of the air surrounding and within a bolt of lightning, per Wikipedia. In turn, this expansion produces a sonic shock wave which produces the sound of thunder.
Closer the lightning is = the louder the crack of thunder.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thunder
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson, the man who broke the color barrier
in Major League baseball, was the first African-American
to ever play in the majors. His debut was April 15, 1947, 63 years ago today. Baseball honors this day by wearing his #42 on everyone's uniform, including players, coaches and managers.
Uniform #42 was retired by Major League Baseball in 1997. No future players will be allowed to wear his #42. At that time though, a handful of players currently wearing #42, were allowed to continue to wear #42. Today, only Yankee's pitcher Mariano Rivera still wears #42.
What I learned today was that his #42 was not chosen by him, but given to him because it was available. He actually wore #10 in the Minors. If he kept #10, all players would be wearing #10 today. Catcher Bruce Edwards wore #10 for the Brooklyn Dodgers at that time.
Son of Man (Magritte) Painting
This painting is my favorite painting. I really don't know why but ever since it was showcased in the 1999 version of "The Thomas Crown Affair", I took a liking to it. I want to get a good print of it put into a nice frame and hang it on my bedroom wall.
This painting was done by Rene Magritte in 1964, who is a Belgian surrealist painter. It was painted as a self portrait but with an apple covering most of the face.
Per Wikipedia, he said about the painting: "Everything we see hides another thing we always want to see what is hidden by what we see."
And that is how he based most of his work.
What I learned today was who painted this painting.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Kissing
When you get up in the morning, you really have no idea what that day will bring. A lot can happen to you though out the day or maybe in a two hour span. You just don’t know.
So imagine my surprise that at 8:34am, 14 minutes after I logged onto my work computer, I check to see if there are any new stories on MSN.com and what headline do I see: Kissing in 16th Century Naples: Punishable by Death: Wacky 'pucker-up' facts: How much longer do men live if they kiss their wives before going to work?
I’m intrigued.
So here it is my first blog entry of “What I’ve Learned Today” is about kissing. But you know what, after reading the article, I learned something new today. And that’s the whole point of this project. (I just wanted to see how much longer I was going to live.)
There were two quick facts that I learned so this first entry will be a double decker.
The first decker I learned was that kissing generally uses one muscle, called the orbicularis oris, which is responsible for puckering your lips when you kiss. The science of kissing itself is called philematology.
Per Wikipedia, (where I go for most of my sources) Orbicularis Oris is the sphincter muscle around the mouth. It is also one of the muscles used in the playing of all brass instruments and some woodwind instruments. This muscle closes the mouth and puckers the lips when it contracts.
The second decker I learned is that a study shows that men live up to five years longer if they kiss their wives before going to work. I don’t know who did this study or where I could find it to back this up, but I’ll be happy with living 5 years longer. Pucker up sweetie!!!
http://glo.msn.com/relationships/lip-service-2640.gallery?GT1=49000
So imagine my surprise that at 8:34am, 14 minutes after I logged onto my work computer, I check to see if there are any new stories on MSN.com and what headline do I see: Kissing in 16th Century Naples: Punishable by Death: Wacky 'pucker-up' facts: How much longer do men live if they kiss their wives before going to work?
I’m intrigued.
So here it is my first blog entry of “What I’ve Learned Today” is about kissing. But you know what, after reading the article, I learned something new today. And that’s the whole point of this project. (I just wanted to see how much longer I was going to live.)
There were two quick facts that I learned so this first entry will be a double decker.
The first decker I learned was that kissing generally uses one muscle, called the orbicularis oris, which is responsible for puckering your lips when you kiss. The science of kissing itself is called philematology.
Per Wikipedia, (where I go for most of my sources) Orbicularis Oris is the sphincter muscle around the mouth. It is also one of the muscles used in the playing of all brass instruments and some woodwind instruments. This muscle closes the mouth and puckers the lips when it contracts.
The second decker I learned is that a study shows that men live up to five years longer if they kiss their wives before going to work. I don’t know who did this study or where I could find it to back this up, but I’ll be happy with living 5 years longer. Pucker up sweetie!!!
http://glo.msn.com/relationships/lip-service-2640.gallery?GT1=49000
Monday, April 12, 2010
"What I've learned today" introduction
I'm creating this blog because of one simple sentence which consists of 4 simple words: "I am my dad". And because "I am my dad" I have come to the realization about certain aspects of being a dad. Why dads do things that they do? More importantly, why did MY dad do what he did?
I'm not going to go into detail about everything my dad did when I was a kid. This blog is being set up for one particular thing and one thing only. If I need to create a blog later about something else he did, I will. But no, today, it's for this one thing. (And dad, if you read this, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about)
One particular thing that my dad did is this: "what did you learn in school today?"
Present day - Sitting at the dinner table with my wife, my two daughters (11 and 9 yrs old) and my two sons (16 1/2 months and 2 1/2 months), I ask my daughters "what did you learn in school today?" Answer: I don't know!!
My pre-teen/teen years - Sitting at the dinner table with my three brothers, my mom and my dad, my dad asks, "Brad, what did you learn in school today?" Answer: I don't know!!
I have come to the realization that he did it because he just wanted to see how my day went and that he wanted to connect with me. But I was the pre-teen/teenager who didn't want to communicate with his parents. And as I look back on it, I was an ass!! If I could go back, I would answer everyone of his "what did you learn in school today" questions. (But I still won't eat the peas)
You never really grasp what one does, like a parent, until you're put in their shoes. I'm sitting there at the dinner table using my dad's technique and getting the same answer. Therefore, "I am my dad!"
So, this blog goes out to my dad for all of those "I don't know's" and to my two daughters, because if you can learn something each day, so can I. Each day, I will post what I have learned that day. It's been a while since I was in school and you know that not everyone remembers everything they learn in school.
And, this blog is also for anyone out there who wants to learn. Send me a message asking me the answer to something you want to learn. I will research and answer your question and at the same time, I will learn it as well.
I'm not going to go into detail about everything my dad did when I was a kid. This blog is being set up for one particular thing and one thing only. If I need to create a blog later about something else he did, I will. But no, today, it's for this one thing. (And dad, if you read this, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about)
One particular thing that my dad did is this: "what did you learn in school today?"
Present day - Sitting at the dinner table with my wife, my two daughters (11 and 9 yrs old) and my two sons (16 1/2 months and 2 1/2 months), I ask my daughters "what did you learn in school today?" Answer: I don't know!!
My pre-teen/teen years - Sitting at the dinner table with my three brothers, my mom and my dad, my dad asks, "Brad, what did you learn in school today?" Answer: I don't know!!
I have come to the realization that he did it because he just wanted to see how my day went and that he wanted to connect with me. But I was the pre-teen/teenager who didn't want to communicate with his parents. And as I look back on it, I was an ass!! If I could go back, I would answer everyone of his "what did you learn in school today" questions. (But I still won't eat the peas)
You never really grasp what one does, like a parent, until you're put in their shoes. I'm sitting there at the dinner table using my dad's technique and getting the same answer. Therefore, "I am my dad!"
So, this blog goes out to my dad for all of those "I don't know's" and to my two daughters, because if you can learn something each day, so can I. Each day, I will post what I have learned that day. It's been a while since I was in school and you know that not everyone remembers everything they learn in school.
And, this blog is also for anyone out there who wants to learn. Send me a message asking me the answer to something you want to learn. I will research and answer your question and at the same time, I will learn it as well.
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