Today's Dippit!

Quote

"Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant." 

Robert Louis Stevenson

Joke

What animal is always at a baseball game?

A bat.

Fun Fact

Baby blue whales grow 200 pounds per day.

Blue Whale calves grow 200 pounds per day for the first year they are alive. They can move at a brisk pace of five miles per hour when fully grown, but can get up to 20 miles per hour if need be. They can also hear up to 1,000 miles away in the ocean.

Reading Fact

Speed reading world record

The speed reading world record dates back to 1990. Howard Berg has been recognized by the Guinness World Record Book as the fastest reader in the world, a title he still holds to this day. 

While it may seem impossible to most of us, his record was 25,000 words read per minute. Many have questioned the claim, as there was no real experiment done to check if this was actually true. 

And on top of the fact that at this speed, comprehension would probably be close to zero, many have questioned the claims based on more solid facts. How do you read and turn the pages that fast without tearing them up?

Even though it is unlikely that we will ever find out the whole truth, it’s important to remember that speed reading is a powerful tool and can help us tremendously in saving time, as long as we don’t sacrifice comprehension for speed. 

History Fact

The Vikings were the first people to discover America.

Half a millennium before Christopher Columbus “discovered” America, Viking chief Leif Eriksson of Greenland landed on the Island of Newfoundland in the year 1,000 BC.

The Vikings under Leif Eriksson settled Newfoundland as well as discovering and settling Labrador further north in Canada.

Movie/TV Trivia

Samuel L. Jackson used the word mother-fucker to overcome his stammer/stutter.

Movie/TV Quote

"Boy, that escalated quickly."

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)

Will Ferrell was already a star by 2004, but his film roles to that point had mostly been secondary characters, a la Old School's Frank the Tank. Between Elf and Anchorman, Ferrell shot to superstardom, and Ron Burgundy became the legend the full title of the movie promised thanks to a string of one-liners and quotes that have been well worn in the 15 years since its release. There's "60% of the time, it works every time." There's "I'm in a glass case of emotion!" There's "I love scotch. Scotchy scotch scotch." There's "Milk was a bad choice!" There's "I'm kind of a big deal." And so many more. While many of these quotes made their way into everyday speech, the most universally applicable -- and the one that turned into a meme around 2012 -- comes right after the giant fight between all the rival news teams, a fight that ratchets up from knives and threats to tridents and death very, well, quickly. It's the kind of quote that can apply to any situation that spirals out of control: A night out drinking, a work meeting, a family reunion, a Twitter exchange. In a world that changes constantly and continues to increase the speed of our lives, "Boy, that escalated quickly" has only become more relevant, if kinda annoying, over the years.

Conversation Starter

What are you reading right now?

Writing Prompt

How Far Would You Go to Express Loyalty to Your Favourite Teams?