Ah, and in a related kind of inter-generational funny, this week's
responses to my post about wikipedia reminded me of a very wise
article Douglas Adams wrote for The Sunday Times in 1999, wherein he
stated:

"1) everything that's already in the world when you're born is just normal;

2) anything that gets invented between then and before you turn thirty
is incredibly exciting and creative and with any luck you can make a
career out of it;

3) anything that gets invented after you're thirty is against the
natural order of things and the beginning of the end of civilisation
as we know it until it's been around for about ten years when it
gradually turns out to be alright really.

Apply this list to movies, rock music, word processors and mobile
phones to work out how old you are."

The full article is really funny, as was most of the stuff Douglas
Adams wrote.  You can read the full text here:

http://www.douglasadams.com/dna/19990901-00-a.html

-Elizabeth Keathley

On 3/17/06, Scott, Paul (FPM) <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
>
> An earlier thread on this List discussed the woeful deficiencies of the
> historical knowledge of youngsters.  So, as a St. Patrick's Day diversion, I
> invite everyone to take this culturally biased test.
>
>
>
> DON'T CHEAT AND LOOK AT THE BOTTOM FOR THE ANSWERS!!!
> History Exam...
>
> This is a History Exam for those who don't mind seeing how much they
> really remember about what went on in their life. Get paper and pencil
> and number from 1 to 20.
> Write the letter of each answer and score at the end.
> Then, best of all, before you pass this test on, put your score in the
> subject line!
>
> 1. In the 1940's, where were automobile headlight dimmer switches located?
> a. On the floor shift knob
> b. On the floor board, to the left of the clutch
> c. Next to the horn
>
> 2. The bottle top of a Royal Crown Cola bottle had holes in it. For what was
> it used?
> a. Capture lightning bugs
> b. To sprinkle clothes before ironing
> c. Large salt shaker
>
> 3. Why was having milk delivered a problem in northern winters?
> a. Cows got cold and wouldn't produce milk
> b. Ice on highways forced delivery by dog sled
> c. Milkmen left deliveries outside of front doors and milk would freeze,
> expanding and pushing up the cardboard bottle top.
>
> 4. What was the popular chewing gum named for a game of chance?
> a. Blackjack
> b. Gin
> c. Craps!
>
> 5. What method did women use to look as if they were wearing! stockings when
> none were available due to rationing during W.W.II
> a. Suntan
> b. Leg painting
> c. Wearing slacks
>
> 6. What postwar car turned automotive design on its ear when you couldn't
> tell whether it was coming or going?
> a. Studebaker
> b. Nash Metro
> c. Tucker
>
> 7. Which was a popular candy when you were a kid?
> a. Strips of dried peanut butter
> b. Chocolate licorice bars
> c. Wax coke-shaped bottles with colored sugar water inside
>
> 8. How was Butch wax used?
> a. To stiffen a flat-top haircut so it stood up
> b. To make floors shiny and prevent scuffing
> c. On the wheels of roller skates to prevent rust
>
> 9. Before inline skates, how did you keep your roller skates attached to
> your shoes?
> a With clamps, tightened by a skate key
> b. Woven straps that crossed the foot
> c. Long pieces of twine
>
> 10. As a kid, what was considered the best way to reach a decision?
> a. Consider all the facts
> b. Ask! Mom
> c. Eeny-meeny-miney-mo
>
> 11. What was the most dreaded disease in the 1940's?
> a. Smallpox
> b. AIDS
> c. Polio
>
> 12. "I'll be down to get you in a ________, Honey"
> a. SUV
> b. Taxi
> c. Streetcar
>
> 13. What was the name of Caroline Kennedy's pet pony?
> a. Old Blue
> b. Paint
> c. Macaroni
>
> 14. What was a Duck-and-Cover Drill?
> a. Part of the game of hide and seek
> b What you did when your Mom called you in to do chores
> c. Hiding under your desk, and covering your head with your arms in an
> A-bomb drill.
>
> 15. What was the name of the Indian Princess on the Howdy Doody show?
> a. Princess Summerfallwinterspring
> b. Princess Sacajawea
> c. Princess Moonshadow
>
> 16. What did all the really savvy students d o when mimeographed tests
> were handed out in school?
> a. Immediately sniffed the purple ink, as this was believed to get you
> high
> b. Made paper airplanes to see who could sail theirs ou! t the window
> c. Wrote another pupil's name on the top, to avoid their failure
>
> 17. Why did your Mom shop in stores that gave Green Stamps with purchases?
> a. To keep you out of mischief by licking the backs, which tasted like
> bubble gum
> b. They could be put in special books and redeemed for various household
> items
> c. They were given to the kids to be used as stick-on tattoos
>
> 18. Praise the Lord, and pass the _________?
> a Meatballs
> b. Dames
> c. Ammunition
>
> 19. What was the name of the singing group that made the song "Cabdriver"
> a hit?
> a. The Ink Spots
> b. The Supremes
> c. The Esquires
>
> 20. Who left his heart in San Francisco?
> a. Tony Bennett
> b. Xavier Cugat
> c. George Gershwin
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> ANSWERS
>
> 1. b) On the floor, to the left of the clutch. Hand controls, popular in
> Europe, took till the late '60's to catch on.
>
> 2. b) To sprinkle clothes before ironing. Who had a steam iron?
>
> 3. c) Cold weather caused the milk to freeze and expand, popping the bottle
> top.
>
> 4. a) Blackjack Gum.
>
> 5. b) Special makeup was applied, followed by drawing a seam down the back
> of the leg with eyebrow pencil.
>
> 6. a) 1946 Studebaker.
>
> 7. c) Wax coke bottles containing super-sweet colored water.
>
> 8 a) Wax for your flat top (butch) haircut.
>
> 9. a) With clamps, tightened by a skate key, which you wore on a shoestring
> around your neck.
>
> 10. c) Eeny-meeny-miney-mo.
>
> 11. c) Polio. In beginning of August, swimming pools were closed, movies and
> other public gathering places were closed to try to prevent spread
> of the disease.
>
> 12. b) Taxi. Better be ready by half-past eight!
>
> 13. c) Macaroni.
>
> 14. c) Hiding under your desk, and covering your head with your arms in an
> A-bomb drill.
>
> 15. a) Princess Summerfallwinterspring. She was another puppet.
>
> 16. a) Immediately sniffed the purple ink to get a high.
>
> 17. b) Put in a special stamp book, they could be traded for household
> items at the Green Stamp store.
>
> 18. c) Ammunition, and we'll all be free.
>
> 19. a) The widely famous 50's group: The Inkspots.
>
> 20. a) Tony Bennett, and he sounds just as good today..
>
> SCORING
>
> 17- 20 correct: You are older than dirt, and obviously gifted with mental
> abilities. Now if you could only find your glasses. Definitely someone
> should share your wisdom!
>
> 12 -16 correct: Not quite dirt yet, but you're getting there.
>
> 0 -11 correct: You are not old enough to share the wisdom of your
> experiences.
>
>
>
>
> Paul R. Scott, CA, CRM
>
> Records Management Officer
>
> Harris County, TXA posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List
> sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org. For the
> terms of participation, please refer to
> http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp.
>
> To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] In
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> post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask]
>
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>
> Problems? Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>
>
>
>
>

A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org.
For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp.

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask]
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask]

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>