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Bigfeet
Joined: 29 May 2008
Location: Grrrrr.....
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 Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 9:32 pm Post subject: |
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| Well, Romans used to carry concentrated wine around and cut it with water. Doesn't mean they get drunk all the time though. It probably helped keep them warm during winter too. Just imagine how drafty those leather skirts must have been! |
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mindmetoo
Joined: 02 Feb 2004
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| Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 10:08 am Post subject: |
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| Bramble wrote: |
Maybe the point is that we have access to clean water and fresh fruit and vegetables, so we don't need coffee or alcohol ... ?
Oh wait, what site is this? |
That is one of the points, yes. Before access to clean, parasite free water, alcohol was consumed in larger quantities out of necessity and that may have had something to do with the advancement of science and reason in the west. Not the only thing, but potentially a necessary part. Your fan belt is only a small part in your car, plays a specific role, but without it you won't get far.
Another interesting (and unrelated) intersection. Reports of ghosts and hauntings became a big fixture in British culture during the late part of the 19th century, around the time gas lighting was introduced into homes. Gas lighting puts out a lot of CO. CO poisoning can cause one to experience many of the same visual and aural phenomenon people attribute to ghosts. |
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cruisemonkey
Joined: 04 Jul 2005
Location: Hopefully, the same place as my luggage.
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| Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 2:49 pm Post subject: |
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Now I'm a wide-awake drunk.  |
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Bigfeet
Joined: 29 May 2008
Location: Grrrrr.....
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| Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 3:34 pm Post subject: |
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| mindmetoo wrote: |
Another interesting (and unrelated) intersection. Reports of ghosts and hauntings became a big fixture in British culture during the late part of the 19th century, around the time gas lighting was introduced into homes. Gas lighting puts out a lot of CO. CO poisoning can cause one to experience many of the same visual and aural phenomenon people attribute to ghosts. |
Gas light does not produce CO, it does burn up a lot of oxygen though. Because it is a much more efficient burning process than candles, it uses up a lot more oxygen. So in an enclosed room, the oxygen content may go down. This is offset by the bad workmanship of most houses had back then. Rooms were drafty and it was hard keeping air out.
Cheap lighting, cheap newspapers, and a middle class (due mainly to industrialization) enabled people to read more of each other's BS, hence increasing the stupidity level all-around.  |
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SuperHero
Joined: 10 Dec 2003
Location: Superhero Hideout
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| Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 3:42 pm Post subject: |
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| eamo wrote: |
| Download the documentary 'Black Gold' for the full story on how coffee changed the world and continues to dominate the economies of many countries |
downloading from demonoid right now - thanks for the suggestion.
ah shit - 18 peers but 0 seeds. |
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mindmetoo
Joined: 02 Feb 2004
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| Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 6:26 pm Post subject: |
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| Bigfeet wrote: |
| Gas light does not produce CO, |
Not according to the guy they had on the halloween ep of This American Life. Gas was powered by coal gas, which had a lot of CO in it. Refer to this link. |
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djsmnc
Joined: 20 Jan 2003
Location: Dave's ESL Cafe
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| Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 6:42 pm Post subject: Re: Before coffee, most people were drunk |
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| mindmetoo wrote: |
| djsmnc wrote: |
| Then what happened in the Islamic world? |
Fundamentalism. The Islamic world used to be quite advanced. A large number of the stars we know by name (eg Rigel, Deneb, Aldebaran, etc.) were named by Islamic astronomers. They were quite advanced in math and astronomy, notably during the dark ages. And they were probably sober. However, they lost their edge by getting drunk on the religion opiate. |
But the Muslims were largely influenced by the Byzantines who were Christian.
I htink a stronger argument in this case would be: In earlier times, people posited theories and made calculations based on the religious views of the period in which they lived. Drunkedness probably had little to do with it except during the enlightenment perhaps. However, wasn't it Benjamin Franklin who wrote about drinking beer for breakfast? I suppose you could also say that opium and nitrous oxide led to a bit of a Romantic era. |
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Bigfeet
Joined: 29 May 2008
Location: Grrrrr.....
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| Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 6:47 pm Post subject: |
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| mindmetoo wrote: |
| Bigfeet wrote: |
| Gas light does not produce CO, |
Not according to the guy they had on the halloween ep of This American Life. Gas was powered by coal gas, which had a lot of CO in it. Refer to this link. |
Ok, I think you're right. Gas burning in room with restricted airflow can cause CO poisoning. But I don't think it caused more people to believe in ghosts. I think more reading caused that. |
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