Common Knowledge
Dad Facts
Technology
Canada in the 1900's
Plastics
Pictures
100
A unit of energy equivalent to the heat energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1°C.
1 Calorie (4.1868 joules)
100
The somewhat derogatory nicknames given by mistake to Grandmother and Grandpa when Dad was a little boy.
Dummy and Maddy
100
This rigid structure that contains electrical circuitry made up of embedded metal surfaces called traces and larger areas of metal called planes.
Circuit board
100
The Great Depression hit Canada in this decade.
1930's
100
It has the simplest structure of all the plastics, making it easy and cheap to produce. Used in plastic bags, various containers, and most famously for plastic wraps.
Low-density polyethylene (LDPE)
100
The Blanding’s Turtle is found in and around the Great Lakes Basin, with isolated populations elsewhere in the United States and Canada. This species hibernates in this substrate at the bottom of permanent water bodies from late October until the end of April.
Mud
200
Pi, exactly to the 10 digit.
3.141592653
200
Shown here, it is one of Dad's favorite knots.
Trucker's Hitch
200
It is your computer's short-term memory. It's where the data is stored that your computer processor needs to run your applications and open your files.
Random-access memory (RAM)
200
This city hosted the Winter Olympics in 1988.
Calgary, AB.
200
This plastic is largely used in the building and construction industry to produce door and window profiles and pipes.
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
200
The Papilio glaucus, more commonly known as the eastern tiger swallowtail, is a species of butterfly native to eastern North America and is one of the most familiar butterflies in the eastern United States, ranging north to southern Ontario, Canada. Its caterpillar has these decoys on the back of its thorax.
Eyes
300
The number of feet in a mile.
5280
300
The date Bill became Dad.
June 10th 1982
300
This software company created the popular program Solidworks.
Dassault Systèmes
300
This vote took place on October 30th 1995, with only two options to vote for, one of them receiving 50.58% of votes.
Quebec referendum
300
Commonly used to make playground equipment, lids, and shampoo bottles this plastic is used because it’s made with long unbranched polymer chains. This makes it much stronger and thicker than others.
High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE)
300
Surface reflectors placed on the Moon during this Apollo mission show that the Moon moves away from Earth at the rate of about an inch and a half per year.
Apollo 11
400
This is the most abundant element in the universe.
Hydrogen
400
Dad's favorite cleaning agent.
Bar Keepers Friend
400
This type of image sensor is used more often than Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) image sensors, even though CCD can provide better image quality.
Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor. (CMOS)
400
This popular Canadian burger joint was founded the same year that Dad was born.
Harvey's
400
This plastic is highly inflammable and dangerous as it can leach harmful chemicals, especially when heated (which often happens because, as it’s found in disposable take-out containers, people oftentimes microwave it to heat up the food inside it). Perhaps better known by its commercial name, Styrofoam.
Polystyrene
400
This flower, named after John Clayton, an 18th century botanist and one of the earliest collectors of plant specimens, is a native wildflower that produces small pink flowers in early spring.
Claytonia caroliniana
500
The circumference of the Earth.
40,075 km (24,901 mi)
500
As a teenager on his bike, Dad used this tactic to scare pedestrians back onto the sidewalk when they stepped out into the bike lane without looking.
Leaning forward, balancing on the front wheel like a unicycle, and wiggling his back tire back and forth through the air.
500
This is the official name for the “prove you’re not a robot” tests that websites sometimes require.
CAPTCHAs
500
In this year Canada replaced 1 dollar bills with Loonies.
1989
500
Shown here, this plastic is common in your household.
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
500
Great Horned Owls are fierce predators that can take large prey, including raptors such as Ospreys, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons, and other owls. When clenched, a Great Horned Owl’s strong talons require this much pound-force to pry open.
A force of 28 pounds