In this episode, Bob and Marcia discuss various trivia and facts, including the 5% divorce rate of bald eagles, the method by which Wild West cowboys created sonic booms by cracking whips, and the Hole in the Wall Gang led by Butch Cassidy. They also delve into historical events such as Spartacus’ slave rebellion, which grew from 70 to 90,000-100,000 participants, and the role of carrier pigeons in WWI. The European Space Agency launches from French Guiana due to its proximity to the equator. They explore state sports, such as Maryland’s jousting and Alaska’s dog mushing, and discuss the first president to be photographed (William Henry Harrison) and the first to win a Nobel Prize (Teddy Roosevelt). They conclude with Jimmy Carter’s installation of solar panels on the White House and a quote from him about the U.S. being a mosaic of different people.
Outline
Bald Eagle Divorce Rate and Mating Behavior
- Bob Smith and Marcia Smith discuss the divorce rate of bald eagles, with Marcia clarifying that it is a percentage.
- Marcia explains that scientists have studied and found the divorce rate to be less than 5%.
- Bob is surprised by the finding and asks how scientists determined this, to which Marcia responds that it was through studies.
- Marcia describes the mating ritual of bald eagles, including the kamikaze courtship where the birds lock talons and tumble until nearly hitting the ground.
Whip Cracking and Sonic Booms
- Bob Smith asks Marcia Smith how Wild West cowboys created sonic booms, leading to a discussion about whip cracking.
- Marcia is initially skeptical but learns that cracking a whip creates a sound that breaks the sound barrier, making it a sonic boom.
- Bob shares the information from britannica.com, explaining that the sound from the whip loop breaking the sound barrier is a sonic boom.
- Marcia finds the explanation interesting and agrees that it is a fascinating fact.
Butch Cassidy’s Hole in the Wall Gang
- Marcia Smith asks Bob Smith about the gang headed by Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, leading to a discussion about the Hole in the Wall Gang.
- Bob and Marcia discuss the members of the gang, including Black Jack Ketchum and the Logan brothers.
- Marcia is surprised to learn that the gang had a 20-year run from 1890 to 1910.
- Bob and Marcia joke about the name of the gang sounding like a country music group.
Spartacus’ Slave Uprising
- Marcia Smith asks Bob Smith about the size of Spartacus’ slave uprising, leading to a discussion about the historical event.
- Bob explains that Spartacus started the uprising with about 70 other gladiators, and the ranks swelled to 90,000 to 100,000 men.
- The rebellion lasted two years until it was defeated by General Marcus Lacinius in 71 BC.
- Marcia is shocked to learn that 6,000 survivors were crucified by the Roman army.
Carrier Pigeons in World War I
- Marcia Smith asks Bob Smith about the animal that saved troops during World War I, leading to a discussion about carrier pigeons.
- Bob explains that carrier pigeons, also known as homing pigeons, delivered crucial messages to armed forces during the war.
- Despite being severely wounded by enemy fire, the pigeons effectively saved the lives of hundreds of soldiers.
- Bob finds it amazing that pigeons were trained to fly through battlefield areas and deliver messages.
European Space Agency Launch Site
- Marcia Smith asks Bob Smith where the European Space Agency launches its flights, leading to a discussion about the launch site.
- Bob explains that the ESA launches from French Guiana in South America due to the proximity to the equator.
- The equatorial location provides a slingshot effect boost to the rockets, adding more than 1,000 miles per hour to the launches.
- Marcia finds the explanation interesting and agrees to consult britannica.com for more details.
Alexandria’s Lighthouse of Alexandria
- Marcia Smith asks Bob Smith about the city of Alexandria and its famous library, leading to a discussion about the Lighthouse of Alexandria.
- Bob explains that the lighthouse was built in ancient Egypt and was considered a technological triumph.
- The lighthouse was the archetype of all lighthouses since and remained the tallest buildings in the world at the time.
- Marcia is surprised to learn that the lighthouse was built using slaves standing on each other’s shoulders.
State Sports and Unique Distinctions
- Bob Smith shares a list of official state sports recognized by state legislatures, highlighting unique distinctions.
- Bob mentions that Maryland has jousting as its state sport, and its team sport is lacrosse.
- Alaska’s state sport is dog mushing, and Delaware lists bicycling as its state sport.
- Bob and Marcia discuss other unique state sports, including ice hockey in Minnesota and American football in Michigan.
Musicians Known by One Name
- Marcia Smith introduces a game called “Also Known As” (AKA) where they guess musicians known by one name.
- Bob and Marcia guess musicians like Prince, Pink, Sting, and Bono.
- They discuss other musicians and their unique names, finding the game enjoyable.
- Marcia asks Bob about the first TV show to feature the sound of a toilet flushing, leading to a discussion about “All in the Family.”
Presidential Trivia and Chocolate Bar Auction
- Bob Smith and Marcia Smith discuss various presidential trivia, including the first president to be photographed in office and the first president to be impeached.
- They also discuss the first president to win a Nobel Prize while in office, which was Teddy Roosevelt.
- Bob asks Marcia about a Cadbury chocolate bar that sold at auction for $700, leading to a discussion about its historical significance.
- Marcia explains that the chocolate bar was from the first British attempt to reach the South Pole in 1901 and was part of the RS Discovery expedition.
Jimmy Carter’s Solar Panels and Presidential Quotes
- Bob Smith and Marcia Smith discuss Jimmy Carter’s installation of the first solar panels on the White House roof.
- They mention that Ronald Reagan removed the panels during his presidency, and they were never put back.
- Bob shares a quote from Jimmy Carter about the United States becoming a mosaic of different people and beliefs.
- Marcia and Bob conclude the show, inviting listeners to join them again for more fascinating facts and trivia.
Bob Smith 0:00
How did Wild West cowboys create sonic booms, and what’s the divorce rate of the bald eagle? But what answers to those and other nutty questions coming up in this episode of the off ramp with Bob and Marcia Smith? You Music.
Welcome to the off ramp, a chance to slow down, steer clear of crazy and take a side road to sanity with fascinating facts and tantalizing trivia. Okay, Marcia, the bald eagle population, has a divorce problem. Is that? What I’m hearing,
Marcia Smith 0:47
no, not a problem. They have a rate of divorce. I’m asking you the question is, what’s the divorce rate, percentage wise?
Bob Smith 0:54
How do they know this? Are there court cases? When does this happen?
Marcia Smith 0:58
Scientists investigated this and studied this, and they came up with a number. Okay,
Bob Smith 1:03
so the bald eagles aren’t monogamous. They don’t stay with their mates for life.
Marcia Smith 1:07
I didn’t say that. I said, what is their divorce? Okay, all right, 50% 50% divorce rate. No, it’s 5%
Bob Smith 1:15
how in the world would they even notice this? America’s national
Marcia Smith 1:19
bird upholds a high standard for family life, following their kamikaze courtship ritual in which two birds lock talons and tumble end over end until they nearly hit the ground. Really, yeah, that’s how they mate. The male and female settle into a period of domestic bliss, marked by dad’s willingness to undertake incubation and feeding duties. How about that? How successful is that? I like that. The divorce rate for these birds is less than 5% according to scientists, and while they spend large chunks of the year alone, bald eagles mark their fidelity with a shared long term commitment to nest.
Bob Smith 2:00
We still haven’t answered the question, How did they find out that they
Marcia Smith 2:04
study bald eagle? Okay? Well, and they have marked 5% of the population leaves the nest, otherwise they hang together for their entire life. Okay,
Bob Smith 2:17
no other evidence. I get it all right. Marcia, it’s a scientific study. Okay, Marshall for happy, here’s some science for you. Oh, yeah. How did Wild West cowboys create sonic booms? Well, that’s an interesting thought. They actually created sonic booms. Gosh, how could
Marcia Smith 2:34
they do that? They couldn’t ride a horse that fast. They couldn’t, I can’t think, because, technically
Bob Smith 2:39
speaking, something that’s kind of normal creates sonic booms cattle. How did they create sonic booms? Not by feeding things to their cattle? No, they did it by cracking their whips, really. In fact, anyone in the history of the world who ever cracked a whip has created a sonic boom. According to britannica.com the sound made from the loop of the whip is the whip breaking the sound barrier. So technically speaking, a whip crack is a sonic boom. And that’s how wild west cowboys created sonic booms. They cracked their whips. Well,
Marcia Smith 3:15
that’s very interesting. It’s that fast. It’s that intense. Yes, that speedy. Well, good to know Bob. Okay. What was the name of the gang, headed up by Butch Cassidy and the sun Dazz kid.
Bob Smith 3:28
That was the god. What was that? It wasn’t the gang that couldn’t shoot straight. It was the had a number in it, didn’t it? No,
Marcia Smith 3:35
it did not. I didn’t know that this was a real name, the Hole in the Wall Gang. The Hole in the Wall Gang. The gang was a group of real outlaws who hid out in the hole in the wall pass located in Wyoming. So there is a pass in Wyoming where they hid out. So that’s the name of a place. Yeah, I didn’t know that either. The gang also included Black Jack Ketchum and the Logan brothers, among others, and they had a 20 year run from 1890 to 1910
Bob Smith 4:06
the Logan brothers, that sounds like a country music group or something, doesn’t Yeah? You know, a lot of these singing groups had names that sounded like gangs when you think about it, yeah, the outlaws and all these other people. Yeah. Okay, so the Logan brothers was a gang that was also associated with the hole in the wall.
Marcia Smith 4:21
And they were 20 years they hung out hole in the wall, all right,
Bob Smith 4:25
Marcia, speaking of outlaws, how big was Roman gladiator, Spartacus, slave uprising in the first century BC. You remember as a kid going to a movie that talked about Spartacus. Think
Marcia Smith 4:38
it was Ben hurry said, I love you Spartacus. Okay, I was a little tiny girl, but I remember that.
Bob Smith 4:44
So the gladiator Spartacus started a slave uprising. How big did it get? How many people did it involve? How
Marcia Smith 4:52
many people? How many slaves? I’ll say, 4000
Bob Smith 4:57
it went much larger than that. That this is fascinating, and this is ancient history, but it comes from National Geographic this started small, but grew huge. Spartacus, who was born in the modern day Balkans, was sold into slavery, and he was sent to gladiatorial training school in cupola in 73 BC, but soon after, he escaped with about 70 other Gladiators, the ranks swelled. Eventually, 90,000 to 100,000 men joined ranks with him, using guerrilla tactics to fight off Roman attacks. Did it work? Well. It lasted two years, the rebellion, until 71 BC. That’s when General Marcus lacinius defeated the rebel army 35 miles southeast of Naples. Spartacus is believed to have died in battle. 6000 men survived, but they were later crucified by the
Marcia Smith 5:48
Roman army. Oh, my God. So people went back to being slaves. Well, not the ones that were crucified. No, no, no. They went back. Oh, Jesus. 6000 men survived the battle. They were all killed. Oh, my God, that’s how the Romans were terrible story. Don’t mess with the Romans. Oh, my God. Oh, Lord.
Bob Smith 6:06
So Spartacus a huge, huge slave rebellion, 100,000 people at
Marcia Smith 6:11
one point, and Spartacus had been a slave. Yes, okay, well, see, I didn’t know that, and I saw the movie that’s been a few years. Yes, it has. All right, Bob, what type of animal was the Sher AMI said to have saved us troops during World War One. Share Ami. Uh huh. See, share Ami. It translates to dear friend. Dear friend.
Bob Smith 6:35
Was this a dog? Perhaps
Marcia Smith 6:36
no cat. Maybe it wasn’t a cat, but it was an animal. Okay. What was it? Okay. It’s what the troops called the carrier pigeon, or homing pigeon, that became a hero during World War One. The pigeons delivered crucial messages to armed forces about the location of the quote, lost battalion during the Muses offensive. Despite the birds being severely wounded by enemy fire, gosh, the birds effectively saved the lives of hundreds of soldiers who were trapped behind enemy lines and were unable to communicate their position. Isn’t
Bob Smith 7:09
that amazing? You could train pigeons to fly into a battlefield area. Yeah, yeah, wow, all that stuff’s going on, all the concussions from the and they
Marcia Smith 7:19
sent out their location because they couldn’t communicate from where they were, and they saved hundreds of people. Wow,
Bob Smith 7:25
that is amazing. I never thought of that. And, you know, they train dogs and so forth, and they relayed things, but to train pigeons to fly through flak and explosions and everything else during a war, they called them share a me, Wow. I was thinking of something that was a little more romantic, but that’s pretty good. I guess that’s romantic. That’s romantic in its own way. Dear friend, Marcia, where does the European Space Agency launch its flights and why? I never thought there’s a clue. Okay, it’s not in Europe. So where does the European Space Agency launch its flights
Marcia Smith 7:57
from? Do it in Australia. No, I don’t know. They do
Bob Smith 8:01
it from French Guiana in South America. Now, why would they do it from there? Because of the weather? No, it’s about the proximity to the equator. Yeah, the French territories, proximity to the equator gives the rockets a slingshot effect boost, adding more than 1000 miles per hour to the launches there, because the Earth is bulging there and closer to space, really?
Marcia Smith 8:24
Yeah, how? What kind of 1000 1000
Bob Smith 8:28
mile per hour boost to the launch? Isn’t that amazing?
Marcia Smith 8:32
I don’t understand again, why the curvature of the earth, a physics
Bob Smith 8:36
site I consulted, said the earth is moving faster there. The speed of the Earth is faster at the equator, and then that gives a slingshot effect to the rocket as it takes off. It’s a phenomenon that I can’t totally explain. Okay, so I will suggest you go to britannica.com which has the information in detail right after the football in the kind of detail you would have said, Okay, Bob, that’s enough. I don’t need to know anymore, but you’re asking for it today.
Marcia Smith 9:03
I do have a limit. Okay, Bob, in ancient times, before you were born, the city of Alexandria was known for its library and one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. You know what it was?
Bob Smith 9:18
It wasn’t the Colossus at Rhodes. It was a lighthouse that was there. Very good, fantastic lighthouse, and the
Marcia Smith 9:25
Lighthouse of Alexandria, yeah. And what’s so interesting about this, construction started for it in 280 BC. Isn’t that amazing? The lighthouse was built in ancient Egypt and was considered a technological triumph, and it remains the archetype of all lighthouses since. And if you see a picture of this, it looks like a lighthouse today. They’ve reconstructed parts of it, haven’t they? I don’t know it. Earthquakes eventually destroyed it, so I don’t know if they reconstruct it or rebuilt it. Perhaps those
Bob Smith 9:54
were like the tallest buildings in the world at the time. And think about the technology they had. They. Didn’t have cranes and things like we have today. But how did they build these things? They had to. I’m sure it was sophisticated for its time,
Marcia Smith 10:05
slaves standing on the shoulders of one another. That’s part
Bob Smith 10:10
of the sophistication. Oh, my goodness, all right, Marcia, I have found something interesting. You’ve heard these things where I think it was Maryland has jousting as it’s one of its official sports. I recall that. So I thought, Gee, I bet there’s a list of these. And I found it. Wikipedia has published a list of official sports as recognized by the state legislatures, and I’ve got some unique distinctions, okay, oh, yeah. Two states have surfing as state sports. Okay. What are those states? Hawaii, yes, yes. And California, that’s right, that’s right. Hawaii also has a team sport, though, outrigger canoe paddling. I wouldn’t guess that that’s unique. Okay, one state has the most unusual sports. I said, Maryland, where they have jousting as the state sport. Their their team sport is lacrosse. So both of those are kind of unique. Yes, based game, yeah, Native Americans, they were the first state to adopt a state sport that started in 1962 so all these sports have been adopted since then. Another unusual sport, Alaska’s any idea what their state sport? I
Marcia Smith 11:11
bet it’s Husky racing, mush mush dog mushing,
Bob Smith 11:15
yeah. Dog mushing, yes. One state lists bicycling, that’s Delaware, okay, another ice hockey. That’s Minnesota. New York claims baseball. Another lists American football. Guess which one that is
Marcia Smith 11:28
American football as opposed to soccer? Yeah, I don’t know.
Bob Smith 11:33
Michigan, okay, three more states have unique sports. Missouri has archery, skiing. Is in New Hampshire. Still another has adopted stock car racing as their favorite sport. Where do you think that would be? Alabama, North Carolina. Okay, one state has both summer and winter sports. Only one state. What state would that be? Minnesota? No, but Colorado. Okay, it’s winter sport is snowboarding. You’ll never guess what their summer sport is. Mountain climbing, no pack burrow racing like mules.
Marcia Smith 12:06
Haven’t tried that one yet. I got some others coming up. Okay, want to do aka Bob, sure. My favorite game is, what’s the topic today? Okay, first, aka stands for also known as Uh huh. And today, you’ll do good at this. Musicians known by one name, okay, okay, ready, yes. Son of a king, son of a king, prince, correct, between red and white, between red and white, pink, yep.
Bob Smith 12:33
Okay. Bee injury, a bee injury, Sting, yep.
Marcia Smith 12:36
These are good. Label of approval, label
Bob Smith 12:40
of approval, bravo, Bono. I don’t know what that one is, seal. Oh, seal. Okay, gotcha
Marcia Smith 12:48
give some to others. Give
Bob Smith 12:51
some to others. This is good. Give some to others. Give what to others. Give praise. No, just
Marcia Smith 12:57
give to others. Okay, but what are you doing when you give to other people? You’re gifting, yeah, what’s another word for it? I don’t know. She’s a singer today. Still, who share? Oh,
Bob Smith 13:10
you share, oh, it’s misspelled. I see it’s spelled differently, okay? Uh
Marcia Smith 13:13
huh, Ruby or sapphire,
Bob Smith 13:17
emerald, diamond stone.
Marcia Smith 13:20
Collectively, they are
Bob Smith 13:21
gems, clothes, Jewel, oh, gosh, okay, all right, all right. And
Marcia Smith 13:28
finally, dramatically cut prices. Dramatically
Bob Smith 13:32
cut prices, sale, no,
Unknown Speaker 13:36
I don’t know, Flash. Oh, okay. I kept
Bob Smith 13:39
waiting for Ringo and, you know, and Bono and all those guys,
Marcia Smith 13:43
no slash, share, Jewel sting, seal, pink Prince. And
Bob Smith 13:48
from that we go to the question we’ve all been waiting to answer. Yeah, what TV show was the first ever to feature the sound of a toilet flushing,
Marcia Smith 13:56
all in the family? That’s exactly right. How did you know that? I don’t know. I don’t know how I know that. Wow,
Bob Smith 14:02
that was more than a decade after Leave It to Beaver broke ground by showing a toilet tank. One of the episodes, yeah, I think Wally and the beef put their turtles or something in the toilet tank
Marcia Smith 14:13
and the beef, yeah, what was the first show to have two people in the same bed? That was, see, what was that? I don’t I mean, a husband and wife, I
Bob Smith 14:23
don’t know. Do you? No, I think it was Bob Newhart. Oh, that could be, yeah. But back to this one, yeah, toilet flushing all in the family. In 1971 they played a loud flushing toilet sound for the first time. But it wasn’t a one time thing for the bunkers. There were several instances of Archie talking from the upstairs bathroom. Oh my goodness, I think it’s time for a break. Okay, yeah, we’ll clean up the show after we get back. Okay, we’re back. We’re done with the no more toilet flushing. I don’t think
Marcia Smith 14:55
that’s done.
Bob Smith 14:59
Oh, no. Oh, what is that? My
Marcia Smith 15:01
key chain? Yeah, it’s a key chain. Oh, I think it was from our son a million years ago. Oh,
Bob Smith 15:06
my goodness. And it’s a little key chain. It looks like a kimono. It’s got a handle. You just flush it and you Oh, geez, good lord, get that out of here. Where has that been all this time? In that kitchen drawer, the kitchen drawer, junk drawer. Oh, my, let’s hear it one more time. Okay, oh, dear God, we have lowered this show
Marcia Smith 15:28
to standards. Yes, we have, yes.
Bob Smith 15:30
All right, all right, all right. Marcia, here’s a good question for you, what food was used as a currency in ancient Rome, and I’ll give you some choices here. Okay? Parmesan, turmeric, cocoa or salt? Turmeric. No, it’s not what salt? Well, you’re changing your mind. Yes, okay, well, you’re right. Food has been used as a currency for centuries, and in ancient Rome, Legionnaires could be paid in salt. That explains the origin of the word salary, which comes from the Latin word solarium, a ration of salt.
Marcia Smith 16:03
Really? Yeah? Oh, wow. Well, like, if I hand you a carton of Morton Salt, I could get something for
Bob Smith 16:09
you. Mean, for a kiss? Sure? A salt kiss? Yes, the custom of paying people with salt was also widespread in ancient China and East Africa during the Middle Ages, where salt was the main currency. That’s because salt was, you know, a preservative and used to flavor food. It was it unusual? Was it has to be mined, but it wasn’t rare. Was it? Well, it’s difficult to get to so it takes equipment and work to get salt. Okay? So anything like that would take effort that has value. More recently, salt was also used as money by a number of Ethiopian tribes, really? Yeah. Okay, so that’s the food that was used as currency in ancient Rome, salt. Okay,
Marcia Smith 16:49
so let’s get a little more serious. How can you tell the sex of a crab?
Bob Smith 16:53
You mean the gender of a crab? Yes.
Marcia Smith 16:57
Let me rephrase. Is there
Bob Smith 16:59
a physical change, a physical distinction. Yes, okay, so it has a, you know what? I don’t know about that. Oh, okay. Well, what does have a smiley face or something? How would I know the difference? Well,
Marcia Smith 17:12
I know that. How Would anybody, if you’re buying a female or a male crab to have for dinner, you can tell by its stomach, the lady has a beehive shaped tummy Bob, and the boy has a lighthouse shaped stomach, a lighthouse. Yeah, I don’t know how what that means. Wow. Have you ever noticed this distinction? No, I have. Not, okay, but now that I know, I will look for it. Oh, Costco, let’s look at the craft. Oh, cheer.
Bob Smith 17:38
All right, I’m back to state sports now, and I got a couple other fun facts. All right, three states have rodeos. Do you know what the states are? Oh,
Marcia Smith 17:46
one is Oregon. No, yeah, our daughter went to a rodeo there. That’s not their state sport, though. All right, Texas, Texas is one. Idaho, no. And Wyoming. Wyoming is
Bob Smith 18:04
another one. Yeah, too, Texas and Wyoming and one other state to the east
Marcia Smith 18:08
of Wyoming, of Wyoming,
Bob Smith 18:12
state with big faces on a mountain, oh, Mount Rushmore, yes. Well, what’s the state? North Dakota, South Dakota, South Dakota. Okay, so Dakota, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming, all have rodeos as their state sports. Interesting that while South Dakota has rodeo, North Dakota has curling. Yes, you wouldn’t expect that, would you? No, here’s one. It’s very different. One state isn’t a state, it’s a Commonwealth, and it has official, individual and team Commonwealth sports. What place is that that we call a state? It’s actually a Commonwealth.
Marcia Smith 18:48
Gosh, here’s my ignorance. I don’t know Massachusetts. That’s the one. What are
Bob Smith 18:53
the sports? What are their official sports? And here’s a hint for this one. They were both invented there.
Marcia Smith 18:59
Seems to me, they like rowing. Is that one? No,
Bob Smith 19:05
I don’t know. Massachusetts has two sports, world famous, both in the Olympics, played all over the world. Yes, both invented in Massachusetts, in the YMCA, and they are, yeah, basketball and volleyball, really? Yeah, they’re official sports. The only state that can say we invented the sport that’s our state sport, basketball was invented in December 1891 by James Naismith. I think we’ve talked about this a couple of times. He was an instructor at the YMCA training school looking for an indoor game to keep his students fit during the New England winters originally played with peach baskets, and the balls had to be manually retrieved after a score. Metal hoops with backboards were adopted in 1906 volleyball invented in 1895 by William G Morgan at the YMCA in Holyoke, Massachusetts. He was looking for a sport that was. Physically demanding than basketball for middle aged business people. Apparently they found basketballs bumping or jolting too strenuous, so he came up with something called mintonette. That was the original name mintonette. Somebody said, you know, you’re volleying this ball. Why don’t we just call it volleyball in the Italian okay? And it was two words originally. Now it’s one word volleyball, but they were both invented in Massachusetts by the YMCA people there. So you can thank the YMCA for both of those sports.
Marcia Smith 20:30
All right, Mr. Presidential History, I’ll give you three accomplishments, and you tell me the president who was the first to do it? Okay? Ready? Yes. Who was the first president to be photographed while in office? Hmm,
Bob Smith 20:46
photographed while in office? Well, let’s see. It was Abraham Lincoln. He was photographed numerous times in office. What was he President of the United States? You probably don’t remember that, but
Marcia Smith 20:57
no, I mean, what number? Was he 1617? But no, 16th, I think, yeah, no, this is well before him, and this person
Bob Smith 21:04
was photographed while they were in office, correct? Okay, was it? Was it John Quincy Adams, he was photographed years later, I thought, after his presidency, yeah, but this is during Tyler. No.
Marcia Smith 21:14
Okay. Who was it ninth president, William Henry Harrison, no kidding. He was the first to have a photo during his inauguration on March, 4, 1841, and then what happened one month later, he died. He died, wow, but at least they had a picture. So
Bob Smith 21:30
all the other presidents said, not going to take my picture. That’s right. I know what happened to him.
Marcia Smith 21:34
Who Bob was the first president to be impeached, and why that
Bob Smith 21:39
was Andrew Johnson. He was impeached because he was trying to roll back some of the Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War reforms, sort
Marcia Smith 21:46
of he was dismissed. You’re right. It was Andrew Johnson impeached in 1868 for dismissing the Secretary of War, Edward Stanton without the approval of the Senate, aha, as required in the Tenure of Office Act. So you just can’t get rid of these big, big job titles without approval. Apparently, Stanton attacked congressional policies on the reconstruction of the South, so that’s why he dumped them. And you’re you were right along those lines, but he was impeached for not following protocol. And lastly, who was the first president to win a Nobel Prize while in office. That was Teddy Roosevelt, wasn’t it? Yes. And you know what it was for? It was for the Japanese Russian war. I think very good. It was a Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for mediating the treaty which ended the Russell Japanese war.
Bob Smith 22:39
Well, I have a couple presidential questions myself here. Oh, well, I’m not as good as you dear, who was the first president inaugurated by his nickname, where they actually used a nickname when they said his name
Marcia Smith 22:50
was that grant, no, no, no, okay. Ike, no. Huh?
Bob Smith 22:54
This person was sworn into office at the age of 46 Yeah?
Marcia Smith 22:59
JFK, 1977 Oh, what is it? LBJ, no,
Bob Smith 23:03
who? Jimmy Carter. James was actually his name, oh, and they called him Jimmy, yeah, but Jimmy went in as Jimmy. There’s a number of other distinctions. He and Rosalynn Carter were married longer than any presidential couple. They were married for how many years?
Marcia Smith 23:20
70 some years, 77 years. Yeah, yeah, they’re like bald eagles. They
Bob Smith 23:25
are now this is interesting. What president’s post presidential house was worth less than the secret service vehicles parked outside it the post presidential house. Yeah?
Marcia Smith 23:38
Vehicles. So that brings us up to more modern day President, yeah, I don’t know, Jimmy
Bob Smith 23:44
Carter, oh, really, yes. After leaving the White House, he went back to the same house that they lived in before he entered politics, a two bedroom ranch valued at less than the armored secret service vehicles parked outside. And then, of course, Rosalynn died in November 2023 at the age of 96 and Jimmy died in 2025
Marcia Smith 24:04
so that’s interesting. Okay, Bob, why did a Cadbury chocolate bar, a regular chocolate bar, sell at auction for $700
Bob Smith 24:14
let’s see Cadbury chocolates. That’s from England. So it must have been something that was given as a present to Queen Victoria. Oh, that’s a
Marcia Smith 24:21
good guess. Among the highlights of Christie’s Auction in London in September, 2001 was the record breaking sale of an ordinary Cadbury chocolate bar to an unidentified buyer for almost $700 jeez, it’s to
Bob Smith 24:36
have gold in it or something. No, it
Marcia Smith 24:38
was 100 year old bar they had Cadbury, oh yeah, long time ago, yeah, packaging and everything, wow. It’s a bar that had survived unopened from the first British attempt to reach the South Pole in 1901 wow. Part of the Hall of 3500 pounds of cocoa and chocolate stashed in the. R, S discovery under the command of explorer Robert Falcon. Scott, oh,
Bob Smith 25:04
no kidding. So they took us when they found that ship just recently, wow, yeah,
Marcia Smith 25:08
they found all this chocolate. So why did they take all this chocolate? Because what we now understand to be the effects of sugar and caffeine combined with energy boosting antioxidants. So they took it for their trip to keep them.
Bob Smith 25:22
They took it because it was chocolate Mars. Let’s face it, come on, guys, what are we gonna eat here? Okay, let’s put some scientific analysis. No, they liked it. It tasted good. We can’t make
Marcia Smith 25:32
a brisket. Let’s go for the chocolate. Oh, my God, all
Bob Smith 25:35
right. And one more presidential question, yes. Who is the President who installed the first solar panels on the roof of the White House. Who did that? I don’t even know they were up there. Well, they’re not up there anymore because his successor took them down. Oh, really. Why? Okay, who was the president? The president was Jimmy Carter, and who took him down? Ronald Reagan. Apparently, they were just doing maintenance on the roof, and they took them off, and they never put them back. So Jimmy Carter installed the first solar heating panels on the roof of the White House that was in 1979 he predicted that 20% of the US energy in the future would be solar power. And guess what? Today, 20% of our energy is solar power.
Marcia Smith 26:16
He had some good moments, and here’s a quote to end the day we become not a melting pot, but a beautiful mosaic, different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams. And who is that? Jimmy Carter, oh, that was good. All right, celebrating his life here.
Bob Smith 26:33
Well, we hope you’ve enjoyed today’s show, and you’ll come back again for more when we return with more fascinating facts and tantalizing trivia. I’m Bob Smith. I’m Marcia Smith. Join us again next time for more fun here on
Marcia Smith 26:45
the off ramp, you
Bob Smith 27:03
the off ramp is produced in association with the Cedarbrook Public Library Cedarburg, Wisconsin. Visit us on the web at the off ramp. Dot show you.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
