GETTING OUT OF A BORING CONVERSATION _ In her book “The Art of Mingling,” Jeanne Martinet has a few tips on how to handle social nightmares. Here are a few:
• Try the “Shake & Break” method: smile and say, “It was so nice meeting you,” while shaking the person’s hand. Then turn and walk away without another word.
• If that’s too hard, try the “Offensive Escape”: Talk slowly, drop things, discuss the most uninteresting topics and the person will leave you.
• But probably the easiest method of moving on is the “Human Sacrifice”: Introduce the person to someone who’s passing by. Using the “Have you met?” line. This gives you a short window to excuse yourself.
• Finally, if all else fails, beg off saying you have make a bee-line to the restroom, then go.
FUN WAYS TO GET OUT OF A BORING CONVERSATION
• Gasp loudly and announce that you just remembered you left your good shoes in the oven.
• Pull out a small notebook and ask them to repeat everything they just said so you can “document this moment.”
• Ask them to hold your drink for a second and then tell them you’re going to the bar for another one so you can drink uninterrupted.
• Remind them that you are allergic to wording ending in ‘ing’ and that get a migraine if you hear too many.
• Check your watch repeatedly and mumble, “Time to feed the goldfish.”
SCIENTISTS TO BROADCAST EARTH’S LOCATION TO ALIENS _ Scientists have designed a radio message to be beamed into deep space that is meant to be received and, they hope, understood by an intelligent alien civilization. The message is essentially an updated version of another message transmitted in 1974, which had the same purpose. Broadcast from the Arecibo Radio Telescope in Puerto Rico, that message consisted of 1,679 bits arranged into 73 lines of 23 characters. The message was transmitted in binary code — ones and zeroes. Once decoded, the message forms a visual graphic consisting of a stick figure of a human as well as representations of our solar system, DNA, and the Arecibo telescope. Scientists have designed a new message to improve upon the Arecibo transmission. Called the Beacon in the Galaxy (BITG) message, it contains more information about basic mathematics and science than the 1974 message did. It is hoped that these concepts will be universally understood by life forms of at least similar intelligence to humans.
WHY PEOPLE DON’T SIGNAL _ The turn signal switch — it’s not hard to find, it doesn’t require great effort or force to turn on, it even shuts off by itself. So why do so many people refuse to use turn signals? According to a survey:
• 23 percent blamed laziness
• 17 percent said they don’t like to signal because they are afraid of forgetting to turn it off
• 11 percent say it’s not important
• 8 percent don’t signal because other drivers don’t
• 2 percent don’t have enough time (WTF?)
• 7 percent actually say that not signaling adds excitement
… Men are less likely to use turn signals than women, and young people signal more frequently than older people.
