TAILGATING _ It’s no longer just about the football. Tailgating is big business at the NFL, college and even high school level. The history of tailgating is not entirely clear, but it likely has its roots in bringing picnics to watch the Civil War.
• In 1861, civilians gathered in Washington DC to watch the first battle of the Bull Run and brought picnic baskets filled with food and drinks.
• Another legend says tailgating started in the 19th century when football enthusiasts had little choice but to cook in their carriage after a long trip.
• The modern tailgate likely has its roots in college football, first played at College Field in New Brunswick, New Jersey, between Rutgers and Princeton in 1869.
• Tailgating as we know it today did not become popular until after World War II when the advent of the automobile led to the democratization of pre-football partying.
• The parties took off at colleges nationwide in the late 1970s, thanks partly to station wagons and alumni wanting to reconnect at the games. Along the way, it jumped to the NFL.
HUMANS ARE STILL EVOLVING _ Some have suggested modern medicine has frozen human evolution. With advanced medicine and reproductive technologies, the vast majority of humans enjoy lifespans long enough to pass on their genes to the next generation. But a study found natural selection is still altering the human genome in subtle ways. When researchers surveyed the genomes of 210,000 people from the United States and Britain, they found genetic anomalies linked to Alzheimer’s disease and heavy smoking were less common among those with longer lifespans. Scientists also found those who lived longer were less likely to carry genetic mutations linked with heart disease, high cholesterol, obesity, and asthma. The findings suggested humans are still influenced by natural sections, as those with longer lifespans are more likely to pass along their mutation-free genes.
SOME MEN ALSO HAVE TROUBLE FIGURING OUT WHAT TO WEAR _ Some trivia for you: A quarter of men can’t make a decision about this even after 20 minutes. What is it? The answer: What to wear. And if it weren’t for the women in their lives, most men would look like a train wreck. A survey revealed that more than half of men confess that they rely on the woman in their life to pick out their clothes for them for the next day. One in 20 adult men still ask their moms to shop for their clothing. A third of men say they get dressed in less than two minutes. One in six don’t care about how they look.
