Know it all

The 1968 Beatles song “Back in the USSR” (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) begins “Flew in from Miami Beach BOAC/ Didn’t get to bed last night/On the way the paper bag was on my knee/Man I had a dreadful flight.” BOAC is British Overseas Airways Corporation, which became Britain’s state airline in 1939.

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The first DVD (digital versatile disc) player came on the market in 1997. A standard DVD holds seven times more data than a CD (compact disc).

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The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) introduced the current movie ratings system in 1968. Do you know what the movie ratings G, PG, NC and R stand for? See answer at end.

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John Mauchly (1907-1980), a physicist, and J. Presper Eckert (1919-1995), an engineer, developed the first computer in 1946. Known as the ENIAC (Electrical Numerical Integrator And Calculator), the computer weighed 60,000 pounds and contained 18,000 vacuum tubes. The U.S. military used the computer for calculations.

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The Federal Aviation Act of 1958 created the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration), a government agency. The purpose of the FAA is to establish regulations that promote safety in aviation and to conduct air traffic control.

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James Cash Penney (1875-1971), founder of department store J.C. Penney, opened his first store in 1902 at age 26. The Golden Rule in Wyoming was a dry goods and clothing store. By 1911, Penney and partners operated 22 stores that made more than $1 million in sales.

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The trademark of MGM (Metro Goldwyn Mayer) is Leo the Lion. The roaring lion is seen at the beginning of every MGM feature film. Leo was first seen in the 1928 silent movie “White Shadows of the South Seas.” The lion’s roar was played on a phonograph.

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In 1938, candy manufacturer NECCO (New England Confectionery Company) introduced the Skybar. It was the first candy bar that had four different flavors in the center — caramel, vanilla, peanut and fudge covered in chocolate. NECCO first announced the new candy bar to the public with a skywriting campaign.

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The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) conducted research on how consumers use labels on drugs and determined that labels needed simple language in an easy to read format. In May 2002, OTC (over the counter) medicines were required to carry a new drug facts label that lists the active ingredients of the product and the purpose of the medication.

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Answer: G means the movie is acceptable for a General Audience, PG means Parental Guidance, NC, usually listed as NC-17, means No Children under 17, R stands for Restricted. In 1984, PG-13 was added to the ratings system, which means Parental Guidance not recommended for children under 13.

Know It All is by Kerry McArdle. It runs in the weekend and Wednesday editions of the Daily Journal. Questions? Comments? Email knowitall(at)smdailyjournal.com or call 344-5200 ext. 114.