Saturday, April 5, 2008
Have you ever wonder.......
Why do women’s clothes button from the left, while men’s button from the right?
It is hardly surprising that clothing manufacturers might adhere to uniform standards for the various features of garments bought by any given group.
What seems strange, however, is that the standard adopted for women is precisely the opposite of the one for men. If the standard were completely arbitrary, that would be one thing. But the men’s standard would appear to make more sense for women as well.
Around 90 per cent of the world’s population is right-handed, and it is easier for right-handers to button shirts from the right. So why do women’s garments button from the left?
This is an example in which history seems to matter. When buttons first appeared in the 17th century, they were seen only on garments of the wealthy. At that time it was the custom for rich men to dress themselves and for women to be dressed by servants.
Having women’s shirts button from the left thus made things easier for the mostly right-handed servants who dressed them. Having men’s shirts button from the right made sense not only because most men dressed themselves, but also because a sword drawn from the left hip with the right hand would be less likely to become caught in the shirt. Today, virtually no women are dressed by servants, so why is buttoning from the left still the norm for women?
In economics, a norm, once established, resists change. At a time when all women’s shirts buttoned from the left, it would have been risky for any single manufacturer to offer women’s shirts that buttoned from the right.
After all, women had grown accustomed to shirts that buttoned from the left and would have to develop new habits and skills to switch.
Beyond that practical difficulty, some women might also have found it socially awkward to appear in public wearing shirts that buttoned from the right, since anyone who noticed would assume they were wearing men’s shirts.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Take me back in time
23 Unanswered Questions
1. If all the nations in the world are in debt (am not joking. even US has got debts), where did all the money go?
2. When dog food is new and improved tasting, who tests it?
3. What is the speed of darkness?
4. If the "black box" flight recorder is never damaged during a plane crash, why isn't the whole airplane made out of that stuff?
5. Who copyrighted the copyright symbol?
6. Can you cry under water?
7. Why do people say, "You’ve been working like a dog" when dogs just sit around all day?
8. Why are the numbers on a calculator and a phone reversed?
9. Do fish ever get thirsty?
10. Can you get cornered in a round room?
12. Why do birds not fall out of trees when they sleep?
13. What came first, the fruit or the color orange?
14. If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, then what is baby oil made from?
15. What should one call a male ladybird?
16. If a person suffered from amnesia and then was cured would they remember that they forgot?
17. Can you blow a balloon up under water?
18. Why is it called a "building" when it is already built?
19. If you were traveling at the speed of sound and you turned on your radio would you be able to hear it?
20. If you're traveling at the speed of light and you turn your headlights on, what happens?
21. Why is it called a TV set when there’s only one?
22. If a person owns a piece of land do they own it all the way down to the core of the earth?
23. Why do most cars have speedometers that go up to at least 130 when you legally can't go that fast on any road?
2. When dog food is new and improved tasting, who tests it?
3. What is the speed of darkness?
4. If the "black box" flight recorder is never damaged during a plane crash, why isn't the whole airplane made out of that stuff?
5. Who copyrighted the copyright symbol?
6. Can you cry under water?
7. Why do people say, "You’ve been working like a dog" when dogs just sit around all day?
8. Why are the numbers on a calculator and a phone reversed?
9. Do fish ever get thirsty?
10. Can you get cornered in a round room?
12. Why do birds not fall out of trees when they sleep?
13. What came first, the fruit or the color orange?
14. If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, then what is baby oil made from?
15. What should one call a male ladybird?
16. If a person suffered from amnesia and then was cured would they remember that they forgot?
17. Can you blow a balloon up under water?
18. Why is it called a "building" when it is already built?
19. If you were traveling at the speed of sound and you turned on your radio would you be able to hear it?
20. If you're traveling at the speed of light and you turn your headlights on, what happens?
21. Why is it called a TV set when there’s only one?
22. If a person owns a piece of land do they own it all the way down to the core of the earth?
23. Why do most cars have speedometers that go up to at least 130 when you legally can't go that fast on any road?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
