Usually the question "why?" most often we hear from the lips of children who, due to their age, do not know many obvious things. But if you think about it with your brains, it turns out that we, as adults, ourselves do not know the answers to children's questions at first glance: why is the sky blue or why is the grass green? At least once in a lifetime, every person thought about questions, the answers to which are waiting for you in the continuation of the article, but due to their strangeness, he did not dare to ask
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Why do old books have such a smell?

In short, several hundred volatile organic substances give the smell. In 2009, a study was conducted on this topic, the results of which were published in the journal Analytical Chemistry. According to him, volatile organic substances enter the air from books, and more specifically from the decaying components of which it consists - paper, ink and glue.

How are seedless grapes grown?

Most fruits today do not come from seeds, but from cut branches. A small part of the vine or twig is cut, processed and placed in the ground, after which roots and leaves begin to grow from it.

Some seedless grapes do contain seeds, but they are very small. In general, most types of grapes contain seeds, just not all of them form a hard shell that is familiar to us.

Why can't we see baby pigeons?

Perhaps because we do not often look into their nests. Pigeons do not leave their nests until they are fully grown. In addition, when the pigeon has grown enough to leave the nest, it is almost impossible to distinguish it from an adult pigeon.

Why does it smell so good when it rains?

This scent is called Petrichor. With this name, they decided to designate the smell in the air, which remains after the rain has passed. It was invented by two Australian scientists in 1964.
The term Petrichor was formed from the merging of the Greek words petra ("stone") and ichor ("ichor" - a liquid flowing in the veins of the Greek mythological gods).

It is worth noting that in the creation of this fragrance, one of the main roles is played by the organic compound geosmin (geosmin - from the Greek “smell of the earth”). This organic matter is nothing but a waste product of various microorganisms, including cyanobacteria and actinomycetes.

Why do we cry when we cut onions?

When cutting an onion, the structure of its tissues is disturbed, the cells are torn, which in turn leads to the release of sulfonic acids, which turn into thiopropional dehyde-B-oxide - it is this that causes tears. In addition, these acids condense into the form of thiosulfite, which gives the onion its characteristic smell.

It is worth noting that the formation of thiopropionaldehyde-8-oxide as a result of cutting onions reaches a peak 30 seconds after the first cut.

Tears are a protective reaction of our body, which begins to produce a weak solution of sulfuric acid. Our brain “informs” the lacrimal glands that it is time to secrete a large amount of fluid, which should wash away the irritating substance. More damaged onion tissues - more gas is produced and more fluid is produced by the body, i.e. more tears. The reaction of the onion is a kind of defense mechanism against pests.

How much gold does a gold ring lose when we wear it?

According to a 2008 study published in the Gold Bulletin, on average, a gold ring loses about 0.12mg of gold each week.

Chemist Georg Steinhauser, who is the author of the study, writes: "Most of all gold is lost while relaxing on the beach, where the ring is exposed to the abrasive influence of sand."

Why does garbage stink more in hot weather than in cold weather?

Most of the garbage consists of organic material - peels from fruits and vegetables, leftover food, etc. This material begins to decompose, releasing an unpleasant odor that signals that it can no longer be eaten.

If a environment quite warm, organic material decomposes faster. In addition, we are less sensitive in cold weather, so when the weather is warmer, the stink of garbage becomes stronger.

Why don't penguins fly?

On the path of evolution, the bird, apparently, had to choose which skill would be more useful to it: be able to fly well or swim well. This idea was put forward by scientists whose study was published in 2013 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

According to the study, penguins can't fly because their bodies are more adapted to diving than flying.

"To learn to fly, they need to grow large wings, or increase the size of the body to better dive, but if both conditions are met, then flight will become impossible," explains Robert Ricklefs, study co-author and ornithologist at the University of Missouri at St. -Louis.

Why is it difficult to sneeze with your eyes open?

It is worth noting first that if you choose to deliberately leave your eyes open when you want to sneeze, they will not come out of their sockets. And even if this happened, then closed eyelids could not help you avoid this.

In fact, when we sneeze, we close our eyes simply because the reflex is triggered. When your brain sends the signal to sneeze, part of it tells you to close your eyes.

Why do people walk forward and not sideways?

If crabs walk like that, then why don't people do it? Even if we need to go left or right, we still turn around and move forward.

One reason could be the fact that walking sideways uses as much energy as running forward.

A study published in the journal Biology Letters in 2013 showed that walking sideways needs more energy because a person during this process has to stop after each step in order to take the next step.

Why do some people have freckles and others don't?

Freckles contain the pigment melanin. Most freckles are due to the same gene that leads to red hair, MC1R.

The cells in the skin that produce melanin are called melanocytes. MC1R makes a protein that lives on these cells and tells your body what melanin to create.

In darker people, melanocytes are more likely to produce one type of melanin, eumelanin. People who produce more pheomelanin have paler skin and more freckles. By the way, such people do not sunbathe much; in the sun, their skin almost does not change color, since pheomelanin - unlike eumelanin - does not protect a person from ultraviolet rays.

Why does even the smallest speck of dust in the eye create a very unpleasant sensation?

Your cornea, the anterior most convex transparent element of the eyeball, has many nerve endings.

If you get dust in your eye and then you start rubbing it, you just rub the dust on the surface of the cornea, which worsens the situation, making the pain worse. You can also inadvertently press hard on a speck of dust, and it will enter the cornea. Instead of rubbing your eye, try blinking, which will help in most cases.

Why do warts pop up on my fingers?

Warts are known to be caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). There are over 100 types of HPV, ranging from the highly contagious forms that cause genital warts to the less severe ones that cause warts on the hands and fingers.

When a pesky virus infects the outer layer of the skin, usually through a cut or scrape, it causes cells to thrive in the outer layer of the epidermis. This is how a predominantly benign neoplasm is obtained, which we call a wart.

Why do men get erections in the morning?

Science gives a very vague answer to this question. There are several interesting theories that explain this phenomenon. On the medical language morning erection is called nocturnal swelling of the penis. This is a completely natural phenomenon that happens to any healthy man 3-5 times a night, regardless of what he dreams about.

According to one theory, a morning erection occurs when blood enters the cavernous body of the penis at night, increasing the flow of oxygen to the tissues and thereby preventing incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

Why do we rub the bruise and peel off the crust from the wound?

Bruising is a fairly common injury caused by rupture of blood vessels under the skin (usually from a blow). A bruise leads to inflammation, which triggers pain receptors in the muscles and on the skin, that is, when we press on a bruise, we experience pain.

So why do we often press or rub the site of a hematoma? It turns out that this is a kind of pain relief. When we rub the affected area, it triggers other receptors on the skin: a feeling of pressure, a light touch, a change in temperature, and more. By activating other receptors for a short period of time, we thereby “muffle” the pain that our brain recognizes and feel relief for a while.

Removing a crust on a wound is the exact opposite, but like a bruise, we do it instinctively. On the one hand, it may be a symptom of "an obsessive-compulsive tendency that often signals an underlying anxiety disorder." On the other hand, some experts believe that this is a kind of relic of antiquity, when our ancestors, for reasons of hygiene, were forced to lick and scratch themselves. The crust is like a natural plaster that covers a healing wound, and it certainly begins to itch, so we often pay attention to it.

Is it possible to die of old age?

Not really. It is true that living cells have a limited lifespan; an organism will never die just because its cells have become too old. However, old cells are very weak, which can lead to malfunctions of the organs or their complete incapacity. It also means that weak old cells cannot fight disease as easily as young cells can. This leads to the fact that diseases that go almost unnoticed for a young body can be fatal for older people.

Why can we wet ourselves with fear?

Our brain is to blame for everything. You may be surprised, but when a person feels the urge to urinate in the region of the bladder, the action itself is controlled by our head.

AT stressful situations inhibitory signals from the frontal lobe (the one that keeps us from pooping when our bladders are full) can be "cancelled" by the limbic system, a collection of brain structures that governs the so-called "fight or flight" response. When we are anxious or frightened, the electrical signals from the limbic system become so intense that the brainstem has trouble following commands from the frontal lobe. That's why some people have unexpected embarrassment, for example, before an important exam or at the start of a marathon.

Why does nausea occur during dizziness?

Because our brain thinks it's been poisoned. Unexpected, isn't it? Vomiting happens for one of three reasons: something irritates our brain, something irritates our digestive tract, or during hormonal changes (usually pregnancy). When our eyes see something other than what the fluid (endolymph) in our inner ear sends to the brain, it becomes irritating. To protect itself, the brain forces the body to release the contents of the stomach.

Why do men need nipples?

Even in the embryo, men and women develop in the same way. In the first few weeks, the embryo is formed in a "female pattern", from the reproductive system to the nipples. Only after 60 days, the testosterone hormone (in embryos with a Y chromosome) comes into action, changing the genetic activity of the cells of the genital organs and the brain. Although the mammary glands in men stop developing, the nipples on the chest do not disappear anywhere.

Why does one nostril breathe better than the other?

The nostrils are good buddies that take turns doing their job. Even if we don't have a cold, our nostrils distribute the load between them: most air enters and exits through one nostril, and much less air passes through the other.

Every few hours our vegetative nervous system, which monitors heart rate, digestion and other important functions that we do not consciously control, makes one of the nostrils take over most of the work for a while. With a runny nose, extra mucus causes a feeling of stuffiness in the nostril that is in this moment"resting".

In contact with

Sometimes even familiar phenomena, such as warts, male nipples or morning erections, cause genuine curiosity in us. Well, it's time to feel free to answer the "uncomfortable" questions about the structure of our body that you were embarrassed to ask.

1. Why do warts pop up on my fingers?

Warts are known to be caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). There are over 100 types of HPV, ranging from the highly contagious forms that cause genital warts to the less severe ones that cause warts on the hands and fingers.

When a pesky virus infects the outer layer of the skin, usually through a cut or scrape, it causes cells to thrive in the outer layer of the epidermis. This is how a predominantly benign neoplasm is obtained, which we call a wart.

2. Why do men get erections in the morning?

Science gives a very vague answer to this question. There are several interesting theories that explain this phenomenon. In medical parlance, a morning erection is called a nocturnal swelling of the penis. This is a completely natural phenomenon that happens to any healthy man 3-5 times a night, regardless of what he dreams about.

According to one theory, a morning erection occurs when blood enters the cavernous body of the penis at night, increasing the flow of oxygen to the tissues and thereby preventing incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

3. Why do we rub the bruise and peel off the crust from the wound?

Bruising is a fairly common injury caused by rupture of blood vessels under the skin (usually from a blow). A bruise leads to inflammation, which triggers pain receptors in the muscles and on the skin, that is, when we press on a bruise, we experience pain.

So why do we often press or rub the site of a hematoma? It turns out that this is a kind of pain relief. When we rub the affected area, it triggers other receptors on the skin: a feeling of pressure, a light touch, a change in temperature, and more. By activating other receptors for a short period of time, we thereby “muffle” the pain that our brain recognizes and feel relief for a while.

Removing a crust on a wound is the exact opposite, but like a bruise, we do it instinctively. On the one hand, it may be a symptom of "an obsessive-compulsive tendency that often signals an underlying anxiety disorder." On the other hand, some experts believe that this is a kind of relic of antiquity, when our ancestors, for reasons of hygiene, were forced to lick and scratch themselves. The crust is like a natural plaster that covers a healing wound, and it certainly begins to itch, so we often pay attention to it.

4. Is it possible to die of old age?

Not really. It is true that living cells have a limited lifespan; an organism will never die just because its cells have become too old. However, old cells are very weak, which can lead to malfunctions of the organs or their complete incapacity. It also means that weak old cells cannot fight disease as easily as young cells can. This leads to the fact that diseases that go almost unnoticed for a young body can be fatal for older people.

5. Why can we wet ourselves with fear?

Our brain is to blame for everything. You may be surprised, but when a person feels the urge to urinate in the region of the bladder, the action itself is controlled by our head.

In stressful situations, inhibitory signals from the frontal lobe (the one that keeps us from pooping when our bladders are full) can be “overridden” by the limbic system, a collection of brain structures that governs the so-called “fight or flight” response. When we are anxious or frightened, the electrical signals from the limbic system become so intense that the brainstem has trouble following commands from the frontal lobe. That's why some people have unexpected embarrassment, for example, before an important exam or at the start of a marathon.

6. Why does an erect penis tilt slightly to the left (or right)?

Despite widespread rumors, this phenomenon has nothing to do with masturbation. Almost all healthy men have noticed that their erect penis is located in one direction or the other. Such a bend is usually very slight and should not be a cause for alarm. The tilt to the right or left determines the ligament that encircles the cavernous body of the penis and holds the corpora cavernosa in a certain shape. It is called the white coat. Differences in the elasticity of this two-chambered organ lead to a slight curvature of the penis during an erection.

7. Why does nausea occur during dizziness?

Because our brain thinks it's been poisoned. Unexpected, isn't it? Vomiting happens for one of three reasons: something irritates our brain, something irritates our digestive tract, or during hormonal changes (usually pregnancy). When our eyes see something other than what the fluid (endolymph) in our inner ear sends to the brain, it becomes irritating. To protect itself, the brain forces the body to release the contents of the stomach.

8. Why do we go gray?

Hair itself has no color. The color of our hair depends entirely on the secretion of the pigment. Therefore, hair color changes over time. When a person ages, the body gradually ceases to produce pigment, and the hair returns to its natural state: gray or white. The time at which gray hair occurs is genetically controlled, which is why some people have it much earlier.

9. Why do men need nipples?

Even in the embryo, men and women develop in the same way. In the first few weeks, the embryo is formed in a "female pattern", from the reproductive system to the nipples. Only after 60 days, the testosterone hormone (in embryos with a Y chromosome) comes into action, changing the genetic activity of the cells of the genital organs and the brain. Although the mammary glands in men stop developing, the nipples on the chest do not disappear anywhere.

10. Why does one nostril breathe better than the other?

The nostrils are good buddies that take turns doing their job. Even if we don't have a cold, our nostrils distribute the load between them: most air enters and exits through one nostril, and much less air passes through the other.

Every few hours, our autonomic nervous system, which monitors heart rate, digestion and other important functions that we do not consciously control, causes one of the nostrils to take over most of the work for a while. With a runny nose, extra mucus causes a feeling of stuffiness in the nostril that is currently “resting”.

Questions... Why ask them? First, if a person asks something, it means that he does not know it. Second, perhaps he needs to know someone's specific opinion. Third, many questions do not have a clear answer. Fourth, everything, even the most ordinary, can be looked at differently.

As in the problem about pears: how much will it be if you add two more to two pears? Just ... And if the first two pears weigh half a kilogram, then four - a kilogram? Is not a fact. In nature, after all, you will not find exactly the same pears.

So it is in everything. The world around us invariably reveals new, unfamiliar facets. You just need to be able to notice it. And it is possible to simplify this by showing curiosity both to others and to yourself, because the ways of thinking different people are unique. And then you can see familiar things from a completely unfamiliar side.

Why are questions important?

Psychologists from the states calculated how many questions a child asks a day at the age of five. The average was over sixty. And some can give birth and on a question in a minute. But when faced with an irritated or indifferent reaction from adults, they very quickly stop asking questions, and, accordingly, stop developing. The education system also adopted not the encouragement of dissidents, but a convenient framework and an obedient class, which is given general information, the same for everyone, without uncomfortable questions.

As for adults, this is a different story. It is typical for the overwhelming majority not only to stop learning, but also to become rigid in their knowledge and opinions. And finally. And then a person always has answers to all questions, can teach others how to live, determine the right and the wrong. In fact, such an attitude does not bring much happiness, money or prosperity.

That's just the easiest way for development and self-development - these are the questions that a person asks. “What do I want in this life?”, “How can I achieve this?” - . And, nevertheless, they can help a person a lot, and more than once. To achieve the ability to look at the world ambiguously, you can train. One of them is this: always try to see the unfamiliar possibilities of familiar things. For example, how else can you use a cup?

Questions as a vehicle for change

There is no better vehicle for change than the ability to ask more questions. Let them be stupid. Especially if they're stupid. Then it will become a litmus test for the person and his character to whom they are addressed. And one question always becomes a stepping stone for the next.

When a person has a question, you should not brush it off. In life, many things are interconnected and do not just appear. There is no way to find out the answer right away - you can do it later. If the question is written down at least somewhere, up to the message on the phone, then it will not disappear into nowhere. And the search for an answer can be done at a convenient time in a way that is more convenient and accessible: the Internet, an encyclopedia, an authoritative source. You can learn a lot of unexpected things by answering such sudden questions.

Questions as training for the mind

The best training for the minds will be the search for answers to the unusual riddles of another person. This helps to train the ability to think quickly and outside the box. Any emergency situation will be less frightening for such a trained mind. That is why it is desirable not only to endlessly question oneself, but to become a provocateur, causing others to create questions.

A very useful feature for the development of your world is attention to a different point of view on what has been said. People have different views, which will allow diversity to be born.

Appreciate when the other person asks a "stupid" question. The best option for your own development and reputation would be as detailed an answer as possible. It is always easier to call a person a bore or crazy than to carry on a conversation. But sharp categoricalness and labels will alienate people, reduce the circle of contacts.

When a person learns to enjoy a discovery, even the simplest, his brain feeds it, becomes a positive reinforcement. Then new questions arise and help the study of life. "How it works? Who invented it and when? And for what? Why does it have such a name? How else can you apply? and so on.

There is no need to feel fear of error or condemnation. Chinese wisdom says that one opinion about the stupidity of the questioner is nothing compared to the ignorance of the silent.

BUT modern life changes almost instantly. Reasonable doubt about everything, even the well-known, is the best way to keep ideas about the world in an effective state. Albert Einstein urged never to lose the spark of curiosity.

You can drive boredom and monotony out of life by acquiring the habit of exploration. This will form the ability to be attentive and creative, help not to miss anything important, not to miss the most important information, to highlight the grain of truth in the avalanche of news. The ability to improve yourself, learn something new will help you quickly find a way out in difficult situations, successfully solve problems, both your own and those of others. Including hopeless ones for everyone else.

There is a puzzle about finding the "fourth word" ending in - co. According to our philologists, this problem has no solution. It is believed that in addition to the three well-known - meat, millet, wheel- the fourth such word in Russian does not exist. Philologists know what they are talking about. At least it's enough just to look in the Reverse Dictionary. And yet, for greater reliability, we decided to conduct our own investigation, which, however, gave very unexpected results.

It turned out, for example, that the very linguistic problem "On the fourth word" was set incorrectly. It was this inaccuracy of the wording that played a cruel joke on my mother-in-law, one of my favorite intellectual connoisseurs Fyodor Dvinyatin. After all, the wrong question has its own, so to speak, moral right to the wrong answer. And even on all sorts of his interpretations.

In addition, the latent readiness of linguists to assert that such words as “coat”, “coffee”, “croupier” ... is also not Russian. Which were also borrowed from foreign languages. And there are many. This follows from the fact that serso, despite its constant registration in large Russian dictionaries, is recognized by experts not a Russian word but purely foreign. Philologists, it turns out, are even ready to sign under such statements, to issue certificates certified by the seal of the Institute of the Russian Language.

Therefore, we have a question for philologists: what then can be considered Russian? What words in Russian dictionaries are Russian? After all, if you delve into the etymologies, it turns out that about 99% of even the so-called basic vocabulary of our language, not to mention the cultural one, will turn out to be alien. Or, as it has become fashionable to say now, it is not primordially Russian. And by the way, we have already shown this in the article, where there was not a single Russian for more than a hundred everyday (basic) words! All, as if by choice, were born in obviously more ancient non-Russian cultures.

Here's what we offer:

Name four words of the modern Russian active language that end in -so; these should be nouns in the nominative case, singular, not proper names, not foreign, not jargon, not archaisms, while declined according to the rules of Russian grammar.

Well, strict requirements? Yes, tough. Remember, even with milder requirements, we had problems finding the “fourth word”, and here is a whole wall of conditions! Of course, if you do not surround yourself with conventions, then apart from serso there is “foreignness” in the Russian language, and jargon, and outdated vocabulary, and God knows what else. For example:

The first part of compound words: Riso, Ruso, Spaso, Leso, Boso, Noso, Marceau, Conuso, Coxo, Kraso, Kryso, Reiso, Priso, Sexo, Chaso etc.;

Old Russian pronoun: Nichso;

And yet in Russian the "fourth word" with the ending -so available. Moreover, exactly corresponding to the specified hard requirement. This word PLYOSO. Exactly the same word is sometimes discussed on forums in Runet, but it is always presented there as a dialect, and therefore unable to compete with the three main words - meat-millet-wheel. it plyoso, only the paragraph above, has already been mentioned by us - in the line "Dialect". It is believed to apply only to Pomor dialect- Russian sub-ethnos on the White Sea. However Pleso, which we are talking about now, has a completely different, wider Russian geography. Moreover, it may happen that out of all four searched words ( meat-millet-plyoso-wheel) only one Pleso and it turns out to be a Russian word! Or, as Boris Kryuk aptly said, Russian by origin.

So here it is Pleso(like his doppelgänger stretch) is still used to refer to a wide body of water on a river or lake almost throughout Russia. For example, rivermen and fishermen talk about the “upper reach of the Volga” or that “a bend will follow that reach,” etc. In addition, this living word has a second meaning, close to the first - this is the name of a section of the river , homogeneous in its navigable and coastal features. The explanation for the persistence of this word is simple. After all, there is no other, equally capacious and, as they say, phonetically Russian word for designating a straight and wide water surface in the Russian language. And to refuse this magnificence just because one of the philologists in Moscow or St. Petersburg is trying to throw it out of the next edition of the Russian dictionary, to spew it from the people's memory, hanging the label "dialect", to move it into the category of an extinct Russian language, will not work. It is both alive and active, and indispensable for the vast Russian spaces, especially in places where rivers overflow and stand. Or philologists have forgotten that Russia is a watery country, and that living people live on the banks of millions of its rivers, since ancient times they speak living things. Russian word?

And what we generally call dialecticisms can to a large extent turn out to be cunning. Do philologists really not feel this shaky boundary? As they say, the name Aksinia is also outdated, but nothing prevents parents today from calling modern little Muscovites and St. Petersburg women Aksinia. Nothing prevents us today from pulling out of obscurity the outdated vocabulary of our ancestors, but the vocabulary is in demand, which we really lack. It only seems that the modern Russian language is quite self-sufficient and complete. For business and clerical correspondence - yes. But try to write good, not primitive piece of art, and you will certainly encounter a shortage of Russian vocabulary. And there is no need to be afraid of excessive “novelty” from outdated vocabulary. A kind word will always survive. There would be carriers. By the way, in one of the following articles for the heading "" we will try to conduct an experiment where, throughout the entire text, instead of some usual modern word we will use its old (obsolete) equivalent. And for some reason, we are sure that by the end of reading the material, our reader will naturally form not only an addiction to such a “forgotten” word, but, probably, a love for new its sound. No wonder they say that the new is the well-forgotten old?

Summarize. Our inquiry showed that in Russian there are at least four words with the ending - co corresponding to the above tough setting tasks: meat, millet, plyoso and wheel. Why is the Russian-plain word Pleso does not attract the attention of modern linguists and compilers of dictionaries - this still remains on the conscience of the scientists themselves. At least in older generation dictionaries pleso (pleso) reflected, and far from always as a dialect: “Fasmer’s Etymological Dictionary”, “Encyclopedic Dictionary of F. A. Brockhaus and I. A. Efron”, “ Dictionary of the Russian language by D. N. Ushakov”, “Big Russian-Ukrainian Dictionary”, “Big Russian Encyclopedic Dictionary”, “Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language by I. S. Ozhegov and N. Yu. Shvedova”, “ orthographic dictionary Lopatin”, “Explanatory Dictionary of T. F. Efremova”.

At the same time, if not "drive each other crazy", as it was in the TV game "What? Where? When? ”, And agree at least with the opinion of the philologist Fyodor Dvinyatin regarding the Russianness of the word serso, then we must admit that words with an ending -so enough in Russian. There will be not three or four of them, but, for example, about ten or fifteen. Depending on what angle to look for. After all, Fedor could well have argued, for example, that in addition to the game of serso, the black box also contains a lasso and a twig from vereso ...

But what about our Pleso could it fit in the black box? Probably not. However, if it were known as well as, say, meat with millet, Mr. Hook would no longer associate the task about the “fourth word” with the black box. Or its author, Valentina Koroleva, a resident of the Tula region, would have to change the very wording of the question.

This is where the story can end. Basically, we said everything we wanted to. It is not necessary to read further boring text.

additional information

That evening, Fedor Dvinyatin took a point for his team. True, at the cost of humiliation. Boris Kryuk rudely threw to Fedor: “You need a handout, take it!”. The battle between viewers and connoisseurs ended with a score of 6:5 in favor of the latter.

But already in the next game, a week later, Boris Kryuk publicly presented Fedor Dvinyatin with a certificate from the Institute of the Russian Language that serso IS NOT a Russian word. A certificate stamped with a seal and signed by a doctor of philological sciences. I believe that only upbringing and self-discipline did not allow Fedor to object to Kryuk again. Moreover, the score in the previous game was already fixed and unchanged.

But this whole ugly story would not have happened if there had been certainty in concepts and terms in the depths of philology. For example, what should be considered a Russian word, and what should not be considered a Russian word? What are the criteria here?

It is difficult to say now who was the first to come up with this riddle-joke and spread it. History has not recorded a specific surname. One thing is for sure: it happened not earlier than the beginning of the 19th century, but, most likely, much later, somewhere at the turn of the middle of the 20th century. In any case, the riddle “about four words” is not only still in demand in society and is passed down from generation to generation, but also has appropriate support from linguists. However, as we have seen, the linguists themselves do not hide this, helping to support the myths thrown into the public consciousness with certified certificates.

With the advent of the Internet, the problem of "four words" was not only freely discussed by specialists, but also as erudition tasks received wide publicity in various kinds of amateur communities. At the same time, the correct answer to it was always unambiguous: “the fourth word” with the ending -so not in Russian! Of the huge mass of inquisitive people, no one tried to double-check this problem. Even after the incident we described with the participation of TV game host Boris Kryuk, nothing has changed. But with the riddle chewed more than once in Runet, not just anyone, but the Russian philologist, associate professor of St. Petersburg State University, candidate of philological sciences Fyodor Dvinyatin had to face eye to eye. Connoisseur and master of the club “What? Where? When?" Fyodor Dvinyatin, answering the question about the "fourth word", could not help but know this. However, he behaved exactly as a thinking husband should have behaved. A person does not live by diplomas alone.

But it’s true, numerous references to linguistic resources in Runet testify that in addition to three well-known Russian words (meat, millet, wheel) the fourth simply does not exist. However, if you do not adhere to our tough conditions, then words with the ending - co much more will be found. For example, there are as many as 112 of them on this resource! We only note that this is not the first investigation of such dubious clichés that have taken root in the public mind with the suggestion or with the connivance of philologists.

For those who, for technical or other reasons, could not watch the video, we will retell this story, however, already in your own words keeping the main meaning.

A team of connoisseurs called the “90s Team” had to guess what lies in black box. The assistant was just posting hints: millet, cycling wheel and a piece of raw meat, as Fyodor Dvinyatin already guessed: “Millet, meat and a wheel! They all end in -so!

Take a minute or will there be an early response? asked Hook.

Captain Alexei Blinov took a minute to discuss. And when it ended, he had no doubt that Fyodor Dvinyatin would give the correct answer. Who else is responsible for the Russian language, if not a philologist?

And here's what happened out of it all:

Who will be responsible?

Fedor Dvinyatin will answer! - Victory notes were heard in Blinov's voice. After all, Fedor Dvinyatin, shortly before that, had already answered another philological question - “about the four characters of four Russian writers”! And he did it brilliantly!

The box contains accessories for playing in serso! There must be hoops and skewers!

Let's pay tribute to Fedor, he gave the correct answer. But not at all what its author, a resident of the Tula region, meant.

Boris Kryuk, who replaced the respected Vladimir Voroshilov as the host, a serious man who did not lose face, of course, knew that black box empty And he understood that he would now have to defend this emptiness in the box. What else is left? How would we behave in the place of Boris Kryuk? So he defended it as best he could, arguing with a candidate of philological sciences.

The task with the search for the "fourth word" is an example of the attitude towards the language, memory and respect for its heritage. There is no doubt that the inhabitants of rivers, especially large rivers, cannot do without the name of that natural phenomenon with which they regularly encounter - without a word Pleso. It is not abstract, but carries concrete physical meaning the reality that people face on a daily basis. Just imagine a fisherman on the same Volga who does not know how to name the flood of a river that stretches from cliff to cliff with one single capacious word! As soon as there is a thing, a phenomenon, its verbal expression must also exist. Word Pleso fully meets this natural need. It reflects both the scope and the reality of the elements, which you can both see and feel, but by no means the reality of those who speak pure Russian Muscovites or Petersburgers with their small rivers squeezed into concrete. Who ordered this to be removed living word from the "active Russian language"?

Why did you decide that serso Russian word? asked Hook.

Everything is simple. Since we were given only three items whose names end in - co: meat, millet, wheel, the black box should contain accessories related to the game serso!

The assistant opened the lid - the box was empty!

The hall was buzzing. Lawyer Borshchevsky intervened. The presenter had no choice but to continue to defend the dubious version:

There is no such word in Russian!

There is! Cerso- this is such a hoop that you need to be able to catch when throwing up! We all did this as kids!

But this is not a Russian word, but a French one!

Approximately such a discussion took place between connoisseurs and TV game host Boris Kryuk. Indeed, the name of the game serso comes from french cerceau. Only, instead of skewers and rings in our childhood we used a piece of hard wire in the form of a poker, with which we rolled a hoop running along the ground, thereby maintaining it in constant motion. But could experts, and even more so Boris Kryuk, know that through french word in fact, its roots go back to the Russian language of the critical era of the 16th-17th centuries?

We know that many of the most elementary Russian words are missing from Max Fasmer's dictionary, but about French serso for some reason he forgot to tell:

SERSO - child's play with wheel, from the French CERCEAU - hoop, from Latin CIRCELLUS, CIRC US- ring.

It seems that now everything has become clear, and this could be the end of it. After all, the word THE CIRCUS (CIRC)- This is the Russian root base. But let's take a look.

Like French CIRCUS, English also has a related CIRCLE ( a circle). But in Italian (CIRCOLO), as well as Latin (CIRCELLUS), not one, but two whole roots (the so-called compound words) are clearly traced: CIR + COLO and CIR + CELLUS.

Everything is clear with the second part of these words COLO and CELLUS: they are from Russian. COLO, RING, WHEEL, TRACK, etc.

But for the first part of CIR, not only the Russian root KR (CIRCLE) suggests itself, but also the Finno-Ugric-Turkish root KIR-CHIR-KAR in the meaning circle, wheel .

On the other hand, it is very likely that CIR-COLO and CIR-CELLUS are examples of words formed as a result of bilingualism when the same concept was fixed in two languages ​​at once. For example, first on folk and further on sacred: CHINA-CITY (where CHINA - already meant "WALL, CITY" - English CITY, it. CITTA, Turk. KITEY), or KRYMSKY SHAFT (where KYRYM - "SHAFT" in Turkic, CRIIM [KRIYM] - "SCRAP "in a weird way).

It's funny what a swamp Western etymologists have gotten into with the etymology of the related S-CREW [C-KRU]:

1) TWIST, IN-TWIST, SCREW;

2) SCREW, BOLT, SCREW. Unable to drop the C- prefix, Western etymologists have arrived at a hypothetical Pro-Indo-European *(s)ker- (1) "to cut" ("to cut").

They were not able to compare with the CIRCLE, TWIST. I'm not talking about the lack of comparison with Estonian. KEERU(TA)- twist, KEERA(MA) - twist, KRUVI- twist, screw.

From the same etymology associated with WHEELS SPIN: both CAR, and CARRIAGE, and CARRY (to carry), and CERAMICS (torsion on a potter's wheel) - none of the etymologists is able to understand this either.

Let's supplement the analysis with a few more examples of comparisons of Russian roots KRUG, KRUZH with foreign vocabulary:

In lat. CIRCA- around, around(transition of Russian K into Latin C), GYRUS - a circle.

In him. KREIS- a circle, KREISEN- whirl(transition Zh or G in it. S), KRAGEN - collar(i.e. a circle around the neck), KRUG - Cup, KRUKE- jug.

In English CRUISE- move back and forth, returning to the original place.

In Greek ΚΡΙΚΟΣ - ring, ΓΥΡΙΖΩ - circle, rotate, ΓΥΡΟΣ - a circle, circle, etc.(hence, for example, GYROSCOPE - fast spinning top).

Separately, it is worth considering lat. CIRCUM- FLUUS in meaning flowing, washed.Oddly enough, in this double Latin word we see not only Russian. root CR-CIRCLE ( transition K-C), but also familiar to us Russian. PLYOS in the form -FLUUS ( P-F transition). It seems that three or four hundred years ago, the "ancient" Latins worked hard with the vocabulary of their Slavic conquerors in favor of their own. Latin word row. No wonder Max Vasmer and his followers NEVER noticed or considered all such Russian-foreign parallels. A, knowing only two or three of them, calls this interlingual phenomenon coincidence. Of course, “random” when you don’t know that there are not just a few, but hundreds and thousands!

We see the same double borrowing in the English CIRCUMs. FLUOS and CIRCUM FLUENT - , where, for example, the CEPCO we are looking for is CIRCU, and PLYOSO is FLUOUS. Curious "coincidence", isn't it?

So it turns out that Russian. CIRCLE not only spilled over into foreign serso(cerceau), but also came back to us in the form of the word CIRCUS in the meaning circle, arena, viewing place of spectacles.

Philologist Fyodor Dvinyatin could not restrain himself:

According to the rules of the Russian language, any word written in Russian letters and having a lexical meaning in Russian is automatically Russian, regardless of its origin!

But the presenter also lost patience, or maybe he just began to realize that he was wrong:

Take that point for yourself! You need a handout - take it!

So, the Latin FLUUS means - flowing, washed. We see the same thing in the English CIRCUM FLUOS and CIRCUM FLUENT in meaning - all around, flowing around. There is no doubt that essentially the same words in these languages ​​(Russian-Latin-English) are relatives. Only specialists in SIA doubt this. Or just never heard of anything like it. So we have questions for them:

1. How did it happen that in Russian the word stretch(allegedly) outdated, and at the same time exactly the same word with such a close meaning was preserved in foreign languages? Moreover, foreigners still continue to use it. But for some reason, our fishermen and rivermen are denied their Russianness and, in general, their existence.

2. On the other hand, given the (allegedly) enormous influence of Latin on the future great and mighty Russian language, how do you, specialists in the history of the language, explain the Latin word FLUUS that hit the expanses of the Russian plain? You know for sure that borrowing could not go in the direction - from ancient Russia to the Apennines?

Let us give other parallels for Russian. PLYOSO in foreign languages, which again "did not notice" Vasmer and followers:

Other Ind. PRÁTHAS - width, Greek ΠΛάΤΟΣ - latitude, German PLATZ- place, area, FLACH- flat, FLANCHE- plane, English PLACE- place(flat), FLATNESS - plane, Spanish PLAZA- square, and many others.

It is clear that all this allegedly non-Russian terminology is just the result of borrowing FROM the once ancient Russian common-root bush: PLOS-PLOSK-PLES-PLOSO, known today, for example, as the modern Russian PLOSTO, etc.

Naturally, PLESO is also in the dictionary of old Russian vocabulary - "Dictionary of the Russian language of the XI-XVII centuries." (Issue 15), moreover, in two of its colloquial versions:

Well, on that memorable evening, Fedor Dvinyatin accepted a “handout” from Kryuk. Connoisseurs, albeit with a minimum score, but beat the viewers. However, a week later, all the power of the Russian philological school fell on Fedor Dvinyatin - it was openly stated that he, a candidate of sciences, was mistaken! So the doctor ordered. Last name is not required. All of them doctors are the same.

And how complicated this Russian language is! Philologists try, try, this way and that, but he, the tomboy, does not give up, everything sticks out to you!

Encyclopedic Dictionary of F. A. Brockhaus and I. A. Efron: lasso - hunting, and partly military weapons of the peoples of America and representing an ordinary lasso. It is formed from leather belts or woven from horsehair or plant tissues, more than 10 meters long; at one end the belt has a ring; the other end is attached to the saddle. Sometimes several weights are placed to the ring or part of the belt adjacent to it. This type of lasso is called bola. Lasso and bolas are usually used only by riders. Overtaking an animal or an enemy, the rider, holding a collected lasso in his left hand, throws it on the head or legs of the animal with his right hand and, turning the horse, gallops in the opposite direction, thus tightening the loop.

The French combination of "EAU" and "AU" is read as our "O" (for example, tabl eau- scoreboard). Presumably, the French, in addition to the “O” already existing in their alphabet, really wanted to have its equivalents, so in the 17th century (from legalization national language) they invent two more "O"s from a pile of vowels - EAU and AU. In addition, other ridiculous letter combinations were invented, which had to get used to: ai, ei are read as " uh"(écl ai r - eclair); eu, œ u read like a vowel yo"(fl eu r - fleur); ou reads like " at"(c ou plet - purchase), etc. These French are very mysterious, unless, of course, you know that the language they speak is a very young education, and the alphabet is a stump of the Slavic alphabet.

The stretch is river, lake. In addition, Plyos is a city in Russia, the Ivanovo region (in 1778-96 and from 1925 to this day), as well as a pier on the Volga, next to the House-Museum of I. I. Levitan.

Sometimes even familiar phenomena, such as warts, male nipples or morning erections, cause genuine curiosity in us. Well, it's time to feel free to answer the "uncomfortable" questions about the structure of our body that you were embarrassed to ask.

Why do warts pop up on my fingers? Why do men get erections in the morning? Why do we rub the bruise and peel off the crust from the wound? Why can we urinate with fear? Why do we sit? Why do men need nipples?

1. Why do warts pop up on my fingers?
Warts are known to be caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). There are over 100 types of HPV, ranging from the highly contagious forms that cause genital warts to the less severe ones that cause warts on the hands and fingers.

When a pesky virus infects the outer layer of the skin, usually through a cut or scrape, it causes cells to thrive in the outer layer of the epidermis. This is how a predominantly benign neoplasm is obtained, which we call a wart.

2. Why do men get erections in the morning?
Science gives a very vague answer to this question. There are several interesting theories that explain this phenomenon. In medical parlance, a morning erection is called a nocturnal swelling of the penis. This is a completely natural phenomenon that happens to any healthy man 3-5 times a night, regardless of what he dreams about.

According to one theory, a morning erection occurs when blood enters the cavernous body of the penis at night, increasing the flow of oxygen to the tissues and thereby preventing incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

3. Why do we rub the bruise and peel off the crust from the wound?
Bruising is a fairly common injury caused by rupture of blood vessels under the skin (usually from a blow). A bruise leads to inflammation, which triggers pain receptors in the muscles and on the skin, that is, when we press on a bruise, we experience pain.

So why do we often press or rub the site of a hematoma? It turns out that this is a kind of pain relief. When we rub the affected area, it triggers other receptors on the skin: a feeling of pressure, a light touch, a change in temperature, and more. By activating other receptors for a short period of time, we thereby “muffle” the pain that our brain recognizes and feel relief for a while.

Removing a crust on a wound is the exact opposite, but like a bruise, we do it instinctively. On the one hand, it may be a symptom of "an obsessive-compulsive tendency that often signals an underlying anxiety disorder." On the other hand, some experts believe that this is a kind of relic of antiquity, when our ancestors, for reasons of hygiene, were forced to lick and scratch themselves. The crust is like a natural plaster that covers a healing wound, and it certainly begins to itch, so we often pay attention to it.

4. Is it possible to die of old age?
Not really. It is true that living cells have a limited lifespan; an organism will never die just because its cells have become too old. However, old cells are very weak, which can lead to malfunctions of the organs or their complete incapacity. It also means that weak old cells cannot fight disease as easily as young cells can. This leads to the fact that diseases that go almost unnoticed for a young body can be fatal for older people.

5. Why can we wet ourselves with fear?
Our brain is to blame for everything. You may be surprised, but when a person feels the urge to urinate in the region of the bladder, the action itself is controlled by our head.

In stressful situations, inhibitory signals from the frontal lobe (the one that keeps us from pooping when our bladders are full) can be “overridden” by the limbic system, a collection of brain structures that governs the so-called “fight or flight” response. When we are anxious or frightened, the electrical signals from the limbic system become so intense that the brainstem has trouble following commands from the frontal lobe. That's why some people have unexpected embarrassment, for example, before an important exam or at the start of a marathon.

6. Why does an erect penis tilt slightly to the left (or right)?
Despite widespread rumors, this phenomenon has nothing to do with masturbation. Almost all healthy men have noticed that their erect penis is located in one direction or the other. Such a bend is usually very slight and should not be a cause for alarm. The tilt to the right or left determines the ligament that encircles the cavernous body of the penis and holds the corpora cavernosa in a certain shape. It is called the white coat. Differences in the elasticity of this two-chambered organ lead to a slight curvature of the penis during an erection.

7. Why does nausea occur during dizziness?
Because our brain thinks it's been poisoned. Unexpected, isn't it? Vomiting happens for one of three reasons: something irritates our brain, something irritates our digestive tract, or during hormonal changes (usually pregnancy). When our eyes see something other than what the fluid (endolymph) in our inner ear sends to the brain, it becomes irritating. To protect itself, the brain forces the body to release the contents of the stomach.

8. Why do we go gray?
Hair itself has no color. The color of our hair depends entirely on the secretion of the pigment. Therefore, hair color changes over time. When a person ages, the body gradually ceases to produce pigment, and the hair returns to its natural state: gray or white. The time at which gray hair occurs is genetically controlled, which is why some people have it much earlier.

9. Why do men need nipples?
Even in the embryo, men and women develop in the same way. In the first few weeks, the embryo is formed in a "female pattern", from the reproductive system to the nipples. Only after 60 days, the testosterone hormone (in embryos with a Y chromosome) comes into action, changing the genetic activity of the cells of the genital organs and the brain. Although the mammary glands in men stop developing, the nipples on the chest do not disappear anywhere.

10. Why does one nostril breathe better than the other?
The nostrils are good buddies that take turns doing their job. Even if we don't have a cold, our nostrils distribute the load between them: most air enters and exits through one nostril, and much less air passes through the other.

Every few hours, our autonomic nervous system, which monitors heart rate, digestion and other important functions that we do not consciously control, causes one of the nostrils to take over most of the work for a while. With a runny nose, extra mucus causes a feeling of stuffiness in the nostril that is currently “resting”.