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Stoned Oracle at Delphi

Posted by timothy on Tuesday March 19, 2002 @11:41AM from the insatiable-olive-cravings dept.

nucal writes: "Acording to the NY Times (free registration required, etc.) the Oracles at Delphi were under the influence of ethylene gas when they made their prophecies. Archeologists and geologists teamed up to discover the 'mephitic vapours' that 'inspired divine frenzies.'"

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And the fruit ripened faster too by Anonymous Coward · 2002-03-20 02:37 · Score: 4, Interesting

Ethylene is a part of a forward-feedback loop that causes fruit to ripen faster. That's why you put green tomatoes in a paper bag to ripen them - it concentrates the ethylene they outgas. It's also why "one bad apple spoils the bunch"

Apparently it "ripened" the ancients, too!