Mind Games

No, these are not knuckles for fighting. That would be made of brass, and with finger holes close together so one can make a fist.

The ones I show are made of wood, and if you stick your fingers in them, they will be more spread out.

I guess they can be used for fighting when in a spot, or clapping together to make noise, or for rope weaving too. :)

Hint: These had a specific function that is not so popular anymore, if not banned outright. :eek:
 
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Perhaps people need more hint than what I gave above. Let's give new thread readers a chance, then I will give another hint soon.
 
Here's the 2nd hint: It used to be a teaching aid.

The cropped photos show teachers holding them.
 
NW-Bound said:
Here's the 2nd hint: It used to be a teaching aid.

The cropped photos show teachers holding them.
Click to expand...

Discipline device for the uncooperative child!
 
Then, how is it used?
 
Too hard for me... had to cheat, but don't believe I ever would have guessed.
Actually, probably not such a bad thing at all... :)
 
OK, I think I should spill the mystery now, else people get so curious they are cheating left and right anyway. And I do not blame them, as nobody would have guessed.

It's called a "Finger Stock", and used in Victorian era schools to punish, or teach, students who fidgeted in class. It kept their hands tied behind their back, and immobilized their fingers. See the following youtube video that demonstrates the "technique".

 
Interesting piece of history.

Not quite sure why they used the finger stocks...why not just bind the unruly student's hands behind his/her back? :confused:

omni
 
They wanted to lock the kid's fingers, so he could not fidget. Then, as is shown, they bound his wrists together too.
 
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My guess it the harder someone fought the device the more painful it become. Folks were hard on kids that were 'unruly' in those days.
 
It did not take much unruliness in those days.

"Hey teacher, leave them kids alone!"

 
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When we misbehaved, we were locked in a closet.

BTW... on reading about the finger stocks on a Victorian website, the fingers were not "locked" in... the child just had to hold the two pieces behind the back to keep them out of mischief. If they did not do this, and freed one hand, the teacher would cut off their fingers.

It really was a different time... imagine... we didn't even use the word "sex". If we were talking about it, the word would be spelled out.. S-E-X. and no, I wasn't part of some off the wall religious sect. It was common for some of the moms in the neighborhood, to tear out the underwear pages of the Sears Catalog.
'Course what we guys said in private was a little different.

In first grade, the punishment for misbehavior was to stand in front of the whole class and sing the Star Spangled Banner... a capella.
 
Here's an easy one... Two parts:
1. Why is the back side of the moon smoother than the side we can see.

2. How old is the moon... and how do we know?
 
imoldernu said:
Here's an easy one... Two parts:
1. Why is the back side of the moon smoother than the side we can see.

2. How old is the moon... and how do we know?
Click to expand...

1. Because the side we can't see is 'away' form the center of our universe and therefore is not subjected to being hit by meteors or asteroids. They are not "attracted" to the back side of the moon because the moon has no gravity

2. Depends on who you ask - creationists and evolutionists will give very different answers :LOL:
 
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