Interesting Facts

Interesting Facts about Indiana

2009-08-09T21:32:00.000-07:00

Santa Claus, Indiana, receives more than one-half million letters and requests at Christmas time.

Five men from Indiana have been elected as vice president: Schuyler Colfax, Thomas A. Hendricks, Charles W. Fairbanks, Thomas Marshall and Dan Quayle. They have earned Indiana the nickname "Mother of Vice Presidents."

The first successful goldfish farm in the United States was opened in Martinsville, Indiana, in 1899.

In June 1972, Lowell Elliot of Peru, Indiana, was said to have found $500,000 in cash on his farm. It appeared as if the money had fallen from the sky. And in fact, it did. A skyjacker parachuting out of a plane had dropped his stolen profits over Elliot’s farm. Elliot returned the money to the authorities.

In a typical year, almost half of all cropland in Indiana is planted in corn.

Abraham Lincoln moved to Indiana at the age of 7.

Explorers Lewis and Clark set out from Fort Vincennes on their exploration of the Northwest Territory.

Did you know the movie "Hard Rain" was filmed in Huntingburg?!

The first professional baseball game was played in Fort Wayne on May 4, 1871.

The Indiana Dunes region provides habitat for many unusual plants, including prickly pear cactus, lichen mosses, bearberry, and more than 20 varieties of orchids.

During second world war, the P-47 fighter-plane was manufactured in Evansville at Republic Aviation.

Marcella Gruelle who was from Indianapolis created the Raggedy Ann doll in 1914.

The small town of Warsaw, Indiana, is home to three major manufacturers of artificial joints--Zimmer Holdings, Biomet, Inc. and DuPuy.

Source: Interesting Facts Blog

Facts about Monkeys

2009-08-05T09:24:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about monkeys. There are many features of this mammal worth discussing, thus the long list of facts.

Monkeys make up two of the three groups of simian primates, Old World monkeys and New World monkeys. The other group is the apes.

The origins of the word monkey are unclear. It could come from Moneke, the name of the son of Martin the Ape in a medieval animal story. It appears also to be related to manikin, from the Dutch manneken (little man).

Most primates share six basic features: forward-facing eyes, eye sockets, grasping hands, nails, fingerprints, and large brains.

Monkeys are most easily distinguished from apes by their tails. Apes have no tails.

Brazil has more kinds of primates than any other country, with 16 genera and 77 species. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is second, with 18 genera and 37 species.

A monkey is any primate that is not a human, prosimian, or ape.

The prosimians include lemurs, sifakas, lorises, pottos, bushbabies, and other primitive primates.

A group of monkeys is called a troop.

Monkeys use vocalizations, facial expressions, and body movements to communicate.

Grinning or pulling the lip is a sign of aggression in monkeys, along with yawning, head bobbing, and jerking the head and shoulders forward.

Monkeys express affection and make peace with others by grooming each other.

Monkeys live in trees, grasslands, mountains, forests, and on high plains.

All of Madagascar's native primate species are endemic.

As of 1999, 92 of the world's 192 nations have wild primate populations.

Twenty-one primate species are listed as critically endangered on the 2007 Red List of Threatened and Endangered Species. Forty-seven are endangered and 46 are vulnerable to extinction.

Apes and spider monkeys swing arm-to-arm in trees, but most monkeys don’t. Instead, they run across branches.

Monkeys peel their bananas and do not eat the skins.

Monkeys can grasp with both their fingers and their toes.

Most Old World monkeys have small, curved nostrils set close together. Most New World monkeys have round nostrils set far apart on flat noses.

Ten New World monkey species have been classified as nocturnal. All known Old World monkeys are diurnal.

Monkeys are seriously threatened by habitat loss--especially those that live in tropical forests, a habitat that is quickly disappearing.

The Pygmy Marmoset is the world's smallest monkey. It measures 117-159 millimeters (four and a half to six inches) in length and weighs 85 to 140 grams (three to five ounces).

The male Mandrill is the largest monkey. It is almost 1 meter (3.3 feet) long and weighs about 35 kilograms (77 pounds).

It is common for monkeys to carry tuberculosis, hepatitis, and simian herpes B.

Most monkeys eat both animals and plants. Some also eat dirt.

Some Old World monkeys, such as Drills, have sitting pads on their rumps, but New World monkeys do not.

Old World monkeys have 32 teeth. New World monkeys have 36.

There are 96 species of Old World monkeys.

Old World monkeys are divided into two subfamilies, generalists and specialists. Generalists eat almost anything, and specialists eat mainly leaves.

Old World monkeys often have large cheek pouches that enable them to feed rapidly and store their food, then chew and swallow it later.

As of 2008, there are 81 species of New World monkeys in the Amazon basin, and new ones are continually being discovered.

Many New World monkeys have prehensile tails, a feature not shared by any of their Old World cousins. Prehensile tails are used for grasping objects, swinging, and steadying the monkey by grasping limbs and branches when the hands and feet are being used in progression.

The Olive Colobus monkey and certain Red Colobus species are hunted for food by humans and chimpanzees.

Howler monkeys are the loudest monkeys. Their howls can be heard for about two miles in the forest and almost three miles in an open area.

Howler monkeys spend up to 80% of their time resting.

Many New World Monkeys, including the spider monkey, do not have thumbs. Capuchins and squirrel monkeys are the only New World monkeys with pseudo-opposable thumbs.

Proboscis monkeys are best known for the long noses of males, which grow larger as the monkeys age. Females have smaller, pointed noses. This distinctive feature might help to resonate the male's loud vocalizations.

Capuchins are skilled tool users. They smash nuts with rocks, insert branches into crevices to capture food, remove spines and hairs from caterpillars by rubbing them against a branch, protect their hands with leaves, and use large branches to club snakes.

Capuchin monkeys use different vocal sounds to identify different types of predators. They have also been seen banging stones together to warn each other of approaching predators.

As the name indicates, silvered leaf monkeys are silver to dark gray in color. Infants, however, are bright orange.

Twenty different vocalizations have been noted in squirrel monkeys.

Male squirrel monkeys sometimes assert dominance by urinating on subordinates.

Adult male guenon monkeys will sometimes rush after an eagle that has caught a family member, sometimes intimidating the bird enough that it lets go of its prey.

When a troop of guenon monkeys gets a new leader, the new alpha-male will sometimes kill all babies who are still being suckled, an evolutionary behavior known as kin selection, where the male protects his own offspring by killing the offspring of other males.

The Barbary Macaque is the only free-living species of monkey in Europe, which was once home to many monkeys.

South American Titi monkeys are rare among primates because they are monogamous. They mate for life and become distressed when separated. They show affection by remaining close, grooming each other, intertwining their tails, holding hands, nuzzling, cuddling, and lip smacking.

Source: facts.randomhistory.com , The Facts Blog

Facts about Oregon

2009-08-01T22:38:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about Oregon. I liked them so sharing them with you all readers...

Oregon’s state flag is the only state flag to carry two separate designs, with a beaver on its reverse side.

In 1905, the largest log cabin in the world was built in honor of the Lewis and Clark expedition.

In 1971 Oregon became the first state to ban the use of non-returnable bottles and cans.

The Carousel Museum contains the world’s largest collection of carousel horses.

Formed more than 6,500 years ago, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States. It is the only lake to be formed in the remains of a volcano and its crystal-blue waters are known around the world.

The Tillamook Cheese Factory is the largest cheese factory in the world.

At 8,000 feet deep Hells Canyon is the deepest river gorge in North America.

Mill Ends Park in Portland, the world’s smallest official park, measures two feet across. It was created in 1948 for the leprechauns, and a place to hold snail races on St. Patrick’s Day.

During the 1820s Englishman John McLoughlin presided over a vast beaver trapping network centered at Fort Vancouver near the Columbia River.

Eugene was the first city to have one-way streets, and is quoted by “Bicycling Magazine” as one of the top ten cycling communities in the United States.

Oregon residents own one-fourth of the country’s total llama population.

The Klamath Mountains in southwestern Oregon are composed of volcanic rocks, which originally erupted under the ocean.

Source: jackieinpdx.com , The Facts Blog

Thanksgiving Facts

2009-07-25T21:12:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about the Thanksgiving...

According the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten in the United States at Thanksgiving. That number represents one sixth of all the turkeys sold in the U.S. each year!

Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey to be our national bird.

President Abraham Lincoln established the original date for America's National Thanksgiving Day celebration in 1863.

President Thomas Jefferson scoffed at the idea of establishing a national “Thanksgiving Day.”

Congress did not declare Thanksgiving a national holiday until 1941.

Domesticated turkeys cannot fly, however wild turkeys can fly up to 55 miles per hour over short distances.

Only male (tom) turkeys gobble. Females make a clicking noise. The famous gobble is actually a seasonal mating call.

Americans feast on 535 million pounds of turkey on Thanksgiving.

A turkey's field of vision is 270 degrees--one of the main reasons they're able to elude some hunters.

The average age of the Mayflower passenger was 32. The oldest Mayflower passenger was 64.

The heaviest turkey ever raised weighed in at 86 pounds – about the size of a German Shepherd! (But turkeys are normally not used as police animals.)

A turkey under 16 weeks of age is called a fryer. A five to seven month old turkey is called a roaster.

The Turkey Trot, a ballroom dance in the 1900s, was named for the short, jerky steps of the turkey. It became popular mainly because it was denounced by the Vatican as "suggestive."

Contrary to popular belief, the Pilgrims did not have big buckles on their clothing, shoes, or hats.

Buckles did not come into fashion until the late 1600s – more appropriate for the Salem Witchcraft trial time period.

The average person consumes 4,500 calories on Thanksgiving Day. (Now that's a lot of turkey!)

There was no milk, cheese, bread, butter or pumpkin pie at the original Thanksgiving Day feast.

The cranberry got its name because the pale pink blossoms on the plant resembled a crane’s head and neck. The name craneberry stuck, eventually becoming cranberry.

Fresh cranberries are ideal for cranberry sauce. Cranberries of the highest quality will always bounce! (If you try this at home, please wash the cranberries before eating.)

Source: 1800flowers.com , Interesting Facts

Facts about TV

2009-07-16T23:11:00.000-07:00

Here is a bunch of some really interesting facts about television. I found these fun facts about TV really interesting and therefore I am sharing them with you.

In year 1926, J.L. Baird first displayed television which had only 30 lines and gave coarse image. Currently the digital signal of the television sends pictures with 1080 lines.

A 103-inch plasma TV from Panasonic is the largest plasma TV currently available in the market, costing approximately around $70,000 .

In 2008, the cost of 30 seconds advertisement was $2.7 million in the Super Bowl broadcast. It is the world’s most costly airtime.

NASA has announced that they have lost all of their original tapes of Apollo 11’s TV transmission in August, 2006.

The television advertisement first broadcasted on 1st July, 1941 in New York. The advertisement was for Bulova Watch for 20 seconds. It was aired before a game of baseball played between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Brooklyn Dodgers. The cost of air buy during that time was only $9.

Queen Elizabeth II has launched her own YouTube channel after fifty years when she first address for the Christmas to the public of UK.

The Late Late Show of Ireland which started in 1962 and The Tonight Show which started in 1954 are the longest running talk show in the world.

Sony began selling VCRs in 1970 that was capable of recording the television shows. However, Sony was sued by the film studios for copyright piracy. Later on, the Supreme Court backed Sony.

By the time the American child reaches 14, on an average they have seen around 11,000 murders on television.

Source: productusp.com , facts

Facts about Washington State

2009-07-11T00:53:00.000-07:00

While Surfing the web I stumbled upton some interesting facts about Washington. I gathered them and put them together her for my readers. Hope you will like these interesting facts about the Washington state.

It is America’s coffee capital, with more coffee bean roasters per capita than any other state.

“The Wave”, a popular fan cheer for the past 25 years, was started by Husky fans at the University of Washington.

Washington leads the country in technology industry employment.

Washington is home to thelarg est land mollusk in North America, a foraging banana slug that grows up to 9 inches long.

Petrified wood is the state’s gem, and there’s a petrified forest here that’s considered the most unusual fossil forest in the world.

Adam Morrison, a Washington State native and Gonzaga University basketball star, led the NCAA Division I in scoring last season.

The state is the nation’s largest exporter, representing $34 billion and 5 percent of all U.S. exports: forest products, aerospace products, apples, tulips, hops, mint, wheat and several other quality food products.

Leading innovators — Microsoft’s Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Starbucks’ Howard Schultz, wireless pioneers the McCaw family, and the Boeing family — live in Washington State.

Washington State is America’s gateway to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, B.C.

Washington State defines innovation. Some of the leading employers include Microsoft, Amazon.Com, Nordstrom, Boeing, Costco and Starbuck’s.

Washington has hosted the World’s Fair twice: 1962 in Seattle and 1974 in Spokane.

Washington produces 70 percent of the nation’s hops used to brew beer. Co incidentally, to overcome beer breath, the majority of the nation’s mint is also grown in the state.

In Washington, a Seahawk is an athlete, not a bird. The closest thing to a Seahawk is an osprey hawk.

Grand Coulee Dam, the largest concrete structure in North America, is in Washington State.

Washington’s residents are educated; it’s the state with most residents holding high school diplomas.

Father’s Day was founded in Washington in 1910.

The state is home to the world’s largest private car collection featuring over 3,000 vehicles.

Washington’s entrepreneurial climate has made it the leading state for both startup and gazelles, or fast growing young companies.

Washington, the 42nd state in the union, is the only state named for a president.

Seattle gets less rainfall annually than Atlanta, Boston, New York, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Miami, with 37 inches.

Seattle has the highest concentration of aerospace jobs in the world, led by Boeing’s 50,000 workers.

The longest accessible beach is Long Beach, WA.

Source: valleybugler , Facts

Facts about West Virginia

2009-07-09T06:22:00.000-07:00

Here are soe really interesting facts about West Virginia...

Marshall University, located in Huntington, was named for Chief Justice John Marshall of the United States Supreme Court. Justice Marshall served as Chief Justice from 1801- 1835 and served as the presiding justice over the Aaron Burr treason trial in 1807.

West Virginia University, located in Morgantown, has had 26 students to receive Rhodes Scholarships to study at Oxford University in England.

Charles Town, in Jefferson County, was where slave abolitionist John Brown was convicted of treason, conspiracy and murder following his raid on Harpers Ferry, also in Jefferson County.

The world famous Greenbrier Hotel and Resort, in White Sulphur Springs, Greenbrier County, was used as an Army Hospital during World War II.

Tourism is the state's leading industry. For many years, coal was the leading industry.

The New River Gorge Bridge, in Fayetteville, is the longest steel-arch bridge in the United States spanning 1, 815 feet across the New River Canyon.

The total cost for construction of our capitol building was nearly $10 million in 1932.

The dome on the capitol is 292 feet high, higher than the dome on the Nation's Capitol building in Washington, D.C.

The Greenbrier Hotel is also the home of the famous springs which were rumored to cure various ailments.

West Virginia was admitted to the Union on June 20, 1863, by proclamation signed by President Abraham Lincoln.

Ironic to its name, the New River is actually one of the oldest rivers in the World and flows south to north, opposite from most rivers because it was formed before the mountains.

At 4, 861 feet above sea level, Spruce Knob, located in Pendleton County, is the highest point in the Mountain State. Dropping down to 247 feet above sea level, Harpers Ferry, Jefferson County, marks lowest point in the state.

On January 3, 1921, and four buildings later, West Virginia's Capitol burned to the ground. A temporary office building, known as the "Pasteboard Capitol," and other Charleston buildings served as temporary offices for state government.

Cass Gilbert was selected as the architect to design the capitol building. Gilbert, whose offices were located in New York, designed other notable buildings such as the capitol buildings of Minnesota and Arkansas, as well as the United States Treasury Annex and the United States Chamber of Commerce Building.

On June 20, 1932, eleven years after the destruction of the downtown capitol building, West Virginia's permanent capitol building was dedicated.

West Virginia's first Capital city was located in Wheeling, Ohio County. It was later moved to Charleston, then back to Wheeling, and then back to Charleston.

Washington Hall, located in Wheeling, is known as the "Birthplace of West Virginia."

The first capitol building is known as the Linsley Institute Building, built in 1858 and served as West Virginia's capitol for seven years.

The first Charleston Capitol, built in 1869-1870, was located at Capitol and Lee Streets. Charleston remained the Capitol City until 1875 when the Legislature decided to return to Wheeling.

In the fall of 1877, as a result of a statewide election, Governor Jacob issued a proclamation declaring Charleston the permanent seat of government.

Source: legis.state.wv.us , The Interesting Facts Blog

Facts about Louisiana

2009-07-09T05:30:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about Louisiana. I found them interesting, hope you will like them and find them interesting.

Louisiana's salt domes produce 24 percent of the nation's salt, making it the highest producing state in America.

The Superdome, located in New Orleans is the worlds largest enclosed stadium.

The longest over-water bridge in the world is located just outside of New Orleans. At 23.87 miles long, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is definitely one of Louisiana's greatest accomplishments.

Natchitoches, Louisiana, is the oldest city in the Louisiana Purchase Territory, and was founded in 1714.

The state capitol building in Baton Rouge, is the tallest state capitol building in America, standing 450 feet tall.

Baton Rouge was the only site of an American Revolution battle that was fought outside of the original 13 colonies.

The term "Uncle Sam" originated on the wharfs of New Orleans before Louisiana became a U.S. territory. Even then, New Orleans was a major docking port, and the goods that came through the New Orleans docks and labeled U.S. were referred to as "Uncle Sam."

Steen's Syrup Mill, located in Abbeville, LA, is the world's largest plant producing sugar cane syrup.

The Konkriko Co. in New Iberia, Louisiana, is America's oldest rice mill.

Louisiana is home to 6.5 million acres of wetlands that hold the honor of being the greatest wetland in America.

In 1813, the game of craps was invented in New Orleans.

At 514 Chartres Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, lies the oldest pharmacy in America, established in 1823. The New Orleans Pharmacy, is now the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum.

The staircase located in the Chretien Point plantation home in Sunset, Louisiana was copied and used in Tara in the movie "Gone with the Wind."

The Tabasco company, found by E. A. McIlhenny in 1868 in Avery Island, Louisiana, is the second oldest food trademark in the United States Patent Office.

New Orleans is the birthplace of Jazz, which is considered the only true American art form.

During the time when states had their own individual currencies, the favored currency in Louisiana was the Louisiana Dix. (Dix is French for ten.) English speakers referred to these as Dixies, which eventually coined the phrase, Dixieland.

Source: associatedcontent.com , Facts

Facts about Ice Cream

2009-07-09T05:01:00.000-07:00

I know you all love ice-cream. Here are some really interesting and fun facts about ice-cream...

The most avid ice cream eaters in the U.S. don't live in Hawaii, the South, California, or any other hot clime. Instead, in 1999, it was reported that the good citizens of Omaha, Nebraska, ate more ice cream per person than any other Americans.

Vanilla is the most popular flavor in this country, snagging anywhere from 20 to 29 percent of sales. Chocolate comes in a distant second, with about 9 to 10 percent of the market.

Legend has it that the Roman emperor Nero used to send his slaves scurrying to the mountains to collect snow and ice to make flavored ices, the precursors to ice cream, in the first century.

The first written mention of ice cream in this country can be found in a letter from the 1700s, which admiringly describes the ice cream and strawberry dessert a Maryland governor served at a dinner party. Initially, just a treat for the elite (including George Washington, who is said to have consumed enormous quantities), the first ice cream parlor in this country opened in New York City in 1776. In 1845, the hand-cranked freezer was invented, allowing Americans to make ice cream more easily at home.

Among the most unusual flavors of ice cream ever manufactured are avocado, garlic, azuki bean, jalapeno, and pumpkin. Perhaps the weirdest of all: dill pickle ice cream , which was marketed to expectant mothers. Sales were disappointing.

One out of every five ice cream eaters share their treat with their dog or cat. (Can the day of liver- or tuna-flavored ice cream be far behind?)

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan declared July as National Ice Cream Month, citing the food's "nutritious and wholesome" qualities. He decreed that patriotic Americans should mark the month with "appropriate ceremonies and activities."

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the biggest ice cream sundae in the world was made in Alberta, Canada, in 1988. It weighed nearly 55,000 pounds. The same year, a baking company and a sheet-metal firm in Dubuque, Iowa, teamed up to produce the world's largest ice cream sandwich, which tipped the scales at nearly 2,500 pounds. And, in 1999, Baskin-Robbins created an ice cream cake at a beach hotel in the United Arab Emirates that weighed just under 9,000 pounds.

Americans consume the most ice cream in the world per capita, with Australians coming in second. In 1924, the average America ate eight pints a year. By 1997, the International Dairy Foods Association reported that the figure had jumped to 48 pints a year.

Immigrants at Ellis Island were served vanilla ice cream as part of their Welcome to America meal.

While popular lore claims that the ice cream cone was invented at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis, a New York City ice cream vendor actually seems to have created the cone in 1896 to stop customers from stealing his serving glasses. He patented the idea in 1903 and it took off in popularity at the World's Fair the next year.

One of the major ingredients in ice cream is air. Without it, the stuff would be as hard as a rock.

Ice cream novelties such as ice cream on sticks and ice cream bars were introduced in the 1920s. Seems like kid stuff, but today, adults consume nearly one-half of all such treats.

Source: drspock.com , facts

Plactic Bottles and ther recycling

2009-07-02T01:05:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about Plastic bottles and their recycling...

Americans buy an estimated 28 billion plastic water bottles every year.

Nearly eight out of every 10 bottles will end up in a landfill.

It is estimated that the production of plastics accounts for four percent of the energy consumption in the U.S.

In 2006, it took more than 17 million barrels of oil (excluding the oil used in transporting the plastic) to produce plastic bottles.

The manufacturing process of creating bottled water created more than 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide.

It also takes more than three liters of water to create one liter of bottled water.

There is a large amount of energy needed to fill plastic bottles with water, transport them to the store, keep them cool and dispose of them. It is estimated that the total amount of energy used to bottle water is equivalent of filling a bottle a quarter full of oil.

The amount of oil used to produce plastic water bottles in America is enough to fuel about 100,000 cars for a year.

Only 13 percent of water bottles are recycled.

About 80 percent of all municipal solid waste ends up in a landfill, while 10 percent is incinerated and only 10 percent is recycled. Because about less than one percent of all plastics is recycled, almost all plastics are incinerated or end up in a landfill.

Recycling a single plastic bottle can conserve enough energy to light a 60-watt light bulb for up to six hours.

Source: earth911 , facts

Facts about Newgrange

2009-07-01T23:49:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about Newgrange...

Newgrange is one of the best examples in Ireland and in Western Europe, of a type of monument known to archaeologists as a passage-grave or passage-tomb.

It was constructed around 3200BC, according to the most reliable Carbon 14 dates available from archaeology. This makes it more than 600 years older than the Giza Pyramids in Egypt, and 1,000 years more ancient than Stonehenge.

Newgrange was built in a time when there was only stone, not metal, used as an everyday material for tools and weapons. According to Clare O'Kelly, who assisted her husband Michael O'Kelly in the excavations of Newgrange, no metal has yet been found in a primary context in an Irish passage-grave.

Considerable damage was caused to the stones in the chamber of Newgrange in times past due to "evily-disposed visitors" who carved their names onto the stones. This graffiti can still be seen to this day.

More damage was done during the construction of nearby roads. Pownall said that large quantities of stones had been removed and the roads paved with them, and archaeologists found that the flat-topped mound had a number of hollows and craters as a result of the removal of stones.

In 1993, Newgrange and its sister sites Knowth and Dowth were designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO because of their outstanding cultural legacy.

Newgrange was "rediscovered" in 1699. The landowner at the time, Charles Campbell, needed some stones and had instructed his labourers to carry some away from the cairn. It was at this time the entrance to the tomb was discovered.

Newgrange sits on the top of an elongated ridge within a large bend in the Boyne River about five miles west of the town of Drogheda. This area has great eminence thoughout Irish history - legend tells us the foundations of Christianity were laid here. Two miles or so downstream is Oldbridge, where the Battle of the Boyne took place in 1690.

Access to Newgrange is through the Brú na Bóinne Visitors' Centre at nearby Donore, just across the river Boyne. In recent times, there have been as many as 200,000 visitors to Newgrange each year, making it the most visited archaeological monument in Ireland.

The name "Newgrange", or New Grange, is relatively modern. The area around Newgrange was once part of the lands owned and farmed by the monks of Mellifont Abbey, and would have been known as a "grange".

Source: mythicalireland , facts

Interesting Facts about Diamonds

2009-07-01T21:24:00.000-07:00

I am back with more interesting facts about diamonds. Hope you liked the previous ones I posted about diamonds. I think you will like these more than the diamond facts I posted earlier.

Most diamonds are over three billion years old, two-thirds the age of the Earth. There are a few "youngsters," though, which are only 100 million years old.

Most diamonds were formed more than 100 miles below the surface of the Earth, some from perhaps 400 miles down.

The most recent kimberlite volcano eruption was approximately 53 million years ago - just a few ticks of the geologic clock - but there is no reason to believe there will not be more in the future.

Although diamonds are perceived as a white—actually colorless—gem, they come in a spectrum of colors; colored diamonds are called "fancies."

India was the only known source of diamonds before the sixth century and the predominant source for over 2,000 years, until the mid-eighteenth century.

Romans believed that diamonds had the power to ward off evil and wore them as talismans. They inherited this belief from Indian mythology.

A law in thirteenth-century France decreed that only the king could wear diamonds.

Diamonds were not used as gems in European jewelry until the late 13th century. They were initially used for such purposes as engraving other gems, such as sapphire cameos, and for drilling holes in hardstone beads (such beads drilled by diamonds have been dated to archaeological sites as early as 400 BCE).

The most recent diamond discoveries have been made in North America—in the Northwest Territories of Canada and in Colorado—where explorers found diamond pipes in 1990.

Some diamonds are composed of carbon, that is recycled organic matter, previously incorporated in marine organisms.

"One-hour eyeglasses" have only become possible with the use of diamond tools, which can quickly and accurately shape the lenses.

Because diamonds can withstand extremely high temperatures and corrosive conditions, and because they are transparent to most forms of light and electromagnetic radiation, they are ideal for use as windows in industry and in space probes, including the 1978 Pioneer space probe to the surface of Venus.

Every copper wire in your computer, television, and house has been shaped with a die—the device that squeezes wire to the desired diameter—made from diamond.

Diamond scalpels are particularly effective because their sharp, hard edges never dull, and, because diamond's hydrophobic surface—its resistance to being wetted—ensures that wet tissue does not adhere to the blade.

The largest rough diamond ever found was the Cullinan, 3,106 carats, discovered on January 26, 1905 in the Premier mine of South Africa. It was cut into nine major stones, including the largest gem diamond, the Cullinan 1, or Star of Africa, 550.20 carats. This is mounted in the British Royal Scepter and housed in the Tower of London.

In the 1950s, Gemological Institute of America developed the first internationally accepted diamond grading system. This system provides unbiased opinions of the quality of polished diamonds by applying uniform criteria to their grading.

The GIA Gem Trade Laboratory Diamond Grading Report has become the benchmark for the international gem and jewelry industry, and can be found accompany diamonds worldwide.

Source: sdnhm.org , factsnfacts.com

Cinco de Mayo Facts

2009-07-01T21:19:00.000-07:00

Here are some cool facts about Cinco de Mayo...

US states including Texas and California celebrate Cinco de Mayo as well, with some huge events where everyone (not just those of Mexican descent) joins in. Parades, traditional music and clothing, delicious Mexican food, Mexican dances; the events are numerous and always fun.

Many people think that it's the same day as Mexican Independence Day, but that's not true. The very name of Cinco de Mayo belies that false fact, however. "Cinco de Mayo" means "Fifth of May" in Spanish.

People wear red, white and green, the Mexican national colours, and traditional clothes. For the women, this means long and wide flowing skirts.

If the Battle of Puebla had not been won by the Mexicans, France would have aided the South in the American Civil War, and US history might look quite different.

The largest Cinco de Mayo event in the world is actually in Los Angeles, where over 600,000 participants celebrate. Other large festivals that draw hundreds of thousands of participants are located in St. Paul's, Minnesota, and Denver, Colorado.

You're sure to see the Mexican flag everywhere on this day! The flag has three colors, each of which actually symbolizes something. Green is the color of hope and the resistance, while the red represents Spain and unity. The white stands for purity and religion. The symbols of the eagle and snake in the center of the flag are based on a Mexican legend.

Some nontraditional events held to celebrate Cinco de Mayo include a skydiving event near Vancouver, BC and an air guitar competition in the Cayman islands.

Over 29 million Americans, or 10 percent of the total American population, are of Mexican origin as of 2007. Perhaps this is why Cinco de Mayo is so widely celebrated in the USA!

Source: helium.com

Beetham Tower Facts

2009-07-01T10:22:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about the Beetham Tower...

The Beetham Tower cost over £150 million to build.

It is exactly 168.87 metres high.

The Beetham Tower has 47 floors.

It has over 528,000 square feet of space.

The Beetham Tower is the 7th tallest building in England.

The Beetham Tower has a 4 metre overhang on the 23rd floor.

This Tower is the tallest residential development in Europe.

The Beetham Tower has 219 luxury apartments and 16 penthouses.

The Beetham Tower is home to the Hilton Hotel.

The most expensive penthouse in the Beetham Tower cost £3 million and is owned by designer of the Beetham Tower, Ian Simpson.

Source: http://www.beethamtower.org/

Interesting Facts about Strawberries

2009-07-01T09:42:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about strawberries...

Strawberries are the only fruit with seeds on the outside.

The average strawberry has 200 seeds.

The ancient Romans believed that strawberries alleviated symptoms of melancholy, fainting, all inflammations, fevers, throat infections, kidney stones, bad breath, attacks of gout, and diseases of the blood, liver and spleen.

To symbolize perfection and righteousness, medieval stone masons carved strawberry designs on altars and around the tops of pillars in churches and cathedrals.

In parts of Bavaria, country folk still practice the annual rite each spring of tying small baskets of wild strawberries to the horns of their cattle as an offering to elves. They believe that the elves, who are passionately fond of strawberries, will help to produce healthy calves and an abundance of milk in return.

Madame Tallien, a prominent figure at the court of the Emperor Napoleon, was famous for bathing in the juice of fresh strawberries. She used 22 pounds per basin. Needless to say, she did not bathe daily.

The fruit size of the very early strawberries was very small.

Strawberries are the first fruit to ripen in the spring.

There is a museum in Belgium just for strawberries.

Strawberries are a member of the rose family.

Ninety-four percent of U.S. households consume strawberries.

Americans eat 3.4 pounds of fresh strawberries each year plus another 1.8 pounds frozen per capita.

Over 53 percent of seven to nine-year-olds picked strawberries as their favorite fruit.

Source: michigan.gov , factsnfacts.com

Sydney Opera House Facts

2009-07-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

These are some really interesting facts about the Sydney Opera House...

The original indigenous people of the area were the Gadigal clan.

The Aboriginal name for the Point was Tu-bow-gule meaning meeting of the waters.

Sydney Opera House sits on Bennelong Point. The Point was first developed as afort, named after Governor Macquarie. It was later used as a tram shed.

233 designs were submitted for the Opera House design competition held in 1956.

In January 1957, Jørn Utzon was announced the winner. He won 5000 for hisdesign.

The original estimate to build Sydney Opera House was $7 million.

The final cost of Sydney Opera House was $102 million.

Sydney Opera House was largely paid for by a State Lottery.

It was originally estimated that building Sydney Opera House would take four years.

Work commenced on Sydney Opera House in 1959 and 10,000 construction workerswere engaged.

Sydney Opera House was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 th October, 1973.

Many of the world’s best known construction companies were involved in buildingSydney Opera House including Arups Structural Engineering, Hornibrook and RiderHunt.

The Sydney Opera House sails were built using three tower cranes made in Francefor this job, costing $100,000 each. Sydney Opera House was one of the firstbuildings constructed in Australia using tower cranes.

6,223 sq metres of glass were used.

The topaz coloured glass used in the building was made to order by Boussois-Souchon-Neuvesel in France in a shade unique to Sydney Opera House.

350 kilometres of tension cable was laid during construction of Sydney OperaHouse. If laid end-to-end this would stretch to Canberra.

There are 1,056,006 roof tiles covering an area of approximately 1.62 hectares thatsit over the structure. They were made by a Swedish tile company, Höganas.

The concrete ceiling beams change shape as they rise from a T shape to a Y andthen a U shape, depending on where the level of stress is greatest. These foldedbeams replace the need for columns to support the weight of the structure.

The sails sit on top of a heavy podium, which is believed to be the biggest pillar orcolumn free chamber in the world.

The highest roof shell of Sydney Opera House is 67 metres above sea-level, theequivalent of a 22 storey building.

The building is 187 metres in length

The building is 115 metres wide.

The entire site covers an area of 5.798 hectares.

Eight Boeing 747s could sit wing to wing on the site.

The building’s footprint is 1.75 hectares.

There are 2,679 seats in the largest venue, the Concert Hall.

The Concert Hall Grand Organ is the largest mechanical organ in the world, with10,154 pipes.

It took 10 years complete the Grand Organ.

Two mechanical stage-lifts move scenery and props from the scenery dock to theOpera Theatre. Unlike most theatres, scenery is stored two floors below the stage.

In one day, a stage hand working in the Opera Theatre walks an average of 18,681steps or 13 kilometres.

15,500 light bulbs are changed annually.

Sydney Opera House is open to the public 363 days a year - closed on ChristmasDay and Good Friday. Staff work every day of the year, 24/7.

There are seven performance venues at Sydney Opera House – the Concert Hall,the Opera Theatre, Playhouse, Drama Theatre, The Studio, the Forecourt and theUtzon Room.

Since the building opened in 1973 until June 2005, 87,839 performances andevents have been staged at Sydney Opera House.

57, 273,728 people have attended performances and events since Sydney OperaHouse opened in 1973 until June 2005.

Paul Robeson was the first person to perform at Sydney Opera House. In 1960, heclimbed the scaffolding and sang Ol’ Man River to the construction workers as theyate their lunch.

The Playhouse was originally used as a cinema and in the late 1970s was a popularvenue for surfing movies.

In the Concert Hall, Arnold Schwarzenegger won his final Mr Olympia body buildingtitle in 1980.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has visited Sydney Opera House five times.

A net was installed above the orchestra pit in the Opera Theatre during the 1980sfollowing an opera (Boris Godunov) featuring live chickens when one of the birdswalked off the stage and landing on top of a cellist.

The Studio is a licensed venue and patrons can take alcohol into the theatre.

The biggest crowd to ever attend a performance at Sydney Opera House was in1996 for the Farewell to the World concert of the band, Crowded House, which wastelevised around the world.

The crime novel, Helga’s Web, by Jon Cleary, was set at Sydney Opera House witha body found in the building’s basement. In 1975, the book was made into a filmcalled Scobie Malone, starring Jack Thompson.

Sydney Opera House has its own opera written about it, called The Eighth Wonder.

In May 2003, Sydney Opera House architect Jørn Utzon was awarded theprestigious Pritzker Prize – the Nobel Prize of the architectural community.

In October 2003, Sydney Opera House celebrated its 30 th Birthday.

Four generations of the Utzon family have been architects – Aage (Jørn’s father),Jørn, his son Jan, plus Jan’s son Jeppe and daughter Kickan.

The recently refurbished Utzon Room is the first Utzon-designed interior at SydneyOpera House. Due to changes made to the building after Utzon left the project in1966, this will be the only ever 100% authentic Utzon interior.

It took four weavers more than 8 months to create the new Utzon Room tapestry.

If unravelled, the wool in the Utzon Room tapestry, Homage to CPE Bach, wouldstretch 4,500 kilometres.

Source: new7wonders.com , Blog of Interesting Facts

Interesting Newfoundland Facts

2009-07-01T07:14:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about Newfoundland. I am sure you will enjoy reading these facts.

Showy Lady's Slipper orchid (Cypripedium reginae) , the largest and most beautiful northern orchid in North America is found in western Newfoundland. Because of its rarity, this orchid is imperiled in the wild.

The ocean around Newfoundland is home to more than 20 species of whales at one time of the year or another, making Newfoundland one of the best whale viewing locations in the world. Humpback whales, Fin whales, Minke whales, and Sperm whales, are some the common whales around Newfoundland.

Contrary to much popular opinion, Newfoundland is not a part of northern Canada. Corner Brook, Newfoundland, in terms of latitude, is a little distance south of Vancouver, British Columbia. Corner Brook is on the same latitude as Paris, France. St. Anthony, on the northern tip of Newfoundland, is on the same latitude as London, England.

The first known St. John's Regatta was held on September 22, 1818 to celebrate the coronation of King George III in 1761. Mention of the race was made in the 'Mercantile Journal.' The Custom House won the race of 2 miles in 25 minutes.

The producing oil fields off eastern Newfoundland are so profitable that the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador is now off of the Canadian equalization plan (the equalization plan, made possible by the Canadian Constitution, allows the Federal Government to send money from financially richer provinces to financially poorer provinces) .

The MV Caribou, which plies the waters between Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, is named in honour of the S.S. Caribou which was torpedoed and sunk by a Nazi submarine on October 14, 1942.

Shortly after the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001, air traffic controllers at Gander airport, Newfoundland, used their emergency Y2K plans to help safely land dozens of transatlantic aircraft that were headed toward North America. The Y2K emergency plans had been ridiculed as unnecessary when no major problem occurred after clocks changed from 1999 to 2000 (midnight, December 31, 1999), but the Y2K plans may have saved lives at Gander on September 11, 2001.

The population of Newfoundland in 1800 was approximately 10,000 (ten thousand) people.

Shannon Tweed, Playboy's Playmate of the Year for 1982, was born in Newfoundland, in 1957. Since 1983, Shannon Tweed has lived with Gene Simmons, former lead performer with the rock band KISS.

The ceilings of the Council Chamber and the Assembly Room in the Colonial Building in St. John's were painted by Polish fresco painter Alexander Pindikowski in 1880. Mr. Pindikowski had been serving a 15 month prison sentence for passing forged cheques - his sentence was reduced by 1 month for his work. In 1940, the ceiling work was restored by local painter Clem Murphy.

The Black Spruce (Picea mariana) was proclaimed the Provincial Tree of Newfoundland in May, 1991. The Black Spruce has had a significant social and economic impact on the provincial economy: it is the favoured tree of the pulp and paper industry, it has played a prominent role in the lives of aboriginal people and in local folk medicine, and it is very hardy and grows well throughout the province.

The Pitcher Plant (Sarracenis purpurea) is the official flower of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was chosen as the provincial flower in 1954 by the Newfoundland Cabinet. Queen Victoria chose the Pitcher Plant to be engraved on the Newfoundland penny in the late 1800s.

In terms of phonetic differences (spoken accents), with the exception of Newfoundland, the English speaking regions of Canada have much more in common than the English speaking regions of the United States (see The Atlas of North American English).

During the War of 1812, at the naval Battle of Lake Erie (September 10, 1813), 28% of British casualties (39 men) were suffered by Newfoundlanders (Google 'Newfoundland Regiment of Fencible Infantry').

Newfoundlanders received a special commendation from Major-General Issac Brock on the fall of Detroit during the War of 1812 (Google 'Newfoundland Regiment of Fencible Infantry').

The Long Range Mountains in southwestern Newfoundland are part of the Appalachian Mountains. They are now eroded down to the root of the original mountains which were as high as the Himalayan Mountains in their day.

There isn't one homeless person, or one person living on the streets, in Newfoundland and Labrador. This is likely because of strong social ties (people generally know each other), strong community churches, provincial government programs to help the disadvantaged, and ages old respect among people (it's shameful to have homeless people in a community, so something is done about it).

Newfoundland forms an almost perfect equilateral triangle on a map. Port aux Basques to L'Anse aux Meadows to St. John's are all nearly the same distance apart.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana visited Newfoundland in 1983. Princess Diana planted a tree on Government House grounds in St. John's.

About 4000 years ago, people of the Maritime Archaic Tradition occupied the entire coastline of Newfoundland and Labrador. A cemetery of these people has been excavated by archaeologists at Port aux Choix on the Great Northern Peninsula. In this cemetery have been found a wealth of artifacts including more than 100 human skeletons, domestic dog skeletons, great auk (Pinguinus impennis) remains, wolf remains, musical instruments, a specimen of native copper, fire-making sets, hunting equipment, artifact manufacturing equipment, religious objects, etc.

The first train from St. John's to Port aux Basques arrived on June 30, 1898. Railroading ended in Newfoundland on October 1, 1988.

Bonfire Night (or Guy Fawkes Night), the evening of November 5, is still celebrated in many parts of Newfoundland. The bonfires are generally lit as part of a community event to mark the escape (deliverance) of King James I of England (James VI of Scotland) from a plot to kill him, his family, most of the British aristocracy, and both Houses of Parliament (King and company) in November 1605. Guy Fawkes was discovered with explosives (red handed) in the basement of the Houses of Parliament before the explosives could be detonated. He was later executed.

It has been illegal to hunt Pine Marten (Martes americana atrata) on the island of Newfoundland since 1934 because of low population numbers. The total population is approximately 300 animals.

There are 18 trees that are native to Newfoundland: Red Pine, White Pine, Black Spruce, White Spruce, Balsam Fir, Tamarack/Larch, Trembling Aspen, Balsam Popular, Showy Mountain Ash, American Mountain Ash, Mountain Maple, Red Maple, Pin Cherry, Choke Cherry, Speckled Alder, Yellow Birch, White Birch, and Black Ash (rare).

Many non-native (exotic) trees also grow in Newfoundland. These exotic trees are mostly found in private collections. Among the exotic trees growing in Newfoundland are Douglas Fir, Korean Fir, Siberian Fir, Nordmann Fir, Black Locust, Ponderosa Pine, Sitka Spruce, and Garry Oak.

Arctic Hares are native to Newfoundland, but Snowshoe Hares were introduced from Nova Scotia in 1864 and 1876. They were released at the same time by local Magistrates. Hares are often erroneously called rabbits.

The Newfoundland Timber or Grey Wolf became extinct on the island of Newfoundland in the 1930s.

The coyote arrived in Newfoundland during the winter of 1985, when heavy ice in the Gulf of St. Lawrence allowed passage from Nova Scotia.

There are no snakes, skunks, deer, porcupines or groundhogs on the island of Newfoundland. Chipmunks were introduced to Newfoundland from Nova Scotia in 1962 and 1964, and today they are plentiful in the Codroy Valley of southwestern Newfoundland where cultivated (farm) oats are a favourite treat. There is no ragweed pollen on the island either (a very common allergen).

The motto of Newfoundland and Labrador is "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God" from Matthew 6:33 in the Holy Bible.

Newfoundland is actually 3.5 hours west of Greenwich, and hence has its own proper time zone. The Newfoundland Standard Time Act of 1935 enshrined this time zone before Newfoundland joined Canada in 1949.

Newfoundland routinely has one of the lowest crime rates in Canada.

44 species of orchids are native to Newfoundland.

Traditionally, Newfoundlanders watched the black bear on February 2 since there are no groundhogs on the island.

The only authenticated Viking site in North America is located at L'Anse aux Meadows, north of St. Anthony, on Newfoundland's Great Northern Peninsula. The remains of the sod houses used by the Vikings can still be seen there, along with some of their artifacts.

Newfoundland is the 16th largest island in the world. Visitors should keep this in mind when planning a visit; it is not possible to see the whole island in just a few days and at least 10 days are needed for even a brief look around.

Squirrels were introduced to Newfoundland in 1963 (The Canadian Field Naturalist, Volume 90, pp. 60-64) and they have now colonised the whole island.

Moose are not native to Newfoundland, but today there are more than 100,000 on the island. 1 pair was introduced in 1878 from Nova Scotia (not thought to have survived). 2 pairs of moose were introduced on May 14, 1904 from New Brunswick. All of the moose in Newfoundland today are descended from the 1904 moose and possibly also from the 1878 moose.

For bird-watchers, the Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) can be seen along the coast from Port aux Basques to Cape Ray during the summer months (until August). Dozens were seen in 1997. Nesting areas are marked.

Between 1857 and 1949 Newfoundland issued its own postage stamps. They are still valid for mail posted anywhere in Canada.

Not all of Newfoundland was covered with glaciers during the last ice age. Parts of the Codroy Valley in southwestern Newfoundland were largely ice free.

The ski resort at Marble Mountain, near Corner Brook, has nearly 30 ski runs; the highest run has a vertical drop of almost 1600 feet (485 metres). Corner Brook hosted the Canada Winter Games between February 20 and March 6, 1999.

The Hibernia oilfield, off the east coast of Newfoundland, contains more oil than 40 of the 44 oilfields in the North Sea. Combined, the Hibernia and Terra Nova oilfields contain more than 1 billion barrels of recoverable oil. In 1999, the Hibernia oilfield was the most profitable oilfield in Canada.

The Mayflower stopped in at Renews (eastern Newfoundland) in 1620, to pick up supplies, during its voyage to present day Massachusetts, U.S.A.

Source: visitnewfoundland.ca , Interesting Facts Blog

Interesting Facts about Mount Fuji

2009-07-01T00:31:00.000-07:00

Here are some fun and interesting facts about Mount Fuji. You will enjoy reading these facts about the second most popular suicide point.

The Japanese characters for Fuji, mean 'wealth' or 'abundance' and 'a man with a high status'.

Every summer, more than 200,000 people climb to the top of Fuji. Some years, about a quarter of all of the climbers on the mountain are foreign residents and tourists.

In the Japanese language, there is a dedicated word that describes the sunrise at the top of Fuji, namely goraiko.

The summit of Fuji is high enough to induce altitude sickness (kouzanbyou), though it's possible to buy bottles of oxygen along the climbing route.

Mount Fuji has been regarded by the Japanese as a sacred moumtain since the earliest recorded history on the archipelago.

An anonymous monk first reached the summit of the mountain in 663. However, it was forbidden for women to climb until the Meiji Era (1868-1912).

The first ascent of Fuji by a foreigner was in 1860 by Sir Rutherford Alcock, the first British diplomatic representative in Japan.

Gotemba 5th Station, located between Subashiri and Houei-zan peak on the south side of the mountain, is one of Japan's most famous take-off spots for paragliding.

In feudal times, the town of Gotemba was used by the samurai as a remote wilderness training camp.

Fuji is an active volcano, though it is classified as having a low risk of eruption. The last recorded eruption started on December 16, 1707, and ended on New Year's Day of 1708.

Fuji's eruption during the Edo Period is known as the 'The Great Houei Eruption,' which resulted in cinder and ash raining down across the surrounding countryside.

Mount Fuji is located at the point where the Eurasian Plate meets the Okhotsk and Philippine Plates (think lots and lots of earthquakes!).

The forest at the base of Fuji, which is known as Aokigahara, is reported to be the world's second most popular suicide location after the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.

In the ancient days of Japan, people believed that Aokigahara was haunted by evil demons. Poor families used the forest as a place of abandonment for the very young and the very old.

While long lines occasionally form near the summit along the Kawaguchiko route, the Yoshida route is so remote that bears are occasionally spotted by hikers.

Want some tips for climbing Fuji, Japan's most iconic mountain peak? Check out this past Wednesday's installment of Big in Japan, entitled 'How to Climb Mount Fuji.'

Source: gadling.com , factsnfacts.com

Interesting Facts about Mexico

2009-07-01T00:23:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts anout Mexico...

The three colors of Mexico’s flag hold deep significance for the country and its citizens: green represents hope and victory, white stands for the purity of Mexican ideals and red brings to mind the blood shed by the nation’s heroes.

The flag’s dramatic emblem is based on the legend of how the Mexicas (or Aztecs) traveled from Aztlán to find the place where they could establish their empire. The god Huitzilopochtli advised them that a sign—an eagle devouring a serpent atop a Nopal cactus—would appear to them at the exact spot where they should begin construction. On a small island in the middle of a lake, the Mexicas came upon the scene exactly as Huitzilopochtli had described it. They immediately settled there and founded the city of Tenochtitlán, which is now Mexico City, the country’s capital.

Mexico is the third-largest country in Latin America after Brazil and Argentina.

At the beginning of the 21st century, Mexico's population surpassed 100 million.

Mexico has the largest population of Spanish speakers in the world.

With almost 25 million residents, Mexico City is one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world.

Mexico has the world’s second-highest number of Catholics after Brazil.

At nearly 2,000 miles, the border between Mexico and the United States is the second-longest in the world, after the border between the United States and Canada.

Mexicans comprise the largest group of legal immigrants in the United States.

Mexico is located in an area known as the Pacific “Ring of Fire.” This region, one of Earth’s most dynamic tectonic areas, is characterized by active volcanoes and frequent seismic activity. The highest point in the country, Citlaltépetl (also called Orizaba) and the active volcano Popocatépetl are among the many volcanic peaks in Mexico.

The Great Ball Court at Chichén Itzá Mexico, which was used for ritualistic sports by the ancient Mayans, is the largest such court the world, measuring 166 by 68 meters (545 by 232 feet). The game, which involved elements similar to those of soccer and basketball, was played by two teams whose number varied according to region.

Tequila, a liquor for which Mexico is famous, is made from the native blue agave plant. Named after the city where it originated, Tequila is primarily manufactured near Jalisco, which is 65 kilometers (40 miles) northwest of Guadalajara.

Mexico is the world’s leading producer of silver. An area called the Silver Belt—which encompasses Guanajuato and Zacatecas in the Mesa Central, Chihuahua in the Mesa del Norte and San Luis Potosi farther east—saw significant mining activity during the colonial period.

Mexico hosted the Summer Olympics in 1968 and the FIFA World Cup soccer championship in 1970 and 1986.

The Mexico City Arena—one of the largest bullfighting arenas in the world—seats 50,000. Another 35 arenas are located throughout the country.

Source: history.com , factsnfacts.com

Madagascar Hissing Cockroach Facts

2009-06-30T23:34:00.000-07:00

Here are some fun, interesting and amazing facts about Madagascar hissing Cockroach...

These hissing cockroaches are native only to the island of Madagascar, and if you see them anywhere else on earth … someone brought them there.

The males are territorial, and they fight intruders. Some may say that a Madagascar hissing cockroach is as stubborn as a goat because they fight ‘butting heads’ similar to a goat’s behavior.

Baby Madagascar hissing cockroaches are called ‘nymphs’.

Female Madagascar hissing cockroaches only breed once in a lifetime, but can have as many as three litters annually.

Madagascar hissing roaches grow to reach 3-4 inches in length.

Like dogs and cats have fleas, Madagascar hissing cockroaches carry mites but they cannot hurt or live on humans. A good way to remove them from a Madagascar hissing cockroach is to place the little creature in a plastic bag with a teaspoon of flour, and gently shake.

The Madagascar hissing cockroach lives as an important scavenger in their native habitat by keeping the jungle floor clean, but in captivity a good meal is a serving of dog or cat food and a piece of fresh fruit.

Baby Madagascar hissing cockroaches (nymphs) are about the length of a small watermelon seed and they are flat.

Momma Madagascar hissing cockroaches carry their babies for exactly sixty days.

The Madagascar hissing cockroach produces the famous hissing sound by forcing air out of tiny places on the sides of their bodies called ’spiracles’. They use the hissing sound for communication with other Madagascar hissing cockroaches, during mating, while fighting or when they feel threatened.

A Madagascar hissing cockroach’s feet are sticky.

A Madagascar hissing cockroach has lots of enemies. Some insects, mammals, birds, and reptiles would love to eat them.

The Madagascar hissing cockroach is nocturnal, meaning that they are more active at night. They are actually afraid of light.

The Madagascar hissing cockroach may be a member of the roach family but unlike others roaches, they have no wings.

Nymphs go through seven stages of growth before reaching adulthood, molting six times.

The average life span of a Madagascar hissing cockroach is anywhere from two to three years.

A nymph can mature faster in warmer climates.

When a Madagascar hissing cockroach sheds its exoskeleton, they eat it because it’s filled with nutrients.

Scientists tell the males and females apart by their horns, actually they are called pronatal humps, but they appear hornlike. These pronatal humps are more pronounced in the male species.

Out of all of the species in the cockroach family researchers believe that the Madagascar hissing cockroach is most like the prehistoric cockroaches that roamed the earth long before the dinosaurs. They are also called ‘living fossils’ for this reason.

Source: avivadirectory , factsnfacts

Interesting Facts about Skateboarding

2009-06-30T00:29:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about skateboarding...

How much do you really know about skateboarding? Test out your knowledge by reading these fun facts. If you know them all, you can dedicate more of your time to learning new tricks! If you didn’t know many of them you can feel better now that you have brushed up on your knowledge of this sport.

In the United States, there are more than 18 million people own a skateboard. 85% of these individuals are less than 18 years of age. 74% of them are males. Yvonne Dowlen still competes though and he is 81 years old! There are children as young as three years old that can do the basics on one as well.

Tony Hawk has a deal with Kohl’s to sell shoes due to having his own line of footwear. Hawk agreed to do so only if they were affordable – never over $40 so that everyone can afford them. He is also responsible for the creative designs on this signature line of shoes.

One of the crazy ways in which professional skaters have helped to raise money for skate parks is by taking part in golf fundraising tournaments. While their fans don’t see it as enough action, these events definitely generate plenty of income for the cause.

The culture of skateboarding emerged in California. It was mainly designed as the ground equivalent of surfing in the water. The first skateboards actually had handles on them that allowed a person to move them.

Approximately 800,000 people are seen by medical professionals annually due to skateboarding injuries. Less than 40% of individuals that do this sport where the proper safety equipment for it.

There are some famous movies out there that depict skateboarding. One is called Gleaming the Cube with Christian Slater. This film debuted in 1989 and is still one of the best with this type of action portrayed in it.

The Tony Hawk video games are among the most popular in the world. There are many versions of them to check out. He has spent hours being videotaped so that movements are very realistic to what he is known to do in real life.

With the cost of gas continually increasing, more people are using skateboards for transportation than before. It is no longer just for fun! Many students use them on campus to be able to quickly get around.

It is illegal to own a skateboard in Norway. The ban was implemented in 1989 due to the number of people being injured while riding them. Skateboarding has only started to get a following in Portugal with the highest number of owners of boards being reported in 2008.

The military began using skateboards for some indoor maneuvers in 1997.

Skateboarding is actually good for your health. It can help a person to improve in the areas of balance, flexibility, and coordination. It also helps to tone up muscles and to strengthen the heart.

Concentration and hand/eye coordination improves when a person skateboards. It can help a person to be able to focus their attention for a longer span of time on other activities in their life as well.

One of the biggest failures in marketing for Levi brand of jeans was when they tried to appeal to the style of skateboarders.

There are new facts about skateboarding all the time so take some time for it. When it is too cold outside to skateboard, don’t let it get you down. Go online and find some new facts to get you by until you can ride your board once again! You can impress your friends too with the information you learned about skateboarding in the mean time.

Source: articlebiz , factsnfacts

Facts about Loisiana

2009-06-13T09:19:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting, useful, informative and amazing facts about Louisiana...

The Superdome, located in New Orleans is the worlds largest enclosed stadium.

Louisiana is home to 6.5 million acres of wetlands that hold the honor of being the greatest wetland in America.

The longest over-water bridge in the world is located just outside of New Orleans. At 23.87 miles long, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is definitely one of Louisiana's greatest accomplishments.

Natchitoches, Louisiana, is the oldest city in the Louisiana Purchase Territory, and was founded in 1714.

The state capitol building in Baton Rouge, is the tallest state capitol building in America, standing 450 feet tall.

Baton Rouge was the only site of an American Revolution battle that was fought outside of the original 13 colonies.

The staircase located in the Chretien Point plantation home in Sunset, Louisiana was copied and used in Tara in the movie "Gone with the Wind."

Louisiana's salt domes produce 24 percent of the nation's salt, making it the highest producing state in America.

The Tabasco company, found by E. A. McIlhenny in 1868 in Avery Island, Louisiana, is the second oldest food trademark in the United States Patent Office.

Steen's Syrup Mill, located in Abbeville, LA, is the world's largest plant producing sugar cane syrup.

The Konkriko Co. in New Iberia, Louisiana, is America's oldest rice mill.

The term "Uncle Sam" originated on the wharfs of New Orleans before Louisiana became a U.S. territory. Even then, New Orleans was a major docking port, and the goods that came through the New Orleans docks and labeled U.S. were referred to as "Uncle Sam."

In 1813, the game of craps was invented in New Orleans.

At 514 Chartres Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, lies the oldest pharmacy in America, established in 1823. The New Orleans Pharmacy, is now the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum.

New Orleans is the birthplace of Jazz, which is considered the only true American art form.

During the time when states had their own individual currencies, the favored currency in Louisiana was the Louisiana Dix. (Dix is French for ten.) English speakers referred to these as Dixies, which eventually coined the phrase, Dixieland.

Source: associatedcontent.com

Facts about Maryland

2009-06-13T07:48:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about Maryland...

William Nuthead started the first printing business in St. Mary’s City in 1685. When he died his wife Diana inherited the business. She was the first female licensed as a printer in the colonies.

The Maryland Gazette founded in 1727 is the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States.

Charles Mason and Jeremiah surveyed the Mason-Dixon Line in 1763 to determine the border between Pennsylvania and Maryland. In 1767 the Mason-Dixon Line was established as Maryland’s northern border.

William Goddard inaugurated the first Post Office system in the United States in Baltimore in 1774.

In 1784 the first balloon ascension in the United States took place in Baltimore. The balloon was designed by Peter Carnes, but the ascent was made by thirteen year old Edward Warren.

Georgetown Prep in Bethesda, founded in 1789 by the society of Jesuits, is the oldest Catholic secondary school in the United States.

The Baltimore Water Company, the first water company in the United States, was chartered in 1792.

Mary Pickersgill designed the flag that flew over Ft. McHenry during the War of 1812.

Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner” after seeing the flag still waving during a battle in 1814.

In 1828 St. Francis Academy was the first dental school in the world. This became the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery in 1839.

In 1844 the first telegraph line in the world was established between Washington and Baltimore.

In 1856 Charles Benedict Calvert created the first agricultural research college in the United States. The Maryland Agricultural College became the University of Maryland at College Park.

The USS Constellation docked in Baltimore is the last ship to survive from the Civil War.

The B&O Railroad was incorporated in 1827 by Charles Carroll. Today the railroad is part of CSX.

The Carrollton Viaduct in Baltimore was named in honor of Charles Carroll of Carrollton and is the oldest railroad bridge still in use.

The Thomas Viaduct in Relay was the longest bridge in the United States on completion in 1835 and is still in use.

Dr. Florence Rina Sabin of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore became the first female professor of medicine in 1901.

Source: mdkidspage.org , Interesting Facts

Facts about Dragonfly

2009-06-13T06:46:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about dragonfly...

Dragonfly eyes contain up to 30,000 individual lenses. Human eyes only have one.

They have two sets of wings. They don’t have to beat their wings in unison like other insects do. Their front wings can be going up while their backs ones are going down.

They only flap their wings at about 30 beats per second (bps) compared to a bee’s 300 bps.

Excellent and strong fliers, they can loop-the-loop, hover, and fly backwards.

An Australian variety has been clocked at 36 miles per hour.

Dragonfly nymphs (the first stage after hatching) live in the water for about a year.

While underwater they eat mosquito nymphs, tiny fish, and pollywogs. When they have matured to airborne insects, they catch mosquitoes and gnats in mid-air before devouring them.

After leaving the water and becoming flying insects, they only live for about a month.

Their natural predators are birds.

Among the many names for dragonflies around the world are Old Glassy from China, Water Dipper from England and Big Needle of Wings from the ancient Celts.

Source: chevroncars.com , Interesting Facts

Facts about Butterflies

2009-06-12T00:03:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about butterflies...

Butterflies range in size from a tiny 1/8 inch to a huge almost 12 inches.

Butterflies can see red, green, and yellow.

Some people say that when the black bands on the Woolybear caterpillar are wide, a cold winter is coming.

The top butterfly flight speed is 12 miles per hour. Some moths can fly 25 miles per hour!

Monarch butterflies journey from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, a distance of about 2,000 miles, and return to the north again in the spring.

Butterflies cannot fly if their body temperature is less than 86 degrees.

Representations of butterflies are seen in Egyptian frescoes at Thebes, which are 3,500 years old.

Antarctica is the only continent on which no Lepidoptera have been found.

There are about 24,000 species of butterflies. The moths are even more numerous: about 140,000 species of them were counted all over the world.

The Brimstone butterfly (Gonepterix rhamni) has the longest lifetime of the adult butterflies: 9-10 months.

Some Case Moth caterpillars (Psychidae) build a case around themselves that they always carry with them. It is made of silk and pieces of plants or soil.

The caterpillars of some Snout Moths (Pyralididae) live in or on water-plants.

The females of some moth species lack wings, all they can do to move is crawl.

The Morgan's Sphinx Moth from Madagascar has a proboscis (tube mouth) that is 12 to 14 inches long to get the nectar from the bottom of a 12 inch deep orchid discovered by Charles Darwin.

Some moths never eat anything as adults because they don't have mouths. They must live on the energy they stored as caterpillars.

Many butterflies can taste with their feet to find out whether the leaf they sit on is good to lay eggs on to be their caterpillars' food or not.

There are more types of insects in one tropical rain forest tree than there are in the entire state of Vermont.

In 1958 Entomologist W.G. Bruce published a list of Arthropod references in the Bible. The most frequently named bugs from the Bible are: Locust: 24, Moth: 11, Grasshopper: 10, Scorpion: 10, Caterpillar: 9, and Bee: 4.

People eat insects – called "Entomophagy"(people eating bugs) – it has been practiced for centuries throughout Africa, Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and North, Central and South America. Why? Because many bugs are both protein-rich and good sources of vitamins, minerals and fats.

Many insects can carry 50 times their own body weight. This would be like an adult person lifting two heavy cars full of people.

There are over a million described species of insects. Some people estimate there are actually between 15 and 30 million species.

Most insects are beneficial to people because they eat other insects, pollinate crops, are food for other animals, make products we use (like honey and silk) or have medical uses.

Butterflies and insects have their skeletons on the outside of their bodies, called the exoskeleton. This protects the insect and keeps water inside their bodies so they don’t dry out.

Source: thebutterflysite.com , factsnfacts.com

Facts about Dolphins

2009-06-11T23:57:00.000-07:00

These are some really interesting facts about these beautiful creatures. I found them different from the normal ones available on the web.

There are 32 species of marine dolphins, four types of river dolphins, and six types of porpoises. The distinction between dolphin and porpoises is often blurred, but generally porpoises have spade-shaped teeth and blunt rounded faces. Dolphins have teeth shaped like rounded cones set in jaws that extend in a snout or beak.

The term “dolphin” is from the Greek delphis which is related to delphys (such as the Delphic Oracle) meaning “womb.” The term “porpoise” is from the Old French porpais which means “pork fish,” perhaps because the porpoise snout resembles the snout of a pig.

Called “re-entrants,” dolphins once lived on land and looked and behaved something like a small wolf but with five hoof-like toes on each foot instead claws. Some dolphins still have hair on their heads and the Amazon River dolphin has hair on its beak. Dolphins also have remnant finger bones in their flippers, a forearm, wrists, and a few remnant leg bones deep inside their bodies.

Killing a dolphin in ancient Greece was considered sacrilegious and was punishable by death. The Greeks called them hieros ichthys “sacred fish,” and the sun god, Apollo, assumed the form of a dolphin when he founded his oracle at Delphi at Mount Parnassus.

In Rome, dolphins were thought to carry souls to the “Islands of the Blest,” and images of dolphins have been found in the hands of Roman mummies, presumably to ensure their safe passage to the afterlife.

Famous philosophers such as Pliny, Herodotus, Aelian, and Aristotle comment on the compassion, friendly, and almost moral nature of the dolphin.

Images of dolphins have been found carved far within the desert city of Petra, Jordan.

The killer whale is the largest dolphin (true whales don’t have teeth but sift their prey through plates of baleen). The smallest dolphin is the Hector or Maui Dolphin, of which only 150 are left today.

The narwhal dolphin has a large ivory tusk (like a unicorn) which is often poached. The only remaining populations are in the Greenland Sea and Baffin Bay.

Dolphin teeth are used for grasping, not chewing. They have no jaw muscles for chewing.

While the brains of most mammals have a relatively smooth surface, the brains of humans are extremely convoluted. The dolphin brain is even more “folded” than humans and was this way millions of years before the first appearance of humans. Scientists often measure intelligence by the number of brain “folds.”f

Some dolphins can understand as many as 60 words, which can make up 2000 sentences. They also show signs of self-awareness.

Just a tablespoon of water in a dolphin’s lung could drown it. A human could drown if six teaspoons of water were inhaled into the lungs.

A baby dolphin is born tail-first to prevent drowning. After the mother breaks the umbilical cord by swiftly swimming away, she must immediately return to her baby and take it to the surface to breathe.

A baby dolphin must learn to hold its breath while nursing.

A female dolphin will assist in the birth of another's baby dolphin, and if it is a difficult birth, the “midwife” might help pull out the baby. Other dolphins, including bulls, will swim around the mother during birth to protect her.

The blowhole is an evolved nose that has moved upward to the top of the dolphin’s head.

Air can be expelled from a dolphin’s blowhole at speeds topping 100 mph.

A dolphin’s body has adapted to avoid the bends (the formation of air bubbles in blood and tissue as a diver returns to the surface of the water) by completely collapsing its ribcage, forcing the air under pressure out of its lungs and into the windpipe and the complex air chambers that lie below the blowhole.

Dolphins don’t have a sense of smell, but they do have a sense of taste and, like humans, can distinguish between sweet, sour, bitter, and salty tastes.

Unlike a fish, which moves its tale from side to side, a dolphin swims by moving its tale (made up of flukes) up and down. And a dolphin carries more oxygen in its blood than a fish and can swim longer than a fish...hence, dolphins are better adapted to the sea than are any fish.

The eyes of a dolphin produce “dolphin tears,” a slippery secretion which protects the eye against foreign objects and infection and reduces friction between the surface of the eye and surrounding sea water. Marine dolphins see quite well both below and above the water.

Dolphins also “see” with sounds. They emit a series of clicks and pings that travel long distances through water. When the sound hits an object, echoes are bounced back to the dolphin, enabling it to literally hear distance, shape, density, movement, and texture of an object.

With their “echo-location,” dolphins can distinguish between types of fish the same size, between aluminum and brass, and between a steel ball that is two and one-half inches in diameter and one that is two and one-fourth inches in diameter.

A dolphin’s “sonar” or echo-location is rare in nature and is far superior to either the bat’s sonar or human-made sonar.

Blocking off a dolphin’s ears with suction cups hardly affects it hearing, yet if its lower jaw is covered with a rubber jacket, a dolphin will have trouble hearing...leading scientists to believe sound may be carried from the water to its inner ear through a different route than the ear canal, such as the lower jawbone or even its entire body.

A dolphin can produce whistles for communication and clicks for sonar at the same time, which would be like a human speaking in two voices, with two different pitches, holding two different conversations.

A 260 lb. dolphin eats approximately 33 lbs. of fish daily without gaining weight, which is akin to a human eating 15-22 lbs. of steak a day.

Unlike most wild animals, dolphins spend a lot of time enjoying sex and foreplay that is not determined by being “in season” or the urge to procreate.

No one knows exactly why dolphins beach themselves. But because dolphins may use the magnetic field of the earth to navigate their way, some scientists believe that some places where dolphins strand have an abnormal magnetic field.

Dolphins typically do not live alone, but rather in schools or pods. They have a complex social structure and seem to have a wide range of emotions, including humor.

Dolphins may kill sharks by ramming them with their beaks.

Dolphins often practice “fishwacking,” swatting its victim with its broad flukes as the fish tries to evade capture. Some scientists think that dolphins can also use their high-pitched sounds to stun or paralyze fish while hunting.

Unlike most wild animals, wild dolphins have been known to play with humans, especially children

While most wild animals avoid contact with humans, wild dolphins are known to play and associate with humans, especially children.

In 1971, the Navy dispatched a team of dolphins “armed” with large carbon-dioxide filled hypodermic needles strapped to their beaks to guard a US Navy base in Vietnam. The dolphins had been taught to hunt humans swimming in the water and prod them with their beak, delivering a fatal injection in the humans’ lungs or stomachs.

Dolphins do not breathe automatically as humans do and will die if given a general anesthetic. They must sleep at the surface of the water with their blowholes exposed. Dolphins shut down only half of their brain while they sleep to stay alert and breathing.

The dolphin’s most dangerous enemy is humans.

Dolphin sonar seems not to detect the fine threads of fishing nets, and millions of dolphins have drowned as a result of becoming entangled.

Dolphins play around boats, surfing the bow waves and even helping fisherman by signaling when it’s the best time to cast their nets...nd then herding the fish into them.

Public outrage over the death of millions of dolphins in the 1960s prompted the introduction of the Marine Mammals Protection Act (MMPA) by the U.S. in 1972, which was substantially updated in 1994 with the addition of the Zero Mortality Rate Goal (ZMRG). The ZMRG required fisheries to reduce incidental mortality and serious injuries to marine mammals to levels approaching level zero.

Source: facts.randomhistory.com , factsnfacts.com

Facts about Snakes

2009-06-11T05:50:00.000-07:00

Here are some more really interesting facts about snakes...

There are 2700 species and subspecies of SNAKES in the world.

As a group, they lack legs, hearing, and movable eyelids. Having evolved from lizards, some snakes still possess skeletal remnants of legs.

Snakes have a large number of vertebrae (180 to 435), most of which have ribs attached.

There are 4 families of snakes: Boidae (boas and pythons), Colubridae (racers, garter snakes, rat snakes and many others), Elapidae (cobras, mambas, and their relatives), Viperidae (rattlesnakes and other vipers).

Snakes have no movable eyelids or external ears.

Snakes are the world's most effective natural control on rodent population.

Most snakes can swallow prey that is 3 times or more their own body diameter.

Less than one-third of the world's snake species are venomous and less than 10% are dangerously venomous. However, in Australia 65% of all snake species are venomous, in the United States only 10% of the snake species are venomous.

You can't tell the age of a rattlesnake by counting its rattles because it gets a new rattle each time it sheds its skin, which can occur 1 to 6 times per year.

The world's longest snake (by reliable documentation) is the reticulated python, with a maximum length of, perhaps, 30 feet.

Common Cobra venom is not on the list of top 10 venoms yet it is still 40 times more toxic than cyanide.

The venom of the Australian Brown Snake is so powerful only 1/14,000th of an ounce is enough to kill a human.

Source: all-creatures.org , factsnfacts.com

Facts about Australia

2009-06-11T05:25:00.000-07:00

These are some really interesting facts about Australia. I found these quite different from the normal ones available on the internet...

The UK fits into Australia thirty-three and a third times.

The platypus is only found in Australia.

The World’s longest mail run in a single day is the flying postman’s route. From Cairns to Cape York the postie covers 1450km over nine hours with ten stops.

Tasmania has the cleanest air in the world and its rainwater is so pure 5.5 tonnes of it was shipped to Seoul to quench the thirsts of Australia’s Olympic athletes.

Hyams Beach in Jervis Bay, NSW, has the whitest sand on Earth according to the Guinness Book of Records.

Sydney has the deepest natural harbour in the world with 504,00 mega litres of water.

Australians drive on the left-hand side of the road like us.

Australians celebrate the Queens birthday with a public holiday. Alright for some!

Perth has more cafes per capita than any other city in the world.

South Australia is the driest state on the World’s driest continent.

Half of Australia’s total wine production comes from South Australia.

Western Australia is Australia’s largest State. At 2,525,500 sq km, Western Australia is about the same size as Western Europe, and possesses cattle stations (ranches) the size of England.

Approximately 200,000 camels roam Australia’s deserts representing the largest herd of wild camels on earth.

There are over 60 national parks and reserves in the Northern Territory including Kakadu National Park, Litchfield National Park, Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park (Ayers Rock), West MacDonnell National Park, Nitmiluk National Park (Katherine Gorge), and Davenport Ranges National Park (Tennant Creek).

Melbourne has been twice voted the most liveable city in the world by the London based Economist Intelligence Unit.

Australia’s longest running soap, Neighbours, celebrated its 20th anniversary last year (2005) having broadcast 4,635 episodes. Visitors to Melbourne can take an official Neighbours tour to Ramsay street (real name Pin Oak Court) in Vermont South, you can also see an authentic Neighbours set in the Melbourne Museum. Look closely and you will see that cast members of the soap have signed the back of the set. Check out the Neighbours Trivia Night, held every Monday evening at the Elephant and Wheelbarrow pub in trendy St Kilda, where you can mingle with the stars and get your photos taken with the likes of Dr. Karl Kennedy and Toadie.

The Australian Surf Life Savers set up beach life guarding in the UK with the RNLI in 1953.

Fraser Island in Queensland is the largest sand island in the World.

Australia is the only continent on Earth occupied by only one nation.

Australia has a tradition of building giant, quirky structures that can often be spotted by the road side. New South Wales is home to the Big Banana, Queensland has the Big Apple, the Big Tasmanian Devil can be found in Tasmania, you can find the Big Scotsman in South Australia, the Big Koala in Victoria, the Big Crocodile in Western Australia and the Big Stubby in The Northern Territory.

Source: embraceaustralia.com , Interesting Facts

Interesting Facts about Pizza, especially in U.S.

2009-06-11T04:58:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about pizza, especially pizza in the U.S.A.

Since 1987, October has been officially designated National Pizza Month in the United States.

Approximately three billion pizzas are sold in the United States every year, plus an additional one billion frozen pizzas.

Pizza is a $30 billion industry in the United States.

Pizzerias represent 17 percent of all U.S. restaurants.

Ninety-three percent of Americans eat pizza at least once a month.

Women are twice as likely as men to order vegetarian toppings on their pizza.

About 36 percent of all pizzas contain pepperoni, making it the most popular topping in the United States.

The first known pizzeria, Antica Pizzeria, opened in Naples, Italy, in 1738.

More pizza is consumed during the week of the Super Bowl than any other time of the year.

On average, each person in the United States eats around 23 pounds of pizza every year.

The first pizzeria in the United States was opened by Gennaro Lombardi in 1895 in New York City.

The record for the world's largest pizza depends on how you slice it. According to Guinness World Records, the record for the world's largest circular pizza was set at Norwood Hypermarket in South Africa in 1990. The gigantic pie measured 122 feet 8 inches across, weighed 26,883 pounds, and contained 9,920 pounds of flour, 3,968 pounds of cheese, and 1,984 pounds of sauce. In 2005, the record for the world's largest rectangular pizza was set in Iowa Falls, Iowa. Pizza restaurant owner Bill Bahr and a team of 200 helpers created the 129 X 98.6-foot pizza from 4,000 pounds of cheese, 700 pounds of sauce, and 9,500 sections of crust. The enormous pie was enough to feed the town's 5,200 residents ten slices of pizza each.

Source: recipes.howstuffworks.com , Interesting Facts

Noodles & Rice Facts

2009-06-09T19:45:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting and fun facts about "Noodles & Rice"...

Australians consume more than 18 million kilograms of noodles every year – that's almost one kilogram per person!

In Japan, it is considered good form to loudly slurp your noodles as a way of telling your host that you are enjoying the meal.

Australians eat approximately 3.5 billion rice crackers or 55 million packets each year – that's approximately 184 crackers per person!

Noodles symbolise longevity in China.

Noodles have been created from flour and water since 1000BC and today they are more popular than ever.

Noodles are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals including thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and iron. Iron helps transport oxygen throughout the body and thiamin, riboflavin and niacin help convert carbohydrates into energy.

Noodles are low in fat and have a very low sodium content.

If the packets of rice crackers sold in Australia each year were placed end to end they would stretch four times further than the River Murray or five times as high as Mount Kosciusko.

NSW consumers are the nation's biggest fans of rice crackers, munching through 17.6m packets each year, followed by Victorians who consume 11.3m packets each year.

Source: fantasticsnacks.com.au , Interesting Facts

Interesting Facts about Pasta

2009-06-09T19:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting and delicious facts about pasta...

The Chinese are on record as having eaten pasta as early as 5,000 B.C.

Contrary to popular belief, Marco Polo did not discover pasta. The ancient Italians made pasta much like we do today. Although Marco Polo wrote about eating Chinese pasta at the court of Kubla Khan, he probably didn't introduce pasta to Italy. In fact, there's evidence suggesting the Etruscans made pasta as early as 400 B.C. The evidence lies in a bas-relief carving in a cave about 30 miles north of Rome. The carving depicts instruments for making pasta - a rolling-out table, pastry wheel and flour bin. And further proof that Marco Polo didn't "discover" pasta is found in the will of Ponzio Baestone, a Genoan soldier who requested "bariscella peina de macarone" - a small basket of macaroni. His will is dated 1279, 16 years before Marco Polo returned from China.

Christopher Columbus, one of Italy's most famous pastaphiles, was born in October, National Pasta Month.

Legend has it that noodles were first made by 13th century German bakers who fashioned dough into symbolic shapes, such as swords, birds and stars, which were baked and served as bread.In the 13th century, the Pope set quality standards for pasta.

Thomas Jefferson is credited with introducing macaroni to the United States. It seems that he fell in love with a certain dish he sampled in Naples, while serving as the U.S. Ambassador to France. In fact, he promptly ordered crates of "macaroni," along with a pasta-making machine, sent back to the States.

The Spanish explorer Cortez brought tomatoes back to Europe from Mexico in 1519. Even then, almost 200 years passed before spaghetti with tomato sauce made its way into Italian kitchens.

The first American pasta factory was opened in Brooklyn, New York, in 1848, by a Frenchman named Antoine Zerega. Mr. Zerega managed the entire operation with just one horse in his basement to power the machinery. To dry his spaghetti, he placed strands of the pasta on the roof to dry in the sunshine.

During the 1980s, macaroni, which was traditionally considered a "blue-collar" down-home meal, was transformed into the more upscale "pasta." As more and more people began to have fun with it and romanticize it throughout the '60s and '70s, its image began to change along with its name.

Pasta is a good source of carbohydrates. It also contains protein. Carbohydrates help fuel your body by providing energy that is released slowly over time.

One cup of cooked spaghetti provides about 200 calories, 40 grams of carbohydrates, less than one gram of total fat, no cholesterol and only one gram of sodium when cooked without salt. Read more about pasta nutrition.

All pasta is made by essentially the same equipment using the same technology. Also, in independent taste tests conducted by Consumer Reports, Cook's Illustrated and The Washington Post, U.S. pasta either was found superior to Italian imports or the judges were unable to discern a difference between them.

To cook one billion pounds of pasta, you would need 2,021,452,000 gallons of water - enough to fill nearly 75,000 Olympic-size swimming pools.

One billion pounds of pasta is about 212,595 miles of 16-ounce packages of spaghetti stacked end-to-end -- enough to circle the earth's equator nearly nine times.

Speaking of spaghetti...and meatballs: the Italians only ate meat a few times a month. So, when they came to America, where meat was so plentiful, they incorporated meat into their cooking more often, making meatballs an American invention.

Most pasta is made using wheat products mixed with water. Other types of pasta are made using ingredients such as rice, barley, corn, and beans.

Egg noodles contain egg; almost all other dry pasta shapes do not. By federal law, a noodle must contain 5.5 percent egg solids to be called a noodle. So without egg, a noodle really isn't a noodle.

Cooked al dente (al-DEN-tay) literally means "to the tooth," which is how to test pasta to see if it is properly cooked. The pasta should be a bit firm, offering some resistance to the tooth, but tender.

Pasta comes in many different colors. Most pasta is cream-colored, but some is made using spinach making it green, red pasta that is made using tomato, gray pasta that is made using squid ink, and some pasta is called "cellophane" because it becomes transparent when cooked.

The average person in Italy eats more than 51 pounds of pasta every year. The average person in North America eats about 15-1/2 pounds of pasta per year.

Pasta is one of America’s favorite foods. In 2000, 1.3 million pounds of pasta were sold in American grocery stores. If you lined up 1.3 million pounds of 16 oz. spaghetti packages, it could circle the Earth’s equator almost nine times!

Top-quality pasta is made from durum wheat. According to the North Dakota Agricultural Statistics Service, about 73% of the durum wheat grown in the U.S. is grown in North Dakota. American-grown durum wheat is considered among the best in the world and the pick of the crop is earmarked for domestic use, ensuring a finished pasta product second to none in the world.

Approximately 2.75 million tons of pasta is made in Italy each year, while the United States produces nearly 1.9 million tons per year

There are more than 600 pasta shapes produced worldwide.

Source: ilovepasta.org , Interesting Facts

Interesting Facts about Horses

2009-06-05T23:42:00.000-07:00

Hare are some really interesting facts about horses. These facts are quite useful (not useless) and informative...

Emerging 60 million years ago, the first horse was called Eohippus (The Dawn Horse) and was tiny, weighing only 12 pounds and standing just 14 inches high. In contrast to the modern one-toed horse, the Eohippus had four toes on its front feet and three on its hind feet.

The term “horse” is derived from the Old English hors, which is related to the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) kurs, which is the source of the Latin currere, “to run.” This replaced the original PIE root ekwo from which the Greek hippos and Latin equus derived, both meaning “horse.” This dual etymology is perhaps due to the reluctance of ancient cultures to utter the actual root or name of an animal held sacred for the Indo-European religion.

Horses that seem wild today (such as Mustangs) are actually feral horses, usually descendants of horses that were imported to America from Spain in the sixteenth century. The only true wild horse is the Asian Wild Horse.

No horses existed in Australia until settlers brought them during the eighteenth century, and no early horse fossils have ever been found in Australia.

Before being domesticated in the Middle and Far East around 4000 B.., horses were hunted for their skin and meat, usually by being clubbed or driven over a cliff.

After horses became domesticated around 4000 B.., many Indo-European cultures regarded horses as a supreme sacrifice to their gods and often ritually entombed horses. People in the Caucasus practiced horse sacrifice as late as the 1800s.

Famous owner/horse partnerships that helped change world history include Alexander the Great and his horse Bucephalus (“ox head”), El Cid and Babieca (“stupid”), and Napoleon and Marengo (named after a battle) who after its death, had its skeleton displayed in London.

A horse’s teeth are a good indicator ofits age. Hence, St. Jerome (A.. 400), who never accepted payment for his writings, penned the famous adage “Never inspect the teeth of a gift horse,”b which became the more familiar “Never look a gift horse in the mouth.”

Though most horses live for 25-30 years, the oldest horse on record is “Old Billy,” who was a barge horse born in England and lived to the age of 62. The first year of a horse’s life is roughly comparable to 12 human years, the second year is comparable to 7 human years, the next 3 years are comparable to 4 human years a piece, and subsequent years are comparable 2.5 human years. That means Old Billy was roughly 173.5 horse years.

Horses have five highly developed senses: taste, touch, hearing, smell, and sight. They also have an enigmatic sixth sense, heightened perception, which is very rare in humans.

The eyes of a horse are larger than most other animals', and they can move independently, giving the horse a shallow panoramic vision. Because its lenses are inflexible, a horse will focus on an image by moving its head to direct light rays to the central part of the retina. Horses can also see in color.

A horse has an acute sense of smell that allows it to detect nervousness in a handler, and old-time horsemen would smear aromatic fluid on their hands when dealing with a difficult horse. Horses also become nervous around the smell of blood.

There are nearly 160 distinctive breeds and types of horses around the world, but the Arabian horse is unique in that it is the purest of all of the breeds.

Persians were excellent horsemen and their dominance in the east was largely due to the Nisean horse, the “superhorse” of antiquity. The horse was a status symbol in the Persian Empire, and only aristocrats could own them. Horses were also used to play early forms of polo.

Islam is said to have been “founded on the hoof prints of the Arabian horse,”b and horse care was even incorporated into the sacred Hadith. The Prophet Mohammed is reportedly to have ascended to heaven in a halo of fire on a horse-like creature.

The goddess Demeter (the goddess of fertility, grain, and the pure) had as her image a black mare’s head, and her priestesses were considered her “foals.”b

White horses were sometimes drowned in honor of Poseidon, the god of the sea and creator of horses.

The Hindus associate the horse with the cosmos, and a white horse was considered the last incarnation of Vishnu.

In literature, art, and dream theory, the horse is often a symbol imbued with various meanings, ranging from power to beauty and even sexual prowess. The coloring of a horse is also often symbolic (black: mystery, danger; white: messenger of birth), and the Bible specifically lists the colors of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (White, Red, Black, and Pale).

Some horses are able to figure out how to undo the doors of other horses and let them out.

Horses can differentiate between emotions in the human voice.

Horses experience two kinds of sleep, SWS (short wave sleep) and REM (rapid eye movement), and they most likely dream. They need about four hours of sleep out of every 24 and can sleep standing up by a special arrangement of locking joints.

Horses like music but are selective in their taste. They prefer calming or cheerful instrumental music, but are agitated by loud music such as rock.

A horse’s hoof is extremely complex and sensitive. When a horse puts pressure on its hoof, the blood is squeezed up the leg into the veins, thus acting as a type of pump.

While the mare primarily cares for her newborn, occasionally a sibling, the sire, or other mares will shelter and protect youngsters.

In a herd, one gender is not always dominant of another; for example, a female may rank higher than a male in some cases, and a male may rank higher than a female in other cases.

Any marking on a horse's head is called a star, even if it is not shaped like a star.

Horses have a strong band of muscles around their esophagus. This band is so strong that a horse’s stomach would typically burst before it would vomit.

The Pony Express (1860-1861) didn’t just use ponies; it also used many horses. The differences between ponies and horses are often blurred, but generally, ponies are smaller than horses and can be smarter and more stubborn.

Though the word “hippopotamus” means “river horse,” a hippo is actually more closely related to the pig than the horse.

There are many crazy horse laws, including one in Bluff, Utah, where an unmarried woman could be jailed for riding a horse on Sunday. And in several cities throughout the United States, newly married men were not allowed to ride alone, unless he had been married longer than 12 months.

Source: facts.randomhistory.com , Interesting Facts

Amphibian Facts Especially Frogs

2009-06-04T06:14:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting and fun facts about amphibians, especially frogs...

Because frogs swallow their food whole, the size of their meal is only limited by the size of their mouth and their stomach.

Tree frogs have adhesive pads on their toes for clinging to smooth surfaces.

Frogs cannot live in the sea or any salt water.

The eyes and nose of a frog are on top of its head so it can breathe and see when most of its body is under the water.

Certain frogs can jump up to 20 times their own body length in a single leap.

Some say that you will get warts from touching frogs and toads, but that is a myth. You get warts from human viruses, not from frogs and toads!

In Japan frogs are symbols of good luck.

Amphibians have been around for nearly 400 million years.

In ancient Egypt, frogs were symbols of resurrection and were even mummified with the dead.

Frogs don't drink water but absorb it through their skin.

Some frogs and salamanders have tongues 10x the length of their body.

The red-eyed tree frog lays its eggs on leaves over water so the tadpoles can drop right in.

Most frogs can change their color somewhat to match their surroundings.

Salamanders can re-grow their toes and tails.

Many frogs and salamanders take care of their young, either by guarding their eggs, transporting their young or feeding their tadpoles.

The paradoxical frog of South America has tadpoles up to 10 in. long while the mature adults are only 3 in. long. They get smaller as they age!

In most species of frogs only the male croaks. Croaking attracts female frogs during mating season and lets other males know that this is HIS territory and others should back off!

Bullfrogs stay tadpoles for about 2 years before they become frogs. Some frogs remain tadpoles for only 8 days.

The Bullfrog is the largest frog native to North America. It can grow to 18 in. and weigh 1.2 pounds!

Source: clemetzoo , Interesting Facts

Interesting Diamond Facts

2009-06-04T06:10:00.001-07:00

These are some really interesting facts about diamonds...

Diamonds are the hardest substance on earth.

Diamonds are carbon.

Only 20% of the world’s diamonds are suitable for use in jewelry.

The largest diamond ever found to date was the Cullinan at an astounding 3,106 carats!

Diamonds are formed from extreme temperatures and pressure in the earth’s crust.

Mother Nature is only capable of making diamonds. Man has yet to find a way to reproduce extreme heat and pressure like that found in the earth’s crust.

Most of the diamonds found in nature are anywhere from one to three billion years old.

The first recorded use of a diamond used for the purpose of a marriage proposal happened in 1477 when Archduke Maximillian of Austria offered Mary of Burgundy a diamond as a betrothal gift.

Diamond engagement rings are worn on the third finger of the left hand because the Egyptians believed the vein in that finger ran straight to the heart.

Source: Aviva Directory , Interesting Facts

Interesting Gold Facts

2009-06-04T06:05:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about gold...

Gold may have been the first metal to be used by humans, probably in ceremony and for decoration.

The Latin word for gold, aurum means “shining dawn.”

An Egyptian king from 2600 bce described gold as “common as dust.”

Some historians believe that the exploration of the Americas was in part to confirm reports that native peoples had large amounts of gold.

75% of the gold ever extracted from the earth has been since 1910.

Estimates put all the gold ever extracted into a cube just 66 feet wide on each side.

Alchemy, or the archaic “science” which sought to turn ordinary objects into gold, was the forerunner of modern chemistry.

Most of the gold already mined is still in circulation.

Large deposits of gold were discovered during the 19th Century, which resulted in gold rushes to Klondike, California, Colorado, and Australia.

Source: Aviva Directory , Interesting Facts , Interesting Facts

Coffee & Espresso Facts

2009-06-04T02:29:00.000-07:00

Some more really interesting facts about coffee...

When Coffee first arrived in Europe it was called “Arabian Wine.”

The first people to brew coffee were the Arabs. The word “coffee” originates from the Arabic word qahwa which is pronounced as either “Qahweh,” Kahwe” and “Ahwi.”

In the 1680’s a French physician recommended that Cafe au Lait be used for medicinal purposes. This is when adding milk to coffee began to become popular.

In 1689 Cafe Procope was the first Parisian cafe to serve coffee.

In 1732 Bach wrote a coffee cantata. The coffee cantata was considered a satirical comedy with the amusing story of coffee addiction. At the time coffee addiction was considered a social problem in the eighteenth century.You can watch this YouTube video to hear the Bach Coffee Cantata

In the year 1763, Venice, Italy had over 200 coffee shops.

In 1773 the heavy tea tax imposed on the American colonies caused the “Boston Tea Party.” This resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. Drinking coffee was seen as an statement of freedom.

During the American Revolutuon the founding fathers of the U.S. developed their national strategies in local coffeehouses.

In early America, coffee was drunk between meals and after dinner. It was not part of the meal as is customary today.

In 1790, there were two coffee firsts that happened in the United States: 1) the first wholesale coffee roasting company began business, and the first newspaper advertisement featuring coffee.

In 1822 France created the first espresso machine prototype.

By 1850, the manual coffee grinder was found iin most upper-middle class kitchens in the United States.

During the Civil War in the United States soldiers went to battle with coffee beans as part of their rations. This elevated the popularity of coffee to new heights.

In 1900, horse and wagon delivered coffee door-to-door in the United States.

In 1906 Italy Pavoni manufactured the first commercial espresso machine.

In Italy, coffee and espresso are synonymous as they are so much part of the culture. Drip coffee is not as popular in Italy as it is in the rest of the Western world.

The average age of an Italian barista is 48 years old. In Italy being a “Barista” is a respected job title. The average age requirement for a Starbuck barista is 17.

It is not common for Italians to drink espresso during meals. It is considered to be a separate event and is given its own time.

In Italy the government regulates the price of espresso as it is deemed an essential element of daily life.

A recent “census” shared that Italy now has over 200,000 coffee bars/cafes and this number is still growing.

In Greece and Turkey, the oldest person is generally served coffee first.

In the ancient Arab world coffee was a staple in family life. One of the reasons allowed for marital separation was a husband’s refusal to make coffee for his wife.

In parts of Africa raw coffee beans are soaked in water and spices. These are then chewed like candy.

During the last three centuries, it is estimated that 90% of people in the Western world have switched from drinking tea to coffee.

In the United States coffee represents 75% of all the caffeine consumed.

Source: Aviva Directory , Interesting Facts , Interesting Facts

Interesting Facts about Frogs

2009-06-04T00:18:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting and little known facts about frogs...

A frog’s eye can see in almost any direction.

A frog’s tongue is attached at the front of the mouth instead of the rear, and is covered with a sticky substance to catch and trap its prey.

When a frog eats food that is too large to swallow, it will leave it sticking out of its mouth and ingest it gradually. The frog may even choke or regurgitate it.

Frogs have something similar to teeth. They have small cone like teeth around the upper edge of the jaw and roof of their mouth.

Frogs do not have any teeth on their lower jaw.

A frog can launch itself over 20 times its own body length.

The common frog (native to mainland Britain) can breathe through its skin.

Frogs legs are a culinary delicacy in France.

The worlds biggest frog, the Goliath can be found in Cameroon in Africa.

The Goliath frog can grow up to one foot long and weigh more than seven pounds.

The poison dart frog secretes from its skin one of the most poisonous substances known to man.

Frog fossils as old as 190 million years have been found.

Frogs shed their skin regularly and then eat the skin carcass.

A group of frogs is called an army of frogs.

The Gastric Brooding Frog, incubates its’ young inside its stomach. When the baby frog develops past the tadpole stage, it hops out of its mother’s mouth.

Frogs absorb water and air through their skin.

If you suffer from Ranidaphobia, you have a fear of frogs.

Frogs are a symbol of good luck in Japan.

Source: Aviva Directory , Interesting Facts , Interesting Facts

Interesting Facts about Mars

2009-05-29T02:10:00.000-07:00

Here are some extremely interesting facts about the planet Mars. Read these and I am sure that our dear planet Mars is certainly going to impress you.

Mars is the fourth planet from the sun.

Mars is the seventh largest planet in our solar system.

Mars is referred to as the Red Planet, due to its red soil made up of iron oxide, more commonly known as rust.

Mars is named after the Roman god of war.

The equatorial radius of Mars is 3,397 km.

The diameter of Mars measures 6,794 km.

The mass of Mars is 641,850,000,000,000,000,000,000 kg.

Surface temperature on Mars can range from the maximum of 310 K to a minimum of 150 K.

Atmospheric components on Mars consists of 95% carbon dioxide, 3% nitrogen, 1.6% argon

Recently, scientists discovered enough water ice just under the surface of Mars to fill lake Michigan twice.

Due to its dry and dusty surface, dust storms have been known to cover the whole planet at times.

Mars is home to Olympus Mons, perhaps one of the largest volcanoes in our solar system. Olympus Mons is three times taller than Mount Everest and as wide as the state of New Mexico.

Valles Marineris is a canyon on Mars that is about as long as the United States of America is wide.

Mars has two moons. Both were discovered by Asaph Hall in 1877 after a long and frustrating search for Martian moons. The two moons are Deimos and Phobos.

It is possible that the two moons may actually be asteroids caught in Mars’ gravity.

After a close examination by NASA’s Mariner 9 spacecraft, it was found that Phobos had a crater about 10 km (about 6 miles) wide. The crater was named after Hall’s wife’s maiden name, Stickney.

According to NASA, “Mars' moons are among the smallest in the solar system. Phobos is a bit larger than Deimos, and orbits only 6,000 km (3,700 miles) above the Martian surface. No known moon orbits closer to its planet. It whips around Mars three times a day, while the more distant Deimos takes 30 hours for each orbit. Phobos is gradually spiraling inward, drawing about 1.8 meters closer to the planet each century. Within 50 million years, it will either crash into Mars or break up and form a ring around the planet.”

Mars is further away from the sun than Earth. Mars’ average distance from the sun is 142 million miles while Earth’s average distance from the sun is only 93 million miles.

Mars is slower to orbit the sun, traveling at a speed of 14.5 miles per second versus Earth’s 18.5 miles per second.

The temperature on Mars is much colder than Earth. The average Mars temperature is –87 degrees F with Earth’s average temperature being 57 degrees F.

A year on Mars (i.e. how long it takes for Mars to orbit around the sun) is 687 Earth days, versus Earth’s 365 days per year while a day on Mars is equivalent to 1.026 Earth days.

Source: newsdial.com

Spain: Food & Drink

2009-05-29T00:05:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about food and drink in Spain. See how Spain is such an important place when you talk about food...

Spain makes 44% of the world's olive oil, more than twice that of Italy and four times that of Greece. More than a quarter of Spain's oil (10% of the total world production) comes from Jaen.

Nearly three-quarters of the world's saffron is grown in Spain.

The original paella was not considered a seafood dish but had chicken, rabbit and pork (and sometimes snails). There is some debate over the origin of the word.

Tapas is not a type of food but a way of eating it. Tapa means cover and was traditionally a slice of cheese or ham placed over a drink.

The Spanish (in particular, the people of Cadiz) claim to have invented fried fish. Great Britain had links to Cadiz in the eighteenth century and it is thought that the British imported the idea of fish 'n' chips from there.

'Dominations of Origin', common in wine labeling, is also used in Spain to guarantee the quality of ham, olive oil and even paprika.

Though Spain is more famous for its red wine than white, the majority of its vineyards have white grapes.

The fortified wine sherry comes from the city of Jerez in Andalusia. 'Sherry' is a corruption of Shariz, the Persian name for the city. In Spanish, sherry is simply called 'vino de Jerez' (Jerez wine).

Tomatoes, potatoes, avocadoes, tobacco, and cacao (for chocolate) were all imported into Europe by Spain.

Spain is one of the top five importers of Scotch whiskey in the world.

Source: gospain.about.com

Facts about Dogs

2009-05-28T23:45:00.000-07:00

Read these Informative and interesting little known facts about dogs...

It is a myth that dogs are color blind. They can actually see in color, just not as vividly as humans. It is akin to our vision at dusk.

Dogs DO have better low-light vision than humans because of a special light-reflecting layer behind their retinas.

A German Shepherd guide dog led her blind companion the entire 2100-mile Appalachian Trail.

If never spayed or neutered, a female dog, her mate, and their puppies could produce over 66,000 dogs in 6 years!

Dogs' only sweat glands are between their paw pads.

Like human babies, Chihuahuas are born with a soft spot in their skull, which closes with age.

The breed Lundehune has 6 toes and can close its ears.

Teddy Roosevelt's dog, Pete, ripped a French ambassador's pants off at the White House.

President Lyndon Johnson had two beagles named Him and Her.

Franklin Roosevelt spent $15,000 for a destroyer to pick up his Scottie in the Aleutian Islands.

In Roman times, Mastiffs donned light armor and were sent after mounted knights.

The Russians trained dogs during WWII to run suicide missions with mines strapped to their backs.

A dog's mouth exerts 150-200 pounds of pressure per square inch with some dogs exerting up to 450 pounds per square inch.

A one-year-old dog is as mature, physically, as a 15-year-old human.

The U.S. has the highest dog population in the world.

France has the 2nd highest.

The average city dog lives 3 years longer than a country dog.

18. 87% of dog owners say their dog curls up beside them or at their feet while they watch T.V.

Dogs can be trained to detect epileptic seizures.

15 people die in the U.S. every year from dog bites.

In 2002 alone, more people in the U.S. were killed by dogs than by sharks in the past 100 years.

Gidget is the name of the Taco Bell dog.

Newfoundlands are great swimmers because of their webbed feet.

Basset Hounds cannot swim.

Greyhounds are the fastest dogs on earth, with speeds of up to 45 miles per hour.

Bingo is the name of the dog on the side of the Cracker Jack box.

The bible mentions dogs 14 times.

Three dogs survived the sinking of the Titanic - a Newfoundland, a Pomeranian, and a Pekingese.

The Labrador Retriever is the #1 favorite breed in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.

Obesity is the #1 health problem among dogs.

An estimated 1,000,000 dogs in the U.S. have been named as the primary beneficiaries in their owner's will.

An American Animal Hospital Assoc. poll found that 33% of dog owners admit to talking to their dogs on the phone and leaving answering machine messages for them while away.

Dog's nose prints are as unique as a human's fingerprints and can be used to accurately identify them.

At the end of the Beatles' song "A Day in the Life", a high-pitched dog whistle was recorded by Paul McCartney for his sheepdog.

70% of people sign their pet's name on greeting and holiday cards.

58% put pets in family and holiday portraits.

There are only 350 Cisky Terriers in the world - perhaps the rarest breed.

The phrase "raining cats and dogs" originated in 17th century England when it is believed that many cats and dogs drowned during heavy periods of rain.

Dogs have no sense of "time".

Humans have kept dogs as pets for over 12,000 years.

The largest breed of dog is the Irish Wolfhound.

The world's smallest dog breed is the Chihuahua.

The St. Bernard is the heaviest.

Only dogs and humans have prostates.

But dogs do not have an appendix.

Every dog on earth likely descended from a species knows as the Tomarctus - a creature that roamed the earth over 15 million years ago.

The oldest known breed is likely the Saluki - originally trained by Egyptians to help them track game.

In 1957, Laika became the first living being in space via an earth satellite, while JFK's terrier, Charlie, father 4 puppies with Laika's daughter.

An African wolf dog known as the basenji is the only dog in the world that cannot bark.

There are 703 breeds of purebred dogs.

Dachshunds were originally bred for fighting badgers.

The world's smartest dogs are thought to be (1) the border collie, (2) the poodle, and (3) the golden retriever, while the dumbest dog is believed to be the Afghan hound.

A dog's smell is more than 100,000 times stronger than that of a human's, which they need because their eyesight is not as keen as a human's.

Dogs judge objects first by their movement, then by their brightness, and lastly by their shape.

Chocolate contains a substance known as theobromine (similar to caffeine), which can kill dogs or at the very least make them violently ill.

George Washington had thirty-six dogs - all foxhounds - with one-named Sweet lips.

All dogs are identical in anatomy - 321 bones and 42 permanent teeth.

Smaller breeds mature faster than larger breeds.

Female dogs are only ready to mate - "in heat" - twice a year for a total of roughly 20 days.

Puppies sleep ninety percent of the day for their first few weeks.

Rin Tin Tin was the first Hollywood Dog Star and he really signed his movie contracts - all 22 of them - with a paw print.

The Wizard of Oz's Toto was played by a female Cairn Terrier named Terry.

Up until the late 1800's, Collies were known as Scottish Sheepdogs.

Dogs have two times as many muscles to move their ears as people.

The longer a dog's nose, the more effective it's internal cooling system.

An elderly woman was saved by her 12-pound Yorkshire Terrier who fought off an 80-pound Akita and survived with only 9 stitches.

U.S. Customs dogs "Rocky" and "Barco" were so good at patrolling the border that Mexican drug lords put a $300,000 bounty on their heads.

Dogs are all direct descendants of wolves.

Wolves and dogs can mate to produce fertal offspring.

Female wolves have been known to travel great distances to regurgitate full meals for their hungry pups.

Cerberus was the tri-headed dog that guarded the underworld in Greek mythology.

Female dogs bear their young for 60 days before they're born.

Dogs' sense of hearing is more than ten times more acute than a human's.

Humans can detect sounds at 20,000 times per second, while dogs can sense frequencies of 30,000 times per second.

The earliest dog-fossil dates back to nearly 10,000 B.C.

Bloodhounds are prized their ability to single out and identify a number of scents simultaneously.

Dalmatian puppies are born completely white.

The Ancient Chinese carried Pekingese puppies in the sleeves of their robes.

Boxers are so named because of their manner of playing with their front paws.

All breeds of dog have been found to attack livestock - from 3-month-old puppies, all the way up to thirteen-year-old poodles.

A dog's heart beats up to 120 times per minute, or 50% faster than the average human heartbeat of 80 times per minute.

The oldest dog on record - a Queensland "Heeler" named Bluey - was 29 years, 5 months old.

Davy Crockett had a dog named Sport.

Dogs were first domesticated by cavemen.

Dogs live 15 years on average.

Many foot disorders in dogs are simply an issue of long toenails.

More than 5,000,000 puppies are born in the U.S. every year.

More than 1 in 3 American families own a dog.

Average body temperature for a dog is 101.2 degrees.

The Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts both offer merit badges in dog care.

Dogs are natural pack animals.

They are naturally submissive to any creature with higher pack status - human or canine.

Dogs instinctively require the pack leader's approval.

Dogs with little human contact in the first three months typically don't make good pets.

The Chihuahua was named after the state in Mexico where they were discovered.

After birth, puppies' eyes do not fully open until they're about 12 days old.

Their vision is not fully developed until after the 1st month.

Source: newsblaze.com

San Fransisco Facts

2009-05-28T23:42:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about San Fransisco...

The Chinese Fortune Cookie was invented by Makato Hagiwara whose family operated the Japanese Tea Garden from 1895 to 1942.

Denim jeans were invented in San Francisco for the Gold Rush miners who needed tough, comfortable clothing

Irish coffee was invented in San Francisco.

Francis Ford Coppola famously wrote large portions of The Godfather Trilogy in Caffe Trieste, the first San Francisco coffee shop, established in 1956

There are over three hundred coffee houses within the city boundaries of San Francisco

The original United Nations charter was drafted and signed in San Francisco.

Al Capone spent five years in prison in Alcatraz.

The original Spanish name for San Francisco was Yerba Buena, meaning "good herb" or"good grass".

Nicknames include "Baghdad by the Bay", coined by columnist Herb Caen, and "The City that Knows How".

The first plans of the city were drawn by Jean-Jacques Vioget (Swiss) and Jasper O' Farell ( Irish)

The first construted street was Grant Street, originally named " Calle De La Fundacion "

Chop Suey was created in 1878 during a banquet or Li Hung-Chung, the first Chinese Viceroy to visit our city.

There are over 250 wineries in the nearby Napa Valley.

Muir Woods, an unspoiled stand of giant redwoods, is just across the Golden Gate bridge.

In Star Trek, Star Fleet HQ is located just north of San Francisco.

"I Left My Heart In San Francisco" was written by a gay couple, Douglass Cross and his partner George Cory in 1954. Tony Bennett's recording in 1962 made the song famous.

San Francisco is built on 43 hills.

The crookedest street is not Lombard Street , Vermont Avenue between 22nd and 23rd is the "crookedest,".

Filbert between Hyde and Leavenworth is the steepest street at 31.5 degrees.

The population of San Francisco at the end of 2004 was 744,230 people

San Francisco has the highest number of homeless inhabitants per capita of any major city in the United States.

Washington Square Park at Columbus & Union is not actually a square because it has five sides. But then North Beach isn't a beach and the statue in the middle of the park is Ben Franklin not George Washington.

Behind New York, Moscow and London, San Francisco is 4th in the world in terms of numbers of billionaires living within its city limits, while having less than 10% the population of the the other three cities.

On Mar 14,1896, 7000 people gathered at San Francisco's Ocean Beach to celebrate the official opening of the Sutro Baths, an extravagant public bathhouse envisioned and developed by the eccentric one-time mayor of San Francisco, Adolph Sutro. He also built the Cliff House.

Soon after the Golden Gate Park opened in 1890, John McLaren, the park's designer added a free-range zoo that was home to elk, bears, goats, and buffalo. The buffalo are the only ones that remain.

On Mar. 21, 1963, Alcatraz federal prison island in San Francisco Bay was emptied of its last inmates at the order of Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.

San Francisco Bay is considered the world's largest landlocked harbor.

Source: sfheart.com

Stephenie Meyer Facts

2009-05-28T23:34:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about Stephenie Meyer...

She was born December 24, 1973 in Connecticut.

She moved to Arizona at age 4.

She got her names’ unusual spelling from her Dad, Stephen.

She has 5 siblings – Emily, Heidi, Jacob, Paul, and Seth.

She attended Brigham Young University in Utah on a scholarship.

She is married to a man named Pancho (His real name is Christiaan).

She met Pancho when she was 4.

She has three kids – Gabe, Seth, Eli.

She is Mormon.

Twilight came to her in a dream on June 2, 2003.

Source: twilightguide

Interesting Facts about Microbes

2009-05-28T11:18:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about microbes. I can bet most of you didn't know most of these.

Microbes first appeared on earth about 3.5 billion years ago. They are critically important in sustaining life on our planet.

Microbes outnumber all other species and make up most living matter.

Less than .5% of the estimated 2 to 3 billion microbial species have been identified.

Microbes comprise ~60% of the earths biomass.

Microbes drive the chemistry of life and affect the global climate.

Microbial cycling of such critical chemical elements as carbon and nitrogen helps keep the world inhabitable for all life forms.

Microbes generate at least half the oxygen we breathe.

Microbes thrive in an amazing diversity of habitats in extremes of heat, cold, radiation, pressure, salinity, acidity, and darkness, and often where no other life forms could exist and where nutrients come only from inorganic matter.

Microbes offer unusual capabilities reflecting the diversity of their environmental niches. These may prove useful as a source of new genes and organisms of value in addressing bioremediation, global change, biotechnology, and energy production.

Microbial studies will help us define the entire repertoire of organisms in specialized niches and, ultimately, the mechanisms by which they interact in the biosphere.

Diversity patterns of microorganisms can be used for monitoring and predicting environmental change.

Microbes are roots of life's family tree. An understanding of their genomes will help us understand how more complex genomes developed.

Microbial genomes are modest in size and relatively easy to study (usually no more than 10 million DNA bases, compared with some 3 billion in the human and mouse genomes).

Microbial communities are excellent models for understanding biological interactions and evolution.

Most microbes do not cause disease.

Source: microbialgenomics

Snakes

2009-05-28T11:14:00.000-07:00

Here are little known interesting facts about the snakes...

King Cobras make nests. Generally snakes show little or no parental care. But a pair of King Cobra will cooperate to find a suitable nesting spot. Nests are built usually in the month of April. Despite having no limbs, the female remarkably constructs her nest of dead leaves by scooping them up with her large body. Females then lay approximately 20-50 eggs, two months after mating, with an incubation period ranging from 60 to 80 days. The female will then lie on the nest until just before the eggs hatch, at which point instinct will cause the mother to leave the young so as to prevent her from eating them. The male king cobra is similarly unique in that he stays to guard the nesting area, until the young hatch, patrolling a large area around the nest for threats. Such complex nesting and rearing behavior is unique among snakes. No other snake shows any parental care.

King cobras eat other snakes. King Cobras eat almost all other snakes with the rat snake being it’s favourite. The King Cobra is peculiar in that it feeds almost exclusively on other snakes, which is reflected in its genus name of Ophiophagus (Snake-eater). The King Cobra is known to attack larger snakes, including Pythons. The King Cobra's diet is mainly composed of other Snakes. When food is scarce though, King Cobras will also feed on other small vertebrates, such as Lizards. After a large meal the snake may live for many months without another meal due to its very slow metabolic rate.

Snakes can survive without eating food for several days. Snakes have a slow metabolic rate and thus can survive without eating for many days at a stretch, after a sumptuous meal. Snakes like King cobras can survive many months without food.

Snakes are cold blooded. Snakes are cold blooded like all reptiles, with the exception of the Leatherback Sea Turtle, a reptile that elevates its body temperature well above that of its surroundings. Though cellular metabolism produces some heat, reptiles do not generate enough heat to maintain a constant body temperature and are therefore referred to as "cold-blooded". Instead they rely on heat from the environment to regulate their internal temperature, e.g. by moving between sun and shade, or by preferential circulation - moving warmed blood into the body core, while pushing cool blood to the periphery. While this lack of adequate internal heating imposes costs relative to temperature regulation through behavior, it also provides a large benefit by allowing reptiles to survive on much less food as compared to similarly sized mammals and birds, who burn much of their food for warmth.

Pit vipers use a thermal sensitive nasal pit to detect pray. Pit Vipers are named after their specialized thermo receptors; heat-sensitive organs, located on either side of the head that look like small pits. These pits contain membranes sensitive to infrared radiation and allow the snakes to locate their prey based on temperature differences with their environment. To a pit viper, rodents and birds that are only fractionally warmer than the background stand out even in complete darkness. Like a primitive pair of eyes, these pits even give them depth perception, allowing them to strike accurately under such conditions.

Snake’s tongue is used to sense the surroundings. Snakes smell by using its forked tongue to collect airborne particles then passing them to the Jacobson's Organ, a special organ in the mouth for examination. The fork in the tongue gives the snake a sort of directional sense of smell.

Young snakes break out of their egg with the help of special “teeth”. A snake does not look after its eggs or take care of the young ones but leaves the eggs to be hatched on their own. The hatchlings or the young snakes therefore have special teeth to break open the eggs and come out.

Most snakes can climb trees. Rat Snakes and Pythons are excellent examples.

Snakes shed skin on a regular basis and it is a part of its growth. The process is called moulting. This is usually achieved by the snake rubbing its head against a hard object, such as a rock or piece of wood, causing the already stretched skin to split. At this point, the snake continues to rub its skin on objects, causing the end nearest the head to peel back on it, until the Snake is able to crawl out of its skin, effectively turning the moulted skin inside-out. This is similar to how one might remove a sock from your foot by grabbing the open end and pulling it over itself. The Snake's skin is often left in one piece after the moulting process. It is a usual process, essential for a snake’s growth.

All snakes are carnivorous. Snakes do not chew their food and have a very flexible lower jaw, the two halves of which are not rigidly attached, and numerous other joints in their skull, allowing them to open their mouths wide enough to swallow their prey whole, even if it is larger in diameter than the snake itself. It is a common misconception that snakes actually dislocate their lower jaw to consume large prey. Snakes do not normally prey on people, unless startled or injured, preferring instead to avoid contact. In fact, the majority of snakes are either non-venomous or possess venom that is not harmful to humans.

Snake venom is a complex mixture of proteins and is produced by venom glands. Snake venom is highly modified saliva that is produced by special glands. Snake venom is a combination of many different proteins and enzymes. Many of these proteins are harmless to humans, but some are toxins. Snake venoms are generally harmless when ingested, and are therefore not technically poisons.

Snake venom is used to make anti venom & many other life saving drugs. An anti-venom serum is actually a small quantity of the venom itself which when injected into an animal or human affects only slightly triggering an allergic reaction to it. The allergic reaction will allow anti bodies to be formed and thus immunity to the venom is developed.

There is no visible difference between a male and female snake. Snakes of either sex would look identical, the only difference being that of a hemipenis (plural-hemipenes) in a male and a cloaca in a female which is visible only on a deeper study.

Vipers have fold-able front fangs. When not in use, the fangs are folded backward against the roof of the mouth. Vipers have a very affective system of injecting venom into its prey’s body. The hinged fangs are more intricate system that allows the snake to instantaneously strike, inject and withdraw from a struggling prey. The fangs are enclosed in a membranous sheath and can be folded backwards and upwards against the roof of the mouth. During a strike the fangs can swing forward and the mouth can open to 180 degrees.

Flying snakes only glide in the air, they can’t fly. They virtually swim through the air and can glide a distance of 100m. It can only glide by extending its ribs and pulling in the underside.

Source: wildlifesos.org

Interesting Alcohol Facts

2009-05-28T11:08:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting and fun facts about Alcohol. Hope you enjoy reading them.

The word “toast,” which means wishing good health originated in ancient Rome. A piece of toasted bread was literally dropped into wine back then.

The soil of one of the vineyards in France is considered so precious that it is mandatory for workers to scrape the soil off their shoes before they leave.

Anyone under the age of 21 should be careful of taking out trash bags in Missouri. If you are under 21 and the garbage contains an empty bottle of alcohol, you can be charged with illegal possession of alcohol.

Most people think that drinking alcohol raises the body temperature. Alcohol actually lowers the body temperature.

Here is a little surprise : The national anthem of United States “The Star Spangled Banner,” was written to the tune of a drinking song.

Although “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” is considered to be the shortest sentence that includes all the letters of the alphabet, alcohol lovers came up with one of their own “Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs.”

Most vegetable and almost all fruits contain a small amount of alcohol in them.

The first Thanksgiving Day didn’t include mashed potatoes, turkey and all other foods that we usually eat on this particular day. However, there was beer, brandy, gin and wine.

Bourbon, the official drink of United States takes its name from Bourbon County in Kentucky.

The pressure in a champagne bottle is 90 pounds per square inch, that is three times the pressure in automobile tires.

Adolf Hitler was one of the world’s best known abstainers from alcohol.

Sir Winston Churchill was one of the world’s heaviest drinkers.

The longest permanent bar is 405 feet and 10 inches. It is located in Ohio. Some suggest that the longest bar is in Illinois which is 684 feet.

The first recruiting station of the U.S. Marines was a bar.

The world’s oldest known recipe is for beer.

It is illegal to run a “tab” in Iowa (source that we used says running a “tab” in Iowa is illegal. Iowa residents say it is legal. We will go with Iowa residents and rule this one out)

United States has the highest minimum drinking age in the entire world.

The alcohol content of a typical beer, wine or spirits are virtually identical. To a breathalyzer, a drink is a drink is a drink.

Brandy, rum and whisky can be either aged too long or not long enough.

It is estimated that there are 49,000,000 (forty-nine million) bubbles in a bottle of champagne.

Human body produces its own supply of alcohol naturally, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.

Beer started selling in bottles starting 1850 and in cans starting 1935.

In the 1600’s thermometer used to be filled with brandy instead of mercury.

The term “Dipsomania” refers to abnormal cravings for alcohol.

There is a cloud of alcohol in the outer space which is enough to make four trillion-trillion drinks.

It is illegal to feed alcohol to Moose in Alaska and fish in Ohio.

In some European countries McDonald’s serves alcohol. Some parents like to drink alcohol while kids munch on fries and chicken nuggets. McDonald’s decided they needed all the customers they can get.

Many high school cafeterias in Europe serve alcohol to students who choose to drink

Distilled spirits such as brandy, gin, rum, tequila, etc. contain no carbohydrates, no fats and no cholesterol of any kind.

A mixed drink that contains carbonated drink is absorbed into the body more quickly than straight shots.

Abraham Lincoln held a liquor license and operated several taverns.

All spirits (unlike beer and wine) are originally clear and colorless. The golden brown and other colors are achieved due to the aging process.

The French Wine “Fat Bastard” is banned in Ohio and Texas. (although the articles we referred to suggested that this was true, many readers have said that you can buy “Fat Bastard” in Texas)

Here is another one we found that relates to Texas : Texas state law prohibits taking more than three sips of beer at a time while standing.

The BATF (Bureau of Alcohol,Tobacco and Firearms) prohibits the use of word “refreshing” to describe any alcoholic beverage.

Source: cognac.com

Interesting Facts about Japan

2009-05-28T07:54:00.000-07:00

In mainland of Japan and in Okinawa there are approximately 90 US military bases, 37 which are in Okinawa, occupying 20% of the landsize.

Japan does not have atomic weapon. USA, France, China, India, Russia, United Kingdom, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea has atomic weapon.

Japan is the only country in the world ever attacked by atomic weapon.

Okinawans have more people over 100 years old per 100,000 population than anywhere else in the world.

Japanese food is considered most healthiest in the world.

Crime is lower in Japan than in many other first world countries.

Firearms are almost non-existent in the hands of civilians in Japan. The process of obtaining licence of firearm is lengthy. Crimes committed by using firearms are very rare.

Japan is exercising death penalty.

Japan's literacy rate is almost 100%.

Officially the first novel of Japan, The Tale of Genji in 1007 was written by a Japanese woman Murasaki Shikibu.

Vandalism is almost non-existent in Japan.

Japanese constitution has Article 9 which defines renunciation of war.

It is very hard for usual Japanese to obtain Japanese historical item, katana. Special permission is needed, and it is only granted for special individuals.

Japanese is the only language in the world which has a word for "death from overwork", Karoshi.

Japanese still rarely use seatbelt while riding backseat of a car.

Although Tokyo was destroyed in firebombing during the World War two, there are no popular movies about bombing of Japan. The Grave of Fireflies is only film depicting realistically a firebombing of Japanese city. New York has been frozen, destroyed, bombed, meteoritized several times in American films.

Compulsory English lessons start from the first grade of elementary school in Japan.

"Korede iinoda" is a popular Japanese phrase. It means in English "Everything is going to be all right". It was written by manga artist Akatsuka, in "Tensai Bakabon". It is usually respected as a phrase of peace.

Source: hanamiweb.com

Global Warming Facts

2009-05-28T07:51:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting and scary facts about the global warming. Read and take measures to stop it from happening.

Your food is harmed and made more expensive by earlier thaws and later freezes. Thaw and freeze dates are occurring a week earlier and later than they did 150 years ago. This affects our society’s agriculture by potentially damaging the food supply, making crops pricier, and even making global warming worse.

The U.S. will turn into a dustbowl as the agricultural belt moves northward into Canada. Global warming is happening faster at northern latitudes, so these areas will have longer growing seasons in the future as places like the American Midwest become too hot and dry to grow as many crops.

Catastrophic hurricanes are more likely to hit your home. Between 1970 and 2004, the number of category 4 and 5 hurricanes worldwide has nearly doubled. In the 2000s, there were as many dangerous category 5 hurricanes as the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s combined.

You will suffer from a longer, more intense allergy season than before. Research has shown that the higher carbon dioxide levels in the air, plus the warmer temperatures, force plants to bloom earlier and produce more pollen.

You may not have enough water to drink. In the western U.S., mountain snowpacks provide up to 75% of the water supply. Huge cities like Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Denver totally depend on this snow, and as global warming gets worse, the existing snow will melt and less new snow will be falling.

Deadly smallpox could re-emerge as permafrost melts. This layer of permanently frozen soil beneath the ground’s surface is thawing. Not only could this destroy buildings and railroad tracks, but as the ground thaws, corpses buried long ago could get discovered and end up infecting you with a devastating disease.

Source: acoolerclimate.com

Interesting Facts about Canada

2009-05-27T23:51:00.000-07:00

Some interesting facts about the second biggest country i.e. Canada.

Canada is the second largest country in the world, with 9,971,000 square kilometres of land.

The baseball glove was invented in Canada in 1883.

With only three people per square kilometer, Canada has the fourth lowest population density in the world.

Vancouver Canada is tied with Zurich Switzerland for the highest quality of life of any city in the world.

The world's smallest jail is believed to be in Rodney, Ontario, Canada. It is only 24.3 square meters (about 270 square feet).

Canada has the ninth biggest economy of the world

According to the United Nations Human Development Index, Canada has the highest quality of life in the world.

Contrary to popular opinion, Canada does not own the North Pole. In fact, the North Pole is not owned by any country. It is believed, however, that Santa Claus is from Canada.

Canada is the world's eighth biggest trader.

Of all of the world's producers of natural gas, copper, zinc, nickel, aluminum, and gold, Canada is in the top five.

Canada is the home of many great inventions, including: basketball, the electric light bulb, the electric range, the electron microscope, standard time, the television, the telephone, and the zipper.

Canada is the fifth largest energy producer.

Canada has the world's highest tertiary education enrolment.

Source: vec

Interesting Facts about Coffee

2009-05-27T23:46:00.000-07:00

Below are some really interesting facts about coffee

Coffee is the second-most traded commodity in the world economy, after oil.

The global coffee industry earns $60 billion annually. Coffee farmers earn as little as 4 cents a pound for the coffee they pick by hand.

Most of the world's coffee is grown by small-scale coffee farming families.

25 million families around the world work in the coffee-fields and totally depend on the coffee crop as their only source of income.

One coffee tree yields slightly less than 1 pound of coffee per year.

For every pound of gourmet coffee sold, small-coffee farmers receive between 12¢ and 25¢.

When shopping for perfume, take some coffee with you in your bag and have a good sniff in between smelling each perfume to refresh your nose!

Sprinkle spent coffee grounds around the base of your garden plants and it will stop snails and slugs from munching them!

A mixture of coffee grounds and sugar, fed to a potted plant and watered regularly, will revive houseplants that have turned yellow in winter.

Some of the worlds most powerful business, including Lloyds of London and the New York Stock Exchange, started life as a coffee house.

In December 2001 Brazil produced a scented postage stamp to promote its coffee - the smell should last between 3 and 5 years.

A coffee tree has a lifespan of about 50 to 70 years.

When it is in bloom, the coffee tree is covered with 30,000 white flowers which begin to develop into fruit after 24 - 36 hours.

A coffee tree can flower eight times in any one year - depending on rainfall.

Coffee is consumed at the rate of 1400 million cups per day.

Coffee is the world's second most popular drink after water.

Source: ics-intl.com

Interesting Facts about Rabbits

2009-05-27T23:30:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about the rabbits. Read and I am sure you will get to know more about the rabbits.

A girl bunny is called a doe.

A boy bunny is called a buck.

A baby bunny is called a kit.

A bunch of baby bunnies is a litter.

Domestic rabbits are born naked, deaf and blind while jack rabbits are born fully furred ready to run!

Mother only nurse the young once a day for the first two weeks.

A rabbit has 18 toenails: 4 on each of the back feet, and 4 on each of the front plus a dew claw.

There are over 150 different rabbit coat colors, but only 5 eye colors (brown, blue-grey, blue, marbled, and pink).

President Lincoln allowed his sons to keep many pets in the White House, including pet rabbits.

A rabbit can see behind himself, without turning his head, but has a blind spot in front of his face.

Rabbits are not rodents. They belong to a family called "lagomorphs.

Rabbits are nocturnal and therefore are most active between dusk and dawn

The world record for the rabbit high jump is 1 meter.

The world record for the record long jump is 3 meters. That's over 9 feet!

The largest litter of baby rabbits is 24. It has happened twice. Once in 1978 and again in 1999.

The longest ears are 31.125 inches long. They belong to an American rabbit, Nipper's Geronimo.

The longest-lived rabbit was nearly 19 years old when he died.

Biggest bunny: 26 lbs., 7 oz.!

Rabbits cannot vomit.

Rabbits do not like loud noises and sudden movements.

Rabbits eat their own night droppings, known as cecotropes.

Rabbits need to eat hay, in order to assist their digestive system and prevent fur balls in their stomach.

The droppings of a rabbit are high in nitrogen make an excellent garden fertilizer.

Source: examiner.com

Interesting Facts about Cell Phones

2009-05-27T23:27:00.001-07:00

Martin Cooper was the first man to make a mobile call.

It was his vision that today we enjoy reaching each other within no time and without any hurdle. The 1st call made publically enjoyed its 30th anniversary on 3rd April, 2003.

Martin Cooper was Manager of Motorola’s Communication Systems Division when the mobile came in public held in his hands. Now he is CEO & Co founder of ArrayComm Inc. The mobile set he used was as big as a brick and weighed about 30 ounces.

The historic first call was made to Cooper’s rival AT&T’s Bell Labs while walking in streets of New York City. After that the handset took 10 years time to reach the market and from there to people. Before that there were portable telephones but none was a wireless portable mobile. The 1st one used without the entangling copper wire was in Cooper demonstration.

Before the launch of mobiles, there were two way radios known as ‘mobile rigs’, installed in the cars for communication. They were good tools for communication but were not at all mobiles as they were not normally connected to the telephone network. Initially the mobiles were also installed in vehicles only. Their advanced versions were called ‘bag phones’ with ‘cigarette lighter plug’ so they can be carried anywhere and used as two way radios.

Now with the progression in the mobile technology, today it is possible to reach anyone anywhere in the world not only through voice communication but also texting; SMS. Besides text messages, picture messages can be sent and received too; MMS. The technologies used now for mobiles are known as 0G i.e. zero generation, proceeding to 4G.

With the ongoing innovative developments in mobiles, significantly interesting developments have been made, because it was unthinkable before that task like these can be accomplished through a tiny handset. Its functions and options have made it more than a mobile set and more of an operational gadget pack and an organizer.

Like SMS and MMS, another common but interesting features now in mobiles is connectivity to internet and sending emails. Radio, MP3, songs and ringtones, taking pictures, making videos with the help of built in cameras featuring up to 5mega pixels is a common feature for almost all the handsets that are available at the market.

Video call, connectivity through Bluetooth and Infrared, Push-To-Talk; PTT, extended memories, call logs, phone books, and on the top, ability to connect and share data with a computer.

Some interesting facts include the possibility to unlock your car if you have forgotten the keys inside the car. You can actually take help from someone at home, conditional of having an additional security remote at home. You can stand at a distance of a foot from your car while the person at home presses the unlock button. In this amazing way your car will be unlocked and you can get your keys back.

If at some point of time your mobile service provider is not giving network coverage and you need to call an emergency service, then no need to panic. Just dial 112 and you will be connected to the emergency service through any available network.

For Nokia, dialing the code *3370# can upgrade your battery up to 50% using a built-in reserve battery. This is practicable in situations when your mobile has eaten up the battery and you have no means to charge it for an urgent call.

Innovation is a nonstop process and we can’t say to what extent it will change the workability of mobiles and what further tasks will we be able to accomplish with mobiles.

Source: technologygear.net

Interesting Facts about Green Cars

2009-05-27T23:22:00.000-07:00

Here are some really interesting facts about the green cars.

25 percent: The percentage increase in MPG you can create by keeping up on your cars’ maintenance by doing things like: regular oil changes, air-filter changes, and spark plug replacements.

4 tons: The amount of carbon released into the atmosphere when producing a single car, in addition to 700 pounds of other pollutants.

2 million gallons: The amount of biodiesel produced in the US in the year 2000; in 2005 it produced around 75 million gallons. In September of 2006, sixty-five companies reported having plants currently under construction and thirteen more are planning expansions.

22.1 MPG: The peak fuel economy of the average passenger car, which was reached in 1987. The EPA estimates that 2006 average fuel economy, despite two decades of improvements in automobile technology, is 21 mpg.

11 percent: The percentage increase each year in the amount of traffic congestion in small urban and rural areas, a growth rate twice as fast as in urban areas.

159,000: The number of trips to the emergency room attributed to high smog pollution, in addition to 53,000 hospital admissions and 6 million asthma attacks.

13 MPG: The peak fuel economy of the average passenger car, which was reached in 1987. The EPA estimates that 2006 average fuel economy, despite two decades of improvements in automobile technology, is 21 mpg.

62 hours: The amount of time the average rush-hour commuters spent in traffic in the year 2000.

$4,826 to $9,685: The estimated average yearly cost of driving a single-occupant car. In comparison, the average cost of a year’s worth of public transportation is between $200 and $2000.

Source: planetgreen.discovery.com

Interesting Facts about Cristmas Trees

2009-05-27T22:14:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about the Christmas trees.

Every year about 25 to 30 million Christmas trees are being sold across the United States.

The best selling trees are Scotch pine, Douglas fir, Noble fir, Fraser fir, Virginia pine, Balsam fir and white pine.

About 100,000 people are employed in the Christmas tree industry.

More than 2,000 trees are usually planted per acre and almost all trees require shearing to have Christmas tree shape.

It takes several minutes to shear each tree.

Shearing gives the bush the beautiful shape of Christmas tree.

Trees are ready for harvest at a height of 6 to 7 feet.

Growing Christmas trees provides a habitat for wildlife.

Christmas trees remove dust and pollen from the air.

The top branch of the Christmas tree, where the angel goes, is called the leader. The length of the leader determines the actual shape of the tree and quite often it is responsible for the sale of tree.

After surviving heavy rains, hail storms and drought, a Christmas tree takes 6 to 10 years to mature.

98 percent of all Christmas trees are grown on farms.

Source: christmascarnivals.com

Interesting Facts about New York City

2009-05-27T17:55:00.000-07:00

Below are some really interesting facts about this amazing city i.e. New York City.

Dutch explorer Peter Minuit purchased the island of Manhattan (really its southern tip) from the Algonquin tribe for trinkets and tools worth about $24.

The first known name for Manhattan was New Amsterdam, which referred to the southern tip of Manhattan, a Dutch trading port.

New York City was the U.S. capital from 1789 to 1790

New Yorkers travel an average of 40 minutes to work each day.

More than 47 percent of New York City's residents over the age of 5 speak a language other than English at home.

New York's Central Park is larger than the principality of Monaco.

The New York City Council consists of 51 members and is the legislative branch of city.

According to Crain's New York Business, the average sale price of an apartment in Manhattan during the 4th quarter of 2007 was a whopping $1.49 million.

New York's Yellow Cabs are yellow because John Hertz, the company's founder, learned from a study that yellow was the easiest color for the eye to spot. He was right.

The Federal Reserve Bank on New York's Wall Street contains vaults that are located 80 feet beneath the bank and hold about 25 percent of the world's gold bullion.

In 2007, 46 million international and domestic visitors came to New York City. They spent approximately $28 billion while there.

The average daily room rate in New York hotels in 2006 was $267.

More than 250 feature films are shot on location in New York City each year.

An average of 4.9 million people ride the New York City subway each weekday.

The New York City subway system runs 26 routes with 6,200 subway cars that stop at 468 different subway stations.

More than 12,700 licensed medallion taxis work the streets of New York City.

More than 18,600 restaurants and eating establishments do business in New York City, and the average cost of a dinner in 2006, according to the Zagat Survey, was $39.43. That includes a drink, tax and the tip.

As of the 2000 Census, 8,008,278 people live in New York City.

Approximately 790,000 companies operate in New York City.

Although many legends exist about the origin of New York City's nickname, the Big Apple, most historians agree that it can be traced back to a writer who covered horse racing in the 1920s. In The Morning Telegraph, he wrote that stable hands often referred to New York as the Big Apple, meaning that any thoroughbred that raced in New York had reached the pinnacle of racing.

Source: qassia.com

Interesting Facts about Emperor Penguins

2009-05-27T15:09:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about one of the most amazing living beings i.e. the emperor penguins.

The emperor penguin is the tallest and heaviest of all known penguins. They reach up to 122 cm in height and weigh anywhere from 22 to 45kg. Heavier than that, they are put on a strict diet.

Though it’s considered a bird and has wings - highest feather density of any bird species, it cannot fly. Sneaking up behind one allows it to wish it could fly, however …

The emperor penguin is a great traveler. Every year, adults take exhausting journeys to mate and feed their offspring. Kind of like parents of all species, no?

Must be a great lover, too. They manage to breed in the coldest environment possible with air temperatures reaching -40 °C.

The female emperor lays one single egg and then leaves for the sea to feed.

During the incubation period, the male emperors prove to be great babysitters. Their job is to keep the egg warm.

The Emperor Penguin chick is typically covered with silver-grey down and has a black head and white mask. They don’t get their tuxedos till a bit later on.

To escape wind and conserve warmth, the Emperor Penguins huddle together. Once it has warmed, others will take its place moving to the inside of the group. They learn to share like this in penguin kindergarten.

An Emperor Penguin can hold its breath anywhere up to 20 minutes, and dive over 550 meters (1,800 ft).

Emperor Penguins rely only on vocal calls for individual recognition between parents, offspring, and mates.

Used to the cold, at over 20 °C the emperor penguin becomes agitated and lifts its wings to expose more parts of the body. Well, when I get warm, I want to show my body parts, too…but I refrain.

When they’re not tobogganing - sliding over the ice on its belly, the Emperor Penguin walks with a wobbling gait or proves its swimming talents (its average swimming speed is 6–9 km/h). That’s faster than I can run.

Emperor penguins feed on fish, squid, krill and crustaceans, except when they violate number one above.

They can only be found in the Southern Hemisphere.

The emperor penguin’s enemies are the killer whales, leopard seals, and walrus.

Source: greenpacks

Interesting Facts About Marsupials especially Kangaroos

2009-05-27T15:01:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about kangaroos and other marisupals. Read and get amused by the facts about these interesting creatures.

The name marsupial comes from the marsupium, or pouch, in which these animals carry and nurse their young.

Marsupials have very short gestation periods (the time the young spend in the mother's tummy). The Virginia opossum (the only marsupial in Michigan) has a gestation period of only 13 days, and the young are only the size of a question mark when they are born. The Red Kangaroo, native to Australia, has a 30 day gestation period and the single baby weighs only 1 gram (.035 ounces) when it is born. The baby kangaroo, called a joey, spends about 235 days in the mother's pouch.

Australia has about 120 species of marsupials, New Guinea has 53 species of marsupials, South and Central America have 90 species of marsupials, and North America has only two species of marsupials.

Marsupials range in size from tiny shrew-like creatures (5 grams) to large kangaroos (over 200 pounds). There are marsupials that have occupied every available niche from tiny insect eaters to large plant eaters. There are even marsupial moles!

Marsupials first evolved in South America about 100 million years ago. At that time, South America, Australia and Antarctica were connected together in one big continent. Australia and Antarctica gradually moved away from South America and both continents became isolated. Marsupial mammals were free to evolve in isolation, and evolution produced the characteristics found in present day Australian mammals.

Most marsupials are night creatures so their most important senses are their sense of smell and their hearing. Most marsupials have extra scent glands which tell their neighbors whether they are boys or girls, if they are a stranger to the group, or if they are frightened or angry.

The largest marsupial in the world is the Red Kangaroo, like the one you see in the Card Center. Red Kangaroos can weigh 200 pounds, hop up to 30-40 miles per hour, and leap over obstacles up to 10 feet high. Kangaroos move more efficiently at high speeds than at low speeds because the tendons in their hind legs store energy and their tail acts like a pendulum. They can hop long distances because their body motion pumps air in and out of their lungs like a bellows.

There are over 40 species of kangaroos. The smaller kangaroos are called wallabies.

Kangaroos are grass eaters that live in grasslands that can be very dry with little rainfall. They may be able to go several months without water because they are capable of getting water from the food they eat.

A male kangaroo is called a boomer, a female kangaroo a flyer, and a baby kangaroo a joey. The name kangaroo came from the Aborigines through a mistake. An early European explorer asked an Aborigine what these strange hopping animals were, and the Aborigine replied kangaroo, meaning "I don't understand." The explorer thought he was naming the animal.

Kangaroos usually eat during late afternoon or in the evening when it is cooler.

Kangaroos fight with each other by boxing with their front paws, but defend themselves with powerful kicks from their hind legs. When danger approaches, they warn other kangaroos by stomping the ground with their hind feet or thumping it with their tail.

Source: ferris

Interesting Facts about Croatia

2009-05-27T14:38:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about Croatia. These facts contain some really interesting and useful information about the country.

The Dalmatian dog from the film "101 Dalmatians" was named after Dalmatia, in which most of the Croatian Adriatic is located.

The first public theatre in Europe was opened in 1612 on the island of Hvar, in the town which "Conde Nast Traveler Magazine" entered at the fifth place on its Top Ten list of best island towns in the world.

By the end of the third century AD, the Roman emperor Diocletian decided for construction of his palace the place where the city of Split is located today. The Palace of Diocletian is one of the best known integral architectural and cultural constructions in the world, which, due to its preservation and beauty, UNESCO entered in its registry of World Cultural Heritage in 1979.

In the small town of Trogir, 30 km away from Split, founded in 3rd century BC, there is one of the best preserved Romanesque-Gothic complexes in the world. Trogir is an excellent example of a medieval town built on and conforming with the layout of a Hellenistic and Roman city and it is therefore also on the World Cultural Heritage list of UNESCO.

Before Newton's discovery, the town of Dubrovnik, which has been on the World Cultural Heritage list of UNESCO since 1979, owned a telescope which was constructed by Marin Getaldic (1568-1626), the greatest Croatian scientist of that time.

The necktie has its origin in Croatia (in Croatian: Kravata, English: Cravat, French: Cravate, German: Krawatte, Italian: Cravatta, Spanish: Corvatta) and that the word "cravat" came from the word "Croat" (Hrvat in Croatian); so called because worn by Croats in the French army during the Thirty Years' War. In their own way, with the cravat, the Croats have started conquering the world from the coasts of the Adriatic Sea from 17th century. The consequences of that conquering are today felt around the necks by 600 million businessmen worldwide.

Marco Polo (1254-1324), an adventurer, merchant and one of the best known world travelers, whose book "The Travels of Marco Polo" is the first tourist book in the world, comes from Korcula on Korcula island in Croatia.

In 1458 Benko Kotruljevic from Dubrovnik wrote one of the first books on world economic literature, "On Trading and the Perfect Merchant", and that he was the first to establish the basis of modern double-entry book-keeping.

Shakespeare's Twelfth Night was staged in Dalmatia.

The writer Vladimir Nabokov always spent his summers in Opatija as a boy.

Agatha Christie spent her second honeymoon in Dubrovnik and Split.

James Joyce was a teacher of English in Pula from 1904 and 1905, in the town that has existed for three millennia with one of the best preserved Roman amphitheatres worldwide.

The Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson spent their vacations in Dalmatia.

Luka's pit ("Lukina jama"), the tenth by depth in the world (1392 m), is located in Croatia on Velebit Mountain.

The founder of San Marino, a small independent republic in the northeast of Italy, was the sculptor Marin from the village Lopar from the island of Rab.

The ball-point pen was invented by a Croat, Eduard (Slavoljub) Penkala (1871-1922), that it bears his name and is in daily use.

The names of two Croats are on the map of the Moon - names of scientists J. R. Boskovic and A. Mohorovicic.

Two winners of the Nobel Prize in chemistry came from Croatia - Lavoslav Ruzicka (1939) and Vladimir Prelog (1975).

Nikola Tesla (1856-1943), the father of alternative current electricity and technology of wireless communications, after which the unit for magnetic induction is named, was born in Croatia, and that he refused to receive the Nobel prize he had to share with T. A. Edison.

Anthony Maglica, the owner of the well-known company Mag-Lite, comes from Zlarin island from Dalmatia. Mag-Lite flashlights are among the ten most famous American export products, used by astronauts and deep sea explorers, amongst others.

Source: henleyglobal

Interesting Facts about George Washington

2009-05-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts and information about the America's first president

George Washington was the oldest son of his father’s second marriage. He grew up with nine brothers and sisters.

When George was three years old his family moved to a large tobacco plantation, which they called Mount Vernon. Despite his lengthy travels and many temporary homes, George considered Mount Vernon to be his true home until the day he died.

Though he believed strongly in virtues of education, his own schooling ended at the age of 14. This is a fact that haunted Washington throughout his life, even though this was not uncommon in his day and age.

George joined the British Royal Navy at age 14.

Once during battle, a cannonball almost hit him and his men. Everyone hid, except George, who kept on fighting.

By the time he was president of the United States, George only had one original tooth left. He spent the rest of his life in constant pain from ill-fitting dentures that distorted the shape of his mouth.

George’s first set of dentures were made from cow’s teeth. Later, he had a second pair made of hippopotamus ivory.

His favorite foods were pineapples and Brazil Nuts. It was said by John Adams that George lost all his teeth by cracking Brazil nuts between his jaws.

George never had any children of his own, though his wife Martha had two from a previous marriage.

George always preferred the quiet solitude of farming to politics, and often felt miserable living such a public life. Upon his election as president, he blurted out to a close friend that he must, “bid adieu to happiness,” as “public life will be a more distressing one than any I have known yet.”

He is the only president in history to have been unanimously elected, receiving all 69 votes of the electoral college. At the time, there was no popular vote for the presidency.

He was the only president who did not live in Washington, D.C.

Contrary to popular belief, George Washington never wore a wig.

Washington gave his name to 1 U.S. state, 1 capital city, 33 counties, 7 mountains, 9 colleges, and 121 post offices.

George Washington is the only one of America’s founding fathers to free his slaves. He freed all 124 of his slaves in his will, and left enough money in his estate to care for all of them for decades after his death.

According to Newsweek, 14 percent of all pre-school children think George Washington is still sitting in the oval office.

Source: trcabc

Interesting Facts about ants

2009-05-27T10:18:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting and astonishing facts about ants. Read them and see what this little creature has got...

If a man could run as fast for his size as an ant can, he could run as fast as a racehorse.

Ants can lift 20 times their own body weight.

With their combined weight greater than the combined weight of all humans, ants are the most numerous type of animal.

The abdomen of the ant contains two stomachs. One stomach holds the food for itself and second stomach is for food to be shared with other ants.

An ant brain has about 250 000 brain cells. A human brain has 10,000 million so a colony of 40,000 ants has collectively the same size brain as a human. Ant brains are largest amongst insects. An ant's brain may have the same processing power as a Macintosh II computer. Thousands of years ago, King Solomon wrote: "Go to the ant, consider its ways and be wise".

The average life expectancy of an ant is 45-60 days.

Adult ants cannot chew and swallow solid food. They rely on juice which they squeeze from pieces of food.

There are over 10000 known species of ants.

Some worker ants are given the job of taking the rubbish from the nest and putting it outside in a special rubbish dump.

Some birds put ants in their feathers because the ants squirt formic acid which gets rid of the parasites. The Slave-Maker Ant (Polyergus Rufescens) raids the nests of other ants and steals their pupae. When these new ants hatch,they work as slaves within the colony.

If a worker ant has found a good source for food, it leaves a trail of scent so that the other ants in the colony can find the food.

Army Ants are nomadic and they are always moving. They carry their larvae and their eggs with them in a long column.

The Army Ant (Ecitron Burchelli) of South America, can have as many as 700,000 members in its colony. The Leaf Cutter Ants cut out pieces of leaves which they take back to their nests.

Wood ant workers live seven to ten years.

The queen ant lives up to ten or twenty years.

The wood ant can threaten the enemy with open jaws.

There are thirty-five thousand kinds of ants in the world.

Some ants sleep seven hours a day.

Ants are normally from 2 to 7 mm long, although carpenter ants can stretch to 2 cm, or almost an inch.

Some ants care for and "farm" other insects.

Source: thaibugs

Interesting Facts about Reptiles

2009-05-27T09:59:00.001-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about reptiles. Although there can be thousands of interesting facts on the topic but here are few.

There are more than 8,000 species of reptiles on the planet, and the live on every continent except Antarctica (where it is too cold).

"Cold-blooded" is not the best way to describe reptiles. Their blood is not necessarily cold by itself. But they are ectothermic, which means they get their body heat from external sources. Reptiles cannot regulate their body temperature internally as humans do.

Reptiles are among the longest-lived species on the planet. For example, large tortoises such as the Aldabra tortoise can live for more than 150 years. Alligators can live nearly 70 years. Ball pythons, a popular type of pet snake, can live up to 40 years (consider that before getting one as a pet).

Most of the world's snakes (nearly two-thirds) are non-venomous. Only about 500 snake species are venomous, and of those only 30 - 40 are considered harmful to humans. In other words, less than 2 percent of all snakes are considered harmful to humans.

With regard to reptile fact #4 above, the opposite is true in Australia. There are actually more venomous snakes in Australia than non-venomous snakes. The inland taipan is one of the most popular of these venomous Australian snakes. Australia is the only continent where venomous snakes outnumber non-venomous snakes.

It is a fact that more Americans die each year from bee stings than from snake bites.

Certain types of snakes can go months without eating. This is especially true of the big constrictors, such as the Anaconda and the reticulated python. Snakes eat large meals (relative to their body size), and they have much slower metabolisms than we humans have. This partly explains how they can go so long between meals.

Most kinds of reptiles do not tolerate the cold very well. But the Blanding's turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) is sometimes found swimming under the ice in the Great Lakes region of the United States.

Snakes and lizards flick their tongues in the air to capture scent particles. They don't smell through their noses like you and I. Instead, the use their tongues to collect scent particles and then pass the particles over something called a Jacobson's organ to decipher the air around them. This is partly how reptiles hunt for food.

True to its name, the African egg-eating snake (of the genus Dasypeltis) prefers to dine on the eggs of other animals. It will swallow the egg whole, and then use tiny "spikes" extending internally from its spine to crack the egg open and swallow the nutritious contents. Lastly, it will regurgitate the unneeded egg shell in a neatly folded piece.

Contrary to popular belief, chameleons do not change their color to blend in with different backgrounds. Chameleons are naturally camouflaged with their surroundings (most are predominantly green to match their treetop environment). The fact is that chameleons change their color in limited ways, usually by brightening or darkening their skin. But these color changes are related to temperature regulation and emotional changes. A frightened or angry chameleon, for example, will become extremely bright in color.

The skulls of snakes are made up of many small bones that are interconnected in a flexible fashion. This is entirely different from a human skull, which is one solid piece. This allows snakes to expand their jaws and heads in order to eat prey items larger than their heads. A common garter snake, for example, could swallow a frog more than twice the size of its head. Large constrictors such as the anaconda can expand their jaws to an almost alarming degree!

Many people think that reptiles are slimy. But the fact is that reptiles do not have sweat glands like you and I have, so their skin is usually cool and dry. I have several pet snakes for example, and people who touch them for the first time always say the same thing: "Oh wow, they're not slimy at all."

The scales of all snakes (and many lizard species) are made of keratin, which is the same substance that makes up the hair and fingernails of humans.

Snakes shed their skin in relation to their growth rate. A young snake will shed more often because they typically grow fastest during the first two years of their lives. An older snake will shed less often as its rate of growth slows down.

The world's longest snake species is the reticulated python, which can exceed 30 feet (10 meters) in length. While reticulated pythons typically grow longer, the anaconda could be considered the largest snake by overall size and weight. The anaconda is a heavy-bodied snake and can weigh well over 300 pounds. Learn more about types of big snakes.

While the reticulated python and anaconda are the largest snakes in general, the king cobra is by far largest of the venomous snakes. It can grow to lengths of more than 18 feet (6 meters) can weigh in excess of 20 pounds.

Some species of gecko use their tails as a defensive tool. When attacked, the gecko will wiggle its tail to lure the attacking creature. When the animal bites onto the tail, the gecko can detach the tail and make its escape. In most cases, a new tail will grow in place of the old one.

Most snake species lay eggs. But about one-fifth of all snakes bear live young instead. Rattlesnakes and boa constrictors are examples of snakes that bear live young.

Many states such as Georgia and Texas still engage in "rattlesnake roundups," in which rattlesnakes are gathered from the wild and slaughtered by the hundreds. These activities are mostly practiced by ignorant rednecks who think that rattlesnakes are somehow evil or malicious. Eventually (one can hope), such practices will be outlawed ... ideally before yet another species of animal goes extinct on this planet.

Reptiles are the oldest type of animal on the planet. Turtles, for example, have been on the planet for more than 200 million years, in basically the same form as we see them today. For this reason and many more, reptiles deserve respect from us humans. They do not deserve fear or persecution!

Source: reptileknowledge.com

Interesting Facts about Birds

2009-05-27T02:06:00.000-07:00

The oldest bird was known as an Archaeopteryx and lived about 150 million years ago. It was the size of a raven, was covered with feathers, and had wings.

The most yolks ever found in a single chicken's egg is nine.

An ostrich egg needs to be boiled for 2 hours to get a hard-boiled egg.

The Royal Albatross' eggs take 79 days to hatch.

The egg of the hummingbird is the world's smallest bird's egg; the egg of the ostrich, the world's largest.

The now-extinct elephant bird of Madagascar laid an egg that weighed 27 pounds.

Precocial birds like chickens, ostriches, ducks, and seagulls hatch ready to move around. They come from eggs with bigger yolks than altricial birds like owls, woodpeckers, and most small songbirds that need a lot of care from parents in order to survive.

Air sacs may make up 1/5 of the body volume of a bird.

A bird's normal body temperature is usually 7-8 degrees hotter than a human's. Up to three-quarters of the air a bird breathes is used just for cooling down since they are unable to sweat.

A bird's heart beats 400 times per minute while resting and up to 1000 beats per minute while flying.

The world's only wingless bird is the kiwi of New Zealand.

Migrating ducks and geese often fly in V-shape formations. Each bird flies in the upwash of its neighbor's beating wings and this extra bit of supporting wind increases lift, thereby saving energy.

Pigeons can reach speeds up to 100 mph.

Swifts, doves, falcons, and sandpipers can approach 200 mph.

Penguins, ostriches, and dodo birds are all birds that do not fly.

Hummingbirds eat about every ten minutes, slurping down twice their body weight in nectar every day.

The homing pigeon, Cher Ami, lost an eye and a leg while carrying a message in World War I. Cher Ami won the Distinguished Service Cross. Its leg was replaced with a wooden leg.

The only known poisonous bird in the world is the hooded pitohui of Papua, New Guinea. The poison is found in its skin and feathers.

The American turkey vulture helps human engineers detect cracked or broken underground fuel pipes. The leaking fuel smells like vulture food (they eat carrion), and the clustered birds show repair people where the lines need fixing.

Source: peteducation.com

Interesting Facts about George Washington’s Mount Vernon

2009-05-27T00:36:00.000-07:00

Mount Vernon is located in Virginia; it overlooks the Potomac River as well as the low hills of Maryland. It is considered to be America’s “first home.”

George Washington’s great grandfather John Washington was granted five thousand acres from King Charles II with the stipulation that he pay an annual rent and “seat and plant” the land within the span of three years. This tract of land was divided with John Spencer.

Before the estate became known as Mount Vernon it was called Hunting Creek Plantation. Much of the early history of the plantation has been gathered from legal documents such as deeds and wills.

Under George Washington’s ownership, the estate was expanded from 2,126 acres to above eight thousand.

Like other eighteenth century plantations, the estate boasted an array of beautiful gardens, a greenhouse and a kitchen garden.

The mansion is considered an excellent example of colonial architecture. The home’s high-columned piazza is considered the standout feature of the mansion. It extends the entire length of the house.

The cupola, another notable feature of the mansion, was added in 1778. Washington added his “dove of peace” weathervane in 1787.

The Banquet Hall contains an engraving of Louis XVI, Sheraton side chairs, and a moonlight river scene above an exquisite mantel. This room was where Washington received the news that he had been elected to the Presidency.

The Central Hall contains a key to Paris’ infamous Bastille-a present from General Lafayette in 1790.

The mansion’s Little Parlor boasts an elegant harpsichord and was the room where the family enjoyed music together.

The West Parlor contains the family’s Coat-of-Arms. This room dates from Washington’s first enlargement of the mansion. It also contains two portraits of Washington and his wife Martha.

The family dining room today contains a mahogany dining table that is believed to have belonged to Martha’s daughter Nelly Custis Lewis.

The second floor of the mansion contains five bed chambers. Historians believe the mansion was continually peopled by family and guests putting a strain on the accommodations. Mrs. Washington arranged low beds in the bedrooms to accommodate extra guests.

After her husband died, Martha Washington closed the master bedroom and resided in a garret bedroom across from her grandson’s bedroom.

The library contains a Mount Vernon original-a terrestrial globe. The room also contains busts of George Washington and John Paul Jones. At the time of Washington’s death, the library contained 884 bound books. Washington considered this room his private sanctuary. After the Revolutionary War the library could not be visited without an invitation from Washington.

Historians have found that although the plantation produced a profit, it did not leave Washington a wealthy man. He did not have an extensive income as much of the plantation’s yield supported the estate. His service to his country prevented him from acquiring the wealth he might otherwise have.

The Washingtons of Mount Vernon were revered for their simple hospitality. Washington said, “A glass of wine and a bit of mutton are always ready, and such as will be content to partake of them are always welcome.”

During his presidency Washington was only able to visit Mount Vernon fifteen times. Washington died in 1799. The terms of his will stipulated that the estate was not to be divided until after the death of his wife Martha. She died in 1802.

The home also contains stables, tomb, colonnade, various outbuildings such as the kitchen (off the courtyard) and store rooms.

Washington left the mansion house to his nephew Bushrod Washington. The rest of the estate was divided amongst other relatives.

Interestingly, the estate has been preserved by the nation’s first women’s patriotic organization founded by Miss Pamela Cunningham of South Carolina in 1858 and called the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.

Source: avivadirectory.com

Interesting Facts About South Africa

2009-05-26T23:59:00.001-07:00

South Africa has the oldest meteor scar in the world, just across the Vaal River near Parys, called the Vredefort Dome. The meteor plummeted to Earth nearly two billion years ago (Earth is said to be 4,5 billion years old), predating the heady days of oxygen and multi-celled life.

The rocks around Barberton in Mpumalanga are some of the most ancient in the world - over three billion years old. Because they are also the most accessible such formations, NASA scientists come here to gain an idea of how life might form on distant planets.

The Tugela Falls is the second highest waterfall in the world, where the water tumbles down 850 metres. First place goes to the Angel Falls in Venezuela at 979 metres.

There are 18 000 indigenous vascular plant species in South Africa of which 80% are uniquely South African.

Blyde River Canyon is the third largest canyon in the world - and the largest green one. The Grand Canyon in the US is the biggest, and the Fish River Canyon in Namibia the second, but both are dry as bones.

South African grasslands have 30 species per square kilometre, greater than the biodiversity of rainforests.

Can mountains be folded? Yes they can, and you can see such wonders in the Western Cape at the Cederberg and the Swartberg mountains.

South Africa and its neighbours are some of the most generously endowed geographic solar hotspots in the world, soaking up just over half of the world’s highest category of solar wattage per square metre of land.

Therapsids are the true ancestors of mammals, and lived over 200 million years ago, long before the upstart dinosaurs of the Jurassic Age (which ended abruptly 65 million years ago). Most of the world’s proto-mammalian fossils are found in the Karoo - along with a 280 million year old fossilized shark.

According to recent studies, the star-watching town of Sutherland in the Northern Cape is one of the most geologically stable places on Earth, yet it has a 66-million year old volcano, not yet officially extinct.

Kimberley may have the biggest man-made hole in the world, but did you know that the southern Free State town of Jagersfontein has the deepest vertical man-made hole (and that a pair of Verreaux’s Eagles breed in it?

South Africa is home to the world’s smallest succulent plants (less than 10 mm) and the largest (the baobab).

Lake Fundudzi in Venda is possibly the world’s only inland freshwater lake formed by a landslide.

The only street in the world to house two Nobel Peace prize winners is in Soweto. Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu both have houses in Vilakazi Street in Soweto.

Walt Disney serves South African wine exclusively at its 73-acre Animal Kingdom Lodge in the United States.

South Africa has the longest wine route in the world, the R62 wine route.

South Africa is the world’s largest producer of macadamia nuts and the nuts and oils are exported to countries across the world.

South Africa is the only country in the world where you can order something called monkey gland steak at a restaurant without the risk of a real internal organ being placed before you. It was invented many decades ago by overseas chefs as a pointed insult, aimed at the brash inhabitants of Johannesburg who poured Worcestershire and tomato sauce over everything.

No other country eats as much kingklip as South Africans do (also known as Congrio, Ling and Rockling in other parts of the southern hemisphere).

The world’s first heart transplant was done in South Africa in 1967 by South African Dr Chris Barnard.

South Africa’s Dr Percy Amolis invented the Retinal Cryoprobe used successfully on former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to repair a detached retina. He also removed a cataract from Nelson Mandela’s eye that enabled the former president to, for the first time, read a speech without glasses.

Where else is an entirely new species being recreated from scratch? The quagga vanished in a frenzy of hunting in the 1800s, but after finding that the DNA is almost identical to the common Burchell’s zebra, the species is being brought back from beyond the brink by careful breeding of stripe-challenged zebras.

There are only 12 countries in the world that supply tap water that is fit to drink, and South Africa is one of them. Our tap water quality is third best overall in the world.

South Africa also has the world’s most progressive and admired water legislation, and it is making a real difference on the ground. Since 1998 when the so-called “Blue Revolution” began, four million more poor people have access to clean water.

South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique are tearing down fences between the countries’ game parks to create a 35 000km2 game park which will become the largest conservation area in the world. It will be bigger than Switzerland, Belgium or Taiwan.

South Africa is ranked number one in the world for its floral kingdom.

South Africa’s Coastal Management policy is one of the best in the world with the country being the first outside Europe to gain Blue Flag status for its coastal management.

South Africa has the third highest level of biodiversity in the world.

South Africa is the sole producer of the Mercedes Benz, C Class, right hand drive vehicles.

General Motors South Africa will be the only manufacturing site outside of the United States to build the Hummer H3 vehicle.

South Africans are natural inventors, giving the world those breakwater dolosse and the automatic pool cleaner.

South Africa also came up with the first, largest and most viable oil-from-coal refinery (which supplies 40% of our petrol). And did you know that a South African physicist co-developed the CAT-scan, that South Africa makes the seats for Concorde, and also designs and creates flight control technology for Britain’s fighter jets.

Source: sarocks.co.za

Interesting Facts about the Human Brain

2009-05-26T21:55:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting and informative facts about your brain...

Your brain is the most energy-consuming part of your body. The brain represents only 2% of the body weight, but it uses up to 20 percent of the body’s energy production. The energy is used for cell-health maintenance and to fuel electrical impulses that neurons employ to communicate with one another.

Your brain contains about 100 billion neurons which is about 16 times the number of people on Earth. Each of them links to as many as 10,000 other neurons. This huge number of connections opens the way to massive parallel processing within the brain.

The neocortex (a section of the brain involved with language and consciousness) accounts for about 76% of the mass of the human brain. Human neocortex is much larger than any animals. It gives humans unique mental capacities although its brain architecture is similar to that of more primitive species.

Humans do not use only 10% or less of their brain. This is a common misconception. Even though many mysteries of brain function persist, every part of the brain has a known function.

Neurons multiply at a rate 250,000 neurons per minute during early pregnancy.

750ml of blood pumps through your brain every minute which is 15-20% of blood flow from the heart.

The human brain is about 75% water.

Your brain consumes 25 watts of power while you’re awake. This amount of energy is enough to illuminate a lightbulb.

It is estimated that the human brain has a raw computational power between 1013 and 1016 operations per second. It is far more that 1 million times the number of people on Earth.

Our brain often fools us. It often perceives things differently from the reality. For instance, check the following picture.

Source: lifeoptimizer.org

Interesting Facts about the Deaf

2009-05-26T21:21:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about the deaf...

There are approximately 22 million hearing-impaired persons in the U.S.

Deaf people have safer driving records than hearing people nationally.

The huddle formation used by football teams originated at Gallaudet University, a liberal arts college for deaf people in Washington, DC, to prevent other schools from reading their sign language.

The man who invented shorthand, John Gregg, was deaf.

Carl Anderson, a deaf cartoonist, is the creator of "Henry."

A deaf center-fielder for the Cincinnati Reds, William Hoy, invented the hand signals for strikes and balls in baseball.

Phyllis Frelich won the Tony Award for Best Actress of 1980 in the Broadway play "Children of a Lessor God". Ms. Frelich is profoundly deaf.

Two of the Osmond brothers and Nanette Fabray all have hearing impairments.

When Beethoven composed his ninth symphony, he was profoundly deaf.

Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone, was originally an instructor for deaf children and invented the telephone to help his deaf wife and mother to hear.

Scuba divers often use sign language under water. Deaf people can sign/talk at great distances without the use of amplification through the use of sign language.

Deaf people have created a language known as American Sign Language which has been linguistically defined as a separate language such as English, French, and German.

Statistics prove that deaf people live longer than hearing people.

Some positions held by present-day deaf persons are: lawyers, dentists, doctors, chemists, inventors, artists, sculptors, writers, architects, poets, newspaper editors, clergy, actors, and teachers, to name just a few!

Deaf people develop keener senses of observation, feeling, taste and smell to compensate for their loss of hearing.

Deaf people appreciate advice or warnings regarding any noises that bother hearing people.

Deaf people vote, pay taxes, drive cars, attend business, social, and religious events.

Source: deaf.net

Interesting Facts About Turkey

2009-05-26T21:07:00.000-07:00

Here are some interesting facts about Turkey...

The famous Trojan Wars took place in Western Turkey, around the site where the Trojan horse rests today.

The first church built by man (St. Peter’s Church) is in Antioch (Antakya), Turkey.

The oldest known human settlement is in Catalhoyuk, Turkey (7th Millenium B.C.)

Ephesus and Halicarnasus (the place for the two of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world) are in Turkey.

St. Nicholas, also known as Santa Claus, was born in Patara and became the bishop of Demre, on Turkey’s Mediterranean Coast.

Noah’s Ark landed on Mount Ararat (Agri Dagi) in Eastern Turkey.

The last meal on Noah’s Ark, a pudding of sweet and sour taste (asure), is still served throughout Turkey.

Turks introduced coffee to Europe.

Turks gave the Dutch their famous tulips.

Istanbul is the only city in the world built on two continents.

Tradition in Turkey says that a stranger at one’s doorstep is considered "God’s guest" for at least three days.

Turkey is noted for having one of the three most famous and distinctive traditional cuisines in the world.

The First Ecumenical Council was held in Iznik, Turkey.

Writing was first used by people in ancient Anatolia. The first clay tablets in the ruins of Assyrian Karum (Merchant Colony) date back to 1950 B.C.

The oldest tin mine was found in Göltepe, 60 miles south of Tarsus.

The first Neolithic paintings found on man-made walls are in Catalhöyük, Turkey.

Anatolia is the birthplace of historic legends, such as Homer (the poet), King Midas, Herodotus (the father of history), and St. Paul the Apostle.

Julius Caesar proclaimed his celebrated words, "Veni, Vidi, Vici (I came, I saw, I conquered)" in Turkey when he defeated the Pontus, a formidable kingdom in the Black Sea region of Turkey.

Female goddesses like Cybele dominated the Central Anatolian pantheon for thousands of years before these supernatural powers were transformed to male gods.

The Hittites sold Abraham the cave where he buried his wife Sarah, when the Israelites came to Palestine.

The first church dedicated to Virgin Mary is in Ephesus.

Cherry was first introduced to Europe from Giresun (Northern Turkey)

Turkey has hundreds beaches and marinas which have the "Blue Flag" (A European award for the best clean water) on the Mediterranean and Aegean.

The first recorded international treaty in the world was the Treaty of Kadesh between the Hittite and Egyptian Empires, Hattusilis III and Ramses II, in c.1275 BC.

The oldest known shipwreck on Earth was found and excavated in Uluburun near Kas, in the Mediterranean region of Turkey.

In 640 BC, for the first time in history, coins made of electrum were used by the Lydian king Croesus in Sardis, in Aegean region of Turkey.

King Midas lived in Gordion, capital of Phrigia.

Alexander the Great cut the Gordian knot near Ankara. The double knotting technique used in Turkish rugs is also called as Gordian Knot.

The Garden of Eden in the Book of Genesis was said to be watered by a river which separated into four streams as it left the garden; two of them the Tigris (Dicle) and Euphrates (Firat) rise from the mountains of Eastern Turkey.

Early Christians escaping from Roman persecutions found shelter in Cappadocia.

The Seven Churches of Apocalypse are all situated in the Aegean region of Anatolia; Ephesus, Smyrna (Izmir), Pergamum, Thyatira (Nazilli), Sardis, Philadelphia (Alasehir) and Laodicea.

Sultan Beyazit II dispatched the Ottoman Navy to bring the Jewish people who were expelled from Spain in 1492 and they were brought safely to the Ottoman lands.

Istanbul has the historical building of Sirkeci Train Station. This was the last stop of the Simplon-Orient Express - "kings of trains and train of kings" - between Paris and Constantinople (Istanbul) from 1883 to 1977. Agatha Christie was one of the passengers of this famous train.

The number of species of flowers in Turkey is approximately 9,000, of which 3,000 are endemic. In Europe for instance there are 11,500 species. This shows the richness of flora and fauna in Anatolia.

Source: allaboutturkey.com

My First Post

2009-05-25T23:58:00.000-07:00

This is my first post. On this blog I will be posting some really interesting facts for your amusement and knowledge.