11.15.10 AM Amazing fact 20 | ||||||||||
Ribbon worms
eat themselves if they cant find food Rice and
some other grains contain chemicals that can enhance brain functions. Rice is the
staple food of more than one-half of the world's population. Rice paper
isn't made from rice but from a small tree which grows in Taiwan. Richard F.
has pointed out possible inaccuracies with the trivia for December 16th and
January 1st. For this reason, I have decided to pull them. Richard
Henry and Francis Lightfoot Lee are the only brothers who signed the
Declaration of Independence. Their cousin, Henry Lee, was a famous
Revolutionary War commander and the father of General Robert E. Lee. Richard
Millhouse Nixon was the first US president whose name contains all the letters
from the word "criminal." William Jefferson Clinton is the second. Richard
Nixon was the 1st US president to visit China in February, 1972. Ricin is a
protein produced by the castor oil plant, Ricinus communis, which is highly
toxic (the minimal lethal dose is around 1 µg / kg body weight, that means
1/15th of a milligram could kill a 150 lb. person). Ricin can be a dangerous
contaminant, making the production of castor oil a precisely controlled
process.
Rin Tin Tin
was born to a war-dog mother in a German trench in France during World War I.
Deserted when the Germans retreated, the German shepherd puppy was found by an
American officer who happened to be a police-dog trainer from California.
During Rin Tin Tin's training after the war, the dog's intelligence came to the
attention of Warner Brothers, which signed the dog up for what turned out to be
a long career as one of the biggest box-office draws of the silent screen era. Rising sea
levels caused by global warming could lead to major flooding in Shanghai and
Guangzhou and other Chinese coastal cities by year 2050. This could cause 76
million people to become homeless. Roasted
coffee beans start to lose small amounts of flavor within two weeks. Ground
coffee begins to lose its flavor in one hour. Brewed coffee and espresso begins
to lose flavor within minutes. Robert
Goddard a scientist and holder of 214 patents fired the first rocket using
liquid propellant in 1926. Robert
Peary, who left pieces of the flag scattered at the North Pole was honored for
doing this. Robert Todd
Lincoln (Abraham Lincoln's oldest son) was in Washington DC during his father's
assassination as well as during President Garfield's assassination, and he was
in Buffalo NY when President McKinley was assassinated. Robert
Wadlow is regarded as the tallest man ever known. He was 8'11" at the time
of his death at the age of 21. Robert
William Thomson, a Scottish engineer, invented the first rubber tire in 1845. Rodents
teeth never stop growing. Roger
Bannister of Great Britain was the first man to run a mile in under four
minutes. On May 6, 1954, he ran the mile in 3 minutes 59.4 seconds. Roman
statues were made with detachable heads, so that one head could be removed and
replaced by another. Ronald
Reagan married his first wife, Jane Wyman, at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale,
California. Roosters
can't crow if they can't fully extend their necks. Rosalind
Franklin was the woman behind Watson and Crick's doudle helix DNA model. She
did all the experiments, but died before she was paid credit. Watson and Crick
merely took her results and interpreted it. Roseanne's
fear is anyone touching her toes. Roses may be
red, but violets are indeed violet. Rudolph the
Red-nosed reindeer was actually created as a promotional figure for Montgommery
Wards department stores.
Rubber bands
last longer when refrigerated. Rubbing
cocoa butter on your abdomen during pregnancy will prevent stretch marks. Rudolph, the
Red-Nosed Reindeer, was created in 1939, in Chicago, for the Montgomery Ward
department stores for a Christmas promotion. The lyrics were written as a poem
by Robert May, but weren't set to music until 1947. Gene Autry recorded the hit
song in 1949. Rudyard
Kipling was fired as a reporter for the San Francisco Examiner. His dismissal
letter was reported to have said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Kipling, but you just
don't know how to use the English language. This isn't a kindergarten for
amateur writers." Running cold
water over the onion and the knife will keep you from crying when you cut it,
because water neutralizes the chemical that makes you cry. Rutgers beat
Princeton 6-4 in the first ever college football game. At the time, a touchdown
was worth only two points. Rutherford
Hayes became U.S. President by one vote. Saffron,
made from the dried stamens of cultivated crocus flowers, is the most expensive
cooking spice. Saint
Isidore, or Seville, who lived in the 17th century, was believed to have
written the world's first encyclopedia, the Etymologies. It included entries on
medicine, mathematics, history and theology. Salt
caravans crossing the Sahara desert sometimes numbered as many as 40,000
camels. Salt is
mentioned more than 30 times in the Bible. Salt was
once a very precious commodity, so much that many people were paid Samual
Morse, who invented the telegraph, was originally a portrait painter and didn't
give up painting to turn to inventing until he was 46 years old. Samuel
Clemens (Mark Twain) was born on and died on days when Halley's Comet can be
seen. During his life he predicted that he would die when it could be seen. Samuel
Clemens [AKA Mark Twain] was born in 1835 when Haley's Comet came into view.
When he died in 1910, Haley's Comet came into view again. Sandy Koufax
threw a no-hitter in four consecutive seasons between 1962-65. He's the only
player to throw no-hitters in more than two straight seasons. Santa Claus
has a brother named Bells Nicholas who brings presents to children on New
Year's Eve. Santa's
reindeer are: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and
Blitzen. Saudi Arabia
covers an area of 830,000 sq. miles, yet there is not a single river in the
whole country. Scandinavia
has the world's highest per capita annual coffee consumption, 26.4 pounds. Italy
has an annual consumption per capita of only 10 pounds. Scarecrows
frighten birds because of the human odor emitted from the clothes they wear.
Come rain and wind, this odor dissapears. (tip for people who dont bathe often) Scholars
estimate that the 66 books of the King James version of the Bible were written
by some 50 different authors. Scholars
have named the highest number that's been counted, a googleplex. Scientists
have discovered that the mating call of the Mediterranean fruit fly has exactly
the same frequency as lower F# on a harmonica. Scientists
have figured out that the speed of nerve impulses in the brain is 404 feet per
second. If an idea is complex enough to take 100 nerve messages from one side
of the brain to the other, the thought could be completed in less than a tenth
of a second. Scientists
have performed brain surgery on cockroaches. Scorpions
can be killed by pouring vinegar over them. They'll 'snap' and sting themself. Scorpions
can withstand 200 times more nuclear radiation than humans can. Scotland has
more redheads than any other part of the world. Sea otters
have the thickest fur of all animals. Sea turtles
don't age-they wont die unless they get an infection or get eaten by a larger
animal. This means there could be a thousand year old turtle swimming around
somewhere..... Sea water is
approximately 3.5 percent salt. Sea water
weighs about a pound and a half more per cubic foot than fresh water at the
same temperature. Sea water,
loaded with mineral salts, weighs about a pound and a half more per cubit foot
than fresh water at the same temperature. Sears
Roebuck and Company was founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears, a former
railroad worker turned watch salesman, and Alvah Roebuck, a watchmaker. Seattle
passed an ordinance that states that goldfish could ride the city buses in
bowls only if they kept still. Second and
third Presidents, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, both died on July 4, 1826. Seeing eye
dogs are color blind but can still read stop lights by the position of the 'on'
light Self-annointing
is something only hedgehogs do, in which they lick or nibble on something, make
a foamy paste in their mouths, and then spread it with their long tongues in
little spots on their quills. No one has ever determined exactly why they do
this. Seoul, the
South Korean capital, just means "the capital" in the Korean
language. Seven cities
claim to be the birthplace of the Greek epic poet Homer. He is also thought to
have been born in either 1159 B.C., 1102 B.C., 1044 B.C., 830 B.C., or 685 B.C. Seven of the
eight US Presidents who have died in office either through illness or
assassination were elected at precisely 20-year intervals. Seven
suicides are recorded in the Bible. Seven
thousand years ago, the ancient Egyptians bowled on alleys similar to the ones
in use today. Several
buildings in Manhattan, NY have their own zip code. For example the former
World Trade Center has several. Shakespeare
and Cervantes died on the same day, April 23, 1616. Shaquelle
O'Neal [AKA Shaq] wears a size 22EEE shoe. Sharks
apparently are the only animals that never get sick. As far as is known, they
are immune to every known disease including cancer. Sharks are
immune to cancer. Sharon Stone
was the first Star Search spokes model. Shell color
is determined by the breed of hen and has no effect on its quality, nutrients
or flavor. Sherlock
Holmes NEVER said, "Elementary, my dear Watson". Sherlock
Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's brilliant detective, arrived on the mystery
scene in the late nineteenth century in "A Study in Scarlet" (1887). Shipwreck
Kelly (1885-1952) set many flagpole-sitting records. He sat for 49 days on one
flagpole. He once estimated that he spent a total of over 20,000 hours sitting
on flagpoles. Flagpole sitting was a craze started in Baltimore, Maryland, in
1929. Shirley
Temple always has 56 curls in her hair. (talk about uptight). Shirly
Temple received 135,000 presents on her 8th birthday. Shoe
salesmen have been using those little wooden measuring sticks since 1657. shrimp have their
heart in their head Sigmund
Freud had a morbid fear of ferns. Since Hindus
don't eat beef, the McDonald's in New Delhi makes its burgers with mutton. Since the
beginning of this fact, 3000 puppies were born in the U.S.A Sing Sing
prison in New York has a name derived from the Indian words for "stony
place." Sir Barton
won the Belmont Stakes in New York in 1919, to become the first horse to
capture the Triple Crown. This was the first time that the Belmont Stakes had
been run as part of thoroughbred racing's most prestigious trio of events. Sir
Barton had already won the first two jewels of the Triple Crown -the Kentucky
Derby in Louisville, Kentucky and the Preakness Stakes in Maryland. Sir Isaac
Newton was an ordained priest in the Church of England. Sir Isaac
Newton was only 23 years old when he discovered the law of universal
gravitation. Six checker
cabs are still in use in NYC. Six
eight-stud Lego pieces can be combined 102,981,500 ways. Six ounces
of orange juice contains the minimum daily requirement for vitamin C. Skin is
thickest, 1/5 inch, on the upper back. It is thinnest on the eyelids, which are
only 1/50th inch thick Slaves who
lived under the Manchus the last emperors of China who ruled from 1644-1912
wore pigtails so that they could be picked out quickly. Sliced bread
was introduced under the Wonder Bread label in 1930. Sliced bread
was patented in 1954. Slicing the
ear off the bull is the main object to bullfighting in one form...then stabbing
the bull through the neck into the spinal cord to kill it is the next
goal...the matadors are allowed two tries for that. Next, two mules take the
dead carcass out of the stadium and where they have a celebration in honor of
the owner of the bull and a feast (guess what the main course is!). Slugs have
four noses. Smith is the
most common last name in the United States. A little over 1% of all Americans
share that last name. Smokers are
likely to die on average six and a half years earlier than non-smokers. Smokey the
Bear's zip code is 20252.
Snakes are
immune to their own poison. Snakes have
two sex organs... in case one drops off in their fervent attempt to trick
females into mating.. 'Soldiers
disease' is a term for morphine addiction. The Civil War produced over 400,000
morphine addicts. Some baby
giraffes are more than six feet tall at birth. Some
biblical scholars believe that Aramaic (the language of the ancient Bible) did
not contain an easy way to say 'many things' and used a term which has come
down to us as 40. This means that when the bible -in many places -refers to '40
days,' they meant many days. Some
biblical scholars believe that Aramaic (the language of the ancient Bible) did
not contain an easy way to say "many things" and used a term which
has come down to us as 40. This means that when the bible in many places refers
to "40 days," they meant many days. Some
cultures kiss by biting off each other's eyelashes. Some frogs
like the wood frog and some turtles can stop their heart and frost their
tissues during winter and defrost after that Some frogs
use sugars as an antifreeze for vital organs Some
horticulturists suspect that the banana was the earth's first fruit. Banana
plants have been in cultivation since the time of recorded history. One of the
first records of bananas dates back to Alexander the Great's conquest of India
where he first discovered bananas in 327 B.C. Some large
clouds store enough water for 500000 showers Some lions
mate 50 times a day. Some people
have more bones in their feet than others. Some
reconstituted tobacco contains the same ingredients found in fart. Some ribbon
worms will eat themselves if they can't find any food. Some
toothpastes contain antifreeze. Somebody
actually timed a rattlesnake mating session that lasted 22.75 hours. Sometime
around 1050 some English boys looking for a diversion blew up an old cow
bladder and began to kick it around. The new game would go on to be called
soccer. Sometime
around 1325, the Aztecs were looking for a place to build their capital. A
priest had interpreted an omen to mean the site should be where the found an
eagle, perched on a cactus, devouring a snake. And that's why they chose what
is now Mexico City; they found the eagle eating a snake while resting on a
cactus. The scene is depicted on the Mexican flag. son-in-law
with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer, and because their
calendar was lunar based, this period was called Sound
carries so well in the Arctic that on a calm day, a conversation can be heard
from 1.8 miles away. Source:
Another Site Source:
Growing up jewish Source: In
an old dictionary (70 years old) in my basement Source:
Rabbit shows/fact books South Africa
is the only country to have three capital cities: one for each branch of its
government (Administrative, Legislative, and Judicial). South Africa
used to have two official languages, now it has eleven. Southbridge,
Massachusetts, makes it illegal to read books or newspapers after 8 p.m. in the
streets. Soybean
actually has Diadzein and genistein that act like weak estrogen. Special
studies conducted about the human body revealed it will usually absorb up to
about 300 milligrams of caffeine at a given time. About 4 normal cups.
Additional amounts are just cast off, providing no further stimulation. Also,
the human body dissipates 20% of the caffeine in the system each hour. Sperm banks
keep their donor semen at approximately -321 degrees Fahrenheit. At that
temperature, it could be kept indefinitely. Spotted
skunks do handstands before they spray. Squirrels
eat through 40,000 pine cones a year. St.
Augustine, Florida is the oldest city in the US. St. Teresa
of Avila is the patron saint of chess-players!! Stag beetles
have stronger mandibles than humans. Stage bows
were originally devised as a way for actors to thank the audience. The audience
would or would not acknowledge each of the actors in turn, depending on how
much they enjoyed the performance.
Stanford
University engineers Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard started their company in a
Palo Alto garage with $1,538. Their first product was an audio oscillator
bought by Walt Disney studios for use in the movie Fantasia. Stanley
Kubrick approached Lloyd's of London about an insurance policy in case
extraterrestrial life was discovered before the release of his movie 2001: A
Space Odyssey. Starfish eat
by regurgitating their stomach on top of their food. If they dont like what
they are eating they detach the stomach and grow a new one. Starfish
have eight eyes, one at the end of each leg. Starfish
have no brains. Stars come in
different colors; hot stars give off blue light, and the cooler stars give off
red light. Stars with
really strong gravity cause themselves to become smaller and smaller and
eventually turn into black holes. State with
the highest percentage of people who walk to work: Alaska. Stephen
Hawking was born exactly 300 years after Galileo died. Sterling
silver contains 7.5% copper. Steve
McQueen persuaded his karate teacher, kickboxing champion Chuck Norris, to
pursue acting. Steve Young,
the San Francisco 49ers quarterback, is the great-great-grandson of Mormon
leader Brigham Young. Steven
Speilberg calls Gweneth Paltrow "Gwynnie the pooh." Stewardesses
is the longest word that is typed using only the left hand. Sting got
his name from a black and yellow striped sweater he would wear a lot. Sting was a
high school teacher Strawberries,
raspberries, and cherries are not actually berries. Streetcar
conductors, taxi drivers, and business executives have the highest statistical
chance of getting peptic ulcers. Strength is
the longest english word with only one vowel. Strict
Puritan laws had their origins from practical reasons. Smoking was banned
farmers would raise badly needed food crops instead of tobacco. Cooking was
banned on Sundays to prevent house fires during the long hours the family was
at church. Young men were banned from hunting to prevent weapons from falling
into Indian hands. Studies have
proven that it's harder to tell a convincing lie to someone you find sexually
attractive. Studies have
shown that men become sexually aroused nearly every time they dream. Studies show
that, for some unknown reason, the higher the level of education, the more men
tend to have wet dreams. Stuttering
is 4 to 6 times more common in boys than in girls. Subbookkeeper
is the only word with four pairs of double letters in a row. Sugar was
first added to chewing gum in 1869 by a dentist (William Semple). Sugar was
first added to chewing gum in 1869. Ironically, a dentist named William Semple
was behind the decision. suit against
G-d. He won because the defendant never showed up in court. Sunday, July
20, 1969: Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon, Edwin Aldrin
was the second. They were members of Apollo 11, and landed in the Sea of
Tranquility. The Lunar Excursion Module was named the "Eagle."
Michael Collins stayed onboard the mother ship, "Columbia." Swans are
the only birds with penises. Swaziland
has banned miniskirts in schools in an effort to slow the spread of AIDS. Swearing at
someone over the phone in virginia is punishable by a $100 fine. Sweden is
the largest spender on ketchup. $4 per capita. Australia is second at $2.50 Sweden will
be home of the worlds first fermented harring museum. SWIMS is the
longest word with 180-degree rotational symmetry (if you were to view it
upside-down it would still be the same word and perfectly readable). Swiss Steak,
Chop Suey, Russian Dressing, and a Hamburger all originated in the US. Syzygy is
the term referring to when the moon is in a direct line with the earth and the
sun. The average person knows this time to be a full or new moon. Table tennis
balls have been known to travel off a paddle at speeds up to 160 km/hr (approx.
100mph). Talking on a
cellular phone while driving is against the law in Israel. Tallahassee,
FL was the only Southern capital east of the Mississippi not captured during
the U.S. Civil War. Tangerines
are named after the Moroccan city of Tangiers. Tapeworms
range in size from about 0.04 inch to more than 50 feet in length. Tapioca is
made from the starch in the roots of a poisonous plant known as bitter cassava. Tarantulas
can go up to 2 years without eating or drinking. Sea turtles can go up to 35
years without eating or drinking. Tarantulas
have retractable claws like cats and the hairs on their abdomen and back legs
can stick into an enemy and itch. They also get bald on their thorax when they
get old. Thanx Laura Tasmania has
the cleanest air in the inhabited world. Tatum O’Neal
is the youngest Oscar winner not to receive a Special Award. O’Neal was just 10
years old when she won the Best Supporting Actress award for Paper Moon.
Shirley Temple is the youngest person to win an Academy Award when she was
given the Special Award for Outstanding Contribution in 1934 at the age of 6. Taurine, the
main ingredient in Red Bull, is an extract of the stomach lining of cows Tea was so
expensive when it was first brought to Europe in the early 17th century that it
was kept in locked wooden boxes. Ten inches
of snow equals one inch of rain in water content. Ten percent
of the salt mined in the world each year is used to de-ice the roads in
America. Tequila is
made from the root of the blue agave cactus. Tequila is
thought to be the first distilled liquor in the Americas. The Aztecs were known
to have drunk it before Cortez arrived. Termites
outnumber humans ten to one Tessenjutsu
is a deadly martial art in Japan that is based solely on the use of a fan. Texas horned
toads can shoot blood out of the corners or their eyes.
Texas was
one of the first states to adopt capital punishment by lethal injection -in
1977. Thanks to
the electric light, the average American today sleeps 1.5 hours less each day
than Americans of 60 years ago. That means
that if you put a baby croc in an aquarium, it would be little for the rest of
its life. That white,
powdery stuff on the wings of moths is actually the way moths dispose of waste. The
"57" on the Heinz ketchup bottle represents the number of pickle
types the company once had. The
"caduceus" the classical medical symbol of two serpents wrapped
around a staff comes from an ancient Greek legend in which snakes revealed the
practice of medicine to human beings. The
"countdown" (counting down from 10 for an event such as New-Years
Day) was first used in a 1929 German silent film called "Die Frau Im
Monde" (The Girl in the Moon). The
"Daddy long legs" spider has venom to be used as a defensive
mechanism. Don't worry though, coz it cannot puncture human skin, and even if
it did, it would PROBABLY only cause a allergic reaction the
"honey month" or what we know today as the "honeymoon." The
"huddle" in football was formed due a deaf football player who used
sign language to communicate and his team didn't want the opposition to see the
signals he used and in turn huddled around him. The
"if" and "then" parts of conditional ("if P then
Q") statement are called the protasis (P) and apodosis (Q). | ||||||||||
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