Some interesting facts...

careless25 · 2008-12-15 10:26:43

1) According to a study by the nation's largest auto insurer, most accidents occur between 3 and 6 p.m. on Friday.(USA)

2) Forest fires move faster uphill than downhill.

3) Chocolate can kill dogs; it directly affects their heart and nervous system.

4) Squirrels cannot contract rabies.

5) During warm weather hippopotamus's secrete sweat that is pink.

Add your own too!!

I will keep adding more.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-15 17:25:18

6) Almost all animals are color-blind.

7) The 'General Sherman' is the largest form of life on earth. it is a giant sequoa tree.

8) Panophobia is fear of everything, the worst possible fear.

9) 26 is the only number in the universe sandwhiched between a perfect square and a perfect cube.

10) At about 574 degrees, Fahrenheit and Kelvin temperatures are equal.

MathsIsFun · 2008-12-15 18:15:23

11) at -40 Fahrenheit and Celsius temperatures are equal.

12) Napoleon Bonaparte was not short ... in fact slightly taller than the average for his day

13) The Great Wall of China is NOT easily visible from space (not more than any highway for example)

14) When a meteor lands on Earth it is usually very COLD.

Ricky · 2008-12-15 19:41:12

15. From low level orbits, highways and even cars can be seen from space.

16. The first terrestrial life in space was fruit flies.

17. Moths aren't drawn to flames, they are confused by them. They navigate based on the position of the sun.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-15 20:43:25

18. Water is densest at 4° Celsius.

19. Gold is about 19 times as heavy as water.

20. Baron Pierre de Coubertin was chiefly responsible for the revival of the Modern Olympic games in 1896 at Athens.

21. Fireflies are capable of producing a "cold light", containing no ultraviolet or infrared rays. Light production in fireflies is due to a type of chemical reaction called bioluminescence.

careless25 · 2008-12-15 23:12:12

22. In England, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak.

23. If the population of China walked past you in single file, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction.

24. Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.

25. Peanuts are one of the ingredients of dynamite.

26. The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-16 00:38:50

27. A cat uses its whiskers to determine if a space is too small to squeeze through. The whiskers act as feelers or antennae, helping the animal to judge the precise width of any passage.

28. The color blue has a calming effect. It causes the brain to release calming hormones.

29. The plastic things on the end of shoelaces are called aglets.

30. Although Tamilnadu state in India is known as the 'Land of Temples' and the State emblem has a temple tower in the background, the number of atheists to the total population is one of the highest among the states in India!

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-17 03:17:35

31. The Guinness Book of Records lists butyl seleno-mercaptan, a natural chemical produced by skunks (C4H9SeH), as a candidate for the foulest-smelling chemical.

32. Botulinum toxin is a neurotoxic protein produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. It is the most toxic protein known. Despite Botulinum toxin being one of the most lethal naturally occurring substances known to man, it is still widely used for cosmetic purposes in a purified and isolated form.

33. Astatine is the rarest naturally-occurring element, with the total amount in Earth's crust estimated to be less than 1 oz (28 g) at any given time. This amounts to less than one teaspoon of the element. Guinness World Records has dubbed the element the rarest on Earth, stating: "Only around 0.9 oz (25 g) of the element astatine (At) occurring naturally"

White_Wolf · 2008-12-17 07:18:36

34. Sharks are immune from all known diseases

35. There are aprox. 103 Elemants - Aprox 16 man made

36. The origanal Santa (Saint Nicolas) was made in sweden and he wore green not red.

(Edit: I put 'red not green' insted of 'green not red'.)

Last edited by White_Wolf (2008-12-17 07:19:49)

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-18 03:17:17

37. Atoms are so small that a drop of water contains more than 100 billion, billion atoms.

38. The elephant's trunk has numerous muscles but no bone.

39. The Sun by itself accounts for 99.8% of the Solar System's mass.

40.The thousand-year-old 17.38 meter monolithic stone statue of the Bhagavan Gomateshwara Bahubali, is considered to be the world's largest monolithic stone statue at Shravanabelagola, a city located in the Hassan district, in the Indian state of Karnataka.

careless25 · 2008-12-18 09:52:35

41. Dr. Seuss pronounced "Seuss" such that it rhymed with "rejoice."

42. There are more insects in one square mile of rural land than there are humans on the entire earth.

43. Spiders have transparent blood.

44. The penguin is the only bird that cant fly but can swim.

45. The only city whose name can be spelled completely with vowels is Aiea, Hawaii, located approximately twelve miles west of Honolulu.

Some for Ganesh:

46. Until 1896, India was the only source for diamonds to the world.

47. Indias Sanskrit language is the mother of all European languages, including English.

48. Perhaps the most popular of all India's culinary exports, the curry was recently named as the most popular dish in Britain. Curry derives it's name from 'kadi', the Tamil word for sabzi (or vegetable). In some parts of the world, going for a 'curry and a beer' are an intrinsic part of a good 'night out'.

49. Bhaskaracharya calculated the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun hundreds of years before the astronomer Smart. Time taken by earth to orbit the sun: (5th century) 365.258756484 days.

50. Although modern images of India often show poverty and lack of development, India was the richest country on earth until the time of British invasion in the early 17th Century. Christopher Columbus was attracted by India's wealth.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-18 16:40:08

Thanks a million, careless25!

51. The building of Taj Mahal began around 1632 AD and was completed around 1653 AD, and employed thousands of artisans and craftsmen.

52. Qamdo Bangda Airport, located in Bangda, Qamdo, Tibet, is the highest airport in the world, with an altitude of 4,334 metres (14,219 ft).

53. The electric eel, Electrophorus electricus, is a species of fish. It is capable of generating powerful electric shocks, which it uses for both hunting and self-defense. It is an apex predator in its South American range. Despite its name it is not an eel at all but rather a knifefish.
The electric eel generates its characteristic electrical pulse in a manner similar to a battery, in which stacked plates produce an electrical charge. In the electric eel, some 5,000 to 6,000 stacked electroplaques are capable of producing a shock at up to 500 volts and 1 ampere of current (500 watts). The organs give the electric eel the ability to generate two types of electric organ discharges (EODs), low voltage and high voltage. The shock could be deadly for an adult human.
EODs are emitted by the main organ and the Hunter's organ that can be emitted at rates of several hundred Hz. These high voltage EODs may reach up to 650 volts.

54. Rafflesia arnoldii is a member of the genus Rafflesia. It is noted for producing the largest individual flower on earth. The flower of Rafflesia arnoldii is the largest which attains a diameter of nearly one meter (3 ft) and can weigh up to 11 kilograms (24 lb).

55. Robert Pershing Wadlow (February 22, 1918 July 15, 1940) is the tallest person in medical history for whom there is irrefutable evidence. He is often known as the "Alton Giant" because of his Alton, Illinois hometown. Wadlow reached 8 feet 11.1 inches (2.72 m) in height and weighed 490 pounds (220 kg) at his death.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-20 01:52:02

56. Rhinoceros Beetle can lift something 850 times its own weight. That would be like a human lifting a tank!

57. Female Elephant gives birth to a 300 lb baby after a 22-month pregnancy.

58. Porcupine will have even the fiercest predators (such as lions and hyenas) running for their life from the porcupine's quills.

59. The Turtle's shell can protect it from something 200 times its own weight.

60. Koala's young feeds on the mother's dung.

These and many more interesting facts were found on this page.

careless25 · 2008-12-20 16:59:11

mine are mostly found on this page.
and now i will add some from other sources...

THE BRAIN AND SOME FACTS

61. Nerve impulses to and from the brain travel as fast as 170 miles per hour. Ever wonder how you can react so fast to things around you or why that stubbed toe hurts right away? Its due to the super speedy movement of nerve impulses from your brain to the rest of your body and vice versa, bringing reactions at the speed of a high powered luxury sports car.

62. The brain operates on the same amount of power as 10watt light bulb. The cartoon image of a light bulb over your head when a great thought occurs isnt too far off the mark. Your brain generates as much energy as a small light bulb even when youre
sleeping.

63. The human brain cell can hold 5 times as much information as the Encyclopedia Britannica. Or any other encyclopedia for that matter. Scientists have yet to settle on a definitive amount, but the storage capacity of the brain in electronic terms is thought to
be between 3 or even 1,000 terabytes. The National Archives of Britain, containing over 900 years of history, only takes up 70 terabytes, making your brains memory power pretty darn impressive.

64. Your brain uses 20% of the oxygen that enters your bloodstream. The brain only makes up about 2% of our body mass, yet consumes more oxygen than any other organ in the body, making it extremely susceptible to damage related to oxygen deprivation. So breathe deep to keep your brain happy and swimming in oxygenated cells.

65. The brain is much more active at night than during the day. Logically, you would think that all the moving around, complicated calculations and tasks and general interaction we do on a daily basis during our working hours would take a lot more brain power than, say, lying in bed. Turns out, the opposite is true. When you turn off your brain turns on. Scientists dont yet know why this is but you can thank the hard work of your brain while you sleep for all those pleasant dreams.

Tigeree · 2008-12-20 17:46:00

66. Prior to his movie career, Keanu Reeves managed a noodle shop in Toronto, Canada.
or at least I think it was noodles?

67. On average there r 8 peas in a pod.

68. Swedish people drink more coffee than any other race in the world.

69. There r more plastic flamingo's in America than real 1's.

70. All of the clocks in the movie "Pulp Fiction" r stuck on on the time 4:20.

71. The average persons left hand does 56% of the typing.

72. A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes at the same time.

73. Almonds r a member of the peach family.

74. There is more than 25,000km's (15,534 miles) of neon tubing in the signs on the Strip and downtown Las Vegas.

75. There r more chicken's in the world than people

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-20 17:51:08

That is an interesting website, careless25
Although I compile the list of interesting facts from many sources (reliable ones ), I find some very interesting facts here.

Like.....

66. In Tokyo, a bicycle is faster than a car for most trips of less than 50 minutes.

67. The Indian epic poem the "Mahabhrata" is eight times longer than "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey" combined.

68. Scarlett O' Hara, Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind lead character, was originally given the name Pansy.

69. There are 3 main groups/shapes of pathogenic bacteria: cocci (round), bacilli (rod-shaped), and spirilla (coil-like).

70. The kings in a deck of cards each represent a great king from history. The king of spades is King David, the king of clubs is Alexander the Great, the king of hearts is Charlemagne, and the king of diamonds is Julius Caesar.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-22 19:22:13

71. The giant squid has the largest eyes in the world.

72. The average person laughs 15 times a day.

73. Q is the only letter in the alphabet that does not appear in the name of any of the United States.

74. Michael Jordan makes more money from Nike annually than all of the Nike factory workers in Malaysia combined.

75. "I am." is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.

careless25 · 2008-12-24 05:23:51

Ganesh from now on i will try to post from reliable sources, my last last 5 are from a reliable source.

76. Scientists say the higher your I.Q. the more you dream. While this may be true, dont take it as a sign youre mentally lacking if you cant recall your dreams. Most of us dont remember many of our dreams and the average length of most dreams is only 2 - 3 secondsbarely long enough to register.

77. Neurons continue to grow throughout human life. For years scientists and doctors thought that brain and neural tissue couldnt grow or regenerate. While it doesnt act in the same manner as tissues in many other parts of the body, neurons can and do grow throughout your life, adding a whole new dimension to the study of the brain and the illnesses that affect it.

78. Information travels at different speeds within different types of neurons. Not all neurons are the same. There are a few different types within the body and transmission along these different kinds can be as slow as 0.5 meters/sec or as fast as 120 meters/sec.

79. The brain itself cannot feel pain. While the brain might be the pain center when you cut your finger or burn yourself, the brain itself does not have pain receptors and cannot feel pain. That doesnt mean your head cant hurt. The brain is surrounded by loads of tissues, nerves and blood vessels that are plenty receptive to pain and can give you a pounding headache.

80. 80% of the brain is water. Your brain isnt the firm, gray mass youve seen on TV. Living brain tissue is a squishy, pink and jellylike organ thanks to the loads of blood and high water content of the tissue. So the next time youre feeling dehydrated get a drink to keep your brain hydrated.

Tigeree · 2008-12-26 14:48:02

81. Rice is the main food consumed 4 1/2 the people worldwide.

82. The low rumbling of distant thunder is called "brontide".

83. The fastest sneeze recorded was clocked at 166.7 km an hour (103.5 miles)

84. Barbie got her 1st car in 1962.

85. About a third of all Americans flush the toilet while they're still sitting on it.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-26 16:45:26

86. No piece of normal-size paper can be folded in half more than 7 times.

87. Earthworms have five hearts.

88. The cigarette lighter was invented before the match.

89. Blue and white are the most common school colors.

90. In a normal lifetime an American will eat 200 pounds of peanuts and 10,000 pounds of meat.

91. The average person can live 11 days without water.

Tigeree · 2008-12-27 17:39:31

mmmm...... meat
I've once lived 11 days without water:)

92. Cats can hear ultrasound.

93. It takes about 20 seconds for a red blood cell 2 circle the whole body.

94. The average person falls asleep in 7 minutes.

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-27 18:05:35

95. A hippo can open its mouth wide enough to fit a 4 foot tall child inside.

96. A mole can dig a tunnel 300 feet long in just one night.

97. An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.

98. "Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt."

99. Hydroxydesoxycorticosterone and hydroxydeoxycorticosterones are the largest anagrams.

100. In the great fire of London in 1666 half of London was burnt down but only 6 people were injured.

Tigeree · 2008-12-28 13:49:59

Hazzah!!! we've reached 100 interesting facts!!! & they r very interesting! Thank u ganesh!

careless25 · 2008-12-28 15:49:21

I agree nice 100 Tigeree!
Thanks to ganesh and you we have reached 100!

Now lets start of with some Hair and Nails shall we:

101.Facial hair grows faster than any other hair on the body. If youve ever had a covering of stubble on your face as youre clocking out at 5 oclock youre probably pretty familiar with this. In fact, if the average man never shaved his beard it would grow to over 30 feet during his lifetime, longer than a killer whale.

102. Every day the average person loses 60-100 strands of hair. Unless youre already bald, chances are good that youre shedding pretty heavily on a daily basis. Your hair loss will vary in accordance with the season, pregnancy, illness, diet and age.

103. Womens hair is about half the diameter of mens hair. While it might sound strange, it shouldnt come as too much of a surprise that mens hair should be coarser than that of women. Hair diameter also varies on average between races, making hair plugs on some men look especially obvious.

104. One human hair can support 3.5 ounces. Thats about the weight of two full size candy bars, and with hundreds of thousands of hairs on the human head, makes the tale of Rapunzel much more plausible.

105. The fastest growing nail is on the middle finger. And the nail on the middle finger of your dominant hand will grow the fastest of all. Why is not entirely known, but nail growth is related to the length of the finger, with the longest fingers growing nails the fastest and shortest the slowest.

Last edited by careless25 (2008-12-28 15:49:40)

Jai Ganesh · 2008-12-28 16:18:25

Thanks Tigeree, and thanks careless25, for starting this thread!

106. Among all shapes with the same perimeter a circle has the largest area.

107. Among any two integers or real numbers one is larger, another smaller. But you can't compare two complex numbers.

108. Complex number to a complex power may be real.

109. Irrational number to an irrational power may be rational.

110. At any given time in New York there live at least two people with the same number of hairs.

Math Is Fun Forum

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