Fun Facts

Britain is still paying off debts that predate the Napoleonic wars because it's cheaper to do so than buy back the bonds on which they are based.

Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.

Carl Sagan was a pot smoker.

If all the Coca-Cola vending machines in the U.S. were stacked one on top of each other, the pile would be over 450 miles high.

All swans in England are the property of the queen or king.

Kermit the Frog is left-handed.

Urban birds have developed a short, fast "rap style" of singing, different from their rural counterparts.

The first outdoor sign advertising "Coca-Cola" still exists. It was originally painted in 1894 and is located in Cartersville, Georgia.

In deep space most lubricants will disappear.

In 1975, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid in the US consumed 25% of all federal spending. Today, the three account to 43%.

At 90 weapons per 100 civilians, the US has the world's highest rate of gun ownership, according to the Small Arms Survey 2007.

Sitting too close to the TV will not ruin your eyesight.

In 1221 the daughter of Genghis Khan ordered the killing of the entire population of the city of Nishapur (about 60,000) in one hour. The order came after her husband killing.

A "lost world" exists in the Indonesian jungle that is home to dozens of hitherto unknown animal and plant species.

In 10 minutes, a hurricane releases more energy than all of the world's nuclear weapons combined.

In ancient Rome it was considered a sign of leadership to be born with a crooked nose.

In ancient Rome it was considered a sign of leadership to be born with a crooked nose.

In Bhutan, government policy is based on Gross National Happiness; thus most street advertising is banned, as are tobacco and plastic bags.

Men with a certain rare medical condition can breastfeed babies.

It takes a ton of water to make a pound of refined sugar.

The most common speed limit sign in the United States is 25 m.p.h.

In 2005, workers at General Motors earned an average hourly wage of nearly $26, about 70% more than the average manufacturing wage.

An estimated 257 tons of ivory was poached worldwide in 2006. In order to harvest that much ivory, approximately 23,000 elephants would have to be killed illegally.

Happy Birthday (the song) is copyrighted.

The reason firehouses have circular stairways is from the days when the engines were pulled by horses. The horses were stabled on the ground floor and figured out how to walk up straight staircases.

The flushing toilet was invented in 1596, not by Thomas Crapper as most people think, but by Sir John Harington.

In 2002, the National Research Council, a US Congressionally chartered group, said that there are about 400,000 online subscription sites with adult entertainment content worldwide, or about 1.5% of all Internet content.

When the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers play football at home to a sellout crowd, the stadium becomes the state's third largest city.

Enough beer is poured every Saturday across America to fill the Orange Bowl.

At any one time, there are 100 million phone conversations going on in the United States.

Donald Rumsfeld was both the youngest and the oldest defense secretary in US history.

The more panels a football has - and therefore the more seams - the easier it is to control in the air.

Horses can't vomit and pigs can't look up in the sky.

Eating a packet of crisps a day is equivalent to drinking five liters of cooking oil a year.

According to the Pentagon, Russia has supplied more than 85% of all of China's arms imports since early 1990.

The Hawaiian alphabet consists of only 13 letters.

The main library at Indiana University sinks over an inch every year because when it was built, engineers failed to take into account the weight of all the books that would occupy the building.

Sex workers (Prostitutes) in Roman times charged the equivalent price of eight glasses of red wine.

Abe Lincoln bought 50 cents worth of cocaine in 1860.

The Population of the world can live within the state boundaries of Texas.

About 1/3 of American adults are at least 20% above their recommended weight.

Ernest Vincent Wright wrote a novel with over 50,000 words, none of which containing the letter "e".

The Bible, the world's best-selling book, is also the world's most shoplifted book.

The average bra size today is 36C. Ten years ago it was 34B.

"Tom Sawyer" was the first novel written on a typewriter.

The world's record for continuous pogo stick jumping is 41 hours.

40% of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals.

In 10 minutes, a hurricane releases more energy than all of the world's nuclear weapons combined.

Kermit the Frog is left-handed.

Honey is the only food that does not spoil. Honey found in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs has been tasted by archaeologists and found edible.

The Population of the world can live within the state boundaries of Texas.

A German World War II submarine was sunk due to malfunction of the toilet.

When the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers play football at home to a sellout crowd, the stadium becomes the state's third largest city.

Henry Ford produced the model T only in black because the black paint available at the time was the fastest to dry.

The only President to win a Pulitzer Prize: John Kennedy for "Profiles in Courage."

The characters Bert and Ernie on Sesame Street were named after Bert the cop and Ernie the taxi driver in Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life."