Thread: Did You Know?

Insects in your Chocolate

Did you know that the average chocolate bar in the U.S. contains at least 8 pieces of an insect in it? Harvesting of the cacao beans occurs in the tropical countries of South America with low sanitation levels. Cacao tree beans are cut and piled in the farmer's field where they ferment for 6 days. During this process, children and adults walk over the piles; insects, rodents, small animals and other living things that make their nests in the piles. Actually the The U. S. Department of Health publishes a book entitled "The Food Defect Action Levels" in which they list unavoidable defects in food (insect, rodents etc.) all allowed by the FDA.


How long would it take to count to 1 billion?

Counting non-stop, at one number a second, it would take you 31 years,
251 days, 7 hours, 46 minutes, and 39 seconds to count to 1 billion.
Here's how I came up with that figure:


How long would it take to count to 1 trillion?

31,688 years 32 days 1 hour 46 minutes 40 seconds. (using 24 hour day and julian year of 365.25 days - actual time on the gregorian calender will vary slightly)


Hawaiian Alphabet

The Hawaiian Alphabet only contains 12 letters: a, e, i, o, u, h, k, l, m, n, p and w. Every word ends with a vowel. A glottal stop is also used, called an \'okina (meaning cutting, \'oki meaning cut and na meaning -ing). It used to be called an \'u\'ina (meaning snap).


2012 Interesting Facts

2012 is expected to be year of great positive change. It is not the end of the world! Back in 1899 something was identified called Schumann Cavity Resonance. It is the heart beat or frequency of the Earth. Since its discovery till 1986 this heart beat frequency was constant 7.8 Hertz per second. From 1986 it started to raise dramatically and in 1998 it was reported to be 10 hertz per second. On other hand magnetics of the earth are dropping dramatically and it is expected they will reach zero point in 2012. Maya calendar and other calendars end in 2012, but it is not the end of the world just beginning of the new one since every 26000 years Earth goes through grand cycle of evolution.


The Pyramids Were White

The stereotypical vision of the Egyptian Pyramids are large mountain like brown piles of stone uprooting from the desert having a rough contour. Though when first constructed around 2500 BC. The pyramids were paper white and as smooth as glass, toping the pyramid was a golden capstone that gleamed in the desert sun. It was an amazing spectacle. The pyramids somewhat stayed in this state until the Arab invasion of Egypt around AD 500. The Arab invaders stripped the pyramid of it's smooth limestone and built a huge section of Cairo. Many of the Mosques and Palaces of Cairo consist of the Ancient stones of the pyramids. Quite sad actually.


The First Marathon Facts

In 490 BCE, Pheidippides, a Greek soldier, ran from Marathon to Athens (about 25 miles) to inform the Athenians the outcome of the battle with invading Persians. The distance was filled with hills and other obstacles; thus Pheidippides arrived in Athens exhausted and with bleeding feet. After telling the townspeople of the Greeks\' success in the battle, Pheidippides fell to the ground dead. In 1896, at the first modern Olympic Games, held a race of approximately the same length in commemoration of Pheidippides.


What Is Yahoo!?

Yahoo the complex internet organism has complicated name. Word "Yahoo" is shortcut for "Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle". It was coined by PhD candidates at Stanford University: David Filo and Jerry Yang.


Goats That Climb Trees

Goats can climb trees! In Morocco goats climb Argan trees to consume delicious berries which are similar to the olives. Local farmers follow these goats because fruit of the Argan tree has the nut inside which is used to make delicious cooking oil. Interesting fact (besides the climbing goats) is that Morocco goats spit or excrete these nuts, which then farmers use to make the Argan oil. However, Argan trees are close to extinction because of the tree wood harvesting. Some organizations are trying to promote Argan oil to became marketing success in order to preserve these weird trees. We all hope that these goats will continue their climbing adventures!


Donkey Plus Horse Equals?

When a female horse and a male donkey mate, the offspring is called a mule, but when a male horse and a female donkey mate, the offspring is called a hinny. When a male zebra and a female donkey mate the offspring is called a ‘zedonk’ or ‘zebrass’. All of these resulting offspring are sterile (can't have babies).


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-There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos
-Tourists visiting Iceland should know that tipping at a restaurant is considered an insult!
-The Nobel Peace Prize medal depicts three naked men with their hands on each other's shoulders!
-A lightning bolt generates temperatures five times hotter than those found at the sun's surface!
-A violin contains about 70 separate pieces of wood!
-It takes glass one million years to decompose, which means it never wears out and can be recycled an infinite amount of times!
-In Texas, it's against the law for anyone to have a pair of pliers in his or her possession.
-In Philadelphia, you can't put pretzels in bags based on an Act of 1760.
-Alaska law says that you can't look at a moose from an airplane.
-In Miami, it is forbidden to imitate an animal.
-It is against the law to mispronounce the name of the State of Arkansas in that State.
-California law prohibits a woman from driving a car while dressed in a housecoat.
-In Tennessee, it is against the law to drive a car while sleeping.
-In Georgia, it is against the law to slap a man on the back or front.
-In Louisiana, a bill was introduced years ago in the State House of Representatives that fixed a ceiling on haircuts for bald men of 25 cents.
-In Oklahoma, no baseball team can hit the ball over the fence or out of a ballpark.
-In Kentucky, it's the law that a person must take a bath once a year.
-In Utah, birds have the right of way on any public highway.
-In Singapore, it is illegal to chew gum.
-In San Francisco, there is an ordinance, which bans the picking up and throwing of used confetti.
-In Michigan, married couples must live together or be imprisoned.
-In Texas, it is still a "hanging offense" to steal cattle.
-In Missouri, a man must have a permit to shave.

Atilla the Hun died of a nosebleed on his wedding night in AD 453.


The first coward referred to as a chicken was by William Shakespeare.



A law in Fairbanks, Alaska, does not allow moose to have sex on city streets.


Thermometers were once filled with brandy.

Originally Posted by guitarboy

A law in Fairbanks, Alaska, does not allow moose to have sex on city streets.

Hm, I guess Sarah Palin will have to find somewhere else to get her groove on then.

XD burn!

Originally Posted by Jeff777

-In Texas, it's against the law for anyone to have a pair of pliers in his or her possession.

-In Missouri, a man must have a permit to shave.

Actually, the law states that no one can legally carry pliers that could cut a fence. Dates back to cattle rustlers, I presume.

The Missouri law applies to shaving others, as in a barber shop.

It is also apparently illegal in Georgia for a chicken to cross the road. We have some crazy laws...

Originally Posted by Man of Steel

Actually, the law states that no one can legally carry pliers that could cut a fence. Dates back to cattle rustlers, I presume.

The Missouri law applies to shaving others, as in a barber shop.

STOP MAKING SENSE!

The Pyramids were beleived to be built with the help of aliens

Archeologists had discovered the faces of each and every pyramid pointed EXACTLY to the North, East, and West.*epic music plays in the background while you read* How could the ancient Egyptians have had such precision, the compass was invented in the first century CE, in China, well away from Egypt. The dry compass in Europe, still in the first century CE. The first pyramid was Step Pyramid at Saqqara, built for King Zoser in 2750 BC. That's 2850+ years before the first compasses. Even if the North Star was used, lining up exactly was not possible.

Originally Posted by Eel

The Pyramids were beleived to be built with the help of aliens

Archeologists had discovered the faces of each and every pyramid pointed EXACTLY to the North, East, and West.*epic music plays in the background while you read* How could the ancient Egyptians have had such precision, the compass was invented in the first century CE, in China, well away from Egypt. The dry compass in Europe, still in the first century CE. The first pyramid was Step Pyramid at Saqqara, built for King Zoser in 2750 BC. That's 2850+ years before the first compasses. Even if the North Star was used, lining up exactly was not possible.

FACT!!!!