General Knowledge - part I

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


It's been proven that people can lessen reactions to allergies by laughing.


Laughing lowers levels of stress hormones and strengthens the immune system.


Six-year-olds laugh an average of 300 times a day.Adults only laugh 15 to 100 times a day.


1. It was during the Victorian era that the formerly nude Cupid was redesigned as wearing a skirt.
   
   
2. The human heart creates enough pressure while pumping to squirt blood 30 feet!!
   
   
3. February 1865 is the only month in recorded history not to have a full moon.
   
   
4. Tomato Ketchup was once used as medicine in the United States. Was sold as "Dr.Miles Compound Extract of Tomato"
   
   
5. When you blush, the lining of your stomach also turns red
   
   
6. Dating back to the 1600's, thermometers were filled with Brandy instead of mercury
   
   
7. The quartz crystal in your wristwatch vibrates 32,768 times a second
   
   
8. An earthquake on Dec. 16, 1811 caused parts of the Mississippi River to flow backwards.
   
   
9. Shoe sizes were standardized in Britain in 1885
   
   
10. The average person's eyes will be closed about 30 minutes a day due to blinking.
    
    
11. Women blink nearly twice as much as men.
    
    
12. Every day 200 million couples make love, 400,000 babies are born, and 140,000 people die.
    
    
13. There are at least 40 known carcinogens in cigarettes.
    
    
14. The earliest British expeditions tackling Everest wore tweed jackets, woolen underwear, and leather boots.
    
    The amniotic fluid that surrounds a baby in the womb is completely replaced every three hours.
    
    
15. During World War II, twice as many fighter pilots were killed during training than combat
    
    
16. In 1962 an outbreak of contagious laughter in Tanganyika lasted for six months and caused schools to be closed
    
    
17. A nautical mile measures 6,080 feet while a land or statute mile is 5,280 feet
    
    
18. No one can drown in the Dead Sea. It is 25 percent salt, which makes the water very heavy
    
    
19. Plants watered with warm water grow larger and more quickly than plants watered with cold water
    
    
20. Earth's oceans contain 7 1/2 million tons of gold, dissolved in the water
    
    
21. Children who are breastfed tend to have an I.Q. seven points higher than children who are not.
    
    
22. The bird flu virus could evolve into a form that is easily spread between people, resulting in a highly contagious and lethal disease.
    
    
23. The Chinese, in olden days, used marijuana only as a remedy for dysentery.
    
    
24. If you are right handed, you will tend to chew your food on the right side of your mouth. If you are left handed, you will tend to chew your food on the left side of your mouth.
    
    
25. To make half a kilo of honey, bees must collect nectar from over 2 million individual flowers
    
    
26. Heroin is the brand name of morphine once marketed by 'Bayer'.
    
    
27. Communications giant Nokia was founded in 1865 as a wood-pulp mill by Fredrik Idestam.
    
    
28. Tourists visiting Iceland should know that tipping at a restaurant is considered an insult!
    
    
29. People in nudist colonies play volleyball more than any other sport.
    
    
30. Albert Einstein was offered the presidency of Israel in 1952, but he declined.
    
    
31. Astronauts can't belch- there is no gravity to separate liquid from gas in their stomachs.
    
    
32. Ancient Roman, Chinese and German societies often used urine as mouthwash.
    
    
33. The average person who stops smoking requires one hour less sleep a night.
    
    
34. The Mona Lisa has no eyebrows. In the Renaissance era, it was fashion to shave them off!
    
    
35. Because of the speed at which Earth moves around the Sun, it is impossible for a solar eclipse to last more than 7 minutes and 58 seconds.
    
    
36. The night of January 20 is "Saint Agnes's Eve," which is regarded as a time when a young woman dreams of her future husband.
    
    
37. There are over 25 million bubbles waiting to burst out of each bottle of Champagne
    
    
38. Google is actually the common name for a number with a million zeros
    
    
39. It takes glass one million years to decompose, which means it never wears out and can be recycled an infinite amount of times!
    
    
40. The "heat" of peppers is rated on the Scoville scale
    
    
41. Gold is the only metal that doesn't rust, even if it's buried in the ground for thousands of years
    
    
42. Your tongue is the only muscle in your body that is attached at only one end
    
    
43. If you stop getting thirsty, you need to drink more water. For when a human body is dehydrated, its thirst mechanism shuts off.
    
    
44. Each year 2,000,000 smokers either quit smoking or die of tobacco-related diseases.
    
    
45. When it originally appeared in 1886 - Coca Cola was billed as an Esteemed Brain Tonic and Intellectual Beverage.
    
    
46. Zero is the only number that cannot be represented by Roman numerals
    
    
47. Kites were used in the American Civil War to deliver letters and newspapers.
    
    
48. The song, "Auld Lang Syne" is sung at the stroke of midnight in almost every English-speaking country in the world to bring in the new year.
    
    
49. For every real Christmas tree harvested, two to three seedlings are planted in its place.
    
    
50. Drinking water after eating reduces the acid in your mouth by 61 percent
    
    
51. Peanut oil is used for cooking in submarines because it doesn't smoke unless it's heated above 450°F
    
    
52. The Shell Oil Company originally began as a novelty shop in London that sold seashells
    
    
53. The roar that we hear when we place a seashell next to our ear is not the ocean, but rather the sound of blood surging through the veins in the ear.
    
    
54. Nine out of every 10 living things live in the ocean
    
    
55. The banana cannot reproduce itself. It can be propagated only by the hand of man
    
    
56. Airports at higher altitudes require a longer airstrip due to lower air density
    
    
57. Fish and Chip selling officially remained an offensive trade until 1940 due to the smell it produces
    
    
58. The University of Alaska spans four time zones
    
    
59. The tooth is the only part of the human body that cannot heal itself.
    
    
60. In ancient Greece, tossing an apple to a girl was a traditional proposal of marriage. Catching it meant she accepted.
    
    
61. Do you know the names of the three wise monkeys? They are: Mizaru(See no evil), Mikazaru(Hear no evil), and Mazaru(Speak no evil).
    
    
62. Warner Comm. paid $28 million for the copyright to the song 'Happy Birthday'
    
    
63. Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.
    
    
64. A comet's tail always points away from the sun
    
    
65. The "Swine flu" vaccine in 1976 caused more death and illness than the disease it was intended to prevent
    
    
66. Caffeine increases the power of aspirin and other painkillers, that is why it is found in some medicines.
    
    
67. The military salute is a motion that evolved from medieval times, when knights in armor raised their visors to reveal their identity.
    
    
68. If you get into the bottom of a well or a tall chimney and look up, you can see stars, even in the middle of the day.
    
    
69. When a person dies, hearing is the last sense to go. The first sense lost is sight
    
    
70. Trivia is the Roman goddess of sorcery, hounds and... the crossroads
    
    
71. In ancient times strangers shook hands to show that they were unarmed
    
    
72. Strawberries are the only fruits whose seeds grow on the outside
    
    
73. Avocados have the highest calories of any fruit at 167 calories per hundred grams
    
    
74. It cost the soft drink industry $100 million a year for thefts committed involving vending machines
    
    
75. The moon moves about two inches away from the Earth each year
    
    
76. The Earth gets 100 tons heavier every day due to falling space dust
    
    
77. Due to earth's gravity it is impossible for mountains to be higher than 15,000 meters
    
    
78. Men's shirts have the buttons on the right, but women's shirts have the buttons on the left
    
    
79. Mickey Mouse is known as "Topolino" in Italy
    
    
80. Soldiers do not march in step when going across bridges because they could set up a vibration which could be sufficient to knock the bridge down
    
    
81. The painting that won second place in a competition held by the US National Academy of Design was hanging upside down when it was judged
    
    
82. Everything weighs one percent less at the equator
    
    
83. For every extra kilogram carried on a space flight, 530 kg of excess fuel are needed at lift-off
    
    
84. The letter J does not appear anywhere on the periodic table of the elements
    
    
85. Snake venom is ninety percent protein
    
    
86. Mercury is the only metal that is liquid at room temperature
    
    
87. Pizza Hut is the world's largest pizza restaurant serving close to 1.7 million pizzas a day
    
    
88. Beer foam will go down by licking your finger then sticking it in the beer
    
    
89. Those stars and colors you see when you rub your eyes are called phosphenes
    
    
90. A full-moon is nine times brighter than a half-moon
    
    
91. If all of the blood vessels in your body were placed end to end, they would stretch 12,000 miles
    
    
92. If you were to roll a lung from a human body and out flat it would be the size of a tennis court
    
    
93. Everyone's tongue print is different, like fingerprints
    
    
94. Two-thirds of the people in the world have not made a phone call
    
    
95. Contrary to popular belief, a swallowed chewing gum doesn't stay in the gut. It will pass through the system and be excreted
    
    
96. The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket
    
    
97. The Nobel Peace Prize medal depicts 3 naked men with their hands on each others shoulders
    
    
98. Earth is traveling through space at 660,000 miles per hour
    
    
99. In 1643, the British Parliament officially abolished the celebration of Christmas
    
    
100. Santa's Reindeers are Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen
     
     
101. In 1875 the director of the US patent office resigned. He said that there was nothing left to invent
     
     
102. The Channel between England and France grows about 300 millimeters each year
     
     
103. The average person's field of vision encompasses a 200-degree wide angle
     
     
104. Offered a new pen to write with, 97% of all people will write their own name
     
     
105. On average, a person has two million sweat glands
     
     
106. Grapes explode when you put them in the microwave.
     
     
107. Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times.
     
     
108. Your tongue is germ free only if it is pink. If it is white there is a thin film of bacteria on it.
     
     
109. The attachment of the human skin to muscles is what causes dimples
     
     
110. 97% of the earth's water is undrinkable
     
     
111. The Earth gets heavier each day by tons, as meteoric dust settles on it
     
     
112. All babies are color blind when they are born
     
     
113. Babies' eyes do not produce tears until the baby is approximately six to eight weeks old
     
     
114. 14 million people were killed in World War I, 20 million died in flu epidemic in the years that followed
     
     
115. There are more than 40,000 characters in the Chinese script
     
     
116. Vision requires more brain power than the other four senses
     
     
117. On average, men are 40% muscle and 15% fat; women are 23% muscle and 25% fat
     
     
118. There are no public toilets in Peru
     
     
119. Urine and tears have the same basic ingredients
     
     
120. The reason honey is so easy to digest is that it's already been digested by a bee.
     
     
121. Every time you sneeze some of your brain cells die.
     
     
122. Historically, a blue ribbon has been awarded for first prize
     
     
123. The motto of M-G-M movie studios is Art for Art's Sake
     
     
124. The lion that roars in the MGM logo is named "Volney"
     
     
125. It cost 7 million dollars to build the Titanic and 200 million to make a film about it
     
     
126. The Titanic was the first ship to use the SOS signal.
     
     
127. The Mercedes-Benz motto is 'Das Beste oder Nichts' meaning 'the best or nothing'.
     
     
128. The color blue has a calming effect. It causes the brain to release calming hormones.
     
     
129. There are more Rolls Royce cars in Hong Kong than anywhere else in the world
     
     
130. X-ray technology has shown there are 3 different versions of the Mona Lisa under the visible one
     
     
131. The pupil of the eye expands as much as 45 percent when a person looks at something pleasing.
     
     
132. It takes only about 8 minutes for the Space Shuttle to accelerate to a speed of more than 27,359 km/hour
     
     
133. Hydroponics is the technique by which plants are grown in water without soil
     
     
134. Time magazine named the computer its "Man of the Year" in 1982
     
     
135. Chewing on gum while cutting onions can help a person from producing tears
     
     
136. Your left lung is smaller in size than your right lung, it is like that in order to make room for your heart.
     
     
137. Until babies are six months old, they can breathe and swallow at the same time
     
     
138. Male human brains are about 10 percent heavier than female brains
     
     
139. Before 1800 there were no separately designed shoes for right and left feet
     
     
140. The glossy look to lipstick comes from fish scales, which are iridescent
     
     
141. To find out if a watermelon is ripe, knock it, and if it sounds hollow then it is ripe
     
     
142. Honey is used as a center for golf balls and in antifreeze mixtures
     
     
143. The original name for the butterfly was 'flutterby'
     
     
144. Your body weight is lower at 9 A.M. than at any other time of the day
     
     
145. The average person is about a quarter of an inch taller at night
     
     
146. 40% of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals
     
     
147. Without any greenhouse effect, Earth would be cold and lifeless with an average temp of 0.4ºF
     
     
148. The primary purpose of growing rice in flooded paddies is to drown the weeds surrounding the young seedlings. Rice can, in fact, be grown in drained areas
     
     
149. Not a single new livestock animal has been domesticated in the last 4,000 years
     
     
150. Bone China is so called because powdered animal bone is mixed with the clay to give it translucency and whiteness
     
     
151. The original reason for tablecloths was as a towel to wipe one's fingers and hands on after eating
     
     
152. Mount Everest moves approximately 2.4 inches (10 cm) in a Northeasterly direction every year
     
     
153. Mickey Mouse has four fingers on each hand
     
     
154. The bark of a redwood tree is fireproof. Fires that occur in a redwood forest take place inside the trees
     
     
155. The storage capacity of human brain exceeds four Terra bytes
     
     
156. There are an average of 178 sesame seeds on a McDonald's Big Mac bun
     
     
157. Because of the rotation of the earth, an object can be thrown farther if it is thrown west
     
     
158. In 2001, the five most valuable brand names in order were Coca-Cola, Microsoft, IBM, GE, and Nokia
     
     
159. After the "Popeye" comic strip started in 1931, spinach consumption went up by 33 percent in the US
     
     
160. A rainbow can only occur when the sun is 40 degrees or less above the horizon
     
     
161. At 40° Centigrade a person loses about 14.4 calories per hour by breathing
     
     
162. Most gemstones contain several elements. Except the diamond it's all carbon
     
     
163. Onions help reduce cholesterol if eaten after a fatty meal
     
     
164. It has been calculated that in the last 3,500 years, there have only been 230 years of peace throughout the civilized world
     
     
165. Feb 1865 and Feb 1999 are the only months in recorded history not to have a full moon
     
     
166. The citrus soda 7-UP was created in 1929; "7" was selected because the original containers were 7 ounces. "UP" indicated the direction of the bubbles
     
     
167. The "crack" from a whip is actually the tip of the whip traveling faster than the speed of sound, emitting a small sonic boom
     
     
168. If the information contained in the DNA could be written down, it would fill a 1000 volume encyclopedia
     
     
169. It would take 13 years and eight months to stay one night in every room at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas
     
     
170. Brain damage occurs at an internal temperature of 105 degrees Fahrenheit
     
     
171. The sound you hear when you crack your knuckles is actually the sound of nitrogen gas bubbles bursting
     
     
172. If you gave each human on earth an equal portion of dry land, (including the uninhabitable areas) everyone would get roughly 100sqft
     
     
173. Just twenty seconds worth of fuel remained when Apollo 11's lunar module landed on the moon
     
     
174. There are more than 1,000 chemicals in a cup of coffee
     
     
175. Pearls melt in vinegar
     
     
176. There is about 200 times more gold in the worlds oceans, than has been mined in our entire history
     
     
177. Human hair and finger nails continue to grow after death
     
     
178. Windmills always turn counter-clockwise. Except for the windmills in Ireland
     
     
179. Eighteen per cent of all global carbon dioxide emissions are from cars
     
     
180. Onions get their distinctive smell by soaking up sulfur from the soil
     
     
181. Mango is the number one selling fruit in the World. India is the biggest producer of mangoes in the World
     
     
182. The only part of the body that has no blood supply is the cornea in the eye. It takes in oxygen directly from the air
     
     
183. No nation has ever won the Miss Universe, Miss World, and Miss International Pageant in the same year?
     
     
184. About 85% of the plant life on earth is in the oceans
     
     
185. In most watch advertisements the time displayed on the watch is 10:10 because then the arms frame the brand of the watch and make it look like it's smiling
     
     
186. If a person counted at the rate of 100 numbers a minute and kept counting for 8 hrs a day, 5 days a week, it would take a little over 4 weeks to count to one million and just over 80 years to reach a billion
     
     
187. An average person perspires a gut-wrenching 278 gallons of sweat each year
     
     
188. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made out of wood
     
     
189. A banana is about 75% water. They grow on a rhizome, not a tree. You are more likely to be a target for mosquitoes if you consume bananas.

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