Fun Facts - 10 Interesting facts that will blow your mind - Chapter1
20 Apr 2020
Everyone needs a little fun fact to lift the spirits. So here are a few from around the world to keep your mind engaged and your "fun-dometer" running!
.
With around 200 countries and more than 7.5 billion people, the world is full of interesting, fun, and fascinating people, places, and things. In the land of the Kiwis, for instance, you'll find the highest concentration of pet owners on the planet. And over in Nicaragua, you'll find one of the only two flags in the world that features the color purple. Hungry for more facts about the world and its ever-growing population? Read on to learn some interesting facts about the Earth's past, present, and future.
SOURCE: Bestlife online by Desiree' O - Nov 2019
Photo Credit: Unknown
.
1. North Korea and Cuba are the only places you can't buy Coca-Cola.
No matter where you go, it's comforting to know you can always enjoy a Coca-Cola. Well, almost anywhere. While this fizzy drink is sold practically everywhere, it still hasn't (officially) made its way to North Korea or Cuba, according to the BBC. That's because these countries are under long-term U.S. trade embargoes.
However, some folks say you might be able to snag a sip of the stuff if you try hard enough (although it'll typically be a lot more expensive than what you would pay in the states—and probably imported from a neighboring country such as Mexico or China).
.
2. The entire world's population could fit inside Los Angeles.
The world's total population is more than 7.5 billion. And obviously, that number sounds huge. However, it might feel a little more manageable once you learn that if every single one of those people stood shoulder-to-shoulder, they could all fit within the 500 square miles of Los Angeles, according to National Geographic.
.
3. There are more twins now than ever before.
You might think twins are a rarity, but they're actually becoming more common than ever. "From about 1915, when the statistical record begins, until 1980, about one in every 50 babies born was a twin, a rate of 2 percent," writes Alexis C. Madrigal of The Atlantic. "Then, the rate began to increase: by 1995, it was 2.5 percent. The rate surpassed 3 percent in 2001 and hit 3.3 percent in 2010. [That means] one out of every 30 babies born is a twin."
Scientists believe this trend is due to the fact that older women tend to have more twins, and women are choosing to start families later. Fertility treatments such as in-vitro fertilization likely also play a role.
.
4. The hottest chili pepper in the world is so hot it could kill you.
The "weapons-grade" Dragon's Breath chili pepper is so hot it's downright deadly. If you ate one, it could potentially cause a type of anaphylactic shock, burning the airways and closing them up.
"I've tried it on the tip of my tongue and it just burned and burned," said Mike Smith, the hobby grower who invented the Dragon's Breath along with scientists from Nottingham University. So why make such an impractical pepper? As it turns out, the chili was initially developed to be used in medical treatment as an anesthetic that can numb the skin.
5. More people visit France than any other country.
France is a beautiful country, filled to the brim with delicious wines, scrumptious cheese, and tons of romance. So it's no surprise that more people want to visit France than any other country in the world, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization.
In 2017, the European country welcomed 86.9 million people. Spain was the second-most popular destination with 81.8 million visitors, followed by the United States (76.9 million), China (60.7 million), and Italy (58.3 million). La vie est belle!
.
6. The world's most densely populated island is the size of two soccer fields.
Santa Cruz del Islote in the Archipelago of San Bernardo off the coast of Colombia may only be about the size of two soccer fields (AKA two acres), but the artificial island has four main streets and 10 neighborhoods. Five hundred people live on the island in around 155 houses. With so many people packed into such a small space, it's the most densely populated island in the world, according to The Guardian.
.
7. The Canary Islands are named after dogs, not birds.
It might seem safe to assume that the Canary Islands were named after canary birds, but the location was actually named after dogs. Although it's off the coast of northwestern Africa, the archipelago is actually part of Spain. In Spanish, the area's name is Islas Canarias, which comes from the Latin phrase Canariae Insulae for "island of dogs." World facts related to dogs? Now those we can get behind!
.
8. Indonesia is home to some of the shortest people in the world.
Though there are short people and tall people everywhere, Indonesia is home to some of the shortest people in the world, according to data compiled from various global sources by the Telegraph in 2017.
When taking both genders into account, the average adult is around 5 feet, 1.8 inches. People in Bolivia don't tend to be much taller, with an average adult height of 5 feet, 2.4 inches. The tallest people among us live in the Netherlands, where the average adult height is 6 feet.
.
9. The Paris Agreement on climate change was signed by the largest number of countries ever in one day.
When 174 world leaders signed the Paris Agreement on Earth Day in 2016 at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York, it was the largest number of countries ever to come together to sign anything on a single day, according to the UN. The agreement aimed to combat climate change and accelerate and intensify the actions and investments needed to strengthen the global climate effort.
.
10. The world's quietest room is located at Microsoft's headquarters in Washington state.
Silence is golden, as they say. And while it may not be worth quite as much as jewels and gold to most people, it certainly was the primary goal for those who built the quietest room in the world. Located at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, the lab room measures a background noise of -20.35 dBA, which is 20 decibels below the threshold of human hearing and breaks previous records for spaces that were deemed the planet's quietest places, according to CNN.
"As soon as one enters the room, one immediately feels a strange and unique sensation which is hard to describe," Hundraj Gopal, a speech and hearing scientist and principal designer of the anechoic chamber at Microsoft, told CNN. "Most people find the absence of sound deafening, feel a sense of fullness in the ears, or some ringing. Very faint sounds become clearly audible because the ambient noise is exceptionally low. When you turn your head, you can hear that motion. You can hear yourself breathing and it sounds somewhat loud."
.
SOURCE: Bestlife online by Desiree' O - Nov 2019
Photo Credit: Unknown
.
More next time with 10 more fun Facts from around the world in Chapter 2
