Random Things

• Human thighbones are stronger than concrete.
• Ketchup was sold in the 1830's as medicine (drink up!).
• If you place a tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
• On average, 100 people per year choke to death on ballpoint pens.
• More than 2,500 left-handed people are killed each year from using right-handed products.
• Modern astronomers don't divide the sky the same way ancient astronomers did. According to modern star maps, the sun cuts through a 13th constellation, Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer, between Nov. 30th and Dec. 17th. Astrologically speaking, if you were born between those dates you're no longer a Sagittarian, you're an Ophiuchi!
• On average, a 4-year-old child asks 437 questions a day.
• Each human embryo has a tail about one sixth of its overall length. As the unborn child develops, his or her tail is absorbed into their bodies, except in very rare cases.
• Every citizen of Kentucky is required by law to take a bath once a year. (I once knew a kid in school who was afraid of water. His sister, who I also knew, had to hose him down and trick him I heard.)
• The average human produces 25,000 quarts of saliva in a lifetime, enough to fill two swimming pools.
• Anne Boleyn had six fingernails on one hand , but only five fingers on that hand. She had a small extra nail on the side of her finger that she kept hidden with long sleeves.
• On average, 12 newborns a day will be given to the wrong parents.
• It was widely believed in the Middle Ages that the heart was the center of human intelligence.
• Robots in Japan pay union dues.
• The fastest temperature change on record is a rise of 49 degrees Fahrenheit in two minutes, from -4 degrees F to 45 degrees F. It happened in Spearfish, South Dakota, U.S. (That would be sooo confusing.)
• Colgate faced a big obstacle marketing toothpaste in Spanish speaking countries. Colgate translates into the command "go hang yourself."
• The little bits of paper left over when holes are punched in data cards or tape are called Chad.
• The French equivalent of "Pumpkin" (our pet name) is calling them "Chou-Chou" which is little cabbage.
• J was the last letter to be added to the alphabet.
• The snapping turtle eats carrion and is used by police to find dead bodies in lakes, ponds and swamps.
• Snakes who have the genetic mutation of having been born with two heads have a hard time eating, because the two heads generally fight over which gets the food.