Apple

The old saying, “An apple a day, keeps the doctor away.” This saying comes from an old English adage, “To eat an apple before going to bed, will make the doctor beg his bread.”

Cool facts & Stats:

• Two pounds of apples make one 9-inch pie.

• 2,500 varieties of apples are grown in the United States

• 7,500 varieties of apples are grown throughout the world

• The pilgrims planted the first United States apple trees in the Massachusetts Bay Colony

• Archeologists have found evidence that humans have been enjoying apples since at least 6500 B.C

• Don't peel your apple. Two-thirds of the fiber and lots of antioxidants are found in the peel. Antioxidants help to reduce damage to cells, which can trigger some diseases.

• On August 21, 2007 the GoldRush apple was designated as the official Illinois’state fruit. GoldRush is a sweet-tart yellow apple with a long shelf life. The apple is also the state fruit of Minnesota, New York, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia
  
  
  
  
  
  ___________________________________________________
  Source: 
   "Apples and More." [Online] <http://urbanext.illinois.edu/apples/facts.cfm>.

World's TALLEST Tree

Hyperion is the world tallest tree. It is currently located in Redwood National Park, California. Even though we know it is in Redwood park, the exact spot is not known due to concern over vandalism. Hyperion's height is 379.1 foot-tall.

Just to add couple more facts: 

•  Redwood National Park is bought during president Carter administration in 1978.

• Two hikers named Chris Atkins, and Micheal Taylor discovered Hyperion.

Source:
"Sequoia sempervirens." [Online]  January 2011. <http://www.conifers.org/cu/Sequoia.php>.

World's Largest Library

I had a general idea about the Library of Congress that it’s a huge library like many others but I didn’t know the fact that Library of Congress is the world’s largest library. And, when I found out about the amount of collections, my jaw dropped!

Library of congress, located in Washington DC, is the world’s library. It was founded in 1800, making it the oldest federal cultural institution in the nation.

     Cool Statistics:

ü  Library of Congress has more than 155.3 million items on approximately 838 miles of bookshelves

•     35 million books and other print materials
•     3.4 million recordings
•     13.6 million photographs
•      5.4 million maps
•      6.5 million pieces of sheet music
•      68 million manuscripts
•      Over 470 foreign languages materials

Other Historical Information:

• On August 24, 1814, British troops burned the Capitol building (where the Library was housed) and destroyed the Library's core collection of 3,000 volumes.

• On January 30,1815, Congress approved the purchase of Thomas Jefferson’s personal library of 6,487 books for $23,950.

______________________________________________________

Source:

 "Fascinating Facts." [Online] <http://www.loc.gov/about/facts.html>.

Lightning

Cool Facts & Stats

Lightning is a giant discharge of electricity accompanied by a brilliant flash of light and a loud crack of thunder.

It is freaking HOT and POWERFUL!....

• The spark can reach over five miles (eight kilometers) in length, 
• It can raise the temperature of the air by as much as 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit (27,700 degrees Celsius)
• It contains approximately 100 million electrical volts.

Some interesting statistics

•  Lightning detection systems in the United States monitor an average of 25 million strokes of lightning from clouds to ground during some 100,000 thunderstorms every year.

• It is estimated that Earth as a whole is struck by an average of more than a hundred lightning bolts every second.

• The odds of becoming a lightning victim in the U.S. in any one year is 1 in 700,000. The odds of being struck in your lifetime is 1 in 3,000.

• Lightning can kill people (3,696 deaths were recorded in the U.S. between 1959 and 2003) or cause cardiac arrest.

• Injuries range from severe burns and permanent brain damage to memory loss and personality change.

• About 400 people survive lightning strokes in the U.S. each year.

Safety

• People should stay away from windows and doors and avoid contact with anything that conducts electricity, including landline telephones. Most people hurt by lightning while inside their homes are talking on the telephone at the time.

•  People shouldn't be swimming during the thunderstorm; it is very dangerous because water is a good conductor of electricity

• An umbrella can increase your chances of being struck by lightning if it makes you the tallest object in the area.

Source:
National Geography. "Flash Facts About Lightning." [Online] 24 June 2005

7-UP Soda

• Did you know there's an interesting fact about 7UP soda, which is a favorite drink to many of us. 7-UP created in 1929. The number 7 was selected because the original containers were 7 ounces. And, the word "UP"  represents the direction of the bubbles. 

Source: 

Botham, Noel. The book of Useless Information. New York, NY: Penguin, 2006. Print.

World's Most Expensive Coffee

Any guess? Well, when I was curious finding out about it, initially,  I thought probably some coffee that are picked from the best of the best beans. However, my jaw dropped when I found out that world's most priciest coffee come from a mammal called Civet!

Kopi Luwak: world's most expensive coffee!!!

• Yes!! Kopi Luwak is the world's most expensive coffee! Believe it or not it comes from Civet Poop! Civet is cat sized mammal. When they eat coffee beans, they don't get digested, which  makes farmers collecting and processing easily.  This expensive coffee selling from $120 to $600 per pound and is sold in the United States and Japan. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://listverse.com/2007/12/17/top-10-incredible-food-facts/

Vampire Bats!

Night lover
The vampire bat attacks at night. This is when its victims—mostly cattle and other livestock—sleep.

What makes them different than other bats ?

Unlike other bats, the vampire bat rests lightly on its thumbs and small footpads. This allows it to land softly, bite its victim, and quietly suck blood. It does all this without waking its victim. The vampire bat can consume an enormous amount of blood. Sometimes it is so full it cannot fly away when it is finished.

Do they bite human?

• The vampire bat rarely feeds on human blood.

Common characteristics of vampire bats:

• The common vampire bat is mostly found in eastern Mexico. It has grayish-brown fur, pointed ears, and a short muzzle. It does not have a tail. Its incisor teeth are large and razor-sharp. They make a small wound to take blood. The saliva of vampire bats contains substances that stop the blood from clotting.Vampire bat colonies may contain up to 2,000 bats. But groups of about 100 are more common. Both sexes roost together. They often share a cave with other bat species. Unlike other bats, the mother does not carry the young around with her. Instead, the babies stay in the roost while the mother looks for food. The vampire bat's bite is not harmful to the victim. Nor is the loss of blood. What is dangerous is thesk of rabies. In Mexico, cattle are vaccinated against rabies because of vampire bats

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Common Vampire Bat." Amazing Animals of the World. Grolier Online, 2012. Web. 18 Nov. 2012.