There are more than 5,919,682 telephones in New York City, more phones than in the entire country of Spain. The cables serving the New York City area have nearly 33,072,975 miles of wire.

The name of the first airplane flown at Kitty Hawk by the Wright Brothers, on December 17, 1903, was "Flyer." The maiden flight of Flyer, however, was less than a flight the plane stayed in the air only 12 seconds. The brothers flew three more times that day, with their final flight covering 852

The "Sandcastle Effect" was identified by researchers at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana and first published on June 18, 1997. It explained why sandcastles do not collapse after the sand in them has almost totally dried out.

As the game is played, each player character (PC) grows and changes as they gain experience. To represent this, PCs are awarded an appropriate number of experience points (XP) when they defeat an enemy or accomplish a difficult task. Attaining a certain number of experience points allows a PC to advance a level, granting the character enhanced ...Read more

The footprints left by the Apollo astronauts will not erode since there is no wind or water on the Moon. The footprints should last at least 10 million years.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. May wrote the lyrics as copy for a Montgomery Ward department store giveaway. In 1947 it was set to music, and recorded by Gene Autrey.

The modern Christmas custom of displaying a wreath on the front door of one's house, is borrowed from ancient Rome's New Year's celebrations. Romans wished each other "good health" by exchanging branches of evergreens. They called these gifts strenae after Strenia, the goddess of health. It became the custom to bend these branches into a ring ...Read more

The pharaohs of ancient Egypt wore garments made with thin threads of beaten gold. Some fabrics had up to 500 gold threads per one inch of cloth.

The moon is always falling. It has a sideways motion of its own that balances its falling motion. It therefore stays in a closed orbit about the Earth, never falling altogether and never escaping altogether.

The thumb is such a major player in the human body that it has a special section, separate from the area that controls the fingers, reserved for it in the brain.

There's Something About Einstein

Bobby and Peter Farrelly, the brother writing-directing duo responsible for the comedy hits, "There's Something About Mary" and "Dumb and Dumber" are fans of the mad genius just like everybody else. To dazzle the crowds, Bobby Farrelly has taught his three-year-old son a few tricks to flaunt his own ...Read more

In 1997, a Menorah was built in Latrun, near the main Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway. It was more than 60 feet tall, weighed 17 metric tons, and took up an area of 600 square meters. A rabbi was lifted in a crane each night of the holiday to light the candles on the menorah, which was made of metal

A South African bullfrog can grow to be 35 inches (90 cm) in length -- longer than your arm.

According to a survey, the most popular day for eating out in the United States is one's own birthday — 49 percent of American adults do. The worst holiday for eating out is Grandparents' Day, with less than 5 percent participating.

Some foods "explode" in the microwave due to trapped steam. Eggs, butter, and margarine have internal water that, when microwaved, turns to steam and splatters the food all over the inside of the oven. It is imperative to cover these foods well when microwaving.

As World War I raged through Europe in 1917, Ed Cox of San Francisco invented a pre-soaped pad with which to clean pots. His wife named it S.O.S., which, as the story goes, stood for "Save Our Saucepans."

Pandas spend about 12 hours a day eating bamboo.

There are odor technicians in the perfume trade with the olfactory skill to distinguish 19,000 different odors at twenty levels of intensity each.

The heart beats faster during a brisk walk or heated argument than during sexual intercourse.