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![]() Camels
Camels are called "ships of the desert" because of the way they move, not because of their transport capabilities. A Dromedary camel has one hump and a Bactrian camel two humps. The humps are used as fat storage. Thus, an undernourished camel will not have a hump. ![]() The cigarette
The cigarette lighter was invented before the match. ![]() Head sets
Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times. ![]() Tongue twister
The 'sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick' is said to be the toughest tongue twister in the English language. ![]() Brain
Did you know? Your brain uses twice as much energy as the rest of your body. ![]() Albert Einstein got so fed up with being recognized, he'd say ' Pardon me sorry! Always I am mistaken for Professor Einstein.'
Albert Einstein's theories are complicated. Understatement? Yes. So you can imagine how bothersome it would be if someone was constantly asking you to explain these theories. Most of us could just say that we didn't understand them ourselves so we couldn't explain them. However, Einstein, as the creator of these theories, could not make such an excuse. Or could he? Einstein got tired of fans recognizing him on the streets of New York City so he invented a way to evade them. Whenever a fan would approach him, he would simply say in broken English "Pardon me, sorry! Always I am mistaken for Professor Einstein." Despite his very recognizable appearance, people would usually believe him and turn away. Would we expect anything less from the creator of the theory of relativity? ---------------- Reference: http://www.newyorker.com/archive/1939/01/14/1939_01_14_011_TNY_CARDS_000176356 ![]() Annie Edson Taylor: First person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel.
Annie Edson Taylor (October 24, 1838 – April 29, 1921) was an American adventurer who, on her 63rd birthday, October 24, 1901, became the first person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Desiring to secure her later years financially, and avoid the poorhouse, she decided she would be the first person to ride over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Taylor used a custom-made barrel for her trip, constructed of oak and iron and padded with a mattress. Several delays occurred in the launching of the barrel, particularly because no one wanted to be part of a potential suicide. Two days before Taylor's own attempt, a domestic cat was sent over the Horseshoe Falls in her barrel to test its strength. Contrary to rumors at the time, the cat survived the plunge and 17 minutes later, after she was found with a bleeding head, posed with Taylor in photographs. On October 24, 1901, her 63rd birthday, the barrel was put over the side of a rowboat, and Taylor climbed in, along with her lucky heart-shaped pillow. After screwing down the lid, friends used a bicycle tire pump to compress the air in the barrel. The hole used for this was plugged with a cork, and Taylor was set adrift near the American shore, south of Goat Island. The Niagara River currents carried the barrel toward the Canadian Horseshoe Falls, which has since been the site for all daredevil stunting at Niagara Falls. Rescuers reached her barrel shortly after the plunge. Taylor was discovered to be alive and relatively uninjured, except for a small gash on her head. The trip itself took less than twenty minutes, but it was some time before the barrel was actually opened. After the journey, Annie Taylor told the press: “If it was with my dying breath, I would caution anyone against attempting the feat... I would sooner walk up to the mouth of a cannon, knowing it was going to blow me to pieces than make another trip over the Fall.” Later years: She briefly earned money speaking about her experience, but was never able to build much wealth. Her manager, Frank M. Russell, decamped with her barrel, and most of her savings were used towards private detectives hired to find it. It was eventually located in Chicago, only to permanently disappear some time later. She spent her final years posing for photographs with tourists at her souvenir stand, attempting to earn money from the New York Stock Exchange, briefly talking about taking a second plunge over the cataracts in 1906, attempting to write a novel, re-constructing her 1901 plunge on film (which was never seen), working as a clairvoyant, and providing magnetic therapeutic treatments to local residents. Death: Annie Taylor died on April 29, 1921, aged 82, at the Niagara County Infirmary in Lockport, New York. She is interred in the "Stunters Section" of Oakwood Cemetery in Niagara Falls, New York. ---------------- Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annie_Edson_Taylor ![]() Homeless man returns an engagement ring
Meet Billy Ray Harris, a homeless man who returned an engagement ring worth thousands after a woman accidentally dropped it into his change cup. The owner of the ring was Sarah Darling. Ms. Darling and her fiance set up a fundraising page to thank him. With the $180,000 raised from public donations, Mr. Harris has been able to buy a house and get a job. ![]() Mars
Sunsets on Mars are blue. ![]() Coffee
There are more than 1,000 chemicals in a single cup of coffee. Of these, only 26 have been tested and half caused cancer in rats. ![]() This is out to be funny
Russia didn't consider beer an alcoholic beverage until 2011. Before then, any drink under 10% volume was considered a soft drink. ![]() Intelligence
Approximately 80% of a child's intelligence is acquired from the mother. ![]() Liver Functions
Scientist have counted over 500 different liver functions. You may not think much about your liver except after a long night of drinking, but the liver is one of the body's hardest working, largest and busiest organs. Some of the functions your liver performs are: production of bile, decomposition of red blood cells, plasma protein synthesis, and detoxification. ![]() Sleep Vs Food
Humans can do longer without food than sleep. While you might feel better prepared to stay up all night partying than to give up eating, that feeling will be relatively short lived. Provided there is water , the average human could survive a month to 2 without food depending on their body fat and other factors. Sleep deprived people, however, start experiencing radical personality and psychological changes after only a few sleepless days. The longest recorded time anyone has ever gone without sleep is 11 days, at the end of which the experimenter was awake, but stumbled over words, hallucinated and frequently forgot what his was doing. ![]() Weather
All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism. ![]() Bless You
People say "Bless you" when you sneeze because when you sneeze, your heart stops for a milli-second. ![]() Main Cause of diseases
Over 90 percent of diseases are caused or complicated by stress. That high stress job you have could be doing more than just wearing you down each day. It could also be increasing your chances of having a variety of serious medical conditions like depression, high blood pressure and heart disease. ![]() Snoring
By 60 years of age , 60 percent of men and 40 percent of women will snore. If you've ever been kept awake by a snoring loved one you know the sound can be deafening. Normal snores average around 60 decibels, the noise level of normal speech, intense snores can reach more than 80 decibels, the approximate level caused by a jackhammer breaking up a concrete. ![]() Hummingbirds
Hummingbirds are the only animals that can fly backwards. ![]() Full Bladder
A full bladder is roughly the size of a soft ball. No wonder you have to run to the bathroom when you feel the call of the wild. ![]() Lemons Vs strawberries
Lemons contain more sugar than strawberries. ![]() Hair
At the same thickness hair is strong as a wire of iron. ![]() Soap Opera
The first TV soap opera debuted in 1946. It was known as Faraway Hill. ![]() Ball Of Glass
A ball of glass will bounce higher than a ball o rubber. ![]() Crocodile
A crocodile can't move its tongue.. ![]() Iceland
Iceland has the most internet users per capita of any country in the world with over 86 percent of people using the web, compared with 69 percent of Americans. ![]() Pink
The color Pink does not actually exist in the universe, it is basically white light without the green color. ![]() There is still a woman alive who lost her fiance in World War 1. Grace Jones, the last living Briton born before 1900, says she never married after the death of her young fiance Albert Rees in the war as she never found anyone as nice as him.
![]() The Internet
the Internet was originally called ARPANet (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) designed by the US department of defense ![]() Icebergs
90% of an iceberg sits under water. ![]() Boy Turns into a Yam
Three pupils of the Evangelist Primary School in the northern Nigerian town of Maiduguri rushed into the headmistresses office in March 2000 and said that a fellow pupil had been transformed into a yam after accepting a sweet from a stranger. The headmistress found the root tuber and took it to the police station for safe-keeping. Following local radio reports, hundreds of people flocked to see the yam and police were hunting for the sweet-giver. What happened next failed to reach the media. Source: http://234pulse.com/2013/05/07/this-once-happened-in-nigeria-boy-turns-into-a-yam/ ![]() The growing stones of Romania
South of central Romania these stone formations with alien features lie dormant, until it begins to rain. As soon as the last drops of water fall, they resume their process of multiplication. Small oval or round blain-like forms appear on the upper crusts of the previous year stones. People are left astounded and locals are surprised, when after a heavy rainfall these rock formations begin to ‘grow’ on their own. It is difficult to image that stones can really grow, but these stones seem to be alive! The Romanian Trovants Museum Natural Reserve is located in Valcea County, close to the road connecting Ramnicu Valcea and Targu Jiu, 8 km far from Horezu. Here in a small village named Costesti, there are some fascinating and mysterious stones, called trovants, which are believed to have a life in them. Trovant is a geological term used often in Romania. It means cemented sand. Trovants are geological phenomena which consist in spherical shapes of cemented sand, appeared due to some powerful seismic activity. The earthquakes that led to the creation of the first trovants are supposed to have taken place 6 million years ago. What makes these trovants unique and mysterious is that are reproducing after coming in contact with water. After heavy raining the stones grow starting with 6-8 millimetres and ending with 6-10 meters. One of the strangest aspects about these stones is that although they vary in size, from a couple of millimeters to even 10 m, they are very similar, taking into account a natural law that states there are no such things as identical stones. In addition, just like the famous rocks in Death Valley, California, the trovants often move from one place to another place. Story sent by: Akshat Bajaj ---------------- Reference: http://interesting-facts.info/2013/02/stones-that-grow/ Atlas Obscura: http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/trovants-costesti-valcea-county-romania ![]() A phenomenon called the Manhattan-Henge happens twice a year, when the sun perfectly lines up with the streets of NYC.
![]() Unbelievable
Completely sealed bottle garden that was first planted 53 years ago and has not been watered since 1972 ![]() Your pupil
When you are looking at someone you love, your pupils dilate. They do the same when you are looking at someone you hate. ![]() This was a picture of a fight held in 1913 between Ray Campbell and Dick Hyland that's been recently restored with colour.
![]() Goldfish
goldfish can see both infrared and ultraviolet light ![]() Bees who pay their respects
Margaret Bell, who kept bees in Leintwardine, about 7 miles from her home in Ludlow, Shropshire (England), died in June 1994. Soon after her funeral, mourners were amazed to see hundreds of bees settle on the corner of the street opposite the house where she had lived for 26 years. The bees stayed for an hour before buzzing off over the rooftops. The local press ran a photograph of the bees hanging on the wall in a cluster. Reference: http://www.bubblews.com/news/375940-bees-who-pays-they-respects ![]() Crimes That Shook Britain: The Hungerford Massacre
One August afternoon in 1987, a heavily-armed Michael Robert Ryan shot and killed sixteen people - including his own mother - before turning a gun on himself. It remains one of the worst shooting atrocities in British history August 17, 1987 was a bright warm sunny day. In the Berkshire market town of Hungerford, Sue Godfrey packed a picnic and her two children into her car and headed for nearby Savernake Forest. In another street in Hungerford, 27-year-old Michael Ryan also decided to have a day out in Savernake Forest. But instead of a picnic, he packed his car with something deadly. It was his brand new Chinese copy of the AK 47 assault rifle. For good measure, gun nut Ryan put in an American M1 carbine, and a fully-loaded Beretta .38 calibre semi-automatic pistol. It was the start of Britain’s worst gun massacre. By the end of the day 16 people were dead and several others were wounded by bullets as Ryan rampaged through the area shooting people at random. Ryan arrived at the car park at the forest entrance at about midday, just as Sue Godfrey was putting her children into the car ready to leave. He pointed his Beretta at her, marched her into the trees, and pumped 10 bullets into her back, killing her instantly. Half an hour later at a service station between Savernake and Hungerford, the cashier watched a man driving a red Vauxhall Astra fill up with fuel, fill a petrol can, and then approach the pay window. Ryan levelled a gun at the cashier and opened fire through the glass. She dived for cover and escaped death by a centimetre as a bullet smashed the plate glass and zipped through her hair. Ryan then entered the shop and tried to shoot the cashier. But the gun clicked empty. He turned on his heel and left. The trembling cashier dialled 999. It was the first police knew about what was unfolding. Ryan headed to the home he shared with his mother. He piled survival gear into his car, doused the house with petrol, and set it ablaze. He got into his car but it would not start. Furious, Ryan pumped five bullets into it causing it to ignite. Neighbour Roland Mason was in his back garden and came out to the front to see what the commotion was. Ryan riddled him with bullets. Then he shot dead Mason’s wife Sheila. With a bandolier of ammo across his chest and wearing black combat clothes, Ryan walked down the road and shot pensioner Margery Jackson and 14-year-old Lesley Mildenhall, wounding them both severely. Around the corner he met Ken Clements out with his three children. Ryan murdered him on the spot. PC Roger Brereton was the first police officer on the scene. He swung his patrol car into South View but he had no chance. Ryan raked his car with machine gun fire killing him instantly. Ryan was strafing houses on both sides of the street, stopping only for a moment to put fresh clips of ammunition in his guns. Linda Chapman and her daughter Alison came into view. Ryan peppered their car wounding them both, but they managed to drive away. Ryan then spotted retired Abdul Khan mowing his lawn and killed him with his AK 47. Police firearms teams were speeding to Hungerford but they were too far away to stop his killing spree. Alan Lepetit was on his way home for lunch when he was shot and wounded, but he survived. An ambulance arrived and was turning into South View when Ryan shot it up. Firefighters coming to tackle the blaze at Ryan’s own home ducked as their fire engine took several hits. The fire had now engulfed three more houses. George White was giving a lift home to Ivor Jackson, who didn’t know Ryan had already murdered his wife Margery. As they approached the scenes of chaos Ryan shot White dead through the windscreen. His car went out of control and rammed the back of PC Brereton’s car with the officer dead behind the steering wheel. At that moment Ryan’s mum Dorothy came home from shopping. As she surveyed the carnage, the son she doted on shot her dead. Francis Butler was walking his dog in a park when Ryan shot him dead. Then he shot at Andrew Cadle but missed. He tried again, but the M1 jammed and Ryan threw it away in disgust. But he still had the AK and the pistol. Minicab driver Marcus Barnard was shot in the head and died. Then he opened fire on John Storms, Douglas Wainwright, Eric Vardy and Sandra Hill. Wainwright and Vardy were killed outright. Storms and Sandra Hill were badly wounded with multiple gun shot wounds. Sandra Hill was rescued by an off-duty ambulance man and a soldier who carried her to a doctors' surgery, but she died before she got there. Ryan had now reached Priory Road. He smashed open the front door of number 60 and shot dead 66-year-old Victor Gibbs. The pensioner tried to save his wife Myrtle who was in a wheel chair, but the bullets ripped through his body and killed her too. With police using loudhailers to warn residents to stay indoors, Ian Playle encountered a police roadblock, but he knew another way to his home in Priory Road. When he got there, he died in a hail of shots. George Noon was standing outside 109 Priory Road when he saw Ryan standing outside the John of Gaunt school. Ryan saw him and killed him with two shots then entered the empty school. By now armed police had the area surrounded. Sergeant Paul Brightwell shouted to Ryan from behind a wall. They had a conversation. Ryan sounded calm and lucid, but kept asking the officer how his mother was. Police marksmen could not see Ryan to get a clear shot at him. He was sitting on the floor below a window. Suddenly Ryan threw his AK47 out of the window. Then there was a single shot from the Beretta. Ryan had taken his last life – his own. Story sent by: Marc Lawless ---------------- Reference: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/crimes-that-shook-britain-the-hungerford-massacre-823698 Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungerford_massacre ![]() Saying the alphabet without moving your lips or tongue
if you try to say the alphabet without moving your lips or tongue every letter will sound the same ![]() Did You Know?
Ray-Ban, Oakley, Dolce & Gabbana and Prada sunglasses are all manufactured by the same company. ![]() Titanic's unsinkable stoker: Violet Jessop survived the sinkings of both the Titanic and the Britannic and further was onboard Olympic when she was rammed in 1911.
Violet Constance Jessop (2 October 1887 – 5 May 1971) was an ocean liner stewardess and nurse who achieved fame by surviving the disastrous sinkings of both the RMS Titanic and the HMHS Britannic in 1912 and 1916 respectively. In addition, she had been on board the RMS Olympic, their sister ship, when it collided with the protected cruiser HMS Hawke in 1911. Early life: Violet Jessop was born to William and Katherine Jessop, Irish emigrants living near Bahía Blanca, Argentina. William Jessop had emigrated from Dublin in the mid-1880s to try his hand at sheep farming in the Argentine. His fiancée, Katherine Kelly, followed him out there from Dublin in 1886. Violet was the first of nine children, only six of whom survived. Violet herself contracted tuberculosis at an early age, but, despite doctor's predictions, she survived. After her father died, Violet and her family moved to Great Britain, where she attended a convent school. After her mother became ill, she left school and took a stewardess position with the Royal Mail Line aboard the Orinoco. Olympic: At age 23, Violet Jessop boarded the RMS Olympic on 14 June 1911 to work as a stewardess. The Olympic was a luxury ship that was the largest civilian liner at that time, being nearly 100 ft (30 m) longer than any other ship. Olympic′s first major mishap occurred on 20 September 1911, when she collided with the old protected cruiser HMS Hawke off the Isle of Wight. Although the incident resulted in the flooding of two of her compartments and a twisted propeller shaft, Olympic was able to limp back to Southampton. At the subsequent inquiry the Royal Navy blamed Olympic for the incident, alleging that her large displacement generated a suction that pulled Hawke into her side. Titanic: Violet boarded the RMS Titanic as a stewardess on 10 April 1912. Four days later, on 14 April, the Titanic struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic and, over the next two hours, broke in two and sank. Violet described in her memoirs that she was ordered up on deck, because she was to function as an example of how to behave for the non-English speakers who could not follow the instructions given to them. She watched as the crew loaded the lifeboats. She was later ordered into lifeboat 16, and, as the boat was being lowered, one of the Titanic′s officers gave her a baby to look after. The next morning, Violet and the rest of the survivors were rescued by the RMS Carpathia. According to Violet, while on board the Carpathia, a woman grabbed the baby she was holding and ran off with it without saying a word. Britannic: During the First World War, Violet served as a stewardess for the British Red Cross. On the morning of 21 November 1916, she was on board His Majesty's Hospital Ship Britannic when the ship apparently struck a mine and, with all the portholes open for ventilation, quickly sank in the Aegean Sea off the Greek island of Kea, with the loss of 30 lives. There is also a second theory for the cause of the sinking, claiming that a German U-Boat shot the Britannic without warning, regardless of its status as a medical ship. While the Britannic was sinking, Violet jumped out of a lifeboat to avoid being sucked into the Britannic′s propellers. She was sucked under the water anyway, and struck her head on the ship's keel before surfacing and being rescued by a lifeboat. She later stated that cushioning, due to her thick auburn hair, helped save her life. She had also made sure to grab her toothbrush before leaving her cabin on the Britannic, saying later that it was the one thing she missed most immediately following the sinking of the Titanic. Later life: After the war, Violet continued to work for the White Star Line, before joining the Red Star Line and then the Royal Mail Line again. During her tenure with Red Star, Violet went on two around the world cruises on that company's largest ship, the Belgenland. In her late 30s, Violet had a brief marriage, and in 1950 she retired to Great Ashfield, Suffolk. Years after her retirement, Violet claimed to have received a telephone call, on a stormy night, from a woman who asked Violet if she saved a baby on the night that the Titanic sank. "Yes," Violet replied. The voice then said "I was that baby," laughed, and hung up. Her friend, and biographer John Maxtone-Graham said it was most likely some children in the village playing a joke on her. She replied, "No, John, I had never told that story to anyone before I told you now." Records indicate that the only baby on boat 16 was Assad Thomas, who was handed to Edwinda Troutt, and later reunited with his mother on the Carpathia. ---------------- Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violet_Jessop ![]() Did You Know?
the names of all continents both start and end with the same letter. ![]() Did You Know?
85% of plant life is found in the ocean. ![]() Ice Man: The Remarkable Adventures of Antarctic Explorer Tom Crean
Tom Crean, nicknamed the "Irish Giant" (20 July 1877 - 27 July 1938) was an Irish seaman and Antarctic explorer from County Kerry. He was a member of three of the four major British expeditions to Antarctica during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, including Robert Falcon Scott's 1911–13 Terra Nova Expedition, which saw the race to reach the South Pole lost to Roald Amundsen and ended in the deaths of Scott and his polar party. During this expedition Crean's 35 statute miles (56 km) solo walk across the Ross Ice Shelf to save the life of Edward Evans led to him receiving the Albert Medal. Crean had left the family farm near Annascaul to enlist in the British Royal Navy at the age of 15. In 1901, while serving on HMS Ringarooma in New Zealand, he volunteered to join Scott's 1901–04 British National Antarctic Expedition on Discovery, thus beginning his exploring career. After his return with the Terra Nova, Crean's third and final Antarctic venture was the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition on Endurance led by Ernest Shackleton, in which he served as second officer. After Endurance became beset in the pack ice and sank, he was a participant in a dramatic series of events including months spent drifting on the ice, a journey in lifeboats to Elephant Island, and an open boat journey of 800 nautical miles (1,500 km) from Elephant Island to South Georgia. Upon reaching South Georgia, Crean was one of the party of three which undertook the first land crossing of the island, without maps or proper mountaineering equipment, to get aid. Crean's contributions to these expeditions sealed his reputation as a tough and dependable polar traveler, and earned him a total of three Polar medals. After the Endurance expedition he returned to the Navy, and when his naval career ended in 1920 he moved back to County Kerry. In his home town of Annascaul, Crean and his wife Ellen opened a public house called the "South Pole Inn". He lived there quietly and unobtrusively until his death in 1938. Story sent by: Seamus O' Hanlon ---------------- Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Crean_(explorer) ![]() Microsoft once threatened to sue a high school student named Mike Rowe for creating a website called MikeRoweSoft.com, read what happened next and how the case was settled.
Microsoft vs. MikeRoweSoft was a legal dispute between Microsoft and a Canadian Belmont high school student named Mike Rowe over the domain name "MikeRoweSoft.com". The case received international press attention following Microsoft's perceived heavy-handed approach to a 12th grade student's part-time web design business and the subsequent support that Rowe received from the online community. A settlement was eventually reached, with Rowe granting ownership of the domain to Microsoft in exchange for Microsoft products and training. Background: The domain name MikeRoweSoft.com was initially registered by Canadian student Mike Rowe in August 2003. Rowe set up the site as a part-time web design business, choosing the domain because of the phonetic pun by adding the word "soft" to the end of his name. Microsoft saw the name as trademark infringement because of its phonetic resemblance to their trademarked corporate name and demanded that he give up the domain. After receiving a letter on January 14, 2004 from Microsoft's Canadian legal representatives Smart & Biggar, Rowe replied asking to be compensated for giving up the domain. Microsoft offered to pay Rowe's out-of-pocket expenses of $10, the original cost of registering the domain name. Rowe countered asking instead for $10,000, later claiming that he did this because he was "mad at" Microsoft for their initial $10 offer. Microsoft declined the offer and sent a cease and desist order spanning 25 pages. Microsoft accused Rowe of setting up the site in order to try to force them into a large financial settlement, a practice known as cybersquatting. Press coverage and settlement: Rowe went to the press, creating publicity for the case and garnering support for his cause, including donations of over $6,000 and an offer of free advice from a lawyer. At one point Rowe was forced to take down his site after it was overwhelmed by around 250,000 page views over a period of twelve hours, only managing to get the site back up after changing to a service provider with a higher capacity. The case, portrayed as a David versus Goliath struggle by the media, characterized Microsoft in a negative light. The resulting bad publicity was later described as a "public relations mess." The public showing of support that Rowe received was credited with "softening Microsoft's stance," leading to an eventual settlement. In late January 2004, it was revealed that the two parties had come to an out of court settlement, with Microsoft taking control of the domain. In return Microsoft agreed to pay all of the expenses that Rowe had incurred including setting up a new site at and redirecting traffic to MikeRoweforums.com. Additionally Microsoft provided Rowe with a subscription to the Microsoft Developer Network, an all expenses paid trip for him and his family to the Microsoft Research Tech Fest at their headquarters in Redmond, Washington, training for Microsoft certification and an Xbox with a selection of games. Following an online poll, Rowe donated most of his legal defense fund to a children's hospital and used the remaining money for his future university education. ---------------- Extra: After settling with Microsoft, Rowe attempted to auction off the documentation he had received on the on-line auction site eBay, describing it as "a piece of Internet history." The materials included one copy of the original 25 page cease and desist letter as well as an inch-thick WIPO book containing copies of trademarks, web pages and e-mails between him and Microsoft. The auction received more than half a million page views and bidding rose to more than $200,000. The high bids turned out to be fraudulent and the auction was restricted to pre-approved bidders. After restarting from the reserve price of $500, the documents eventually sold for $1,037. Microsoft later admitted that they may have been too aggressive in their defense of the "Microsoft" trademark. Following the case it was suggested by Struan Robertson – editor of Out-Law.com – that Microsoft had little choice but to pursue the issue once it had come to light or they would have risked weakening their trademark. This view was also espoused by ZDNet, who noted that had Microsoft knowingly ignored Rowe's site, the company would have risked losing the right to fight future trademark infringements. Had legal proceedings ensued, Robertson thought that Rowe would have made a strong argument for keeping his domain, as he was using his real name and was not claiming to be affiliated with Microsoft. Story sent by: Pranav Khandekar ---------------- Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_vs._MikeRoweSoft ![]() Particular body functions proceed for minutes, hours, days and sometimes even weeks after the actual death. Here is a list of them, some quite unexpected. 1. Giving birth Unbelievable as it may sound, it did happen back in the day, enough to create the sweet little term “coffin birth”. Long time ago people used to die in great numbers which included many pregnant women. The gases forming inside a body together with the softening tissue cause the ejection of the fetus. Although occasional, this type of event was documented before there was proper burial. Aren’t you happy now you live in the modern world? 2. Brain activity (with drugs) When the heart stops, there’s no breathing so the doctors would pronounce a person dead while the brain is not dead, yet. Brain cells need oxygen and nutrients to stay alive, so if they are deprived from them for more than a few minutes the damage is irreparable even if the heart starts pumping again. With drugs and under favorable circumstances, the minutes before the damage gets severe can be prolonged to days. 3. Defecation When stressed, the body loosens particular muscles and the process just happens. The reason defecation happens to the dead body is the gas produced inside and it can occur several hours after death. So it’s safe to say this may be the last thing we do in life or, well, after. 4. Urination Similar to N.3, it can happen hours after death. While peeing is a voluntary function, not-peeing is not as it is directed by a part of the brain that holds the urinary sphincter shut. Too much alcohol, for example, may suppress that part of the brain causing a person to pee involuntarily. Tightening of the muscles takes a few hours after death so it’s quite possible for a dead person to urinate. 5. Vocalization Considering the amount of gas in the human body, it needs to get out once the person is dead and one way is through the windpipe. Because all the muscles, the vocal cord included, are already tightened the sound coming out of the dead body could be a very creepy moan, groan or squeak. Doesn’t it give you chills? ![]() SpongeBob
SpongeBob SqaurePants is the only Nicktoon from the 1990s that has not ended yet. ![]() Moon
During the Apollo 12 mission, a 2 1/2 ton piece of the Lunar Module was experimentally crashes onto the surface of the moon. The unexpected result? The moon "rang like a bell" for nearly an hour. ![]() Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee could snatch a dime off a person's open palm before they could close it, and leave a penny behind. ![]() Tokyo
A family of 26 could go to the movies in Mexico city for the price of one in Tokyo. ![]() Takshashila: The world's first known university
At least 2,800 years ago, circa 800BCE, there existed a giant University at Takshashila (often called Taxila), Taxila was the capital of a kingdom called Hinduš (Indus country) and consisted of the western half of the Punjab. According to references in the Ramayana, King Bharata founded the town in the name of his son, Taksha. The site initially began to develop as a loosely connected group of buildings where learned persons resided, worked and taught. Over the years, additional buildings were added; rulers made donations and more scholars migrated there. Gradually a large campus developed, which became a celebrated seat of learning in the ancient world. Not only Indians but also students from as far as Babylonia, Greece, Syria, Arabia, Phoenicia and China came to study. 68 different streams of knowledge were on the syllabus. A wide range of subjects were taught by experienced masters: Vedas, Language, Grammar, Philosophy, Medicine, Surgery, Archery, Politics, Warfare, Astronomy, Astrology, Accounts, Commerce, Futurology, Documentation, Occult, Music, Dance, etc. The minimum entrance age was 16 and there were 10,500 students. The panel of masters included renowned names like Kautilya (the author of the “Arthashastra”), Panini (the codifier of Sanskrit into today’s form), Jivak (medicine) and Vishnu Sharma (author and compiler of the Panchtantra). When Alexander’s armies came to the Punjab in the fourth century B.C., Takshashila had already developed a reputation as an important seat of learning. Thus on his return Alexander took many scholars from there with him to Greece. Being near the north-west frontier of India, Takshashila had to face the brunt of attacks and invasions from the north and the west. Thus the Persians, Greeks, Parthians, Shakas and Kushanas laid their destructive marks on this institution. The final blow, however, came from the Huns (also the destroyers of the Roman Empire) who, A.D. c.450, razed the institution. When the Chinese traveller Huen T’sang (A.D. 603-64) visited Takshashila, the town had lost all its former grandeur and international character. Sent by: Ambareesh Surendran ---------------- Reference: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/139 ![]() A family in Texas in 1953 had a pet lion named Blondie. They never had any incidents with her and she died of old age, as a beloved member of the family.
Photographer Joseph Scherschel took these photos of Blondie the pet lion for Life Magazine in 1955. Blondie was indeed a family pet, belonging to Mr. Charles Hipp of Texas. Mr. Hipp bought the lion from the Dallas zoo in 1953 when she was a 12-week-old cub. By the time the Life article appeared, Blondie was a familiar sight in Graham, Texas. She travelled in their station wagon, boated with the Hipp’s on Possum Kingdom Lake and even shared their bathtub. Blondie never caused any problems for Mr. Hipp, but another of his pets sure did. A leopard named Randy mauled his then two-and-a-half-year-old grandson Charles “Bubba” Hipp at his grandfather’s house in Graham in 1962. The boy recovered, but still bears the scars of the attack. Devastated, Mr. Hipp sold off Randy and most of his other animals, but he just couldn’t get rid of Blondie. She died of old age in 1968, a beloved member of the family. . ---------------- Reference: http://encyclopediahomeschoolica.com/tag/blondie-the-lion/ Further reading: http://www.texasescapes.com/MikeCoxTexasTales/Lion-and-Boy.htm More photos: http://images.google.com/hosted/life/dff7b84441480925.html ![]() Q
Q is the only letter in the alphabet that does not appear in the name of any of the United States! ![]() Nuts
It is estimated that millions of trees in the world are accidentally planted by squirrels who bury nuts and then forget where they hid them! ![]() Owls
Owls are one of the only birds who can see the color blue! ![]() Crab
When the French Academy was preparing its first dictionary, it defined "crab" as, "A small red fish, which walks backwards." This definition was sent with a number of others to the naturalist Cuvier for his approval. The scientist wrote back, "Your definition, gentlemen, would be perfect, only for three exceptions. The crab is not a fish, it is not red and it does not walk backwards." ![]() King Of Hearts
The king of hearts is the only king without a mustache. ![]() Research
The top 3 health-related searches on the Internet are (in this order): Depression, Allergies, & Cancer. ![]() Ashton Kutcher
Ashton Kutcher studied Biomedical Engineering at University of Iowa in an attempt to cure his twin brother's heart condition. ![]() Toothbrushes
Dentists have recommended that a toothbrush be kept at least 6 feet away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles resulting from the flush ![]() Bathroom
You spend 7 years of your life in the bathroom. ![]() Donkey eyes
The eyes of a donkey are positioned so that it can see all four feet at all times. ![]() A man robbed a bank for $1 so he could be arrested and sent to jail for free medical health care.
Well played.. ![]() O.o
In 1894, a priest saved a 4 year old boy from drowning. The boy was named Adolf Hitler. ![]() Our Grandparents were just like us..
![]() Haha.. You don't argue with that.
![]() Lead pencil
The average lead pencil will draw a line 35 miles long or write approximately 50,000 English words. More than 2 billion pencils are manufactured each year in the United States. If these were laid end to end they would circle the world nine times. ![]() Tasting
A person cannot taste food unless it is mixed with saliva. For example, if a strong-tasting substance like salt is placed on a dry tongue, the taste buds will not be able to taste it. As soon as a drop of saliva is added and the salt is dissolved, however, a definite taste sensation results. This is true for all foods. ![]() TV
One in every 4 Americans has appeared on television! ![]() Thigh bones
Human thigh bones are stronger than concrete! ![]() Calories
Every time you lick a stamp, you’re consuming 1/10 of a calorie. ![]() Birds
Over 1,000 birds a year die from smashing into windows. ![]() Cheating on Exams
In Bangladesh, kids as young as 15 can be jailed for cheating on their finals. ![]() Friday the 13th
Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a “Friday the 13th.” ![]() Smile
You use 14 muscles to smile and 43 to frown. Keep Smiling! ![]() Chef's Hat
A chef’s hat is shaped the way it is for a reason: its shape allows air to circulate around the scalp, keeping the head cool in a hot kitchen. ![]() Frieza
After Frieza said Namek would explode in 5minutes, there was 19 episodes after of Namek still staying intact. ![]() The Euthanasia Coaster is an art concept for a steel roller coaster designed to kill its passengers. In 2010, it was designed and made into a scale model by Julijonas Urbonas, a PhD candidate at the Royal College of Art in London.
Urbonas, who has worked at an amusement park, stated that the goal of his concept roller coaster is to take lives "with elegance and euphoria". As for practical applications of his design, Urbonas mentioned "euthanasia" or "execution". John Allen, who served as president of the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, inspired Urbonas with his description of the ideal roller coaster as one that "sends out 24 people and they all come back dead". As a hypothetical means of euthanasia, the design led to concern from anti-euthanasia association Care Not Killing. Design: The design begins with a steep-angled lift to the 510-metre (1,670 ft) (0.317 mile) top, which would take two minutes for the 24-passenger train to reach. From there, a 500-metre (1,600 ft) drop would take the train to 360 kilometres per hour (220 mph), close to its terminal velocity, before flattening out and speeding into the first of its seven slightly clothoid inversions. Each inversion would have a smaller diameter than the one before in order to maintain 10 g to passengers while the train loses speed. After a sharp right-hand turn the train would enter a straight, where unloading of corpses and loading of new passengers could take place. Pathophysiology: The Euthanasia Coaster would kill its passengers through prolonged cerebral hypoxia, or insufficient supply of oxygen to the brain. The ride's seven inversions would inflict 10 g on its passengers for 60 seconds – causing g-force related symptoms starting with gray out through tunnel vision to black out and eventually g-LOC (g-force induced loss of consciousness). Depending on the tolerance of an individual passenger to g-forces, the first or second inversion would cause cerebral anoxia, rendering the passengers brain dead.[citation needed] Subsequent inversions would serve as insurance against unintentional survival of particularly robust passengers. Exhibition: Urbonas' concept drew media attention when shown as part of the HUMAN+ display at the Science Gallery in Dublin from April through June 2011. The display, designated as its 2011 'flagship exhibition' by the Science Gallery, aims to show the future of humans and technology. Within this theme, the Euthanasia Coaster highlights the issues that come with life extension. Story suggested by: Reuben George Bloxham ---------------- Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthanasia_Coaster How it works (Video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKmKLZOAT38 Further Reading: http://news.discovery.com/tech/euthanasia-sucicide-rollercoaster-ride-110919.htm ![]() John Quincy Adams
Former president John Quincy Adams photographed in 1843. Adam was born in 1767 and served from 1825 to 1829; he is the earliest president of whom they have a photograph. ![]() Titanic II is being built by an Australian billionaire. It will be an exact replica of the first and even serve the same meals. The first voyage remains set for 2016, with the boat due to sail from China, where it will be built, to Southampton in England ahead of her maiden passenger journey to New York. Australian billionaire Clive Palmer said Wednesday he will unveil the design and plans for his ambitious Titanic II project in New York with the help of John F. Kennedy's daughter Caroline. The flamboyant Palmer, who announced plans in April to construct the replica Titanic with exactly the same dimensions as its ill-fated predecessor, will hold a gala dinner on December 4 on the retired aircraft carrier USS Intrepid. Those attending will include the former U.S. president's daughter, his sister Jean Kennedy Smith and New York Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson along with leading U.S. business leaders, Palmer said. They will be treated to a dinner from the same menu as Titanic passengers on the day it sank on April 14, 1912. "It will be a chance for the business community of the United States and indeed the world to see the wonderful progress that's been made on our Titanic II project," Palmer said. "Since we announced our plan in April we've had a huge amount of interest, particularly from people wanting to know how they can secure a booking for the maiden voyage, along with commercial sponsors." The first voyage remains set for 2016, with the boat due to sail from China, where it will be built, to Southampton in England ahead of her maiden passenger journey to New York. The new ship will mirror its predecessor's dimensions — measuring 885 feet, 53 metres high and weighing 40,000 tonnes. It will have 840 rooms and nine decks and retain the first, second and third-class divisions of the original. Palmer extended an invitation for James Cameron to sail on the ship, saying the Titanic director had complained there were no Titanic-related experiences left for him. "Well James, this is something you can do," he said. The original Titanic, which was built in Belfast, sank on its first trip from Southampton to New York, killing more than 1,500 passengers and crew. Reference: http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/stories/design-for-titanic-ii-to-be-unveiled ![]() Made in China
A U.S. family tried to spend a year living without Chinese made goods and found it almost impossible. They wrote a book about it. ![]() Roads
Solid structures (parking lots, roads, buildings) in the United States cover an area the size of Ohio. ![]() Spider web
Spider silk is the strongest natural fiber known. It’s exuded as a liquid and hardens when the spider pulls it, thus aligning the molecular structure. It will stretch up to 1/3 of its original length without breaking. ![]() Cats
Studies show that if a cat falls off the seventh floor of a building, it has about thirty percent less chance of surviving than a cat that falls off the twentieth floor. It supposedly takes about eight floors for the cat to realize what is occurring, relax and correct itself. ![]() Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan now officially holds the Guinness World Record for the most credits in one movie and the most stunts by a living actor. ![]() Beans Vs Astronauts
Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a space suit damages them. ![]() Aging
This is how Marilyn Monroe would have looked in her old age. ![]() Birth control pills
Human birth control pills work on gorillas. ![]() An 11 year old boy survived the Gas Chambers during the Holocaust 6 times!
Moshe Peer was an 11 year old boy during World War II and the horrific events that were the Holocaust. Peer was sent to the infamous Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, which featured a gas chamber where hundreds of thousands of Jewish people were killed. Some may say it was a blessing that Peer was able to survive the gas chamber six different times, for completely unknown reasons. However, others would say that his survival was a curse, because he witnessed, first hand as a child, hundreds of women and children slowly dying around him while he stayed alive. Peer spent 19 years writing a book about his experiences at Bergen-Belsen and what he witnessed as a child in the gas chambers, and how it haunted him for the rest of his life. To read more about him check out the reference. ---------------- Reference: http://en.metapedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Peer Further Reading: http://www.scrapbookpages.com/BergenBelsen/BergenBelsen04.html ![]() Albino Deer
The odds of seeing three albino deer at once are one in seventy-nine billion, yet one man in Boulder Junction, Wisconsin, took a picture of three albino deer in the woods ![]() Catnip
Catnip, or Nepeta cataria, is an herb with nepetalactone in it. Many think that when cats inhale nepetalactone, it affects hormones that arouse sexual feelings, or at least alter their brain functioning to make them feel "high." Catnip was originally made, using nepetalactone as a natural bug repellant, but roaming cats would rip up the plants before they could be put to their intended task. ![]() nematode Caenorhabditis elegans
The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans ages the equivalent of five human years for every day they live, so they usually die after about fourteen days. When stressed, though, the worm goes into a comatose state that can last for two or more months. The human equivalent would be to sleep for about two hundred years. ![]() Raisins
A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top. ![]() Babies
On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily. ![]() Elephant
The elephant is the only mammal that can’t jump! ![]() Oscars
Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood. ![]() Left Handed vs Right handed
Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people ![]() The Rock
After failing to make the NFL, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was broke, suffering from depression, and was living with his parents at age 24. At this point he decided to start training for wrestling ![]() The tragic twin boy who was brought up as a girl after horrific hospital blunder
It is the extraordinary case which ignited a bitter debate about scientists playing God. But when twin boys Bruce and Brian Reimer were born there was no indication that their lives would end so tragically. Their mother Janet gave birth to them in January 1965 and at first, the children were perfectly healthy and normal. However, at six months old, they began to have trouble urinating. Doctors told the boys' parents that a simple circumcision would solve the problem. What should have been a routine operation turned out to have tragic consequences for the Reimer family. Rather than perform the operation with a blade, surgeons used a faulty cauterising needle. The electrical equipment malfunctioned while Bruce was on the operating table leaving him with dreadful injuries to his genitals. Several months later Janet and Ron Reimer still did not know how they were going to raise their disfigured son - until they were introduced to Dr John Money, a psychologist specialising in sex changes. Although he lacked any scientific evidence, Dr. Money's hunch was that nurture, rather than biology, was the significant factor in determining gender - and Bruce and Brian represented the perfect opportunity to test the theory. His proposal was for Bruce to be raised as a girl alongside 'her' twin brother. Key to the experiment was the fact that, under no circumstances should she ever be told that she was in fact born a boy. If she developed into a happy, content and normal woman, Money's theory would be groundbreaking. The Reimers consented and Bruce, after further corrective surgury while still an infant, grew up as Brenda. For several years, the experiment played out Dr Money's preconceptions. In yearly meetings with the Reimers, Money observed that, despite being born a boy, Brenda had developed stereotypically female characteristics. She had grown into the role of a girl. 'The mother stated her daughter was much neater than her brother and, in contrast with him, disliked to be dirty,' he noted at one of these annual briefings, although he added that Brenda had 'many tomboy traits'. By the time the twins reached the age of nine, Dr Money was confident that his theory had been proved. He wrote a medical paper revealing his findings, although he referred to Brenda as John/Joan to protect his identity. But four years later and now in her teens, Brenda was suicidal. 'I could see that Brenda wasn't happy as a girl," Janet Reimer remembered in an interview years later. 'She was very rebellious. She was very masculine, and I could not persuade her to do anything feminine. Brenda had almost no friends growing up. Everybody ridiculed her, called her cavewoman. 'She was a very lonely, lonely girl.' In desperation, the Reimers did the only thing they could think of to help their child - they explained to Brenda that she had been born a boy. Within weeks, Brenda made the decision to revert to David. Nature had triumphed over nuture. He had re-constructive surgery, married and eventually became a stepfather to three children. But David's story does not have a happy ending. He evetually discovered that his own upbringing was the subject of a 'successful' experiment immortalised in academic essays on gender reassignment - and that his deeply traumatic childhood was now being used as a roadmap for raising boys in similar circumstance. He began suffering from depression, compounded by the breakdown of his marriage and the death of his brother in 2002 from a drugs overdose. In 2004, at the age of 38, he committed suicide. Polly Carmichael of Great Ormand Street Hospial says that Dr Money's singular, God-like control over the Reimers would not be allowed to happen today. 'We now have well-functioning multi-disciplinary teams around the country so that the decision will be taken by a variety of professionals,' she told the BBC. 'The parents would be much more involved in terms of the decision making process. 'One of the wonderful thing about working with children and their families is that children are amazingly resilient. 'With support, I'm constantly amazed at what children are able to take on and manage.' Image: Twins: Bruce (right) was brought up as a little girl for much of his childhood. He is seen here with his twin Brian Suggested by: Jumana Nizar ---------------- Reference: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1332396/Bruce-Reimer-Tragic-twin-boy-brought-girl.html Troubled: David spent his adult life as a man, but was always disturbed about his controversial upbringing and eventually committed suicide: http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/11/23/article-1332396-0C34C30C000005DC-605_468x512.jpg ![]() Heart
Your heart beats over 100,000 times a day. ![]() Rome
There is a city called Rome on every continent. ![]() Hitler
Adolf Hitler was a vegetarian, and had only ONE testicle. ![]() Dolphins and humans
Humans and dolphins are the only species that have sex for pleasure. ![]() Meet the Brazilian who has been in hospital for 45 years.
Paulo Henrique Machado has lived almost his entire life in hospital. As a baby he suffered infantile paralysis brought on by polio, and he is still hooked up to an artificial respirator 24 hours a day. But despite this, he has trained as a computer animator and is now creating a television series about his life. The 45-year-old Brazilian, whose mother died two days after giving birth to him, was struck down by infantile paralysis brought on by polio, leaving him incapable of fending for himself. He needs constant help with his breathing from an artificial respirator, cannot walk unaided and has left his hospital 'universe' barely more than 50 times. But despite his debilitating condition, Paulo has trained as a computer animator and is making a film about his life, based on a story by his best friend, confidante and roommate, Eliana Zagui, who also suffered polio as a child and has lived in the Sao Paulo's Clinicas ever since. 'Some people think we are like husband and wife, but we are more like brother and sister,' Paolo told the BBC. 'Every day, when I wake up I have the certainty that my strength is over there - Eliana. And it's reciprocated. I trust her and she trusts me.' The pair were among 11 children admitted to the hospital with polio - an all-but-wiped-out but highly-infectious viral disease that affects under fives - in the 1970s. Forced to live in what was called a 'torpedo' - effectively a body-encasing iron lung - during his early years, he was forced to create his own 'universe' inside the confines of his hospital prison. His earliest memories are of 'exploring' the corridors of each ward in his wheelchair, wandering into the rooms of other children, his only toy being his imagination. But, with an average life expectancy of just ten years, Paulo and Eliana watched all their friends die, one by one. Doctors never understood why Paulo and Eliana outlived the others, but they say the experience, while sad, has brought them closer together. 'It was difficult,' says Machado. 'Each loss was like a dismembering, you know, physical… like a mutilation. Now, there's just two of us left - me and Eliana.' The risk of infection is high for Paulo and Eliana, so they rarely travel outside of the hospital. But advancing technology has allows them increasing freedom to see parts of the world that ordinary people may take for granted. They have, however, made the odd trip outside; their most memorable outing was to the beach in the 1990s. 'There are some [trips] which stand out, like seeing the beach for the first time when I was 32,' he says. 'I opened the car door and saw the sea and thought 'Wow! What is this?' Eliana, who says she had built an image of the sea based on films, pictures and postcards that she had seen, adds: 'They took us out of the vehicles, Paulo was in a wheelchair and they pushed my bed onto the sand. 'You enjoy these little moments, that many people take for granted. They don't stop to marvel like we do.' Because they have lived at the hospital for so long, they are allowed to decorate their room in whatever way they chose. While they say it often brings out a friendly argument, they have agreed to split the room down the middle. Paulo's side is filled with film memorabilia, while Eliana's side is full of books and dolls. Neither have attended 'school' in the way other children do. But that hasn't stopped them gaining an education. Indeed, Eliana is a published author and spends her time either writing or painting using her mouth. Paulo is using his computer animation skills, combined with Eliana's storytelling, to make a 3-D animated film called The Adventures of Leca and her Friends. And in May this year, he managed to raise the £45,000 he needed through an online campaign to realise his dream and begin making the stop-animation film. He says it follows Leca, which is also Eliana's nickname, playing 'all the mischievous games kids get up to'. He says his characters are realistic because 'they come from someone who is disabled'. he added: 'I know [exactly] what the difficulties they face are.' Story Suggested by: Daniyal Toor & Rajani Writes ---------------- Reference: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-23364127 Daily Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2384731/Paulo-Henrique-Machado-hospital-45-years.html ![]() Keanu Reeves
Keanu Reeves had suffered from and undergone surgery for two-level fusion of the cervical spine which had been slowly paralyzing his legs, only a few months before filming for The Matrix began, That's why he does not kick much in the film. ![]() “Doomsday Seed Vault” in the Arctic
On a desolate Arctic island off the coast of Norway is the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, a repository with the capacity to hold up to 2.25 billion seeds in the event of a "doomsday" catastrophe. When the vault was first built in 2006, more than 100 countries contributed seeds. The concrete building is outfitted with steel airlock doors, fencing and a guard system. At the time of its opening, a BBC article said its backers called it "the most secure building of its type in the world." The same article also revealed that seeds are packed in special four-ply packets and heat sealed to keep out moisture. They're then kept at temperatures of minus 18 degrees Celcius, which could help the seeds last hundreds or even thousands of years. Even if the cooling system were to fail, the mountain's permafrost would keep the seeds' temperature from rising above freezing. A recent article by National Geographic offers a look into the remote facility, operated by the Global Crop Diversity Trust, which in an era of climate change and changing farming preferences may be saving the seeds for something other than asteroid impacts and nuclear war: "I'd say doomsday is happening everyday for crop varieties," said Cary Fowler, executive director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, which helps manage the facility. "Lots of people think that this vault is waiting for doomsday before we use it. But it's really a backup plan for seeds and crops. We are losing seed diversity every day and this is the insurance policy for that." What does seed diversity mean? A single crop of wheat, for instance, may have 200,000 different varieties, each one with its own traits. One might grow better in high temperatures, another in low. How it fares during droughts and against disease are also determined by its variety. Fowler also explained to The New York Times why it's important to maintain this diversity: Conserving the plants that feed us -- our crops -- is a distinct challenge because it is not the species, but the genetic diversity within species that is the focus. And the “use value,” another hotly contested topic, is undisputed: it is a simple fact that without access to crop diversity, we will not be able to grow the food we require in the future. Diversity is a prerequisite for crop improvement and adaptation. Story Suggested by: Surbhi Goel ---------------- Reference: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/10/doomsday-svalbard-global-seed-vault_n_1661682.html Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svalbard_Global_Seed_Vault Further Reading: http://www.globalresearch.ca/doomsday-seed-vault-in-the-arctic-2/23503 ![]() Hold your breath
You can’t kill yourself by holding your breath. ![]() French Kiss Vs English Kiss
What is called a "French kiss" in the English speaking world is known as an "English kiss" in France ![]() Money
Money isn't made out of paper; it's made out of cotton. ![]() Wendy
The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan, there was never a recorded Wendy before! ![]() Stomach
Your stomach produces a new layer of mucus every two weeks - otherwise it will digest itself. ![]() Horse
You can tell the sex of a horse by its teeth. Most males have 40, females have 36. ![]() Egypt
In Egypt, actors were not allowed to testify in court because they were seen as professional liars. ![]() People who are allergic to latex are also likely to also be allergic to kiwi and mango. |
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True or not?
Vegetarian is an old Indian word that means bad hunter. ![]() I see what you did there Japan.
![]() From the late 1860s until the 1970s, some U.S. cities had ugly laws, making it illegal for people with “unsightly or disgusting” disabilities to appear in public
They are commonly called the “ugly laws,” but some cities called them the “unsightly beggar ordinances.” The idea of the laws was not to be inhumane, but to preserve the overall quality of life of the community. In a sense, they were their times version of a homeowners association. San Francisco was one of the first cities to create an ugly law in 1867. It grew ever popular among western and Midwestern cities. The whole state of Pennsylvania adopted ugly laws in the 1890s, though. Other cities that embraced the ugly laws were Chicago, Columbus, Ohio, and Omaha, Nebraska. Sadly, the laws that tried to prevent maimed, mutilated, and unsightly deformities weren’t eradicated in many cities until the 1970s! Omaha was the first to throw out their ugly laws in 1967 followed by Columbus in 1972. Chicago was the last to follow suit in 1974. Any city that might have accidentally had ugly laws lingering had them dismissed when the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed by congress in 1990. ---------------- Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ugly_law ![]() Neil Armstrong sued his barber of 20 years after he sold his hair to a collector for $3,000.
![]() Professor McGonagall
Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall) battled cancer while filming the last Harry Potter movie because she didn't want to disappoint fans. ![]() Man turns permanently BLUE after he self-medicates for a skin condition
A man who turned blue after self-medicating for a skin condition says his hue is lightening. Paul Karason, 58, has the strange Papa Smurf look as a side effect of using a silver compound which he used more than a decade ago to treat a bad case of dermatitis on his face. But he told NBC's Today Show that his skin is lightening because he is now using the self-administered doses of colloidal silver less. 'I’m in a place right now where it’s very difficult for me to make my own, and my resources are limited and it’s very expensive,' he explained to host Matt Lauer, a year after first appearing on the programme. Colloidal silver is a suspension of silver in a liquid base - in this case, distilled water. Silver has antibacterial properties and has been used to fight infection for thousands of years. But it went out of use when penicillin, which is far more effective, was developed. It continued to be used in some over-the-counter medicines until 1999, when the FDA banned it because it causes argyria, which is a result of the silver reacting with light the same way it does in photography. The silver collects in the skin and other organs and does not dissipate, meaning Karason will be blue for life. Karson also revealed he has recently broke off his relationship with partner Jackie Northrup during his interview today, who he was engaged to when he last appeared on the U.S. show. He said: '[My skin] has lightened up, it is not major but it is lightening up. I am actually going to try green.' ---------------- Reference: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1212557/Blue-man-Paul-Karason-blue-self-medicates-silver-skin-condition.html ![]() The youngest known person to commit suicide was 6 year old Samantha Kuberski who tied a belt to a crib and hung herself after being sent to her room.
A six-year-old girl who was sent to her room for punishment is feared to be one of the youngest people to have ever committed suicide in the U.S. Samantha Kuberskki was found hanging by a belt at her home in Oregon after being sent to her room for arguing with her mother. Her death was ruled as suicide by the coroner - sparking a bitter row with police who investigated her death and insist it was an accident. Detectives who interviewed the family insist the girl did not know what she was doing when she tied a corduroy belt around her neck. 'Our investigators feel that it does appear that Samantha may have done the actions that led to her death,' said Captain Dennis Marks, who headed the investigation. 'But we find it hard to believe that she would have intentionally done that, which we feel is part of committing suicide.' The shocking incident took place last December after Samantha returned home from school with her three sisters. After arguing with her mother Kellie she was sent to her bedroom as punishment. Mrs Kuberskki later found her daughter hanging from a the top rail of a disused cot and desperately tried to revive her. Her father Graham arrived home just as paramedics were rushing Samantha to hospital where she later died. It emerged that Samantha had been told off previously for playing with the belt, but had expressed no suicidal intentions. The medical examiner for Portland, Oregon, ruled the girl's death as suicide. Psychiatrists Dr. Kirk Wolfe agreed with the police version that the girl did not realise what she was doing. 'Most kids this age are not aware of what death actually is,' he said. 'Not until they get to be 8, 9 and 10 do they understand death is final and you don't come back.' ---------------- Reference: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1264617/Girl-6-sent-room-punishment-youngest-people-committed-suicide-US.html |
![]() Yoghurt
The bacteria found in Yogurt, is the same bacteria found inside a vagina. ![]() Mr Moseby
Phil Lewis(AKA Mr Moseby) was charged with manslaughter and sentenced to five years of prison. ![]() The Janitor
The Janitor on Scrubs was only supposed to be on the show for one season, where it would then be revealed that he just a figment of J.D's imagination. however, Bill Lawrence realized that The Janitor was too funny of a character to get rid of, so he was signed on as a series regular. Not only that, but Neil Flynn; the actor that played The Janitor was considered to be so perfect in his role that Bill Lawrence stopped writing lines for him in most of his scenes and instead told him to say and do whatever he wanted. |