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![The default Windows XP wallpaper is arguably the most viewed photograph in history]()
The "Bliss" photograph, the default wallpaper for Windows XP, was taken by Charles O'Rear in 1998.![Albert Einstein was once offered the presidency of Israel]()
Einstein was asked to become Israel's second president. He declined, however, citing ill health and a lack of experience in dealing with people and exercising official functions.?![humans technically glow]()
The glow, too dim for our own eyes to see, is caused by our metabolic and cellular processes.![The human brain uses more energy than any other organ]()
While the brain takes up only two percent of body mass, it consumes up to 20 percent of metabolic energy.![An octopus has three hearts]()
An octopus' three hearts have slightly different roles. While one circulates blood, the other two pump it past the gills to pick up oxygen.![the mouth is the fastest-healing part of the body]()
Mouth wounds heal faster than other minor injuries, partly due to rich blood supply and because there are fewer layers of tissue to heal.![Saudi Arabia has no permanent rivers or natural lakes]()
Saudi Arabia largely possesses water in underground aquifers.![Sloths have the slowest digestion rate of any mammal]()
Sloths sometimes need weeks to digest their food.![elephants can hear with their feet]()
Scientists theorize that elephants use their feet to sense vibrations as far as 50 miles away, allowing the animals to detect water from faraway storms.![A giant cloud of alcohol exists in space]()
The cloud, Sagittarius B2, is a thousand times larger than the diameter of our solar system. The alcohol is not drinkable.![The most remote place on earth is also an underwater graveyard for old space vessels]()
Point Nemo, an area known to be the furthest away from any land features, is located in the South Pacific Ocean.![ostriches are faster than horses]()
Ostriches are capable of sprinting up to 45 mph, while a fast horse can reach around 44 mph in short distances.![water can boil and freeze at the same time]()
The only temperature at which water can exist in all three states of matter is 0.01°C.![Bones are stronger than concrete]()
Bones, which are lightweight and slightly flexible, can absorb shock better than brittle materials like concrete.![iceland has no mosquitos!]()
The country's cold climate helps prevent mosquitoes from breeding.?![Astronauts can't burp in space]()
Without gravity, gas can't separate from liquids in the stomach.![Saturn would float If there were a body of water large enough to hold the planet]()
Saturn is the only planet in the Solar System less dense than water.![samurai topknots were originally designed to hold a helmet in place]()
The topknot prevented helmets from slipping off when samurais were in battle.?![Your stomach gets a new lining every three to four days]()
Rapid cell turnover is crucial in preventing strong acids from damaging the stomach lining.![Caterpillars dissolve into goo before becoming butterflies]()
Caterpillars can retain memories following metamorphosis, studies suggest.![neutron stars - the remnants of a supernova - are so dense that a tablespoon of its material weigh more than a billion tons]()
In contrast, a tablespoon of the Sun would weigh about five pounds.![octopus technically have nine brains! they have one central brain and mini-brains in each arm]()
Octopus' arms contain a small cluster of nerve cells called a ganglion, which acts like a mini-brain.![Snails can sleep for up to 3 years]()
Some snail species can enter a state of deep dormancy, especially in extreme conditions, like drought, to retain moisture.![the smell of freshly-cut grass is actually a plant’s distress call]()
Plants release a mixture of chemicals that act as a warning to neighboring plants. The chemicals also attract beneficial insects that can help defend against further attacks.?![stomach acid can dissolve razor blades]()
Stomach acid can corrode certain metals over time, but don't try to find out, of course.![Some tears are compositionally different than others, such as sad tears, happy tears and tears from cutting onions]()
Tears contain varying levels of stress hormones, pain-relief compounds and dopamine-related byproducts.![Scotland's national animal is the unicorn]()
The ?unicorn has deep roots in Celtic mythology. It is also a symbol of untamable freedom, and Scotland has a long history of resisting conquest.![Radiation-eating fungi exists near Chernobyl]()
The fungi can be found growing on its reactor walls and inside the damaged reactor core.![Finland almost has as many saunas as cars]()
There are more than 3 million saunas and 3 million cars in Finland.![Some turtles can breath through their butts]()
The rear end of some turtles, especially those specialized in diving, function similar to the gills of a fish.![astronauts shed calluses while in space because their feet do not require the tough skin for walking anymore]()
The body loses the calluses if it doesn't need them anymore, but they can still come back quickly.![the arteries of a blue whale are so massive, humans could swim in them]()
The aorta alone measures over nine inches.![the name]()
The name first appeared in "The Merchant of Venice."?![NASA launched two golden records into space in 1977 for potential alien life to discover. The records contain music, greetings, images of earth and human anatomy]()
The Voyager Golden Records are gold-plated copper phonograph records attached to the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft.?![Sloths can hold their breath about 3X as long as dolphins]()
Three-toed sloths can hold their breath for up to 40 minutes. Dolphins, on the other hand, need to surface every 10 minutes or so.![naked mole rats, elephants are extremely resistant to cancer]()
A naked mole rat's immune system prevents damaged cells from accumulating, and elephants have tumor suppressor gene p53, which helps repair DNA damage.?![sunsets on mars are blue]()
The thin Martian atmosphere, which is mostly carbon dioxide and iron-rich dust, scatters red light and allows blue light to penetrate more efficiently.![Pilots and copilots often eat different meals to prevent food poisoning among the entire flight crew]()
Almost 200 passengers fell ill in the largest food poisoning incident aboard a commercial flight in 1975. The incident occurred on a Japan Air Lines flight.![Blood is produced in bone marrow because the location protects blood stem cells from harmful UV rays]()
In fish, blood stem cells are found in their kidneys. Fish have pigment cells that protect their kidneys from UV light.![snakes can predict earthquakes]()
Animals such as rats, weasels and snakes reportedly left their homes and headed for safety several days before a destructive earthquake.![Saudi Arabia import its camels from Australia]()
Australia has the world’s largest population of wild camels, and Saudi Arabia brings some of them in.![Every spelled-out number in English shares a letter with its subsequent number indefinitely.]()
"Five" shares an I with "Six" which shares an S with "Seven" which shares an E with "Eight" and so on!![Charles Darwin had a habit of eating the animals he encountered on his voyages, including a puma, an ostrich-like bird, a 20-pound rodent and giant tortoises]()
While at Cambridge, Charles Darwin was part of the Glutton Club, which was dedicated to eating unusual foods like hawks and owls.![Since its discovery in 1930, Pluto has yet to complete a full orbit around the Sun and won’t until 2178.]()
Pluto takes 248 Earth years to make one orbit around the Sun.![Central Park in NYC is bigger than the entire country of Monaco]()
Central Park is about 1.7 times larger than Monaco.![Scotland has 421 different words for]()
In Scotland, "sneesl" means to begin to rain or snow, "skelf" means a large snowflake and "flindrikin" means a slight snow shower.![Texas is larger than any individual country in Europe]()
The Lone Star State is not, however, bigger than the portion of Russia that is in Europe.![Movie theaters used to not have specific showtimes and would play films in a loop. Patrons would then go to the theater at any time, watch the middle to end and then wait for the movie to restart.]()
The practice of looped movies died around the 1970s.![Several regions, including Sweden, Italy and Mecca, previously banned or tried to ban coffee]()
Some used to think coffee stimulated radical thinking.![California and Canada both have about the same number of residents!]()
Canada and California’s populations both hover around 40 million people.![In the 1800s, ketchup used to be sold as medicine]()
The condiment was sold as a cure for indigestion by Ohio physician John Cook.![Penguins can survive without fresh water. They have a gland that filters out excess salt from their bloodstream whenever they intake seawater.]()
The excess salt is filtered out of the body by running down penguins' beaks.![Golf was the first sport played on the moon in 1971]()
Apollo 14 astronaut Alan Shepard's golf ball flew about 120 feet, according to remastered images.![Honey never expires!]()
Honey never expires because of its low water content and high acidity, an environment that's inhospitable to bacterial growth. You could eat honey that's thousands of years old, and it would still be OK.![People spend six years of their lives dreaming]()
Humans spend about two hours per day dreaming, which totals to six years of dreams for the average lifespan of 85 years.![Green peas are an extremely popular pizza topping in Brazil!]()
Green peas are a common ingredient in Brazilian cuisine and are often used in various dishes.?![Babies blink less than two times per minute, while adults blink 10 to 15 times]()
Theories suggest that babies have small eyes and sleep much more than adults, so they don’t need to blink as much to lubricate their eyes.![There are more mobile phones than people in the European country of Monaco]()
At the start of 2023, the tiny country of Monaco had 39,800 cellular mobile connections, which was equivalent to 109.3 percent of the total population.![Wyoming only has two escalators across the entire state]()
Escalators are rare in Wyoming, partially because developers often build outward rather than upward. Due to the state’s low population and vast land, buildings don’t typically need to have many floors.![Rats can laugh when tickled]()
Great apes such as gorillas and chimpanzees are also known to laugh when tickled.![Woolly mammoths were still alive when the pyramids of Giza were being constructed]()
Woolly mammoths existed for half a million years and went extinct 4,000 years ago.![The brain of a newborn baby will double in size by their first birthday]()
The brain of a newborn baby is about a quarter of the size of an average adult brain. It will be nearly fully grown by age five.![There are more organisms in a tablespoon of soil than there are people on Earth]()
A tablespoon of soil carries 50 billion microbes.![Temperature around the nose jumps during a lie due to increased anxiety and blood flow]()
The phenomenon is referred to as the "Pinocchio effect."![Before becoming a vital packaging material, bubble wrap used to be marketed as textured wallpaper and then as insulation material]()
The creators kept failing at marketing bubble wrap until its usefulness in protecting goods was discovered.![Because the Moon is still losing heat from its inner core, which stresses the celestial body’s outer layer, and is constantly affected by Earth’s gravitational pull, quakes occasionally occur.]()
Moonquakes are not like earthquakes. Lunar seismic activity can last up to hours, while terrestrial tremors usually last for seconds. However, moonquakes have so far been measured at smaller magnitudes.![Beef fat or bees wax used to be the main ingredients for candles, allowing people to eat them when food became scarce]()
Instead of tallow, candles are now commonly made of paraffin wax, which derives from petroleum, coal or oil shale.![Among the entire human population, only 10% are left-handed. However, the US, Netherlands, and Canada have the highest rates of left-handed people at about 13%. Asian countries have some of the lowest rates with China, Japan, and India at 5% or less]()
Negative attitudes toward left-handedness in China led people to force a right-handed dominance. Teachers may even change a child's writing hand to the right.![The global human population is currently over 8 billion people. That means each person shares their birthday with another 20 million people or so]()
The most common birthdays in the U.S. are in September. Some say that babies born in this month were conceived around the holidays when couples had more free time and felt more festive.![While the U.S. has 11 public holidays, Nepal has three times as many at 39]()
Nepalese workers receive extra time off to properly observe their national holidays, easing their regular six-day work week.![Cows can’t walk down stairs without assistance even though they can walk up. This is because their knee structure and weight distribution are not designed to descend the steep decline of a staircase]()
Because a cow’s neck is far less mobile than a human’s, they also have difficulty seeing when descending downward.![The name Mohammed, including its different variations of spelling, ranked globally as the most popular first name last year at 133 million people. Maria was the next most common name at 61 million people]()
Mohammed can also be spelled as Muhammad, Mohamed and Mohammad.![Instead of turkeys, baked ham or tamales, Japan’s staple Christmas food is Kentucky Fried Chicken]()
After allegedly overhearing an expat say they missed eating turkey on the holiday, the enterprising manager at Japan’s first KFC was able to capitalize on the country’s lack of traditional Christmas meal customs. Hence, chicken became the next best thing.![Earth’s land masses move just a few centimeters per year, the same rate as your nails grow]()
Individual tectonic plates move at different speeds. Coastal California, for example, moves faster than the continental U.S. at 5 centimeters, or 2 inches, annually. The relatively fast movement explains why the region experiences so many earthquakes.![The 15th President of the United States James Buchanan was the only chief of state to have never married]()
Buchanan’s niece, Harriet Lane, took on the role of first lady, or the White House "hostess."![Female fig wasps die inside figs after laying eggs and pollinating the flowers. Wasp larvae will then remain inside until fully developed]()
Figs produce a chemical called "ficin" that breaks down the bodies of dead wasps, meaning you won't always find insect carcasses inside.![US consumers spend about $902 every Christmas, which is roughly the same as the country’s median pre-tax weekly salary of $1165]()
According to the National Retail Federation, 71% of that budget is spent on gifts while the rest is spent on other seasonal items such as decorations and travel expenses.![Human brains are made of 60% fat, making it the fattiest organ of the body]()
Fatty acids are crucial for the brain to function. The remaining 40% of the brain consists of water, protein, carbohydrates and salt.![Only 10% of the human population live in the Southern Hemisphere]()
The majority of Earth’s land (68%) is located in the North. The hemisphere also has much more favorable climates and urban development for human civilization compared to the South.![While the color of a mirror depends on what you see in the reflection, mirrors actually absorb green light the poorest, making reflections appear greener than they are]()
A perfect mirror, which would reflect all wavelengths of visible light equally, would actually appear white. However, no mirror is made perfect in reality. This is why the reflections of two mirrors facing each other become greener and greener.![About a tenth of those who make New Year’s resolutions actually succeed in keeping them]()
About half of Americans, if not more, quit their resolutions by the second month, according to research.![In 1836, the Great Patent Office Fire burned the patent for the first cast iron fire hydrant]()
The ironic twist of fate left manufacturers in a frenzy to claim the title of "first."![A human nose is 200,000 times more sensitive to geosmin (the compound responsible for the smell of Earth after rain) than a shark is to blood!]()
While sharks are designed to smell blood to find food, humans are designed to smell rain to find water.![Due to their unique hind leg anatomy and heavy tails, kangaroos can’t walk nor hop in reverse]()
This marsupial's large tails prevent it from moving backwards. Instead, a kangaroo's anatomy is optimized only to help propel them forward.![The most frequently used letters on a QWERTY keyboard was purposely placed far apart from each other to prevent jamming in early typewriters]()
If commonly used letters were placed next to each other on old typewriters, typing too quickly could have caused type bars to collide.![All iPhones pictured in an Apple ad have the time set to 9:41 to represent the moment when then-Apple CEO Steve Jobs first revealed the product on Jan 9, 2007.]()
One exception was a video advertisement that introduced iPhones with crash detection. The displayed iPhone had the time set to 7:48, possibly to prevent the time 9:41 from being associated with car crashes.![It takes 5 minutes for alcohol to reach a person’s brain and can start affecting the person within 10 minutes]()
Alcohol also stays in urine for more than three days and in hair follicles for up to three months, according to Northwestern Medicine.![Scallops have the most eyes than any other organism in the world, having about 200 eyes along the edge of their shell]()
Their eyes are typically small, blue and iridescent.![Nearly all of the world’s money in circulation is digital. Only 8 percent exists as physical cash.]()
Digital currency ranges anywhere from credit cards, debit cards, online shopping to cryptocurrency,?![Intentionally registered on Valentine’s Day, YouTube was originally meant to become a video-based dating website where people could upload clips of themselves talking about their ideal partner]()
The world's largest video sharing platform eventually allowed people to upload any kind of clips, as no one was uploading dating videos.![Half a century ago, NASA astronaut Stuart Roosa carried hundreds of tree seeds into lunar orbit as part of an education initiative. The seeds were later germinated back on Earth and became known as]()
Some "Moon Trees" were given to several U.S. states, Brazil, France, Switzerland and even the Emperor of Japan.![Instead of removing native kidneys, which could cause more complications and scarring, the non-functioning organs can remain in the body and shrink over time.]()
Instead of removing native kidneys, which could cause more complications and scarring, the non-functioning organs can remain in the body and shrink over time.![While Komodo dragons primarily reproduce by mating, females can resort to asexual reproduction when no males are around. They also almost always produce male offspring, an ability females have in order to establish a population in an isolated environment]()
A female Komodo dragon's ability to reproduce asexually also has its drawbacks, such as resulting in a lack of genetic diversity and inbreeding.![In 1963, Lyndon B. Johnson became the first and only president to be sworn in by a woman, U.S. District Court Judge Sarah T. Hughes]()
Johnson was sworn in by U.S. District Court Judge Sarah T. Hughes while on Air Force One, just hours after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Texas.![Snowflakes typically fall at 1.5 mph, meaning it takes about an hour for them to reach the ground]()
In contrast, a raindrop falls at an average speed of 20 mph.![The world’s first SMS message ever was sent in December 1992 from a computer to a cordless telephone. The text read]()
The message was sold as an NFT in 2021 for more than $100,000.![Shoveling snow significantly increases the risk of a heart attack. The strenuous activity combined with cold temperatures can lead to an increased heart rate and restricted blood vessels.]()
While the motion of shoveling and throwing snow over your shoulder can rapidly increase your heart rate, cold temperatures can further constrict blood vessels and spike your blood pressure.![Although it’s counterintuitive, hot water freezes faster than cold water. While hot water is cooling, it’s still evaporating and losing mass. With less mass, there’s less heat to lose. So, hot water eventually freezes faster than cold water]()
Essentially, hot water freezes first only because there's less of the liquid to freeze.![In the year 1170 BC, the first-ever documented labor strike in the world took place in ancient Egypt]()
Laborers, tasked with building burial chambers, waited for 18 days beyond their payday before starting a sit-down strike. They also complained of hunger and insufficient wheat rations.?![While hippos can sleep underwater, they can’t swim. They’re too dense to even float.]()
Hippos have a built-in reflex that allows them to take a breath at the surface without waking up.![With the exception of a small blind spot directly behind them, cows can see nearly 360 degrees around them]()
A cow’s panoramic vision allows them to see 300 degrees around them.![About 2 billion people celebrate the Lunar New Year, about a fifth of the world’s population!]()
Many countries celebrate the Lunar New Year, including China, Vietnam, South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore.![English actor Frank Oz voiced both Yoda from Star Wars and Miss Piggy from The Muppets!]()
Oz also voiced the Cookie Monster, among other Sesame Street characters.![Because brain activity and concentration burns calories, studying uses slightly more energy than when resting]()
The calories one may burn while thinking hard is quite minimal, meaning studying shouldn’t be considered a weight-loss strategy.![During the prehistoric ages, a year had more than 365 days. This is because the moon slowly drags the Earth’s spin over millions of years, making days last longer.]()
According to NASA, a year had 370 days about 70 million years ago, and a year had 486 days about 900 million years ago.![There are thousands of sports across the world. The Olympics only features less than 1% of them]()
The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and LA 2028 Summer Olympics will feature a total of 43 sports.![Opposite sides of a standard six-sided dice will always add up to seven. This arrangement helps distribute weight across the dice]()
This means 1 is opposite of 6, 2 is opposite of 5, and 3 is opposite of 4.![Many dogs will often lead with the same leg when they start walking forward]()
That leg is their dominant leg!![Our ancestors were once pushed to the brink of extinction 900,000 years ago]()
Genetic studies suggest that the human population once shrunk to 1,280 in Africa, according to history.com.![You would only have lived one billion seconds after turning roughly 32 years old.]()
You live 1 million seconds when you turn 11 days old.![Constellations would look the same if we were to view them from Neptune. That’s how unfathomably far our solar system is from the stars!]()
From the Orion’s Belt to the Big Dipper, constellations would look the same from every other planet in our solar system.![Hershey, known for their chocolate, and Hershey’s Ice Cream are completely separate and unrelated companies]()
Both companies were found in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the same year and by men with the same last name.![When Robert Downey Jr. went to Japan for the opening of Iron Man, he was interrogated for his lengthy criminal activity. Although he was cleared to enter, Japan ultimately asked him to never come back again]()
Robert Downey Jr., who didn't disclose his past arrests and drug-related charges during his travels, was interrogated for six hours in 2008.![President’s Day was originally called Washington’s Birthday to honor the first U.S. president.]()
George Washington’s birthday lands on Feb. 22, but President’s Day is now observed on the third Monday of February.![You can tell the temperature in Fahrenheit by counting how many chirps a cricket makes within 15 seconds and then adding 40.]()
Crickets rub their wings together faster in warm weather and slower in cold weather.?![Mangos, cashews and poison ivy are all related to one another and contain an oily irritant]()
The oily irritant can be found in a cashew's shell, leaves, stems and roots. Mangos contain it in its skin, stems, leaves and tree sap.![About 5-10% of the electricity used by a lightbulb is converted into light. The rest is wasted as heat!]()
This is typical for incandescent light bulbs.![Until the 1920s, NYC used to have a designated Moving Day. Every resident had to wait until May 1 to swap homes in one go.]()
Moving Day eventually died out after becoming too chaotic. Streets used to be blocked by horse-drawn moving wagons!![Every year, Americans buy enough plastic film to shrink wrap the state of Texas]()
In 2018, millions of Americans were recorded using 10 or more rolls of plastic wrap, according to National Geographic.![Stars don’t twinkle. The incoming light we see bends due to turbulence in the Earth’s atmosphere, causing the star to have a twinkling effect.]()
The Earth's atmosphere is turbulent due to different temperatures and densities in the air. Because space doesn't have any atmosphere, stars don't appear to twinkle to astronauts.![The Earth’s core of molten and solid iron can reach to temperatures close to the surface of the Sun]()
Scientists measure the Earth's inner temperature by analyzing seismic waves generated by earthquakes.![The United States is the largest cheese producer in the world. About 29% of the world’s cheese comes from the U.S.]()
Germany is the second-largest cheese producer in the world.?!["Typewriter" is the longest word that can be typed from just one row on the keyboard.]()
"Typewriter" is the longest word that can be typed from just one row on the keyboard.![If the age of the Earth was condensed to the lifespan of a human, we would have lived for only 50 seconds respectively]()
A human's lifespan (85 years) is only 0.00000189% of the Earth's age (4.5 billion years).![The Atlantic Ocean is the saltiest ocean in the world, and the Arctic Ocean has the least]()
Salinity decreases near the equator and at both poles, but, on average, every gallon of ocean water has one cup of salt.![A single strand of hair may last 3-6 years on women before shedding, and 2-4 years on men]()
Hormones play an important role in hair loss in men. DHT, which is derived from testosterone, can cause hair follicles to shrink and result in eventual hair loss.![Italy has a red wine fountain open to the public completely free of charge]()
The winery, Dora Sarchese, located in Italy’s Abruzzo region, offers free wine 24/7.Fun Facts: The most viewed photograph in history
Did you know that the most viewed photo in history is the default wallpaper of Microsoft's Windows XP, and that Albert Einstein once declined the offer to become Israel's president?
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- Fun Facts: The most viewed photograph in history
