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FACT-OF-THE-DAY ARCHIVE
"Our life is what our thoughts make it."
- Marcus Aurelius

SEP 2020


Previous Archives

DATE FACT OF THE DAY
9/1/20      In addition to greeting and hugging each other with their trunks, elephants also use their trunks to swat smaller elephants as a form of discipline. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/2/20      In Botswana, life expectancy was rumored to have dropped from 65 to 35 years old due to AIDS. As of 2014, the life expectancy had climbed to age 71 for women and age 61 for men. Reference: https://www.sundaystandard.info/botswanaocos-life-expectancy-rate-drops-ihme-study/
9/3/20      Norway pines, which were at one time considered the best trees to use as ships' masts, were not named for the European country. Rather they were named for Norway, Maine. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/4/20      A cat’s brain is biologically more similar to a human brain than it is to a dog’s. Both humans and cats have identical regions in their brains that are responsible for emotions. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/5/20      After the Chernobyl disaster, one nearby forest, now known as the "Red Forest," turned a reddish color and died. However, even 15–20 years after the meltdown, the trees have not decayed. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/6/20      Quakers, such as George Cadbury, amassed a great fortune producing drinking chocolate as an alternative to alcohol. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/7/20      Per capita, Americans consume more alcoholic beverages than they do milk. There are also more miles of roadway and more registered cars in the United States than any other country in the world. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/8/20      Cholesterol is produced in the liver or intestines. A human liver produces about 1 g. of cholesterol per day. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/9/20      Thomas Jefferson brought french fries to America when he returned to the states from France after the Revolutionary War. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/10/20      The oldest surviving work about mathematics was written by the ancient Egyptian scribe Ahmes around 1650 B.C. Found on the Rhine Mathematical Papyrus, it is titled “The Entrance into the Knowledge of All Existing Things and All Obscure Secrets.” Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/11/20      Benin, in West Africa, holds the the record for the country with the most twin births, at 27.0 twins per 1,000 births. The world average is 13.6 twins per 1,000 births. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/12/20      The Born Free Foundation estimates that 30%–50% of Africa’s lion population has been illegally killed over the last 20 years. Just 32,000 of these animals remain in the wild. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/13/20      The Rosetta stone, the most significant relic of Egyptian history, is a tax-oriented document. It was inscribed around 200 B.C. during the reign of the boy-king Ptolemy V. It was so important that it was written in three languages. In fact, a large percentage of all ancient documents are tax records of one kind or another. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/14/20      Newspapers have such large-sized sheets of paper because of a British 1816 tax on newspapers. The “knowledge tax” was levied by page. In response, newspapers started using larger paper size to accommodate more text, thereby reducing the number of pages taxed. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/15/20      The Earth’s plates move just a few inches a year—about as fast as a person’s fingernails grow. This continental pattern predicts that 250 million years from now, a new supercontinent will be born. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/16/20      Rangers at Christmas Island, Australia built a bridge over a busy road to help the nearly 50 million crabs make the their annual migration to the sea to spawn. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/17/20      Taiwanese are fond of chewing the betel nut. Unfortunately, because it is carcinogenic, Taiwan has one of the highest rates of mouth and throat cancer in Asia. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/18/20      Dutch pediatrician Willem K. Dicke, who treated children with celiac symptoms in the 1930s and '40s, noticed that his young patients improved during the bread shortages of WWII and relapsed when bread and cereal became abundant. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/19/20      Is the red panda a bear? A type of raccoon? Throughout the years, scientists have placed the adorable animal in either the racoon or bear family. They now classify it as the only surviving member of the family Ailuridae. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/20/20      The American Samoa island of Tutuila has the largest concentration of fast food restaurants and is the biggest purchaser of fast food in the entire South Pacific. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/21/20      That the Great Wall is a single, continuous wall built all at once is a myth. In reality, the wall is a discontinuous network of wall segments built by various dynasties to protect China’s northern boundary. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/22/20      Many sodas have phosphoric acid, which has been associated with an increased risk for osteoporosis, bone loss, and tooth decay. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/23/20      A human’s ears and nose never stop growing. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/24/20      Abraham Lincoln first fell into a deep depression after Ann Rutledge, his first love, died. Lincoln reportedly suffered from chronic depression his entire life. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/25/20      A human’s little finger contributes over 50% of the hand’s strength. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/26/20      There is a spider in Hawaii that looks like it's smiling. Dubbed the "Hawaiian happy-face spider," the cheerful-looking spider is under the threat of extinction. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/27/20      The Supreme Court of the United States ruled in 2016 that the national all-male draft laws are “fully justified” because women do not serve in combat positions within the military. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/28/20      The coyote is one of the most adaptable animals in the world. They can change breeding habits, diets, and social dynamics to survive in a wide variety of habitats. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/29/20      The low air pressure of a twister can literally pull a person's eardrum outward. Provided by FactRetriever.com
9/30/20      The only woman to have ever appeared on a U.S. currency note is Martha Washington. She was on the $1 Silver Certificate in 1886 and 1891 and on the back of the $1 Silver Certificate in 1896. Provided by FactRetriever.com


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