Friday, July 07, 2006

few fun facts on friday (2)

brought to you thanks to a friend who e-mailed this to me , source of information unknown, facts pending confirmation, but it's easy reading for a friday!! This is the second and last part , unless I find some more during the week... The first part is here...

New York City
* The term "The Big Apple" was coined by touring jazz musicians of the 1930s who used the slang -expression "apple" for any town or city. Therefore, to play New York City is to play the big time - The Big Apple.
* There are more Irish in New York City than in Dublin , Ireland ; more Italians in New York City than inRome , Italy ; and more Jews in New York City than in Tel Aviv, Israel .

North America - Africa
*Percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28. Percentage of North America that is wilderness: 38.
Ohio
*There are no natural lakes in the state of Ohio , every one is manmade.

Pitcairn Island
*The smallest island with country status is Pitcairn in Polynesia , at just 1.75 sq. miles/4,53 sq. km.
Roads
*Chances that a road is unpaved in the U.S.A.: 1%, in Canada: 75%.

Rome
* The first city to reach a population of 1 million people was Rome , Italy in 133 B.C.
* There is a city called Rome on every continent.
Siberia
*Siberia contains more than 25% of the world's forests.

S.M.O.M.
*The actual smallest sovereign entity in the world is the Sovereign Military Order of Malta ( S.M.O.M.). It is located in the city of Rome, Italy, has an area of two tennis courts, and as of 2001 has a population of 80, 20 less people than the Vatican. It is a sovereign entity under international law, just as the Vatican is.

Sahara Desert
*In the Sahara Desert , there is a town named Tidikelt, which did not receive a drop of rain for ten years.

Spain
*Spain literally means 'the land of rabbits.' ( note: I checked this out, wikipedia confirmed it in Spanish here )

St. Paul Minnesota
* St. Paul , Minnesota was originally called Pigs Eye after a man named Pierre "Pig's Eye" Parrant who set up the first business there.

Texas
*The deepest hole ever made in the world is in Texas. It is as deep as 20 empire state buildings but only 3 inches wide.

United States
*The Eisenhower interstate system requires that one-mile in every five must be straight. These straight sections are usable as airstrips in times of war or other emergencies.

Waterfalls
*The water of Angel Falls (the World's highest) in Venezuela drops 3,212 feet (979 meters). They are 15 times higher than Niagara Falls.

16 comments:

  1. Wow-fun, random facts.

    Michele says hi!

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  2. So interesting Mar....So many things I did not know and they sound right---well, ler's hope they are! (Lol)

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  3. It's amazing what you can learn! I knew a couple of them already and they check out with what I beleive to be true so I should think your source is reliable! :-)

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  4. my brain just keeps absorbing all your cool facts.

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  5. Thanks for teaching me something today. :-)
    LBC

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  6. A few more weeks of reading your blog and I'll be eligible for a PhD!!!

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  7. UGH! I am so glad I don't live in Tidikelt. But I would love to own that little Polynesian island! These are some really fun random facts! I had NO idea Canada had so many unpaved roads! Thanks Mar!

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  8. This is a great information. Almost all of your lists I only knew now.
    Thanks for dropping by.

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  9. Now this was truly a unique blog today. I love this kind of stuff anyway. Hmmmmm, you wonder where the 'hole' in Texas is?

    Interesting.

    Thanks for dropping by and commenting on my Friday Feast today.

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  10. VERY fun facts -- glad I popped by!

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  11. Great facts to digest!

    Michele sent me here.

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  12. funny. i'm venezuelan and live near niagara falls.
    p

    here via michele today.

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  13. Hey that's soooo interesting. I love the NYC facts about the ethnicity!
    Michele says hi there

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  14. now that was cool. Thanks for sharing on a friday feast vacation... Yeah for tomorrow .... I can't wait, then vacation for me. :)

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  15. whether its accurate or not, its very entertaining reading! Thanks for sharing! :-)

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  16. I like it when you share some cool facts like that, confirmed or not confirmed :lol:...
    I didn't know that the Big Apple is actually coined by musicians.
    And Rome had 1 million people in 133 B.C. - wow...unbelievable...
    10 years no rain? And I complain if we don't have a drop in one winter...
    Need to really see thing in a better perspective.
    Watching the German team today?

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