Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Extraordinary Book of Facts: And Bizarre Information (Bathroom Readers)
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Seventy-six percent of Americans celebrate New Year’s Eve in groups of fewer than 20.
Every Thanksgiving Americans consume 45 million turkeys—one for every five and a half people.
Americans send an estimated 900 million Valentine’s Day cards each year.
More collect calls are made on Father’s Day than on any other day of the year.
In the Woods
Beavers sometimes get crushed by the trees they gnaw down.
Reindeer milk has five times as much fat as cow milk.
There are 1,000 barbs in a single porcupine quill.
A typical porcupine has about 30,000 quills.
A wolf’s howl can be heard as far as seven miles away.
Beavers’ teeth are so sharp that Native Americans once used them as knife blades.
Some beaver dams are more than 1,000 years old.
A bison can jump as high as six feet off the ground.
If you feed a wild moose often enough, it will begin to attack people who don’t feed it.
A warthog has only four warts, all of them on its head.
Full-grown grizzly bears can bite through a half-inch of steel.
A hibernating bear can go as long as six months without a bathroom break.
Bears don’t hibernate in caves. They like hollow stumps or logs.
A brown bear can run faster than a horse at full gallop.
Some female turtles may wait as long as five years to lay their eggs after mating.
A female black bear can weigh 300 pounds, but her babies weigh only half a pound at birth.
If a female ferret goes into heat and can’t find a mate, she’ll die.
Library Classics
Emily Dickinson wrote 1,700 poems. Seven were published in her lifetime.
World’s top-selling fiction author: Agatha Christie, with over 2 billion copies sold.
Charles Dickens always slept facing north. He thought it improved his writing.
Jack Kerouac’s favorite pastime late in life: getting drunk and watching the Beverly Hillbillies.
Ernest Hemingway rewrote the final page of A Farewell to Arms 39 times.
The first novel ever written on a typewriter was The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Dr. Seuss’s first book was rejected by 23 publishers.
Ernest Hemingway’s rules for manhood: plant a tree, fight a bull, write a book, have a son.
Stephen King was 19 years old when his first story was published.
Mark Twain liked to say he only smoked once a day—“all day long.”
In 1879, while on his honeymoon, Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Travels with a Donkey.
First American novel to sell more than a million copies: Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
World’s best-selling novel: Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code—almost 40 million copies in print as of December 2005.
The Speed of Things
When the air bag in your car goes off, it expands at a rate of 150 miles per hour.
By the time you finish reading this, the earth will have traveled almost 100 miles through space.
Olympic downhill skiers reach 80 miles per hour.
Hummingbirds fly 60 miles per hour.
A greyhound can run as fast as 41 miles per hour.
Wild turkeys can run 30 mph and fly at speeds up to 55 miles per hour.
Raindrops can fall as fast as 22 miles per hour.
Elephants can run 20 miles per hour.
Top speed of an abalone on the move: five yards per minute.
Roadrunners run at a top speed of 15 miles per hour.
If aircraft carriers ran on gasoline, they’d get about six inches to the gallon.
The Post
The average stamp, when licked, has a tenth of a calorie.
Stamp collecting is the most popular hobby in the world.
Considered the world’s most-used public mailbox: at the intersection of Madison and Halsted streets in Chicago. It has to be emptied six times a day.
First stamp design selected by vote of the U.S. public: the 1993 Elvis Presley 29¢ stamp.
Every day the average mail carrier delivers 2,300 pieces of mail to more than 500 different addresses along his or her route.
Zip code 12345 is assigned to General Electric in Schenectady, New York.
For every post office in the United States, India has four.
The islands of Antigua and Barbuda issued Elle Macpherson postage stamps in 1999.
The U.S. Postal Service delivers more than 600 million pieces of mail a day.
The glue on Israeli stamps is certified kosher.
If you sent it before 1963, it didn’t have a zip code.
Smokey the Bear has his own zip code: 20252.
Personal letters make up only 2 percent of the mail delivered by the United States Postal Service.
Cost to mail a letter using the Pony Express: $5 per half ounce.
Cost of mailing a letter more than 400 miles in 1816 per letter sheet: 25¢.
The United States Postal Service handles about 46 percent of the world’s mail.
On September 26, 1970, John Kenmuir licked 393 stamps in four minutes.
Big-Screen Actors
Comedian Stan Laurel was married eight times, but had only four wives.
Marlene Dietrich played the musical saw.
Liza Minnelli, daughter of Judy Garland, married Jack Haley Jr., son of Jack Haley, who played the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz.
Before appearing in The Exorcist, Linda Blair was in a mustard commercial on TV.
Mae West never kissed her leading men on-screen.
Paul Newman played Billy the Kid in The Left Handed Gun. One problem: Billy was right-handed.
Fred Astaire’s dancing shoes were size 8 1/2. His feet were insured for $650,000.
When Jerry Lewis wanted to make The Catcher in the Rye into a film, author J. D. Salinger said no.
Sean Connery was once selected Scotland’s Mr. Universe.
Drew Barrymore’s first acting role: a commercial for Gaines Burgers. (She was 11 months old.)
On average, Elizabeth Taylor remarries every four years, five months. She has been married eight times.
In her films, Shirley Temple always had 56 curls in her hair.
James Earl Jones (the voice of Darth Vader) and David Prowse (who played Vader on-screen) never met.
Ask the Experts
Q: HOW DOES QUICKSAND WORK?
A: Not by pulling you down. Quicksand is nearly always found above a spring, which creates a supersaturated condition that makes the sand frictionless and unable to support weight. In addition, quicksand is airless, which creates suction as you struggle to get free. The most effective way to escape quicksand is to position yourself on top of it and ‘roll’ out. (The Book of Answers, by Barbara Berliner)
Q: HOW DOES ONE SWALLOW A SWORD?
A: The main problem is learning how to relax the throat muscles and stop gagging. This takes weeks of practice . . . But it can be done. The sword doesn’t cut the sword swallower’s throat because its sides are dull. The point is usually sharp, but that’s not a problem as long as the sword swallower doesn’t swallow any swords long enough to poke him (or her) in the pit of the stomach. (Know It All!, by Ed Zotti)
Q: HOW ARE THE INTERSTATES NUMBERED IN THE UNITED STATES?
A: Believe it or not, this is one government practice that is organized and logical. All east-west interstate highways are even-numbered and increase from south to north. Thus, east-west Interstate 80 is north of I-10. North/south interstates are odd-numbered and increase from west to east. City bypasses and spurs have triple digits and are numbered odd or even depending on their directional orientation. (Thoughts for the Throne, by Don Voorhees)
Q: IF YOU DROPPED A PENNY FROM THE TOP OF THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING, WOULD IT PIERCE A PERSON’S SKULL?
A: Given that the Empire State Building is 1,250 feet tall and ignoring such factors as wind resistance, a penny dropped from the top would hit
the ground in approximately 8.8 seconds, having reached a speed of roughly 280 feet per second. This is not particularly fast. A low-powered .22 or .25 caliber bullet, to which a penny is vaguely comparable in terms of mass, typically has a muzzle velocity of 800 to 1,100 FPS, with maybe 75 foot-pounds of energy. On top of this we must consider that the penny would probably tumble while falling, and that the Empire State Building . . . is surrounded by strong updrafts, which would slow descent considerably. Thus, while you might conceivably inflict a fractured skull on some hapless New Yorker, the penny would certainly not go through just like that. (The Straight Dope, by Cecil Adams)
Q: WHY DO FEET SWELL ON AN AIRPLANE?
A: It is a common myth that feet swell up when you ride in an airplane because of changes in atmospheric pressure due to high elevation. Feet swell up on planes, especially during long flights, for the same reason they swell up on the ground—inactivity. And it does not matter if you leave your shoes on or off; they will swell either way. If left on, they will provide external support, but will inhibit circulation a bit more and probably feel tighter during the latter part of the flight. If taken off, comfort may be increased, but the shoes are likely to be more difficult to put on once the flight is over. Podiatrists normally recommend “airplane aerobics” to help circulation—including help for swelling feet. (The Odd Body: Mysteries of Our Weird and Wonderful Bodies Explained, by Dr. Stephen Juan)
Q: WHY DOES HAIR TURN GRAY?
A: Gray (or white) is the base color of hair. Pigment cells located at the base of each hair follicle produce the natural dominant color of our youth. However, as a person grows older, more and more of these pigment cells die and color is lost from individual hairs. The result is that a person’s hair gradually begins to show more and more gray. The whole process may take between 10 and 20 years—rarely does a person’s entire collection of individual hairs (which can number in the hundreds of thousands) go gray overnight. (How Things Work, by Louis Bloomfield)
Battle of the Sexes
Male hospital patients fall out of bed twice as often as female patients.
One out of every 14 women in the United States is a natural blonde. Only one out of every 16 men are.
Men get more ulcers. Women get more migraine headaches.
The average woman shaves 412 square inches of skin on her body. The average man: 48.
Women blink nearly twice as much as men.
On average, females hear better than males at every age.
Forty-four percent of Americans think God is a man. One percent think God is a woman.
Thirty-five percent of the people who use personal ads for dating are already married.
When a waitress draws a happy face on a check, tips go up 18 percent. When a waiter does, tips only increase 3 percent.
American women over age 55 watch more TV than anyone else. Men between the ages of 18 and 24 watch the least.
About two thirds of all men’s clothing bought in the United States is purchased by women.
On average, men are 40 percent muscle and 15 percent fat. Women are 23 percent muscle and 25 percent fat.
The average American woman thinks about politics 12 minutes a day. Average man: six minutes.
Thirteen percent of American men say they call their mothers every day. Thirty-two percent of women call their mothers daily.
Call the Doctor
In 1992, 5,840 people checked into U.S. emergency rooms with “pillow-related injuries.”
Number one health complaint Americans report to their doctors: insomnia.
Choking on food is the seventh leading cause of death in America.
Ninety percent of Americans aren’t aware that being overweight increases the risk of strokes.
The medical condition epistaxisis: nosebleed.
Most destructive disease in human history: malaria.
Most common physical complaint in the United States: lower back pain.
Sixty-five percent of American adolescents get acne.
Ninety-five percent of food-poisoning cases are never reported.
Surgeons who listen to music during operations perform better than those who don’t.
Crocodile-tear syndrome is a nerve disorder that makes people cry when they eat.
Three surgeries most commonly performed in the United States: biopsies, cesarean sections, and hysterectomies.
Forty percent of nurses say they wouldn’t want their family treated in hospitals where they work.
In 1962 Johanne Relleke of Rhodesia was stung by bees 2,443 times. He survived.
The common flu kills 20,000 people a year.
Average American
After a three-week vacation, your IQ can drop by as much as 20 percent.
One in four Americans isn’t sure if the earth travels around the sun or vice versa.
Forty percent of Americans say the theory of evolution is “probably not true.”
According to a 1997 poll, about two thirds of Americans believe a UFO may have crashed at Roswell.
Each year Americans use enough foam peanuts to fill ten 85-story skyscrapers.
If you’re average, you’ll change your residence 11 times in your life, or once about every six years.
Fifty-two percent of Americans say they’d “rather spend a week in jail” than be president.
Seventy-two percent of Americans believe in heaven. Twelve percent don’t.
Average age of a new grandparent in the United States: 47.
Average annual income in the United Sates at the beginning of World War II: $1,070. In 2005: $32,500.
THE CAMEL
When a male camel spits at something, it aims for the eyes.
One-hump camels run faster than two-humped camels.
A camel can drink 25 gallons of water in half an hour.
A camel with one hump is a dromedary.
If it has two humps, it’s a Bactrian camel.
TV: The Culture
During 33 seasons on the air, Mister Rogers’s trolley traveled more than 100 miles on its track.
Ratio of people to televisions in the world: six to one.
In 1948, 2.3 percent of American households had a television. Today 99 percent do.
Forty-six percent of all violence on television occurs in cartoons.
Thirty-five percent of people watching TV yell at it.
The first TV weather chart was broadcast in Britain on November 11, 1936.
The last cigarette ad on TV appeared on The Tonight Show, December 31, 1970.
England was the first country with regular TV service, in 1936. The United States was second, in 1939.
Fifty-three percent of high school grads and 27 percent of college grads “get most of their information from TV.”
Sitcom characters rarely say goodbye when they hang up the phone.
More people watch primetime television on Thursday night than on any other night.
More than half of Americans say they regularly watch TV while eating dinner.
The average American spends 1,600 hours a year watching TV, and 323 hours reading.
Everyday Origins
BALLPOINT PEN: Invented by a Hungarian who manufactured them in a factory in England, which was eventually taken over by a French company called Bic.
BAND-AID: Invented by the husband of an accident-prone woman who was constantly cutting and burning herself in the kitchen.
CELLOPHANE: Move over, waxed paper. The inventor was trying to make a stainproof tablecloth and came up with the first clear food wrap instead.
ELECTRIC BLANKET: Not based, as you might think, on the electric heating pad, but on the electrically heated flying suits that U.S. Air Force pilots wore during World War II.
JOCKEY SHORTS: A midwestern underwear manufacturer copied the design of men’s bathing suits that were popular in France at the time (the 1930s).
MATCH: The first match was a stick that the inventor (who was trying to invent a new kind of explosive) had used to stir his ingredi
ents. When he tried to remove the dried glob on the end of the stick, it ignited.
MINIATURE GOLF: Invented by an unusual man who loved his family as much as he loved playing golf. This way he could get his golfing fix and be with the wife and kiddies, too.
PAPER CUP: Because the inventor had in mind a disposable water cup that wouldn’t carry germs, he called his invention health cups. Luckily, his office happened to be in the same building as the Dixie Doll Company—voilà!—Dixie Cups.
PAPER TOWEL: When a defective roll of toilet paper—too heavy and very wrinkled—arrived at the Scott company’s mill, somebody had the bright idea to sell it as paper towels.
PEANUT BUTTER: Ground peanuts and peanut oil, it was the brainchild of a doctor whose patient was dying of “protein malnutrition” and, because of a stomach disorder, couldn’t eat meat. Peanut butter never made it as a medicinal remedy, but it did catch on as an easy way to get kids to eat protein.
REARVIEW MIRROR: The first was introduced at the Indy 500 in 1911. Up till then there were two people in each car: the driver and the mechanic, who also acted as lookout. That year, the inventor drove his rearview-mirrored car across the finish line to finish first.
RUNNING SHOES: A miler at the University of Oregon heated some rubber in a waffle iron to get the kind of traction he wanted on the soles of his running shoes. He started a shoe business and named the shoes Nike, after the Greek goddess of victory.
SHOPPING CART: The idea didn’t catch on right away since shoppers were used to carrying their own baskets around a store. The inventor (who was also the market owner) decided to hire some phonies to push the carts around and pretend they were shopping. That did the trick.
VENDING MACHINE: Would you believe that vending machines have been around since the 17th century? The first one, in England, dispensed one pipeful of tobacco for a penny.