5 Fun Facts Challenge
1. In Australia, there is a small mouse-like creature called an Antechinus. During its mating season, it will have so much sex that it will disintegrate. These violent and frenetic encounters can last up to 14 hours at a time. This is the one chance he has to pass his genes on. In the process, he will exhaust himself so thoroughly that his body will start to fall apart. His fur falls off, he bleeds internally, his immune system weakens and he will become riddled with gangrene.
2. If you took out all the empty space in our atoms, you can fit the entire human race in the volume of a sugar cube.
3. It’s estimated that the combined weight of ants on earth is greater than the combined weight of people on earth. There's an estimated 1.6 million ants per human.
4. A Banana is classed as a berry.
5. Andromeda and The Milky Way will eventually merge into one galaxy. Because of the distances between the stars, few if any of the stars in either galaxy will actually collide, so it's unlikely to be a catastrophe.
Nonfiction—The first five Roman emperors (the Julio-Claudian Dynasty) and their last words
Fact. Fiction. These following may be apocryphal, may be accurate. When it comes to the Romans, we have to trust the ancient writers, or ignore them. My source is Gaius Suetonius, a Roman knight and historian who lived in the first and second century.
1. Augustus. Aged 75. Last words to his friends from his sick-bed: "Since well I've played my part, all clap your hands, and from the stage dismiss me with applause." And to his wife, Livia: "Live mindful of our wedlock, Livia, and farewell." Finally, at the very moment preceding death, he shouted in terror that forty men were carrying him off, then breathed his last (Suetonius, "Life of Augustus," 99).
2. Tiberius. 78, violently ill, called for attendants to no response, got up, fell over, and died near the couch. No last words, but the people's eulogy was: "Tiberius to the Tiber!" in hopes of his body being tossed, as was custom to do to criminals, into the river Tiber (Suetonius, "Life of Tiberius," 73-75).
3. Caligula. Assassinated at 29 in a manner similar to Julius Caesar: "I am still alive." His enemies responded: "Strike again!" The historian takes note that their sword thrusts included his genitals (Suetonius, "Life of Caligula," 58).
4. Claudius. 63. Poisoned by wife or eunuch, likely by mushrooms (a favorite dish). After swallowing the poison he became speechless, which was probably for the best, as he was known for his stutter (Suetonius, "Life of Claudius," 44). According to Seneca's Apocolocyntosis (good satire, go read it), after shitting himself, he whimpered: "Oh dear, oh dear, I think I have made a mess of myself" (3).
5. Nero. 32. In the face of rebellion, abandoned by allies and his guard, just delivered a false report that he'd been declared public enemy by the Senate, and hearing the sound of horse-steps, Nero wept and said again and again: "What an artist the world is losing!" Finally he drove a dagger into his throat, after shouting, "Hark, now strikes on my ear the trampling of swift-footed coursers!" As centurions rushed in, Nero gasped, "Too late!" and expired (Suetonius, "Life of Nero," 49).
Works Cited
C. Suetonius Transquillus, The Lives of the Twelve Caesars. Loeb Classical Library (1913). University of Chicago Site, 19 Feb. 2017.
Seneca, Apocolocyntosis. W. H. D. Rouse, trans. Perseus, 19 Feb. 2017.
Fun facts!
1.We poop wrong, use a stool to elevate your torso
2. Guardians of the galaxy got a 100% rating from a recent screening test
3. Leonardo da Vinci invited scissors
4. An African American, Alexander miles, invented the elevator
5. An African American, Charles drew, invented the blood phasma bag
Here’s five not so fun facts
Horses have canine "wolf" teeth.
Snakes are more afraid of you and are trying to avoid you at all costs.
All nature is afraid of man, but will stand up against him when forced to.
Humanity seems Hellbent on destroying
Mother Earth all because of greed.
Humans are too stupid to communicate with the intelligent life forms on this planet, yet they seek out intelligence in the universe.
1 - You can't sneeze without blinking. I've already tried. Numerous times.
2 - Sex for preying mantises sucks. Especially for the males. This is because the females tear the males heads off.
3 - A group of rat is called a mischief.
4 - Elephants are the only animal that can't jump.
5 - The First man to survive going over the Niagara Falls later died from slipping on an orange peel.
“Believe it or Not..”
A. A baby spider is called a spiderling.
B. Do geese see God.
(This sentence is the same backwards and forwards).
C. Bananas are shaped the way they are (curved) because they grow in the direction towards the sun.
D. Baby elephants suck their trunks like babies suck their thumbs.
E. Hitler's mother wanted to abort but her doctor encouraged her to keep the/her baby.-Well, glad to know that the Doctor had a wonderful loving soul and a heart for the foetus.
Hope you enjoyed the random facts. Pieces of knowledge to share and pass on to others as well. Maybe even time to create a game for 'Fun Facts.' That could be another great invention to be a fun fact. A fun fact about a game invented called really random 'Fun facts!'
Happy President's Day 2017 B-)
Five Interesting Facts
1. When a male penguin falls in love with female penguin, he searches the entire beach to find the perfect pebble to present to her.
2. It is illegal to climb trees in Oshawa, a town in Ontario, Canada.
3. Having bridesmaids in a wedding wasn’t originally for moral support. They were intended to confuse evil spirits or those who wished to harm the bride.
4. Giraffe are already extinct in at least seven countries in Africa.
5. In the U.S., if you find a bald eagle feather on the ground, you need a permit to pick it up.
Did You Know?
1) Before settling on the Seven Dwarfs we know today, Disney also considered Chesty, Tubby, Burpy, Deafy, Hickey, Wheezy, and Awful.
2) The 3 Musketeers bar was originally split into three pieces with three different flavors: vanilla, chocolate and strawberry.
3) Alaska is the only state that can be typed on one row of keys.
4) That thing you use to dot your lowercase "i" is called a tittle.
5) When the computer mouse was invented, it was called the "X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System."
Myths Busted
1. Marie Antoinette never actually said the words "Let them eat cake"
2. Paul Revere never made the midnight ride
3. Fortune cookies are not actually Chinese- they were invented in America
4. Daddy Long Legs are not poisonous. Also, they are not actually spiders (2 in 1!)
5. On the other hand, Mythbusters did confirm that if you pee on an electric fence, you will get electrocuted.
Medieval Longsword
1. The average weight of Medieval Longsword is 3 pounds.
2. The average length of a Medieval Longsword is 48 inches. 12 inch handle (pommel, grip, cross) and 36' blade.
3. This makes it, while longer, the same weight and in some cases lighter then a Japanese Katana. The big difference between the two is the blade. A Katana blade is thick, slightly curved, with one sharpened edge, and is bi metal. Iron back with a steel edge that is harden to around 60 rockwell. A Longsword's blade has two sharpened edges and made with a steel that can flex and is hardened to around 50 rockwell. Deference, while harder the Katana steel has no flex and can shatter and chip. A Longsword will be flex a bit before breaking. If released from the flex it will usually spring back straight.
4. Broadsword, bastard sword, hand and a half sword, longsword, all mean the same thing. The Medieval Longsword was so varied in design and function that things such as blade length, handle length, type of cross guard, type of pommel, weight, blade shape, blade taper, etc could be drastically different. These changes were according to fighting style, personal preference, and even time period, about 200 years give or take. But they are all still the same type of sword, just different names for the same thing.
5. The Europeans had a codified fighting system using complex moves and counters that was taught and past down. It WAS NOT just swinging about a sharpened baseball bat. There even a number of fighting manuals from as early as the 1300s showing how to fight. While a lot of the moves are similar to Asian fighting style, I would like you to keep in mind this DOES NOT mean the Asians influenced the Europeans, but rather that the HUMAN body can only move so many ways. As long as humans are trying to kill one other they will find out the best way to do that with the tools at hand. Most of what the average person knows about sword fighting comes from movies (a medium know for its accuracy). Most European influenced sword fighting movies were just guess work and assumptions based on, sometimes, bad information from a lost fighting art. While most Asian made and influenced movies could draw upon fighting arts that was still being practiced. Hence the difference between the two and why Asian sword arts seem better. Also, I am not saying one is better than the other, just one has been badly represented more than the other.
Men much smarter than me have discussed this and I will be happy to share links to said smarter men.