Factropolis -- A new fun fact every day!

Saturday, October 31, 2009

The first newspaper was printed on silk.


See also:
- A history of newspapers
- All about silk

keywords: science, technology, history, culture, places, news, communication, press, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Friday, October 30, 2009

Four-leaf clovers are created by the same mutation that causes conjoined twins.


See also:
- History of conjoined twins

keywords: nature, shamrock, irish, ireland, plant, luck, lucky, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Thursday, October 29, 2009

In Vietnam, it is illegal to own more than one home.


See also:
- CIA World Factbook: Vietnam

keywords: culture and places, government, asia, communism, communist, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Homosexuality is more prevalent in the Eskimo culture than in any other culture in the world.


See also:
- Homosexuality

keywords: sexuality, culture and places, igloo, native american, arctic, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Wilbur Wright was born with a full set of teeth.


See also:
- Wright Brothers Aeroplane Company
- Medical Encyclopedia: Natal teeth

keywords: science and technology, history, famous people, airplane, orville, kitty hawk, pilot, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Monday, October 26, 2009

Frankincense enemas were commonly used to treat leprosy in ancient times.


See also:
- Boswellia Thurifera
- World Health Organization leprosy fact sheet

keywords: science and technology, history, religion, bible, medicine, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Sunday, October 25, 2009

One of the Dead Sea scrolls describes Moses as a pedophile.


See also:
- West Semetic Research Project

keywords: history, sexuality, famous people, religion, christianity, old testament, bible, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Saturday, October 24, 2009

Ear wax and orange peel contain equal amounts of Vitamin C.


See also:
- Medinfo: Ear wax

keywords: food and drink, nature, ears, fruit, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Friday, October 23, 2009

The word "Taiwanese" means "suckled by goats."


See also:
- CIA World Factbook: Taiwan

keywords: culture and places, government, language, asia, china, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Thursday, October 22, 2009

Marie Curie had a pet tiger named X-ray.


See also:
- The Biography of Marie Curie

keywords: science and technology, history, famous people, nature, radiation, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Wednesday, October 21, 2009

"American" cheese was invented by a chemist in the German military.


See also:
- American Dairy Science Association

keywords: science and technology, history, food and drink, dairy, cows, milk, chemistry, laboratory, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Tuesday, October 20, 2009

A toothpaste used throughout ancient China contained a liberal quantity of explosive black powder.


See also:
- Ancient China: History for Kids

keywords: science and technology, history, food and drink, gunpowder, gun powder, chinese, fireworks, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Monday, October 19, 2009

Between 1902 and 1912, agricultural/peanut pioneer George Washington Carver led three expeditions into British Columbia in search of Bigfoot.


See also:
- The legacy of George Washington Carver

keywords: science and technology, history, food and drink, famous people, nature, african american, pioneer, educator, farming, tuskegee institute, botany, botanical researcher, morris ketchum jesup, sasquatch, yeti, cryptozoology, cryptid, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Sunday, October 18, 2009

Grizzly bears have remarkably stretchy bladders - they can go for up to three weeks without urinating.


See also:
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Association: Grizzly bears
- Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee

keywords: nature, bear, animals, pee, urine, bladder, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Saturday, October 17, 2009

Much of American Sign Language was invented by a one-armed man.


See also:
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communicative Disorders

keywords: culture and places, hearing, handicap, disability, disabled, handi-capable, communication, communicate, deaf, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Friday, October 16, 2009

American explorers Lewis and Clark ate at least nine bald eagles during their expedition to the Pacific coast.


See also:
- Discovering Lewis and Clark

keywords: science and technology, history, food and drink, famous people, nature, culture and places, government, meriwether lewis, william clark, lewis & clark, indigenous, indian, corps of discovery, missouri river, louisiana purchase, thomas jefferson, trivia, fact of the day, fun fact


Thursday, October 15, 2009

Famed canine actor Rin Tin Tin was circumcised.


See also:
- rintintin.com

keywords: entertainment, dog, history, culture and places, government, sexuality, animals, nature, rin-tin-tin, rintintin, tiger rose, the lightning warrior, land of the silver fox, german shepherd, circumcision movie, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Wednesday, October 14, 2009

When concentrated, pine tree sap is more toxic than arsenic.


See also:
- Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

keywords: science and technology, nature, poison, tree, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Tuesday, October 13, 2009

During mating season, the testicles of some fruit bats become so swollen that flight becomes impossible.


See also:
- Organization for Bat Conservation

keywords: sexuality, nature, animals, mammals, caves, spelunking, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Monday, October 12, 2009

President William Howard Taft was the inspiration for Popeye's nemesis, Brutus.


See also:
- Biography of William Howard Taft

keywords: entertainment, history, famous people, government, president, politics, animation, cartoon


Sunday, October 11, 2009

Before writing the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, Arthur Conan Doyle drove a hansom cab.


See also:
- Official Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Literary Estate

keywords: entertainment, history, famous people, culture and places, literature, fiction, mystery, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Saturday, October 10, 2009

Vlad "The Impaler" Tepes was afraid of the dark.


See also:
- The real Dracula

keywords: history, famous people, culture and places, dracula, romania, vampire, blood, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Friday, October 09, 2009

The custom of a captain 'going down with his ship' originated with Phoenician sailors.


See also:
- Phoenicia

keywords: history, culture and places, sea, ocean, sailing, sink, capsize, maritime, trade, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Thursday, October 08, 2009

The silver star badge made popular by lawmen of the Old West was originally worn by disgraced samurai warriors.


See also:
- Japan Guide

keywords: history, culture and places, government, asia, japan, warrior, war, soldier, martial arts, old west, law, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Wednesday, October 07, 2009

High blood pressure is the most common cause of death among Amish men.


See also:
- Overview of the Amish

keywords: religion, nature, culture and places, farming, blood, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Prince Albert is believed to have been a hermaphrodite.


See also:
- Biography of Prince Albert
- Medical Encyclopedia: Intersex Disorders

keywords: history, sexuality, famous people, royalty, europe, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Monday, October 05, 2009

The tooth fairy originated as a Druid custom. The Druid fairy left chunks of calf liver in exchange for teeth.


See also:
- Druid Network

keywords: history, religion, culture and places, government, europe, ancient, religion, nature, pagan, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Sunday, October 04, 2009

Martin Luther King Jr. lip-synched most of his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.


See also:
- Nobel Prize/biography
- The King Center

keywords: history, famous people, government, politics, racism, malcolm x, black panther party, fbi, wiretap, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Saturday, October 03, 2009

Julius Caesar had twelve toes.


See also:
- Historical background of Julius Caesar

keywords: history, famous people, nature, rome, italy, e tu brute, greece, greek, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Friday, October 02, 2009

The ancient Greeks invented synchronized swimming.


See also:
- Ancient Greece

keywords: entertainment, history, culture and places, sports, leisure, greece, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day


Thursday, October 01, 2009

Laurel and Hardy were almost killed by a falling stage light on the set of their first film.


See also:
- Official website

keywords: entertainment, history, famous people, actors, hollywood, film, movies, trivia, fun fact, fact of the day