Test: do you know which of the things around us can really cause harm? Interesting Facts. Did you know that... Did you know that

Surely everyone has heard the expression “God is in my soul.” Such words are usually uttered by non-church people, who thus justify their non-participation in the Church. How could one not openly renounce Christ and not go to church? It is most convenient to say: “God is in my soul.” A person may not know “Our Father,” but he affirms what Seraphim of Sarov or Sergius of Radonezh would be embarrassed to say.

However, there was one saint who dared to speak like that. This is the Apostle Paul. “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20), he once wrote. But on the pages of his Epistles he revealed the meaning of these words. This is exactly the text that is before us today. From it we see what it means to have the Lord in the soul. It turns out that closeness to the Almighty is a great sacrifice of the cross, a serious feat achieved through enormous labor.

“We carry this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the superabundant power may be [attributed] to God and not to us. We are oppressed on every side, but not constrained; we are in desperate circumstances, but we do not despair; we are persecuted, but not abandoned; we are cast down, but we do not perish. We always carry in our body the death of the Lord Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are continually being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our mortal flesh” (2 Cor. 4:7-11).

The higher the person who carries God within himself (“this treasure”), the more he risks being misunderstood by those who do not have this treasure. And therefore, to become hated and persecuted: “We are oppressed from everywhere.” He who has the Lord within himself becomes involved in the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, as if he continues them within himself. The Apostle is imbued with a sense of unity with the God-man to such an extent that he says: “We always carry in our body the death of the Lord Jesus.”

What does this deadness mean? Deadening to sin. Trials and temptations from the devil and the world, but not due to sins, but undeserved, for the sorrows of Christ are innocent martyrdom. The death of Christ presupposes purification from passions and the absence of any attraction to worldly temptations.

All this means “to have God in the soul.” And a question arises for those who say this. Do they know what cleansing from passions and innocent suffering, death to the world and sin, means?

On the other hand, the apostle also demonstrates the life of Jesus, the power that Christ possesses in the state of his glorification. “So that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our body,” he writes. To carry Christ within oneself means to have the Kingdom of God within oneself, to experience the Tabor light of the Transfiguration, to always be with God the Father. This is the life of Jesus as received by those who believe in Him. If the death of Jesus is deadness to the world and sin, then the life of Jesus is abiding in God and with God. He who has the Lord in his soul must know both states: death and the life of Jesus.

“We carry this treasure in earthen vessels,” continues the apostle. If the Lord lives in someone, he must understand that God is the main treasure of existence, and he himself is an earthen vessel, that is, a weak, easily broken creature. From here the most important Christian virtue is born in a person - humility. Do those who declare the presence of the Creator in their hearts have it?

“We are oppressed on every side, but not constrained.” No matter how hard it is for a church person, he will not be constrained, because with him the main treasure of human existence is God. A true Christian will never murmur, complain, be indignant, reproach, protest, demand justice, or seek any special conveniences and comfort. He will say as the Apostle Paul did: “I have learned to be content with what I have” (Phil. 4:11). He will constantly glorify the Lord. So, if you have God within you, do not complain, do not scold anyone, endure sorrows and thank the Creator. Be oppressed, but not constrained.

And most importantly, the person in whom the Lord truly lives is always ready for death. “We the living are continually being given over to death for the sake of Jesus” - these words of Paul mean that the apostles were always in life-threatening circumstances. They were close to death so often that in their hearts they seemed to bury themselves alive for the sake of Jesus Christ. The disciples of Christ were not afraid of death! “...For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21), wrote Paul. He who carries God within himself must feel the same.

For example, they will announce to him: “You have to die today.” He, of course, will be scared as a human being, but, having steeled himself, he will answer: “Well, to die like that, to die. With Christ there is no fear in dying.” And he will die. But try telling a non-church person who believes that he has God in his soul: “Friend, you will die today.” He will faint out of fear.

So, the Apostle Paul today sketched for us an internal portrait of the person in whom Christ dwells. This is the goal of Christian life: after all, we must become the temple of God, the receptacle of the Divine. But is it really possible to say that the path has already been completed and the goal has been achieved if a person has not yet started the path, for he has not even come to the Church yet? This is how we can respond to those who already consider themselves a temple. And for church people (who have taken this path), let the image outlined by the Apostle Paul in the current apostolic reading shine at the end of this path, like a kind of lamp, as the goal and direction of Christian life.

Do you know what grief is?
when there's a tight noose around your throat?
When there is a ton of block on my heart,
when you can't cry or moan?

So that no one sees, God forbid,
red eyes, dull skin,
so that no one notices how tired I am,
she's so sick and old...

Crossing it is like the sea,
crossing it is like crossing the desert,
and they talk about him in empty words,

they say: “You know, he left her...”
And without you I’m like a boat without oars,
like a bird without wings,
like a plant without a root...
Do you know what grief is?

I haven’t told you everything yet, -
Do you know how I walk around train stations?
How do I study schedules?
How do I meet trains at night?

As at every post office I pray for a miracle:
even lines, even words
from there....
from there....

Comments: 35

why...Love punishes us so cruelly??
Why do we need all this suffering?? Trust and, most importantly, no mistake is very difficult....
Sometimes we just don’t want to live in the vein mode because of them..... Why are we ruining ourselves??
He is somewhere that cheerful person and I am suffering... It is not fair that love is being thinned out by us...
“We love those who don’t love us, and those who love us, we don’t appreciate them or simply don’t notice them.”
If I hadn’t baked all this myself, we wouldn’t have understood what grief is =(

A very heartfelt poem...

Life is not fair
And everyone knows it
But why does it hurt?
Is this just for me?
And why do I suffer?
And why am I roaring?
What a pity that you don't know -
It's like I'm in hell...
Life will sometimes offer
And she will take it herself...
And how similar are they?
Sometimes you and I...
My dream is alive
And I'm still alive
Still suffering more
I love you more...
Broken heart
But I still love
But still there is no place
It's in your heart!
I won't warm it up
And I won’t sing songs,
I'll silently dream
And I will smile timidly...
It hurts me to see you
I'm scared and involuntarily
Just seeing you
I'll just run away!
Don't get it wrong
Don't count it as timidity
They just enter my heart
Words of love and grief...
And even though my heart is broken,
I still love
But there's no more room
In it to your heart...
(Aliya, 12 years old)

This is one of my favorite works - “My home is in your heart”. Very vital... I know it by heart, often these lines spin in my head, live in me. Tushnova is a great poetess. There is so much pain, longing and thirst for love in her poems. Many women will say that this is about them... it touches their heartstrings.

Where is there more caffeine - coffee or tea?

Did you know that, despite the recent fashionable assertion that a cup of tea contains more caffeine than coffee, this is still not true. Dry tea leaves do contain a higher percentage of caffeine than coffee beans. However, when it comes to cups, the average cup of tea has about three times less caffeine than the same cup of coffee because the coffee requires more beans to brew.

The level of caffeine in each specific cup of tea or coffee depends, of course, primarily on many factors, which we, unfortunately, cannot influence in any way, and it is not always possible to track them: the level of caffeine will vary depending on their varieties, from where the beans or tea leaves were grown, how they were roasted or cut (in the case of tea).

But there are other factors that are entirely under our control. For example, the temperature of the water with which you prepare tea or coffee. The higher it is, the more caffeine is “sucked out” from tea leaves or coffee beans. Apparently this is why smart Chinese never brew tea with boiling water. The duration of contact of water with leaves or grains also affects: the longer, the more caffeine you will have in the cup.

Hokusai's muse

Did you know that the symbol of Japan - Mount Fuji (or Fujiyama), is revered by Shintoists and Buddhists as a sacred place, the abode of deities, spirits, and the main spirit of the mountain - Konohana Sakuya-hime - is feminine. No wonder Fuji is perfectly symmetrical. This (or this) Spirit once did not shelter the Great Ancestor, and for this a snow cap was placed on the top of the mountain. But for two months, from July to September, Fuji is freed from snow and becomes accessible for climbing.

The first monk climbed to the top in 663, and the first temples appeared on the slopes. Pilgrims in white robes and with staves climbed to the sacred peak. Even a Shinto-Buddhist society of mountain worshipers appeared, which proclaimed the volcano the pillar of the nation and state.

It is interesting that although the spirit of the mountain is feminine, women were prohibited from climbing the sacred mountain until the end of the 19th century. The first, of course, was an Englishwoman - Lady Parkes in 1867. Even now, for religious Japanese, climbing Mount Fuji is the same as visiting Mecca for Muslims. There is a proverb in Japan: “Anyone who has never climbed Mount Fuji is a fool.” He who rises twice is doubly a fool.” Like this! Divine beauty should come the first time!

St. Bernards against drunkenness

Did you know that St. Bernards never wore a barrel of brandy around their necks? As you know, St. Bernards are a breed of dog that has long been used by the monks of the St. Bernard Orphanage on the Great Pass in the Alps between Italy and Switzerland. Initially, the dogs simply carried provisions, and they began to save people a little later. However, St. Bernards were never provided with brandy during rescue operations (after all, giving brandy to people with hypothermia, i.e., hypothermia, is very dangerous). The barrel first appeared on the neck of dogs in a painting by artist Edwin Landseer entitled Alpine Mastiffs Resuscitating a Lost Traveler (1831). The artist added this detail “for piquancy.” And yet, like some other misconceptions, this has stuck. To this day, St. Bernards invariably pose for tourists with a barrel of brandy around their necks.

How did the framers of the American Constitution consider slaves?

Did you know that during the development of the US Constitution (the Constitutional Convention met in 1787 in Philadelphia), the question of what should be understood by “the population of a state” aroused interesting debate. The question of population was decisive for the development of a system of representation of a particular state in the legislative and executive bodies - it was necessary to determine how this population should be counted, and therefore the question of slavery was officially raised for the first time.

Delegates from the southern states insisted on the inclusion of slaves in the general population of the country; this was beneficial for them - after all, the larger the population of the state, the greater its representation in the federal government should be (although, of course, there was no question of slaves being accepted participation in real solutions to political issues). The northerners agreed to take slaves into account, but as “property” of the southerners, because the population of the southern states was supposed to decrease, but property taxes going to the federal treasury would increase. After long discussions, the delegates found an original solution: the population of the state, equally for the purpose of representation and taxation, included... three-fifths of the total number of slaves!

What is Big Ben?

Did you know that Big Ben is not the same high tower The Palace of Westminster (popularly known as Parliament), which is usually depicted on every second postcard with views of London. And not even the clock that decorates this tower. Big Ben is a bell that is located behind the clock dial. It weighs almost 14 tons, is more than two meters high, and has a diameter of about three meters.

No one can still say for sure where the name of the bell came from. According to one version, the bell was named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who supervised the bell casting work. According to another version - in honor of Benjamin Count, a popular heavyweight boxer at that time - the bell was allegedly named in honor of their idol by the workers who delivered “Big Ben” from the Whitechapel foundries to the Houses of Parliament on a cart drawn by 16 white horses.

By the way, the tower of the Parliament building itself, on which hangs the clock behind which Big Ben is hiding, is called St. Stephen's Tower. Its height is 96 meters, and inside there is a narrow spiral staircase with 334 steps.

More tolerant than the Lord God

Did you know that recently the Council of Europe found signs of sexism in the words “dad” and “mama?” Words with gender connotations have already been taken out of business language in Switzerland, and soon in all European countries, it will be necessary to say “parents” instead of “father” and “mother”, or “parent” - in the singular. But the Scottish Episcopal Church went even further in its tolerance. They developed new liturgical texts in which, when addressing God, his gender is not indicated. The Church Committee proposes, instead of “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” to use the phrase “In the name of the creator, savior and saint” during services. And the British churchmen from the “Movement for the Reform of Judaism” already two years ago changed the gender of God, calling God in the neuter gender in the new prayer book.

Interesting facts about Jupiter

1. Did you know that Jupiter, the largest planet in the Solar System, has a mass 2.5 times greater than the mass of all the other planets in the Solar System combined. True, this is only about 1/1047 of the mass of the Sun.

2. Did you know that the Great Red Spot on the planet Jupiter is a giant anticyclone that has lasted for at least 350 years (counted since it could be seen from Earth), but perhaps it has existed much longer. It can reach up to 40,000 km in length and 14,000 km in width. This vortex rotates counterclockwise at a speed of 300-500 km/h (in different parts).

3. Did you know that Jupiter also has the largest official number of moons - 63 (to date), although it is believed that there may be at least a hundred of them. The vast majority of them have a diameter of 2–4 kilometers.

Toothed Whiteblood

Did you know that scientists know of only one invertebrate whose blood does not contain erythrocytes (red blood cells) and, accordingly, hemoglobin. This means that the blood of such an animal is absolutely colorless. This miracle of nature is called ice fish or, less commonly, pike-shaped whitefish. The white blood looks impressive...

Ice fish live in Antarctic waters at great depths - usually from 200 to 700 m, but deep subspecies can live at a depth of 1 - 2 thousand meters. Actually, it was life in very cold waters (down to -2’C) that became the reason for such unique blood. The fact is that when the temperature drops, the viscosity of the blood increases very sharply, so nature responded to this challenge in an original way by taking away the function of oxygen transfer from the blood - removing red blood cells and hemoglobin (a protein that binds oxygen for transfer by the blood to the tissues of the body). It caused the whole metabolism to change ice fish; they receive oxygen directly - dissolved in the blood, dissolved in water (absorbing it by the skin), and increased circulation is provided by a large heart, working much more intensely than that of their “relatives”.

Einstein - President of Israel

Did you know that in 1952, after the death of the first President of Israel, Chaim Weizmann, David Ben-Gurion, then Prime Minister of Israel, invited Albert Einstein to lead Israel as President of the Republic. Einstein, meanwhile, refused, saying that he had neither the ability nor experience in communicating with people.

In fairness, it should be noted that Israel is a parliamentary republic, and the president there does not play such a significant role as, for example, the prime minister.

Dinner is served

Did you know that scientists, having studied many paintings painted in different centuries, came to the conclusion that food portions in these very paintings are invariably growing. People began to eat more and more - a fact that has been talked about so much lately, the Vansin brothers decided to prove scientifically. One of the brothers, Bryon, is a professor at Cornell University and director of the Institute of Nutrition. And the second one, Greg, is a professor of religious studies at the University of Virginia. The results of their study were published in the May issue of The International Journal of Obesity.

The Vansin brothers decided to study one of the most famous paintings dedicated to the meal - the Last Supper. For this purpose, they selected more than 50 paintings painted from 1000 to 1800. Among the paintings studied were masterpieces by Leonardo da Vinci, Titian, El Greco and others. As a result, the scientists came to the conclusion that the main course over the specified period increased by 69%, the size of the dishes - by 66%, and the amount of bread consumed - by 23%. But the pace of life accelerated after 1800, and apparently we began to eat quite a lot...

The longest mourning in history

Did you know that Queen Victoria of England (reigned from 1837 to 1901) loved her husband Albert, who died in 1861, so much that the queen spent the next almost 40 years in deep mourning. She never took off her black dress, and a literal cult of his personality was established in Prince Albert's room at Windsor Castle.

After his death, the room was carefully photographed in order to subsequently preserve everything as it was under the prince. For example, the glass from which he drank while taking the last pills of his life stood at the head of his bed for 40 years. Every evening, on the special instructions of Queen Victoria, a maid brought hot water to the prince's bathroom and laid out his evening suit on the bed. And visitors to Windsor were required to sign in the Prince's guest book, as well as the Queen's, "as before." This is how it happens.

Do you crack your fingers?

Do you know what “crunches” in a finger when a person sharply pulls it out and grabs it with the other hand? According to the most common version, a vacuum is created in the joint space between the bones, which is usually filled with fluid. A crunching sound is heard when the same liquid is rapidly poured in.

By the way, the myth about the development of arthritis from “crunching” fingers has not been confirmed by scientists (although joints do crack with arthritis). But other unpleasant consequences of frequent crunching were discovered - a decrease in the compression force of the hand and damage to the ligaments and soft tissues of the joints. So, it’s better not to crunch after all!

The ideal musical instrument

Did you know that for almost 15 years now an annual air guitar competition has been held in Finland. The air guitar is played by people who do not know how to play a real guitar, but they really want to - after all, the main thing here is to depict the game, and the more emotionally, the better. Breaking imaginary strings, falling to your knees, waving your arms - these are all standard techniques of an air guitarist. In general, it is an ideal instrument for a small apartment with thin walls - you get pleasure from it and do not disturb your neighbors during rehearsals.

Since 1996 International competition Air Guitarists is held in the Finnish city of Oulu and is part of the Oulu Music and Video Festival. Initially, the air guitar competitions were conceived as a joke, a side entertainment for festival guests. However, over time, these fights gained real popularity, almost more than the festival itself. Now, in order to get the opportunity to perform at the festival, you need to go through qualifying rounds in your countries. In the final, participants perform two songs: one is mandatory, the other is of their choice. Well, the main prize in these competitions is, you won’t believe it, a real electric guitar. Strangely reminiscent of a children's joke: “If you behave well, we will pour water into your pool!”...

Our mothers' favorite flowers

Did you know that that cute little yellow plant that dads gave to moms on March 8th throughout our Soviet childhood, and that kids happily depicted on cards to those same moms, is actually not a mimosa. In fact, this is a silver acacia - its early flowering is explained by the fact that it originally comes from the Southern Hemisphere, where it is summer from December to February. The biological memory of the flowering time remained even when the plant arrived in the Caucasus in the mid-19th century - where it still blooms in early spring.

Real mimosa grows in the subtropics of South America, and the most famous species is the bashful mimosa. Yours unusual name the plant received it because its leaves are terribly sensitive and fold, pressing against the stem, at the slightest touch or other irritation. Of course, both mimosa and acacia, which is close to our hearts, belong to the same subfamily of mimosa, the legume family. But still, just in case, do not confuse mimosa with acacia, otherwise why are we telling you all these interesting facts.

The most expensive spice

Did you know that the spice that gives the color and smell of Spanish paella - saffron - is made from delicate crocus flowers? Or rather, from the stamens of this flower. Pickers hand-pick the delicate flowers and then separate the stamens from the completely useless pistils. Saffron was used in Mesopotamia as early as 3000 BC. Hetaeras of Ancient Greece, knowing that saffron was a powerful aphrodisiac, scattered it in their bedrooms. Cleopatra, preparing for a romantic date, loved to soak in a bath with saffron. And the European herbalist Culpepper warned in 1649 that excessive consumption of saffron could lead to death from uncontrollable laughter, because. saffron is also a natural antidepressant. Saffron is the most expensive spice. In the past, many European countries, especially Spain, were decorated with fields of purple crocuses; Now crocuses are bred mainly in Iran. An interesting fact: 170 thousand flowers are used to produce 1 kg of saffron; This is why several tens of billions of crocuses bloom in Iran every year. In the USA they are willing to pay $700 for this kilogram, but... Since saffron is used in pinches in recipes, even a gram of it is enough for many paellas.

Simultaneous game session

Did you know that the song “Smoke on the water”, most famously performed by the band Deep Purple, was included in the Guinness Book of Records as a song that was simultaneously performed by the largest number of guitarists - there were 1802 of them. This “simultaneous playing session” happened on July 23 2007 in the German city of Leinfelden, near Stuttgart. Of course, this was not the first record in this area - Smoke on the water is played en masse very, very often. Interestingly, the previous record was set just three weeks before Leinfelden - on July 3, 2007 in Kansas, USA.

Act quietly like real sappers!

Did you know that the expression “to act on the sly” and the word “sapper” actually have much more in common than it might seem at first glance. The word "sapper" came to us from French, which, in turn, came from the word sape, which means "hoe". This word, starting from the 16th century, denoted a method of digging a trench or tunnel to approach enemy defenses or destroy them. For example, to destroy enemy walls, a trench was dug under their base. To prevent the walls from falling prematurely and revealing the attackers' plans, the walls were strengthened with wooden supports, which were subsequently set on fire, and the wall sagged, forming an opening into which the invaders rushed. Subsequently, gunpowder bombs began to be placed in the dug trenches, and the people who did this were called “sappers.” From this same word comes the expression “to act on the sly” - to act unnoticed, quietly. Originally it meant “to make a tunnel unnoticed.”

Impressionism and progress

Did you know that the emergence of impressionism in painting is largely due to new technical capabilities. In order to record their impressions and the play of light on canvas, artists had to paint outside the walls of the studio, in the open air. But until the middle of the 19th century. It was very difficult for artists to go outside with oil paints, because... the paints were stored in bags made from pig bladders. This thin material was cut into squares, in the center of which wet paint was placed, making small rolls. To squeeze paint onto the palette, you had to pierce the package and then seal the puncture site again; the paint dried quickly. Only in 1842, the American portrait painter John Goff Rand invented, and a year later received a patent for the invention of durable tin tubes for oil paints. Without a portable box of paints in such tubes, probably neither Cezanne, nor Monet, nor Sisley, nor Pissarro would have been created.

Shishkin and the bears

Did you know that Ivan Shishkin did not write his masterpiece dedicated to bears in the forest alone? An interesting fact is that to depict the bears, Shishkin hired the famous animal painter Konstantin Savitsky, who did an excellent job. Shishkin fairly assessed his companion’s contribution, so he asked him to put his signature under the painting next to his own. In this form, the canvas “Morning in pine forest"and brought it to Pavel Tretyakov, who managed to buy the painting from the artist during the work process. Seeing the signatures, Tretyakov was indignant: they say he ordered the painting from Shishkin, and not from a tandem of artists. Well, he ordered the second signature to be washed away. So they put up a painting with the signature of one Shishkin.

Free City of Christiania

Did you know that one of the quarters of Copenhagen is a “state within a state”, a “city within a city”, which has a special semi-legal status and partial independence. This quarter is called the “Free City of Christiania”, and hippies live in it. It all started in the 1970s, when cosmopolitan long-haired youth, who believed in free love and an open, self-regulating society, moved into the abandoned military barracks of King Christian by squatting. Each of the city's 1,000 residents is responsible for the well-being of the community and can speak on the Christiania Community Council. All attempts by the Danish government to liquidate Christiania led to clashes between residents and the police, but over time a consensus developed. Now hard drugs are prohibited in Christiania, and marijuana is allowed, and this is part of the won freedom, financial and spiritual independence.

All shops and cafes in Christiania pay taxes to the general treasury, of which a portion is transferred to the government. The Council of Elders from the same treasury hires residents of Christiania to clean the territory and repair paths, but they work only at will, without fanaticism. There are no guns, theft or cars in Christiania, but there is a bank, a school and several concert halls. Those who cannot fit into the old barracks build their own unpretentious housing. Christiania is not growing. Some people's children, growing up, go to the outside, more comfortable world, but in any generation there is a certain number of people who choose freedom.

What would you throw at a carnival participant?

Did you know that confetti is an Italian phenomenon. It originates, no matter how surprisingly complex it may sound, from sweets, or more precisely from “sugar products” - this is a literal translation. Italians in the 19th century loved to shower carnival participants with various sweets, such as sugar-coated almonds. This is where the word “confetti” comes from. True, over time, the candies were replaced with cardboard balls so that it would not hurt so much.

Confetti in the modern form of multi-colored small paper circles, as well as various small paper figures - this is already French know-how. In 1884, the owner of the Cafe de Paris casino greeted guests, scattering flat multi-colored pieces of paper around.

Apathy is the way to achieve perfection

Did you know that in Greek philosophy the word “apathy” had an emotional connotation that is radically opposite to our modern understanding. Now by apathy we understand an indifferent, indifferent attitude towards the surrounding reality and consider apathy as a psychological disease. Translated from Greek, this word also means something similar - “immunity,” but in those days it was used to designate the ideal moral state of a person, “completely freed from harmful affects and passions.” According to the Stoics, it was precisely this state that every person should strive for, so that he could achieve perfection. So maybe we just don’t understand apathetic people well?

Aztec pencils

Did you know that graphite pencils may contain almost no graphite? Of course, it happened that real graphite was used in drawing. The Aztecs, according to Cortes, used crayons made from a gray mineral, and Pliny reports that papyri were lined with graphite. Italian artists of the Early Renaissance drew with pencils made from a mixture of graphite and tin; it was easily erased with bread crumbs. In England, very high-quality graphite was mined since the 16th century. It was mainly used for military needs, only a small part was used for expensive pencils, and only in the 17th century did they think of placing graphite in a hollow wooden stick (before that, artists wrapped fragile graphite with threads). But in the 18th century the French put an end to the English monopoly. In 1794, Nicolas Conté took low-grade French graphite, ground it into powder and mixed it with clay. Since then, we have been choosing pencils based on their softness, i.e. according to the ratio of graphite and clay: the less clay they contain, the softer they are.

Heliocentric world – who did Copernicus copy from?

Did you know that in the manuscript of his book “De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium” (“On the Rotations of the Celestial Spheres”) Nicolaus Copernicus mentioned the views of the ancient Greek scientist Aristarchus, but this reference disappeared in the final edition of the book. Apparently, so as not to compromise the originality of what Copernicus expressed. Later, the priority of Aristarchus in the creation of the heliocentric system was recognized by the Copernicans themselves - Galileo and Kepler. Little is known about Aristarchus of Samos himself - he was an ancient Greek astronomer, mathematician and philosopher and lived around the 3rd century BC. e. He was the first to propose a heliocentric system of the world (we know about this from the work of Archimedes, who writes that Aristarchus “believes that the fixed stars and the Sun do not change their place in space, that the Earth moves in a circle around the Sun, located at its center, and that the center of the sphere of fixed stars coincides with the center of the Sun"), and also developed a scientific method for determining the distances to the Sun and the Moon and their sizes (for example, he says that the angular sizes of both bodies in the sky are approximately the same and, therefore, the Sun is the same times larger than the Moon, how many times further away).

Why is Hyde Park called Hyde Park?

Did you know that the name of Hyde Park, one of the largest London parks, comes from an ancient unit of area measurement - hydes. Hyde in Anglo-Saxon Britain denoted the size of land plots sufficient to support one family of a free peasant. An interesting fact is that in different regions the sizes of land plots that corresponded to 1 guide differed, since in fact the guide was a value indicating the productivity of the land, and not its size. Therefore, while in Cambridgeshire one hyde could be about 120 acres of land, in Dorset it was only 40 acres. Hyde Park itself was opened to the public under King James I - and even then very carefully - only the nobility were allowed in, and for money. The general public was only allowed into the park in 1637 under Charles I.

In a healthy body healthy mind!

Did you know that the catchphrase Latin expression “A healthy mind in a healthy body”, so beloved by all our physical education teachers, was taken from Juvenal’s satire. Well, great, so what’s the interesting fact, you ask. And the fact is that Juvenal in his satire put into these lines a meaning directly opposite to the reading we loved. Here is an excerpt from Juvenal's work translated by F.A. Petrovsky:

If you ask for anything and make sacrifices to the sanctuaries -

There are offal, sausage, which I prepared from a white pig, -

We must pray for a healthy mind in a healthy body.

Ask for a cheerful spirit that knows no fear of death,

Who considers the limit of his life to be a gift of nature,

What is able to endure difficulties

"Red Gold" of Australia

Did you know that the very first paint used by people of all continents since the advent of painting was ocher - iron oxide. Painting originated first in Australia, where artists painted with ocher more than 40 thousand years ago. There were several deposits on the continent. From ancient times until our time, the aborigines revered their ocher mines, around which customs and legends developed. For example, Aboriginal people living in the Lake Eyre area made an annual pilgrimage, setting out on a two-month, 1,000-mile journey to collect “red gold” (about 20 kg of ocher in the form of round tiles, folded into a kangaroo skin backpack). The Aborigines used ocher for ritual painting, and red (burnt) ocher was applied to the chests of boys when they were initiated into men. On the protected Arnhem Land Peninsula, there are thousands of ocher cave paintings telling about rainbow snakes and hunting spirits, as well as paintings using the “spray technique”, when the artist took a mouthful of wet ocher and sprayed it over the palm of his hand applied to the cave wall.

White paint album

Did you know that the word “album” means “white paint” - it comes from the Latin album. The fact is that initially, in Ancient Rome, albums were planed wooden boards, the surface of which was covered with plaster: official messages were written on them, and then hung in some public place where a large number of people could get acquainted with the information. In the Middle Ages, this concept began to mean a pack of white sheets for business and household records, and then stitched sheets. It is in this meaning that the word has come down to us.

For the macaques! For Britain!

Did you know that in Europe there are still monkeys living wild (once, judging by excavations, there were quite a lot of them throughout Europe). True, this is just one species, and they live in one place - Gibraltar. The Barbary macaque (or macaque) is the only European monkey, and also the only macaque not living in Asia. Magots also live in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. An interesting belief is associated with the Magots in Gibraltar - they say that as long as at least one monkey lives on the rock, the city will remain British. Apparently, therefore, since 1855, Magots have been under the official patronage of the British Navy. There is also a well-known aphorism associated with this belief, showing Great Britain’s determination to maintain its control over Gibraltar at any cost: “We will protect the monkeys to the last Englishman.”

Who is guilty? Magellan

Did you know that the name of the archipelago at the southern tip of South America, Tierra del Fuego, has nothing to do with volcanoes. Indeed, it is logical to assume that this name was born in connection with the great volcanic activity of this region. But in fact there is not a single volcano on this archipelago. Then why? The navigator Magellan is to blame for everything. Once in 1520, he was sailing along the Strait, which would later become the Strait of Magellan, and looked at the lights. According to one version, the aborigines of the islands saw ships sailing close to the shore and warned each other about the danger with signal fires; according to another version, the aborigines burned fires simply because it was dark. In any case, Magellan saw a lot of fires, he decided not to go to this land just in case of fire, and on the map he designated it as “Tierra del Fuego” (Land of Fires or Bonfires). The fact is that in Portuguese (and Magellan was just Portuguese) fire and bonfire are denoted by one word - fuego. Therefore, cartographers subsequently, without fully understanding what Magellan wanted to say, turned this name into “Tierra del Fuego” - the words are the same, but it sounds more beautiful.

Cologne water

Did you know that cologne comes from the French “eau de colon”, which means “Cologne water”. The fact is that cologne was invented at the beginning of the 18th century by the Italian Giovanni Farina, who settled in Cologne, opened a perfume shop there and began selling fragrant water. He decided to name his invention in honor of his new homeland, Cologne. And, although “Eau de cologne” is a protected trademark of Farina’s perfume, the perfume continues to be produced, and its exact recipe is kept secret, the same thing happened to “Cologne water” that later happened to the photocopier. Nobody really thinks about the fact that cologne is a trademark; that’s what they call (or at least until recently in our country that’s what they called) all perfumes with a slight scent.

Golden Sarah Bernhardt

Did you know that the legendary French actress Sarah Bernhardt never trusted banks? Throughout her long and very successful career (and she, by the way, at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries was called “the most famous actress the world has ever known”), she never once entrusted them with her fees. But, he asked to pay her money in gold coins, which she carried with her in a well-worn suede bag. When there were so many coins that it became difficult to carry them, he began to put the excess coins in a chest under his bed.

Sarah Bernhardt was an actress of the highest class - which was confirmed by her both on the theatrical stage, and in silent films, and in modern films. Her deep dramatic roles earned her the nickname "Divine Sarah". Many prominent theater figures, for example Stanislavsky, considered Bernard's art a model of technical perfection, although her virtuoso technique and impeccable artistic taste were combined with a certain deliberateness and excessive showiness (which, it must be said, was loved by her audience).

Limousine - a raincoat car

Did you know that the word “limousine” originally meant robes that tightly covered the entire body, worn by shepherds of the Limosin region in France. Before french revolution Limosen was one of the provinces of France. Having come to power, the revolutionaries deliberately fragmented the country into many small departments in order to destroy the loyalty of the inhabitants of their native province, and thus provide themselves with easier governance. However, many words that previously connected the inhabitants of the same province remained in common use, reminiscent of former times. In particular, shepherds' hoodies have since come to be called nothing more than limousines.

When the first cars began to appear at the end of the 19th century, the French turned out to be the “locomotives” of their creation. This is why so many French words refer to cars (chassis, garage, chauffeur, etc.). Cars in which the passengers were as if in a cocoon, and were also separated from the driver by a partition, received a strong association with a raincoat, and since then began to be called limousines.

Crab sticks and crabs

Did you know that crab sticks have nothing to do with crabs? The recipe for this favorite salad component of domestic housewives appeared in Japan in 1973 and has remained almost unchanged since then. The need for crab sticks was born due to the fact that at some point the number of crabs, which are a terribly important attribute of Japanese cuisine, began to rapidly decrease. The inventive Japanese began to come up with a replacement. They took as a basis a dish called “Kamaboko” - they use cod fish fillets to prepare it - it is pure white. The fillets of these fish are crushed, then pounded, and thus minced surimi is obtained. Potatoes, soy sauce, starch, egg powder and flavorings are added to it. Well, then oblong sticks are made from the resulting mass and evaporated to get rid of fat. The process is completed by applying red or orange food coloring.

I wish I could try these crab sticks! After all, most of the crab sticks lying on our shelves do not consist of minced surimi at all, but of soy protein.

Censorship for the canary

Did you know that one of the most famous cartoon characters from the Looney Tunes series (cartoons produced by Warner Bros., and which were originally a parody of Walt Disney cartoons) - Tweety the yellow canary - got his image thanks to, among other things, American censors. The fact is that initially Tweety was pink, which was supposed to symbolize a very small, unfledged chick. It was in this form that Tweety debuted in 1942 in several short cartoons. But the censors did not like the hero, as he was considered “naked,” and they strongly recommended removing “nudity” from the children’s cartoon. The new director who came to the studio in 1945 heeded the censors and Tweety began to have yellow feathers. And already in 1947, for this cartoon, Warner Bros. won an Oscar.

Mouthpiece ophicleide

Did you know that the name musical instrument“saxophone” is made up of two words: “sax” - from the name of the inventor and the Greek “fon”, which means sound. The saxophone was invented in 1841 by Adolphe Sax, a Belgian musician. True, he himself was embarrassed to call the instrument he invented by his own name, but gave it the name “mouthpiece ophicleide.” The name “saxophone” was proposed several years later by Hector Berlioz - apparently, pronouncing the words “mouthpiece ophicleide” was still extremely inconvenient.

Hierarchical uncouth soothsayer - what would that mean?

Did you know that the originally famous search engine Yahoo! was called "Jerry and David's Guide to the World Wide Web", which translates as "Jerry and David's Guide to the World Wide Web". It was founded in 1994 by Stanford University graduate students Jerry Yang and David Fileo. However, the guys quickly realized that to successfully promote their product they needed a name that would take people less than three minutes to pronounce. This is how Yahoo! According to Jerry and David themselves, they took this word from Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, where this is the name of a race of rude and stupid people humanoid creatures(in Russian translation, by the way, it sounds like Yehu). However, then, apparently for greater importance, another version was invented: Yahoo! is an acronym for the phrase “Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle.” This is such an abstruse decoding of such a seemingly simple name.

The Great Smog of 1952 – history repeating itself?

Did you know that in December 1952, London was plunged into smog, which was later called the Great Smog. Smog ruled over the city for only 4 days - from December 5 to 9, 1952, but the consequences of this environmental disaster were terrible.

In London, fogs and smogs happen quite often, so at first no one was particularly worried about anything. But minimal visibility (sometimes “no more than a few meters” or even “at arm’s length”) brought the city to a standstill. Meetings and concerts were cancelled, public transport stopped working. Under the protection of smog, a wave of crimes arose. Ambulances could not quickly reach the sick, and doctors walked in front of their cars to get to at least someone. And they had somewhere to go - according to London doctors at that time, the number of deaths (especially among infants, the elderly and those suffering from respiratory diseases) increased sharply and reached 4,000 “early” deaths. But in fact, according to the authorities, the consequences were even more terrifying - approximately 12,000 deaths and 100,000 sick during that period.

The cause of the Great Smog in London was, in a sense, an unfortunate combination of weather conditions and man-made factors. Lack of wind, unusual behavior of the anticyclone, due to which the cold air masses were “locked” by a lid of warm air. In such a boiler, a lightning-fast accumulation of harmful substances began in the city’s atmosphere - primarily the products of coal combustion, which, due to cold weather, the townspeople began to use it in larger quantities than usual. Also, the recently completed process of replacing urban electric transport with buses with a diesel engine has added exhaust gases to the “cocktail”.

Black box or orange cylinder?

Did you know that the “black box,” which is the main source of information about the causes of plane crashes, is in fact not black at all, and it doesn’t even look much like a box. Flight recorders are painted - that's what they are officially called - red or orange - bright colors - to make it easier to search. And recently they have been given a cylindrical shape - this way there is a greater chance that the recorder will not be damaged if it falls. Nowadays all information, i.e. conversations between pilots and dispatchers, as well as all data from the aircraft’s instruments during the flight, are recorded on a flash drive. The task of black box designers is to make sure that this flash drive not only is not damaged when it hits the ground, but also remains intact during a terrible fire that usually accompanies a plane crash. According to international standards, the flight recorder must withstand one hour at a temperature of 1100′C - this is precisely the combustion temperature of aviation kerosene. Therefore, all hollow parts of the black box are filled with a special powder, which does not allow the temperature inside the recorder to rise above 160′C. This is how the flash drive inside survives.

A victorious breath of air

Did you know that the United States national team won the first hockey title in its history almost thanks to the Soviet hockey player Nikolai Sologubov. The fact is that at the Winter Olympic Games in Squaw Valley in 1960, the US team, for which this was the home Olympics, but which had not previously won a single competition, unexpectedly made it to the finals of the Games. In one of the key games, the Americans' opponent was Czechoslovakia, which was in good shape and after 2 periods won against the American hockey players with a score of 4-3.

During the break before the third period, Nikolai Sologubov came into the Americans' locker room and with gestures (since he did not speak English) explained that the Americans needed to use oxygen tanks. American coaches do not have sufficient experience in performing in different conditions, did not take into account that in the Sierra Nevada mountains (approximately 1900 m above sea level) the air was much more rarefied, which had a detrimental effect on physical condition teams. The Americans took Nikolai's advice and won the match with a score of 9-4, scoring 6 unanswered goals.

It must be said, by the way, that Nikolai Sologubov was recognized as the best defender of the World Championship in the same year, and was also the standard-bearer of the Soviet team at these Winter Games. Interest Ask– was his advice his own initiative or the initiative of our team management?

Arterial fallacy

Did you know that arteries carry blood from the heart to the periphery? You most likely know this, but the ancient Greeks did not know, which is why they called these (as is now known) blood vessels arteries (from the Greek ἀρτηρία - “air pipe”). The fact is that the ancient Greek physician Praxagoras (according to other sources, this theory was first put forward by Erasistratus) believed that pneuma (spirit of life, breath, air) circulates through the arteries from the lungs. This misconception was easily explained, since in the corpses from which Praxagoras studied the structure of man, the arteries are usually empty. Regarding blood, Praxagoras believed that it is taken from digested food and distributed through the veins from the liver.

The Praxagoras system remained untouched for a very long time. It was supplemented and refined by later doctors, new interesting facts about blood and “pneuma” were found, but its essence did not change. Only in the 17th century, the English physician William Harvey proved that blood returns to the heart in a closed cycle, which is provided by the smallest vessels - capillaries connecting arteries and veins.

Lost generation

Did you know that the phrase “lost generation” came to us from the works of Ernest Hemingway? Hemingway's lost generation are young people who found themselves at the front in early age(for Hemingway, primarily the period between the two world wars), often not yet graduated from school, undecided in life, but began to kill early. After returning from the war, such people, morally or physically crippled, often could not adapt to peaceful life, many committed suicide, some went crazy. The “Lost Generation” also began to be called a literary movement that united such famous writers as Ham himself, James Joyce, Erich Maria Remarque, Henri Barbusse, Francis Scott Fitzgerald and others.

“When we returned from Canada and settled on the Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs, and Miss Stein and I were still good friends, she uttered her phrase about the lost generation. The old Model T Ford that Miss Stein drove in those years had something wrong with the ignition, and the young mechanic, who had been at the front for the last year of the war and was now working in the garage, had not been able to fix it, or maybe Maybe he just didn’t want to fix her Ford out of turn. Be that as it may, he was not sérieux enough, and after Miss Stein's complaint, the owner severely reprimanded him. The owner told him: “You are all génération perdue!” - That's who you are! And all of you are like that! - said Miss Stein. - All young people who were in the war. You are a lost generation."

The ideas and problems of the “Lost Generation” at one time fueled the beatnik movement, and subsequently the hippies. An interesting fact is that this expression is now used everywhere without regard to its original meaning and history.

Toyota and tractors
Did you know that the well-known Toyota automobile company was originally called Toyoda - after the name of the founding family, and specialized not in cars at all, but in the production of automatic looms. In 1933 it was created special unit company that started producing cars. Production of the AA model passenger car began in 1936. Early models resembled the pre-existing Dodge Power Wagon and Chevrolet models.

In 1936, a competition was announced to create a company logo. The winning logo was the one with the Japanese name Toyoda enclosed in a circle.

However, Risaburo Toyoda, who headed the company at that time, did not have due reverence for the surname - after all, he took it after his marriage. Therefore, guided by commercial logic, he decided to change the name to “Toyota” - in Japan, the name “Toyota” (トヨタ) is a better name than “Toyoda” (豊田), since 8 is considered a number that brings good luck, and the word “Toyota” , written in katakana (Japanese alphabet) consists of 8 strokes. The modern logo, consisting of three ellipses forming the letter “T”, appeared only in 1989. Unfortunately, it is not clear from the company documents who its author was.

Fish passport - how to find out the age of a fish?

Did you know that the age of a fish can be determined by its “annual rings”. And for this you don’t have to cut the fish, just look at its scales. The fact is that fish scales grow unevenly throughout the year and have visible concentric grooves-clumps of tissue in the place where the scale is immersed in the skin. Each groove corresponds to an annual growth cycle.

Although, it is worth noting that to determine the age of fish, scientists examine not only fish scales under a microscope. The thing is, there are a few more interesting ways find out the age of fish (although they are not so universal): by the size of otoliths (solid formations responsible for orientation in space; their size is believed to be proportional to the age of the fish), by compactions in the dorsal fin, etc. Here's an interesting fact about our smaller scaly creatures.

Lightning that strikes twice

Did you know that the expression “Lightning never strikes twice in the same place” is quite far from the truth. Firstly, lightning does not appear by chance, but under the influence of certain factors, and increasingly in the same places. On this map you can see where lightning strikes most often - the record holder in this difficult task is a village in the Congo - there are an average of 158 lightning strikes per square kilometer per year.

Secondly, lightning strikes quite often. After lightning became possible to track from satellites, the average number of lightning strikes was recorded as 44 (+/- 5) lightning strikes per second. True, it must be said that only about 25% of them hit the ground.

And finally, lightning, like any electrical discharge, follows the path of least resistance, which means that, given similar conditions, it will not fail to strike the place where it has already been.

How many eagles are there in Russian coat of arms?

Did you know (or rather, have you noticed) that on the Russian coat of arms there is not one double headed eagle. If you look closely, you will notice that on the scepter that the eagle is holding, there is another eagle - the same two-headed one as the first. So there are two of them? No - there are much more of them, or rather, an infinite number. After all, the eagle located on the scepter also holds a scepter crowned with an eagle, and so on. This heraldic idea is intended to symbolize the eternity of the Russian state.

How are small snakes born?

Did you know that not all snakes hatch from eggs, despite the fact that this has been firmly ingrained in our heads since reading about the fearless mongoose Rikki-Tikki-Tavi and his fight with cobras. There are also “viviparous” snakes - that is, they give birth to completely living offspring that no longer need to be hatched. These include, for example, our common viper. But what is most unusual is that there is also an “intermediate” species - zoologists call it with the strange word “ovoviviparous”. The offspring of these snakes develop in the egg, but the egg itself is located in the mother's body. A dense network of blood vessels entangles the egg, and oxygen from the mother’s blood seeps into the shell, thus ensuring the baby’s breathing. It gets its nutrition from egg yolk. This is how boa constrictors give birth to their offspring.

What do “chicken tobacco” and tobacco products have in common?

Did you know that chicken tobacco has absolutely nothing to do with tobacco? Indeed, the fact that there is no tobacco among the ingredients of “chicken tobacco” can be confirmed by any housewife who knows how to cook this dish. And all because the name did not come from tobacco at all. This hot dish should actually be called "chicken tapaka". And this name comes from a massive Georgian tapa frying pan with a heavy lid. It is under the pressure of this very frying pan that real tapaka chicken should be cooked.

Actually, this is not the only Georgian dish that somehow had very bad luck with translation into Russian. Let's take, for example, “chakhokhbili from chicken” - a fairly common dish in our Georgian restaurants. But such a name is simply absurd! “Chakhokh” in Georgian means “pheasant”, that is, this dish should be prepared from pheasant, and not from chicken. And if something like this is made from chicken, then it should clearly not be called “chakhokhbili.”

Kosher and progress

Did you know that it turns out that not only food is kosher? In general, absolutely everything can be kosher: from clothing to building materials. For example, the development of progress dictated the appearance of a kosher telephone. It differs from the usual one in that many functions are limited: for example, it cannot send SMS or photograph a sunset, it cannot connect to the Internet - because it may contain pornographic materials. Confirmation of kosher is a rabbi's stamp - the procedure is similar to confirming the kosher of a particular product.

Kosher rates also differ from regular rates. So, when calling another kosher number, the subscriber is given a very significant discount. However, if he decides to call on the Holy Shabbat, about 2.5 dollars will be debited from his account instead of the usual 9 cents.

Water-loving cats

Did you know that the statement that cats don’t like water is quite superficial. Even from the top five (if we include the leopard among them), the so-called. Half of the “big cats” – the tiger and the jaguar – are excellent swimmers. This quality often helps them when hunting, when the prey tries to seek salvation in the water (apparently, having also heard a lot of myths about hydrophobia in cats, and not having read our interesting facts). The leopard is also ready to swim if it is necessary for business.

But even more swimmers are common among the so-called. “Small cats”, which also includes domestic cats. Thus, many feline subspecies have a quite common habit of hunting fish, and there are cats that do this in the water. An excellent example is the Fishing Cat. This predator feeds mainly on fish and can hunt it both from the shore (pulling it out with its paw), and by diving into the water, and even swimming. To do this, there are membranes on the front paws of a fishing cat that do not allow the cat to retract its claws, but help to swim and catch fish.

And finally - for everyone exhausted by the heat, as well as for everyone who still doesn’t believe that cats are not such dry-loving creatures - a bathing cat!

What or who destroyed Napoleon's army in Russia?

Did you know that the Russian frosts, which Napoleon blamed for the death of his army, had nothing to do with it at all? From school we remember illustrations where unfortunate Frenchmen cling to fragments of ice floes, covering their faces, overcoming severe snowstorms. However, according to eyewitnesses, that winter turned out to be unusually warm: for example, the average temperature during the French retreat ranged from +7 to +10°C. On the coldest night, the thermometer dropped to -8°C. It's not so cold that it could destroy an entire army. Apparently, Napoleon himself was to blame for the defeat of his soldiers: dizziness from previous successes prevented him from developing a competent strategy, caused interruptions in the supply of food, and the climate was not at all to blame.

Scary eared

Did you know that a dozen wild and domestic rabbits released from a cage in 1859 are still seriously threatening Australia's ecology? Literally over 40 years old, rabbits with virtually no natural enemies in Australia have become a national disaster. By 1900, their number in Australia was already estimated at 20 million heads. Rabbits provide food competition to sheep and cattle. But the main problem is that rabbits “eat out” plants by the roots and eat young trees. It is already clear that because of rabbits, many species of native flora and fauna of Australia have disappeared, because... rabbits literally eat up relict vegetation and displace (to the point of extinction) local species that cannot compete with the rapidly breeding rabbits.

Australians have been fighting the rabbit population for more than a century, using shooting, poisons, and blowing up rabbit holes as measures. In addition, European predators - fox, ferret, ermine, weasel - were brought to Australia to regulate rabbits. In places in Australia, mesh fences are being installed to prevent rabbits from colonizing new areas. All these measures did not bring relief.

Only in the middle of the 20th century were bacteriological methods of rabbit control invented, when rabbits began to be infected with an acute viral disease - myxomatosis, endemic to South America. The initial effect was very large, in many areas of Australia up to 90% of all rabbits became extinct. But the surviving individuals have developed immunity and the problem of rabbits is still acute in Australia and New Zealand.

The laughter room, or what the first mirrors were like

Did you know that the first mirrors, similar to modern ones, were not flat, but concave - in the best traditions of funhouses, they could quite distort the fashionistas of that time. But let's first look at history, because the mirror is one of the oldest inventions of mankind. Of course, the first mirrors were all kinds of reservoirs that man did not invent. But over time, apparently not having a decent lake at hand to look at themselves before an important meeting with the leader, people learned to make artificial mirrors. For example, by polishing obsidian (volcanic glass) to a shine, one could get a good mirror. Such ancient obsidian mirrors, found in Anatolia (in Turkey), date back to 6000 BC. (although, it must be said, obsidian mirrors were used many thousands of years after the ancient Anatolians). Other stones could also be polished, although with less effect.

With the development of metal processing, already from 4000 BC, mirror-polished metal plates began to appear, which could also be used as mirrors. But, as often happens in life, the best mirrors were very expensive. For example, imagine your ordinary mirror made of gold or silver sheet. Also, an expensive but very effective alloy was the so-called. “mirror metal” is an alloy of copper and tin.

The search for a more affordable solution led to experiments with glass. It was then that the ancient Romans developed a technology where molten lead was poured into a glass ball, creating a reflective layer. And then the ball was broken. So we got mirror fragments. It was hard to see in them (the glass was low-transparent and had inclusions), they distorted reality (due to their shape), but still these were the first mirrors...

How much is a hundred square meters with an ocean view?

Did you know that Russia sold Alaska to the North American United States for only 4 dollars 73 cents per sq. km? Count it! The territory with an area of 1 million 519 thousand square kilometers was sold on March 30, 1867 for 7.2 million dollars in gold (at modern exchange rates approximately 104 million dollars). What was there to do? The treasury urgently needed money. To pay the landowners compensation for the abolition of serfdom, Alexander II in 1862 borrowed 15 million pounds sterling from the Rothschilds at 5% per annum. I had to return it! And the territory was uninhabited (only 2,500 Russians and 60,000 Indians) and very far from the capital. The costs of maintaining and protecting Alaska seemed incomparable with the benefits lost in the haze of the Bering Strait. The “Klondike Gold Rush”, oil and gas made Alaska famous later, but for now this lost land cost the American government less than a 3-story district court building for the New York State Treasury.

Balzac and the pyramid

Did you know that the idea of installing a pyramid in the courtyard of the Louvre was originally outlined in a small brochure in 1809 entitled “Memoir on the fulfillment by the French of two great obligations.” One of these obligations is the construction of a pyramid in the courtyard of the Louvre, which would be a national monument of gratitude to the Emperor and at the same time, secretly, a Masonic sign. The signature indicated that the author of the “Memo” was Bernard Francois Balsa, the father of Honore de Balzac.

Presumably, in the 80s, the President of the Republic Francois Mitterrand, having discovered a copy of the brochure in one of the used bookstores on the Seine, purchased it and gave it to the American architect of Chinese origin Yo Ming Pei, which prompted the famous architect to create a glass pyramid, which now serves as the main entrance in the Louvre and is one of the symbols of Paris.

The intimate life of armadillos

Did you know that when it comes to intimate life, armadillos are great originals? Let's start with the fact that they mate in the “missionary” position - this is something that, besides them, only bonobo chimpanzees and people can do. But that’s not even the most interesting thing! Armadillos are the only mammals that can control the length of their pregnancy. If the female doesn't like her environment or is otherwise confused, she can delay the development of the embryo for up to two years! This stage of armadillo pregnancy is called latent in the scientific literature. Can you imagine what opportunities could open up for us if human females were able to delay pregnancy!

Ivan the Terrible does NOT kill his own son

Did you know that, it seems, Ivan the Terrible did not kill his son, as we used to think from school, invariably recalling the famous painting by Repin. We were told that Ivan the Terrible killed the prince by hitting him on the head with a staff. A few days after this wound, Tsarevich John died. However, as it turned out, there is no evidence in the documents and chronicles of that time.

In 1963, the grave of Ivan the Terrible and his son, Tsarevich John, was opened in the Archangel Cathedral of the Kremlin. The examination did not find any damage to the prince’s skull. However, another curious fact emerged - mercury was discovered in the bones of the prince, Ivan the Terrible himself and subsequently his mother and first wife, Anastasia Romanova. A lot of mercury - an amount many times greater than the lethal dose. It turns out that the dynasty was systematically persecuted for a long time. Maybe Ivan the Terrible was not so formidable after all?

Is there still a coat of arms?

Did you know that Japan is practically the only country that does not have an official state emblem. Sometimes, for example, on the cover of foreign passports, the emblem of the Imperial House is used instead, which is a symbol in the form of a yellow or orange 16-petal chrysanthemum with a double row (although, by the way, the second row of petals is not depicted on passports for some reason).

The chrysanthemum, imported from China, became a symbol of happiness and wisdom in Japan. Also, the Japanese often associated this bright flower, bursting with strength and energy, with the sun. Therefore, since ancient times, the chrysanthemum has been a symbol of high position or nobility.

Emperor Gotoba-in, ruler (1183-1198) of the Kamakura period, was a great lover of chrysanthemum flowers and began to use their image as his own seal. This tradition was continued by other emperors, and, since the Kamakura period (XII-XIV centuries; when Japan's first shogunate appeared), it has been considered the emblem of Japanese emperors and members of the Japanese imperial family.

Officially, the sixteen-petalled chrysanthemum was recognized as the kamon (coat of arms) of the ruling imperial house in 1869 by order of the Meiji government, and since 1871, persons who did not belong to the imperial family were strictly prohibited from using it. After World War II, this ban was lifted, and, for example, the most senior of the Japanese orders is called the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum.

When did the first mailbox appear?

Did you know that some researchers name the exact date when the first mailbox appeared - 1500. True, its functions were then performed by a simple shoe. In 1500, Bartolomeo Diaz (the same one who discovered the Cape of Good Hope for Europeans) and his expedition were caught in a terrible storm off the coast of South Africa. From the entire expedition, only one ship survived, which miraculously escaped in a quiet bay. Realizing that the journey would nevertheless have to continue, and not too counting on a successful outcome, the members of the expedition decided to write down everything that happened to them. They decided to leave the manuscript on the shore in the hope that someone would be able to discover it. The letter was stuffed into a shoe and hung on a tree.

And indeed this manuscript was discovered - in 1501, sailors Portuguese ship under the control of Captain Joao da Nova. The captain ordered a chapel to be erected on this site in memory of the dead sailors. A European settlement gradually grew up around this chapel. And many years later, on this site in Mossel Bay, settlers built a monument to the first mailbox. It is made of concrete and performs all the functions of a real one. mailbox, but has the shape of an old shoe.

Save yourself, who can!

Did you know that, according to scientists, during a disaster, from an egoist saving himself at any cost, a person sooner or later turns into an altruist, he just needs some time for this. Scientists came to this conclusion by comparing shipwrecks. They differed only in duration. Thus, the Louisiana, torpedoed by a German submarine, sank in 18 minutes, and the Titanic struggled with the elements for almost 3 hours.

So, it was mostly strong young men who escaped from the Louisiana, but those who survived on the Titanic more women and children. Scientists explain it this way: at first, imminent danger provokes a powerful surge of adrenaline into the blood, which lasts for minutes. However, nervous exhaustion soon sets in, then the brain, where everything, so to speak, that is human, is concentrated, finally takes control, the instinct of self-preservation gives way to our consciousness, and we, in turn, give up places in the boats to the weak, rather than pushing them away with our elbows.

But not only consciousness plays a role here; this altruism has little to do with the rules of good manners. Inside every person sits an innate instinct to ensure the survival of the population. And this is possible if a large number of women remain alive in this same population. That's why they are given places in the boats. And that’s why old people, forgetting about politeness, are pushed away with their elbows.

Interesting facts about oysters

1. Did you know that oysters, which, like most other individuals, have two sexes, can change it. This can happen several times during the life of the oyster, under the influence of various factors. It’s funny that oysters usually start their lives as “men”, and after being well fed and ready to produce offspring, they become “women”.

2. Did you know that the rule according to which oysters should only be eaten in months beginning with “P” became outdated around the same time that artificial oyster farming became widespread. Now the months when oysters produce caviar can be changed at the discretion of the producer, and in addition, there are also oysters that do not produce caviar. Although, there is another explanation for this rule - oysters on beds actually spoil faster in the summer.

3. Did you know that the story is that oysters squeak when they are watered? lemon juice comes, apparently, from the story of A.P. Chekhov’s “Oysters” - this is how the hero of the story imagines an oyster:

“I imagine an animal like a frog. The frog sits in the shell, looks out from there with large sparkling eyes and plays with its disgusting jaws. I imagine how they bring this animal from the market in a shell, with claws, shiny eyes and slimy skin... The children all hide, and the cook, wincing with disgust, takes the animal by the claw, puts it on a plate and carries it to the dining room. Adults take it and eat it... eat it alive, with eyes, teeth, and paws! And it squeaks and tries to bite your lip...”

Attention, salvo!

Did you know that some modern artists who consider painting by throwing paint out of the anus onto the canvas (sorry) a great art can be seriously jealous of penguins. After all, for example, chinstrap and Adelie penguins throw a stream of pink and white droppings into the air with such force that they are able to hit targets at a distance of 40 cm. They do this by sticking the back of their body out of the nest. This way, both the bird's plumage and the nest remain clean. Well, the stripes from penguin volleys disappear quite quickly under the snow.

Why does the Pentagon need so many toilets?

Did you know that during the construction of the Pentagon at the very beginning of the 40s of the twentieth century, twice as many toilets were provided as required by the number of people working there. It's all about Virginia's racial segregation law. This law brought many difficulties to the architect of the Pentagon, Captain Clarence Renshaw. After all, first he had to design separate canteens for white and black builders. The builders, despite the “separate food,” conflicted with each other and had fun drawing lines that others had no right to cross.

When the architect was informed that the amenities should also be separate, he was completely upset, but still built exactly twice as many toilets. And by the way, there was a reason to be upset - after all, back in 1941, President Roosevelt signed a decree prohibiting racial discrimination against government employees. The military brazenly ignored the decree and still insisted on separate “conveniences.” However, signs with the inscription “Whites Only” were never hung on the doors of the toilets. Maybe because in 1942 Roosevelt came to the Pentagon with an inspection and reminded the obstinate military of his decree. In 1948, all segregation in the United States was declared illegal.

Al Capone or Papa Carlo?

Did you know that on the business card of the most famous gangster in America - Chicago mafioso Al Capone - the profession was “antique furniture dealer”. Capone, by the way, also known as “Scarface,” was involved in smuggling, gambling and pimping - at the same time, law enforcement agencies, desperate to obtain evidence of his activities in organizing brothels, bootlegging and murders, were eventually able to put him behind bars only for tax avoidance.

In the biography of Al Capone, other strange but interesting facts constantly come across, but even more often there are famous phrases attributed to the gangster - such as:

“It’s nothing personal, it’s just business”

“A kind word and a gun can achieve more than a kind word alone.”

“I'm just a businessman giving people what they want.”

Vertical expression of horizontal desire

Did you know that tango was first danced by men - alone or in pairs? This dance originated in the port suburb of Buenos Aires, La Boca, at the beginning of the 20th century. It was an area of smugglers and prostitutes. In brothels, men danced while waiting for a girlfriend, sometimes learning the art of tango from a pimp. The judge for this performance was a woman who could often give preference to the best dancer. Sometimes the beauties joined the men to excite the client's imagination with dance. Such competitions often ended in fights, sometimes fatal. But when the sounds of an orchestra consisting of a piano, violin, guitar and a type of accordion - bandoneon - were heard, instead of the downtrodden women and men, priests of passion appeared again.

Borges called tango “the vertical expression of horizontal desire.” In Buenos Aires, they tell interesting facts that often during the day, having met on the street, yesterday's partners did not recognize each other, because they were different in dance. Tango gave people the opportunity to be simple - a man and a woman, which is why in the 10s. tango conquered Paris and all of Europe, and after World War II, a tango craze began in the USA.

And in Russia, the passion for dancing was added to the passion for alcohol - at the beginning of the 20th century, while dancing “Russian” tango, a man held his partner in one hand and a glass of champagne in the other!

“Golden” climbers

Did you know that the emergence of mountaineering as a form of sports leisure is associated with the long history of the conquest of Mont Blanc? The first, of course, were 2 English gentlemen - Pocock and Wyndham - they were able to climb only one of the Alpine peaks - Montenvieu (1913m). After 19 years, the 20-year-old scientist Horace Benedict de Saussure repeated their path and offered a large reward to the one who reached the top of Mont Blanc. For 26 years he organized expeditions from Chamonix - without success! And so on August 8, 1786, the doctor Paccard and the mountain guide Jacques Balmat reached the cherished height of 4810 m. Paccard crawled to the top on all fours, on the descent he became snow blind - and his sponsor, Saussure, received the glory of being a pioneer! A year later, Saussure and Balma completed the ascent in 3 days. The list of things that 18 porters carried for Saussure included, for example, an umbrella, 3 jackets, 6 shirts, formal white clothes, 3 pairs of boots and slippers - what could we do without them? This climb to the “roof of Europe” attracted hundreds of adventure lovers to the Alps. This is how mountaineering arose - a new hobby for the “golden youth”.

First tourist guide

Did you know that the first tourist guide was written already in the 2nd century AD? “Description of Hellas” by Pausanias – 10 books in which the author invites you on a journey to the most interesting places in Greece. Pausanias describes temples, statues, tombs, altars, theaters, while simultaneously reporting on trade, local government, legends, and various interesting facts. From the border, he leads his reader along the shortest road to the central city, describes its attractions, then along another road returns to the border, noting all the most interesting things, then back to the center and so on many times until he moves to another area.

One drawback of Pausanias’s work is its very large volume. This guide was difficult to use. Imagine a man with a pile of scrolls in his hands, who, on a hot summer day somewhere in Arcadia, is trying to find a passage about the temple of Apollo in Bassae. Apparently Pausanias addressed his work to people as wealthy as himself. Such a person, traveling on horseback or in a cart, would not be embarrassed by the sight of several scrolls. Having stopped for the night, the traveler could read the corresponding passage, and in the morning inspect everything on the spot.

The first printed (and much more convenient) edition of the work appeared at the beginning of the 16th century, and in the 18th-19th centuries. travelers visited Greece with the obligatory volume of Pausanias in hand. The question remains how accurate this guide is. So far, every time his information could be verified, it turned out to be correct!

Nazi anti-smokers

Did you know that despite the fact that the problem of smoking occupied the minds of some rulers in different periods history, the first systematic study of the effects of tobacco on health was carried out in the Third Reich. It was there that the first state anti-smoking program was launched. All methods were used to defeat the “devil's potion.”

The leadership of the NSDAP publicly condemned smoking and encouraged scientific research into the effects of smoking - German science had the green light (and funding) in this direction. The campaign also relied on Hitler’s personal aversion to tobacco (who, by the way, was a heavy smoker in his youth, but quit smoking and began to seriously fight this habit among his subordinates and associates). The program included a ban on smoking on public transport, restrictions on smoking in public places, a limit on the number of cigarettes in the rations of Wehrmacht soldiers, and an increase in the tobacco tax. Smoking cessation propaganda was carried out throughout the country. Anti-smoking, as well as the concept of racial hygiene and bodily (including reproductive health). The Nazis, by the way, called tobacco “genetic poison.” But after the collapse of the Third Reich, American tobacco giants quickly penetrated and subjugated the German market.

Such multifaceted barbers

Did you know that barbers, whom everyone now identifies with hairdressers, once formed a special workshop and, in addition to, in fact, cutting and shaving (and, by the way, pedicures) had the right to engage in minor surgery (i.e., setting dislocations, applying dressings for fractures and wounds, etc.). An even more important activity of barbers was bloodletting, which, as was believed in those days, cured the vast majority of ailments. By the way, it was precisely by being “specialists” in treating people that barbers at some point in the Middle Ages received the status of “barber surgeon” - a doctor who treated wounded soldiers. Interestingly, for many centuries there was no other way to study surgery except through barbers. Well, then they combined all these things with dental treatment and other body care procedures. The selection of more specialized specialists from among barbers occurred only in the 19th century.

Terminator fish

Did you know that small, wonderfully colored Betta fish Splendens from the shallow, warm waters of Southeast Asia are unusually aggressive in nature and hate their own kind. They are called cockerel fish. The natives take advantage of this aggressiveness by organizing public fish fights, to which people flock, just like in our country to the races. And just like on the races, the favorite fish is watched with admiration and excitement. The fish are specially trained for about a year, placing the males in separate curtained jars and showing each other for a short time. At the sight of an opponent, the fish become furious and strive to rush into battle, but for the time being the glass of the jars does not allow their intentions to come true. And now the males meet face to face! Usually quite faded, at the moment of special irritation the fish begin to glow as if from within, become very bright and can change color. The outfit of unfurled fins is meant to intimidate the enemy - this is a ritual dance of self-praise. The meaning of the dance is no different from the verbal duel of Homeric heroes before battle. The dance lasts up to several hours, but after the fighters go on the attack, within a few minutes one of the competitors will lie on the bottom with mortal wounds. But these little warriors have incredible courage and contempt for death - and how wonderful they are in battle!

red red flag

Did you know that the English Locomotive Act (better known as the Red Flag Act) adopted in 1865 contained completely absurd rules for the operation of self-propelled carriages, in other words, the first cars. For example, their speed was limited to 3 km/h in cities and 6 km/h in rural areas. But the most interesting thing was that, according to this law, the crew of a self-propelled vehicle had to include at least three people: a driver, a fireman and... a man with a red flag. A man with a red flag (or a lantern, if it happened at night) had to walk fifty meters ahead of the car, thereby warning people and horses about the approaching steam monster. By the way, the Act was in force for 31 years, although approximately halfway through this period the legislator allowed local authorities to cancel the red flag requirement.

Such laws, by the way, were adopted in other countries, sometimes quite comical. Thus, Pennsylvania state legislators around 1896 passed a law (which was actually vetoed) according to which, when encountering livestock, the driver of a horseless carriage had to not only stop, but also dismantle it as quickly as possible and hide it in the nearest bushes until then. until the cattle calm down. These are the interesting facts that the legislative branch sometimes throws up.

From drawing to sports or who was the first to jump with a parachute?

Did you know that the first sketch of a parachute was drawn in 1483 by Leonardo da Vinci - in terms of inventions, he was almost as prolific as the Chinese. Moreover, his 15th century “tent” made of starched linen measuring 12x12 cubits coincides with the size of modern parachutes 6-7 m. The idea was embodied by the French physicist Lenormand, who gave the device the name parachute (from the Greek “para” - against and the French “chute” - a fall). However, the scientist did not dare to test the miracle design.

The first test of a parachute could be observed in the 20s of the 18th century, when the French prisoner Leuven used something similar to escape from prison: he used a ball sewn from sheets with whalebone plates attached to the bottom. Jumping out of the prison window, the fugitive splashed down safely.

Well, the first truly practical use of a parachute was found in 1793. Aeronautics enthusiast Jean-Pierre Blanchard proposed using it to safely evacuate the newly invented hot air balloon. At first, he hung small parachutes under a basket and lowered animals from a height for the amusement of the public: dogs, cats, a ram. They descended in perfect health. And when one day Blanchard's balloon exploded, he risked a desperate evacuation from the balloon by parachute. This is how the history of parachuting began.

About the first flags

Did you know that the continued attitude of many towards the flag as something sacred is an echo of its original pagan meaning. After all, at first, flags or banners were wands on which a tribal totem was attached - during the battle, such a wand was carried in front of him by the leader of the tribe. They took the rod with them into battle. On the one hand, it performed practical functions: it made it possible to determine the location of forces, the place of assembly or the location of the commander. But besides this, the rod with the totem attached to it served as protection from the enemy; the presence of the tribal talisman instilled confidence and courage in the warriors, because they could see it from afar. That’s why they guarded it in battle; capturing the enemy’s staff was equivalent to defeat.

Flags made of fabric appeared, like many other things, in China. It is believed that they began to be used there as early as 1100 BC. The appearance of flags made of fabric, in particular silk, in China is associated with the cheapness of this material there. In Europe, fabric flags became widespread in the Middle Ages - during the Crusades.

Guardians of the musical gates

Did you know that the contemporaries of later world-famous musicians and composers were in no hurry to recognize their talent “in time”. For example, the “gate guards” of the Milan Conservatory did not allow young Giuseppe Verdi into it. The secretary of the conservatory noted the low level of piano playing and insufficient ability for composition. It must be said, however, that Verdi, who wrote such famous operas as “Rigoletto”, “La Traviata” and “Aida”, heeded the assessment of the secretary of the conservatory and, after refusal, began to take private lessons and generally took his musical education seriously.

The fate of Georges Bizet was more difficult in this regard. Despite the fact that Bizet entered the Paris Conservatory at the age of 9, and in his youth collected a collection of awards for his success in playing the piano and organ and early compositions, his successes quickly ended.

Having won the Rome Prize, he went to study in Rome, bringing a letter of recommendation, which he forgot to give and eventually read it himself. After describing him as a charming, intelligent, well-mannered and very friendly young man, there was a postscript: “P.S. Bizet has no hint of musical talent.”

Nothing changed (or rather even worsened) after the premiere of the opera “Carmen”. 3 months after this premiere, called one of the most disastrous, Bizet dies without knowing that “Carmen” will be translated into dozens of other languages and will be called “the queen of operas” by descendants.

Oxytocin - effect!

Did you know that trust and mistrust are determined, among other things, by hormones? In particular, the hormone oxytocin, which is produced by the brain, is associated with feelings of affection and trust in people. Trust is probably too important for the survival of society, so natural selection created a hormonal base for it.

If a person’s profession is associated with something that requires special trust, the level of oxytocin increases: for example, scientists have proven that people involved in charity work generally have increased levels of this hormone.

But there is also the other side of the coin: using this hormone can cause an increase in the level of trust. For example, in an experiment on 178 students from Zurich, it was found that students under the influence of oxytocin were twice as trusting as those who took Placebo, and made 17% more financial contributions to unprofitable enterprises.

It turns out that after spraying a few drops of hormonal spray into the nose of a potential victim, inventive scammers can only wait for the “client” to bring them money, jewelry and various other useful things as gifts. Be careful!

Successful deal

Did you know that the oldest person who has ever lived on Earth, whose date of birth and death is documented, Frenchwoman Jeanne Louise Calment, was born in 1875 and lived 122 years and 164 days. Probably the secret of her longevity was movement: at the age of 85 she began fencing, and at the age of 100 she was still riding a bicycle.

Jeanne outlived all her heirs and, when she was already 90, she entered into an agreement to sell the apartment with the 47-year-old lawyer Raffret. Raffray had to pay monthly rent until Calment's death, with the cost of the apartment estimated at 10 years of payments. Alas! The lawyer was out of luck. Kalman survived him, living after the conclusion of the deal for more than thirty years. And Raffre's widow continued to make payments.

Long-lived trees

Did you know that the oldest trees on Earth grow in eastern California in the Ancient Britlecone Pine Forest National Park. This is the “long-lasting pine” (Pinus Longaeva), and the oldest tree is called Methuselah. It is now 4839 years old (i.e. the first sprout was in 2832 BC). in the first half of the twentieth century, the oldest were considered to be giant sequoias, living in California for up to 3,500 years and reaching a thickness of up to 8 m. But in 1957, scientist Edmund Shulman discovered that small pines growing in the White Mountains are a thousand years older. Moreover, the age of pine from the White Mountains is calculated not by new shoots from the roots more ancient tree– the pine tree has managed to preserve its original trunk for fifty centuries. This allows scientists, by studying tree rings, to find out what kind of climate there was on Earth during the construction of the pyramids and the heyday of the Sumerian civilization.

Most experienced driver

Did you know that American Gladys Flamer, who recently celebrated her 104th birthday, also has the most incredible driving experience - about 90 years! Gladys first drove when she was 15, and her first driver's license received in January 1925, since they simply had not been invented before. The most amazing thing is that the woman has never had an accident and has not earned a single fine. And continues in the same spirit! Jumps in the car, drives to the grocery store or church. They also say “a woman is driving” or “old people need to stay at home.”

Gladys remembers the first American highways - they were made of cement and quickly deteriorated, and remembers cars in which the speed was changed using special pedals. Big life - next to a big car. Gladys says about her 2-ton 1979 Cadillac that he is part of her, and they even grow old together.

Played solitaire on your computer? Welcome to prison!

Did you know that for several years in Greece, a manager who peacefully played solitaire on his computer in his free time could easily end up in prison. The fact is that in 2002, Greece passed the amazing law No. 3037, which banned computer and video games. Moreover, absolutely all electronic games were prohibited, be it paid slot machines or racing games on your phone, “Civilization” and any game on a console. It was impossible to play everywhere - at home too.

Violation of the strict prohibition was punishable by imprisonment from 1 to 12 months or a fine of at least 5,000 euros. For a repeated violation, the fine was already 75,000 euros. Moreover, the violators were really diligently caught. Of course, the public was furious - numerous trials confirmation of this. As a result, the law was declared unconstitutional, and is now applied only to Internet cafes and gambling, and even then, often formally. But the attempt, you see, is funny.

Tulip fever

Did you know that the birthplace of tulips is not Holland at all? These amazing but wild flowers appeared in the Central Asian steppes and deserts in the foothills of the Tien Shan. The ancient Persians, and later the Turks, tamed the “savages”, and now wonderful carpets of red and yellow flowers appeared in the seraglio of Suleiman the Magnificent. Particularly prized were the elongated buds with tapering petals - similar to the blade of a Turkish saber. The Austrian envoy in Constantinople once brought several bulbs to Vienna, and the gardener of Emperor Ferdinand I, Charles de l’Ecluse, introduced all the famous gardens of Europe to amazing flowers.

And - away we go! Venetian merchants brought bulbs from Turkish flower beds, and collectors collected up to five hundred varieties in their gardens! Tulips have become a symbol of wealth and nobility.

And the Dutch, known for their commercial spirit, staged a real “tulip fever” in the 1630s. The mad passion for tulips of an entire people - tulip mania - led to prices rising rapidly: one bulb was already given as a bride's dowry, once a buyer gave up an entire beer for a bulb. Merchants, nobles, sailors, servants - everyone lost their heads. Tulips began to be sold on the stock exchange; futures contracts were concluded on them. Then, of course, everything collapsed, the tulip bubble burst. Some made money, others mourned their fortune over boxes of depreciated onions. But thousands of new varieties remained and the main source of income for many modern Dutch people.

How to open sugar packets correctly?

Did you know that sugar packets, so common all over the world today, are mostly used by people in a completely different way than their inventor intended? They were invented by Benjamin Eisenstadt (1906-1996), the owner of a coffee shop in New York. When things weren't going well for the coffee shop, Eisenstadt switched to tea, and at the same time decided to somehow optimize the use of sugar at the tables. He came up with the idea of packaging sugar in bags, which would reduce the amount of spilled sugar and waste in general. However, relying on the honesty of people, Eisenstadt, not having time to patent the invention, shared his idea with sugar producing companies, and they immediately seized on it. The unfortunate inventor, of course, did not receive any money.

But even this is not the saddest thing in this whole story. The fact is that, according to the author, sugar bags were supposed to help minimize the amount of garbage on the table. Therefore, it was assumed that a person should bring the bag to the bowl and break it in the middle - this can be done even with one hand. Thus, all the sugar ends up in the cup, and in the person’s hand there is one neat candy wrapper. Instead, people, with the tenacity of sheep, continue to shake sugar into one part of the bag, and then tear off the opposite corner of the bag with the other hand. There are a lot of actions, and collecting garbage is inconvenient. Let's use Benjamin Eisenstadt's invention the way its author intended!

Ahead of the rest of the world - Russian Ten

Did you know that Russia was the first country to conduct the so-called. “decimalization” of the currency – transition to a decimal currency. This happened in 1704. Only 91 years later, France followed Russia’s example, introducing the decimal franc to the world. Other countries followed suit. Although, for example, Great Britain and Ireland switched to decimal currencies only in 1971. But they celebrate this day as a holiday - Decimal Day.

At the moment, almost all countries of the world have undergone decimalization in one way or another (in practice). Non-decimal currencies exist, for example, in Mauritania and Madagascar (where monetary units of different ranks are correlated 1 to 5), and in some countries where “minor” ranks do not exist at all.

Which side do you wear?

Did you know that when George Brummel introduced terribly tight men's trousers into fashion at the beginning of the 19th century, men who wanted to wear them had to secure their penis tightly on one side so that it would look aesthetically pleasing in tight leggings. To achieve this, some men pierced their dignity by inserting a ring into it in order to hook the hook that the tailor sewed into the leggings. When a client came to a tailor, he asked him a sacramental question: “Which side do you wear?” – and everyone immediately understood what was going on.

Nowadays, the need to secure the penis inside men's trousers seems to have disappeared, but some thrill-seekers continue to do such piercings. It is called the Prince Albert piercing (the one who was the husband of Queen Victoria of England) - according to one version, this name is due precisely to the fact that Prince Albert “wore it on the left side.”

One we write, two in mind

Did you know that Great Red Kangaroos (and some other marsupials) have a unique feature that allows them to increase the persistence of the species. Despite the fact that a female kangaroo usually gives birth to only one baby after mating, she can delay the appearance of another one while she is carrying the first (and she does not need a male at all). Thus, if the female has lost a cub, or, as sometimes happens, it has grown quickly and left the mother's pouch, she can immediately begin to bear a second one. Large red kangaroos also use this feature of delaying the bearing of their young in cases where they find themselves in unfavorable conditions for bearing offspring.

By the way, another interesting feature of this species is that the female kangaroo produces milk of different fat content for cubs of different ages - and can do this at the same time.

High-rise building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs - who is the author?

Did you know that according to the architects’ plans, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs skyscraper, one of seven high-rise buildings in Moscow built in the 50s, was supposed to look a little different. The composition of this heavy building clearly shows the authors’ desire to use the traditions of Russian architecture, in particular such a typical technique as tiered construction with volumes gradually decreasing upward. In full accordance with the principles of tiered construction, the architects intended to finish the central part with a rectangular tower - the one above which we see the turret today. This would make the overall appearance of the building more balanced. However, suddenly the architects had an unexpected co-author - Comrade Stalin himself. With one stroke of the pen, a tent with a spire appeared in the project - too small and pretentious for such a massive structure. But how can you refuse the father of nations, who was terribly fond of Gothic? For some time, experts scolded the architecture of the high-rise, and then everyone got used to it and no longer paid attention.

Interesting name: Yamal

Did you know that the name of the Yamal Peninsula means “end of the earth” in the language of the indigenous inhabitants of this region - the Nenets. The territory of the Yamal Peninsula is part of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, which was formed on December 10, 1930 by a resolution of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. The capital of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug is the city of Salekhard.

Interesting word: Yankee

Did you know that according to one version, the word “Yankee” comes from “eankke” - a word that the Cherokee Indians used to designate settlers who came from New England. In the Indian language it meant “extremely cowardly people.”

However, other versions are also expressed: that the colonists who settled in North America, came from different European countries. They “rewarded” each other with various offensive nicknames. Very often these nicknames came from the name that was the most common in a particular country. So, in Spain it was the name Diego - it turned out to be the nickname “dago”. The most common name among the English was John, which the Dutch pronounced as Jan. But Yang sounded somehow too harmless - so they changed it like a surname, it turned out to be a Yankee.

Brandy for riding the escalator

Did you know that the first escalator that appeared in England was installed in one of the most famous stores in the country - Harrods. The managing director of Harrods, Richard Burbidge, decided that installing “moving steps” could attract additional customers. However, when the escalator was launched on November 16, 1898, few buyers decided to use it. Excited visitors who finally dared to try to ride this infernal device were met at the end of the journey by store employees and offered brandy or smelling salts - the ride seemed so scary.

Feathered marathon runners

Did you know that some species of birds set some absolutely incredible records for non-stop flights? The longest non-stop flights, according to modern science, are made by birds called godwits - their record is 11,425 km. Scientists have long observed birds in preparation and during migrations. Back in 1976, the particular attention of biologist Robert Gill Jr. was attracted by godwits, a type of marsh heron. Gill noticed that the birds were devouring food non-stop to such an extent that they looked like flying balls. Even then, it was suggested that the birds had a very long flight ahead. However, no one could even imagine how long this journey to warm countries would take.

Scientists were able to accurately trace the route of travel to the south only in 2006, when modern technology made it possible to implant satellite navigation sensors into birds. This is how it turned out that godwits start in Alaska, fly straight south, cross the Pacific Ocean and do not make a single stop. Their average speed at the same time it is about 65 km/h. Now scientists are busy implanting similar chips into the bodies of other birds, maybe they will be able to identify new record holders among feathered marathon runners.

Miracle bun

Did you know that according to one version, the French baguette, one of the symbols of this country, appeared at the behest of French lawyers. On March 28, 1919, a law was passed in France according to which, from 10 pm to 4 am, bakers were prohibited from baking bread and using hired workers for this work. Thus, bakers had very little time to prepare fresh, warm bread to serve for breakfast to the demanding French. There was no limit to popular indignation. After all, the French are accustomed to a wide selection of different types of fresh bread and rolls in the morning. Will you have to forget everything?

And then technology came to the rescue - not only did the wonderful baguette require much less time to prepare, but customers also really liked it - after all, it was somewhat sweeter than regular bread, and its crust had a pleasant crunch. Bakers saw another advantage of the baguette - it dried out surprisingly quickly - literally in a few hours, and customers who were addicted to the new bread came running for a fresh loaf several times a day.

Can a gentleman wear trousers?

Did you know that trousers, without which a modern man can no longer imagine life, once could not serve as the attire of a decent person. Appearing as early as 1000 BC. from the nomads of Central Asia, trousers were gradually borrowed by the “civilized” neighbors of the inventors, because they were extremely comfortable to ride a horse in. The Romans also used trousers during military campaigns, but in Peaceful time they had to be replaced with a toga under pain of punishment.

Punishments were also applied to English students who dared to wear trousers already in the 19th century: in 1812, Holy Trinity College issued an order according to which if a student showed up for classes or church services in trousers, he was to be considered absent. Priests were forbidden to conduct services in trousers, because dressed in this way would not be allowed into the Kingdom of Heaven.

“Do you love outfits as much as I love them?”

Did you know that the wardrobe of the Russian Empress Elizabeth Petrovna consisted of about 15 thousand dresses. Elizabeth was a terrible fashionista and loved to have fun. In her palaces, balls and masquerades of unprecedented beauty were continuously held, to which the most distinguished guests from different countries were invited. It was during the time of Elizabeth that the Russian court became known as one of the most magnificent and rich in the world. The Empress loved to amaze the public: she changed clothes several times in one evening and never! I didn’t wear the same dress twice.

She preferred to make dresses from the most expensive and unusual fabrics. In those days, a law was established in the country according to which no foreign merchant had the right to sell his goods until Elizabeth inspected them - this is how she selected the fabrics and outfits she liked and ensured their uniqueness. The shopaholic empress left behind an extensive wardrobe and a lot of debt.

Interesting name: Yucatan

Did you know that Yucatan is most likely not even a name. One of the most common theories is that when the Spaniards arrived on the peninsula in Central America that separates the Gulf of Mexico from the Caribbean Sea, they tried to figure out what the place was called. Unfortunately, the Mayans did not understand the questions of the Spaniards, which they were honestly told about. As often happened in geography, the Spaniards thought that the phrase “we do not understand your words” (sounding to European ears as “Yucatan”) was the name of this peninsula. In fairness, it should be noted that there is another version of the name - “place of wealth”.

By the way, on the Yucatan Peninsula, which was the center of the Mayan civilization, and where, for example, the most famous Mayan cities are located - Chichen Itza, Uxmal, Tulum and others, Mayan languages are still spoken.

Interesting word: Humor

Did you know that the word “humor” comes from the Greek humor – “humidity”. What does humor have to do with humidity? But the fact is that in ancient medicine the human condition was described by the ratio of four fluids: blood, lymph, yellow (cold) and black (hot) bile. An excess or deficiency of any of the liquids leads to a person’s health changing (usually for the worse). And humor was precisely the state of a person in which he observed the correct ratio of these fluids - body juices.

What is a “whipping boy”?
Did you know that the expression “whipping boy” comes from the name of a real position established at the English royal court in the 15th-16th centuries. The whipping boy was, as a rule, of noble blood; from childhood he was raised together with the prince - the son of the king. If the prince did something wrong, it was the whipping boy who was punished. It sounds strange if you don't know the theory.

And the theory is as follows: the king is God’s vicegerent, and accordingly, only God can punish the king for anything. In turn, the son of the king, the viceroy of God, can only be punished by the king, and certainly not by ordinary people, which are all subjects. But in the process of raising even the son of a king, some kind of punishment is necessary, but as a rule, the king is not at hand. So the position of “whipping boy” was invented. Since the children grew up together from childhood, and the unfortunate prince did not particularly communicate with anyone else, it was believed that watching your best and only friend suffer at your mercy was very painful, and the prince had to immediately realize all his sins. Although this method of instilling a sense of responsibility for one’s actions can be debated.

Lake Balkhash - fresh or salty?

Did you know that in Kazakhstan there is a unique lake - one part of it is fresh, the other is salty. This lake is called Balkhash. Balkhash takes 13th place in the list of the most large lakes in the world. It is about 600 kilometers long. The lake has the shape of a crescent; approximately in the middle it is divided by the elongated Saryesik peninsula, which is why the two parts of the lake are connected by a narrow strait. The western part of Balkhash is relatively shallow and almost entirely freshwater, the eastern part is deeper and the water in it is salty. Currently, like many unique natural objects These days, Lake Balkhash is unfortunately drying up, and so far scientists cannot figure out how to cope with this situation.

1. Saryesik Peninsula, dividing the lake into two parts, and the Uzynaral Strait

2. Baygabyl Peninsula

3. Balay Peninsula

4. Shaukar Peninsula

5. Kentubek Peninsula

6. Basaral and Ortaaral Islands

7. Tasaral Island

8. Shempek Bay

9. Saryshagan Bay

For ancient earthquakes

Did you know that the first seismometer (or as such devices are now commonly called - seismograph) - a device that made it possible to determine the onset of earthquakes, was apparently invented back in 132 by the Chinese inventor Zang Heng.

As follows from the description of the device, it was a bowl with a copper dome, surrounded by the heads of dragons, each of which had a bronze ball in its mouth. The principle of operation of the device was based on the fact that when the earth's surface oscillated, a pendulum suspended under the dome began to swing and knocked a ball out of the dragon's mouth into the open mouth of a bronze frog, thereby producing a loud sound. This was a signal of the beginning of an earthquake. At the same time, knowing which ball fell, it was possible to determine the direction in which the epicenter of the earthquake was located.

Where did the legendary Woodstock festival actually take place?

Did you know that the famous Woodstock music festival of 1969 took place not in Woodstock at all, as its name suggests, but 60 kilometers from this city, on one of the farms near the town of Wallkill, New York. The fact is that at first the festival was planned in Woodstock, but at some point the organizers suddenly became afraid that about a million people would gather for the event, and there was not enough space in Woodstock. They were already planning to cancel the event - the organizers are good - but then a place was unexpectedly found: one farmer allowed the festival to be held in a field that belonged to him. By the way, Woodstock is not even a festival at all - its official name was the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair. According to some estimates, approximately 200,000 illegitimate children were born approximately nine months after this three-day fair.

Interesting name: Ecuador

Did you know that the country of Ecuador was named this way by Spanish colonists really due to the fact that it lies on the equator. Yes, sometimes the origin of a name is so obvious. The capital of Ecuador is Quito, whose historical center was included in the World Heritage List in the 1970s. cultural heritage UNESCO as the best preserved historic city center in Latin America.

Interesting word: Eskimo

Did you know that the word “Eskimo” (originally the name of an ice cream brand, which later became a household name) really refers to Eskimos. At one time, the polar tribes received from their neighbors - the American Indians - the name “EskimO”, which in Indian meant “people who eat raw meat”. The British, adopting this word, decided that “Eskimo” was a singular number, and out of habit they added a “s” at the end to denote the nationality. Well, we borrowed this word from English in a distorted version.

And the popsicle itself was invented by Christian Kent Nelson, an American-Danish emigrant, in 1920 after he had to watch a child in a store painfully could not choose whether to buy him ice cream or a chocolate bar. The enterprising Nelson experimented for a long time on how to pour chocolate over ice cream to get a decent result - and then he found it. He called the ice cream “Eskimo Pie.”

“Survival of the Fittest” – who is the author?

Did you know that the author of the expression “survival of the fittest” was not Charles Darwin? This expression (“survival if the fittest” was how it sounded in the original) was first proposed by Herbert Spencer in his 1864 work “Principles of Biology,” which he wrote precisely under the influence of Darwin’s “theory of natural selection.”

Darwin thought and thought and decided that Spencer's expression, in general, suited him better. “This principle, by virtue of which every slight variation is preserved if it is useful, I have called the term “natural selection,” in order to indicate thereby its relation to the selection made by man. But the expression often used by Mr. Herbert Spencer, “survival of the fittest,” is more accurate, and sometimes equally convenient,” as Darwin said in the fifth edition of his On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection in 1869.

Leave in English or still in French?

Did you know that the expression “leaving in English” was invented by the French in response to a similar English expression “leaving in French” - that is, leaving without saying goodbye, or without paying the bill, or taking something with you without permission. All this comes from the well-known “dislike” between the British and the French. Usually this long-lasting feeling is associated with long wars between these two countries, but maybe this is such a strange love for our closest neighbor.

In traditional English, you can spend a long time and with interest looking for expressions that confirm the passionate feelings of the English towards the French (the French, by the way, have much fewer such expressions). Thus, the prim English, for whom the topic of sex is to some extent “forbidden,” have associated many indecencies with the French. Vulgar postcards were called “French pictures,” prostitutes were called “French Horse Guards.” The person who used the services of prostitutes “took French lessons,” and sometimes as a result of this “he was given a French compliment” (that is, he was infected with syphilis). Well, the expression “ French Kiss"(as if the British themselves would never have thought of such a thing) has settled even in Russian. Like “pardon my French” - like us, the English can still say this phrase while swearing.

Interesting name: Sri Lanka

Did you know that the name of the country (and island) Sri Lanka is translated from Sanskrit as “Blessed Land”. Although, of course, the name “Sri Lanka” is far from being as familiar to everyone as the previous name of this state – “Ceylon”, well known to us from the variety of tea of the same name - a traditional export item of Sri Lanka. Until 1972, the country was called that way. By the way, the name “Ceylon” is also from Sanskrit and means “land of lions,” despite the fact that there have never been any lions on the island.

Interesting word: School

Did you know that the word “school” comes from the Greek scole - leisure, idleness, rest. What kind of amazing metamorphosis happened to this word that it came to mean educational institutions, which are literally the main work of schoolchildren? It all started in Ancient Greece, where in the 1st century BC. and in public places they began to build semicircular benches for rest, on which people could sit and have a heart-to-heart talk. Gradually, these benches were chosen by speakers, they had regular listeners, and the benches, previously intended for idle rest, became places of intense discussions. When such meetings between “teacher” and “students” became permanent, the need arose to create permanent educational institutions with its own premises. As a tribute to tradition, these establishments were called “schola”.

Many Russians think that Catherine II sold Alaska to the United States, but this is not so. The transfer of the territory of Alaska was completed under Alexander II.
If a Hawaiian woman puts a flower behind her left ear, then she is married. If she is for the right, then she is available for men to court.
Not all people, as is commonly believed, kiss with their eyes closed; about 60% do. Others like to watch their partner's reaction.
The most ancient mountains are located on the territory of Russia and are called Ural mountains, which amaze with their picturesqueness.
The most unusual school is located in Cambodia, it is located in the middle of the river and is called Kompong Luong. It is noteworthy that children swim to it in basins.
The largest prison for political prisoners is located on the territory of the DPRK; more than 50 thousand people are imprisoned almost for life in Camp No. 22.
Light-eyed people are better at distinguishing colors than those with brown eyes. Everything is explained by the pigmentation of the iris, which in blue-eyed people is more sensitive to light.

Located in the Altai Territory in Russia amazing place, in which you cannot stay for more than 20 minutes. This is the famous “Valley of Death”, the volcanic fumes of which kill all living things in just half an hour.
The most radioactive place in Russia is Lake Karachay. Fifteen minutes on the shore of the lake is enough to receive radiation of 600 roentgens, which is considered fatal.
The most expensive potatoes in the world cost more than 500 euros per kilogram. It is called "La Bonnote" and is grown on the French island of Nourmoitier in Atlantic Ocean. Connoisseurs of this potato claim its excellent taste.
Petite Jyoti Amge is considered the smallest girl in the world. Her height is only 62 centimeters, the baby lives in the Indian city of Nagpur.
The most expensive and valuable mushroom in the world is called the black truffle; the price of a large specimen can reach up to seven thousand euros. Not every common man can afford such a treat.
The dirtiest city on the planet is Russian Karabash. Over the almost hundred-year history of the local copper smelter, the entire nature of Karabash has become more like that of Mars. Acid rain occurs in this place, and the rivers have an unnatural color due to iron oxides.
The real pole of cold is the Russian city of Verkhoyansk. It is there that the lowest record-low temperatures with a minus sign were recorded on the planet in those places where people live.
Most people on earth have demotex mites living in their eyelashes; under microscope magnification these are real monsters!
Whatever the date of your birthday, twenty million people around the world celebrate it with you at the same time.
The longest reality show in the world is Dom-2. It has been running for more than ten years, and it is obvious that the television production will become the second “Santa Barbara”.
When a man watches porn, he pays attention to the actress's face. On the contrary, women look at the genitals.
People with blue eyes see better in the dark. It is believed that fewer and fewer blue-eyed children are born in the world each time.
In the west of China they drink salty tea. The tradition is deeply rooted in the past, and instead of sugar, table salt is added to hot tea.
Russia is not only the largest country in the world by territory, it is also the only state that is washed by 12 seas.
The most common name on the planet is Muhammad, and the surname is Lee. Among Russian surnames, the surname Kuznetsov is widespread.
During flights, the marabou stork can fall asleep and hover in the air for ten minutes.
Cleaner fish are hermaphrodites. The female can degenerate into a male and fertilize the offspring.
The only animals in the world that have a rectangular elongated pupil are goats, sheep and octopuses.
All people with blue eyes are potential relatives, since blue color is a mutation of the HERC 2 gene. People with this eye color appeared on the planet about 10 thousand years ago.
The substances in mosquito repellents do not repel insects, but camouflage a person. As a result, special receptors are blocked, and the mosquito simply does not “feel” its prey.
After forty years, people begin to grow down. A person shrinks with age by about one centimeter. This happens due to drying out cartilage tissue in the joints.
The creepiest and most unusual road in the world is called “Road to Nowhere”. This is a fifteen-kilometer stretch of highway in New Mexico that ends in an absolute dead end. There are not very good rumors about this expensive place among the locals.
Venus is the only planet in the solar system that rotates counterclockwise. Why is this happening? Scientists give this phenomenon a variety of explanations, but the most obvious is the dense atmosphere of the planet.
In the nineteenth century, Horace Fletcher proposed a diet called Fletcherism. The idea was to chew your food at least 30 times and then spit it out. It was assumed that the stomach is full and the person does not gain weight.
The worst slums in the world are located in Kenya, right in the capital of Nairobi. More than twenty million people live in a world without electricity, water, sewerage, schools or hospitals.
The largest meteorite that fell to earth is considered to be the Goba meteorite, which reaches almost three meters in length. A celestial body was discovered in Namibia. It weighs more than 60 tons and is 90 percent iron.
The ancient representatives of snakes had legs. Scientists assumed that more than 130 million years ago snakes had limbs that allowed them to move quite quickly.
Hong Kong is recognized as the largest and most populous metropolis on the planet. The city is home to more than thirty-five million people.
Why do they wear wedding rings on the ring finger? The tradition comes from Ancient Greece, where it was believed that the “vein of love” passes through the ring finger, going straight to the heart.
Bob Marley's crypt contains his guitar, a bible, a football and a package of marijuana.
The human femur inspired Eiffel to create the famous Parisian tower.
Perfume was invented in the 16th century to remove the stench from unwashed bodies. In Europe, people haven't swam all their lives!
To keep fit, a person must take at least ten thousand steps a day.
Americans have the healthiest teeth; approximately forty percent of US citizens have never experienced problems with caries.
Every three seconds one child is born on earth, and every 5 seconds someone dies.
Over the course of a lifetime, the average person eats 30 tons of food; if you imagine this in volume, then the weight of all the food eaten in a lifetime is equal to the weight of 8 elephants.
Most billionaires do not live in United Arab Emirates, and in Moscow. But still, the most expensive city in the world is not Moscow, but Hong Kong.
The mythical creature mothman or mothman in the Jersey bridge collapse in the late 60s was seen by about a hundred people at a time.
American Charles Osborne hiccupped for 65 years without stopping. Nothing helped the poor man.
Russia and the United States are separated by only four kilometers. Don't believe me? Find Chukotka on the map and measure the distance from the Chukotka Territory to Alaska.
Bolivia has the most dangerous road in the world, its length is 70 kilometers. Drivers drive on a narrow track without bump stops over an abyss of three thousand meters!
There are a lot of transvestites living in Thailand. The country's authorities have gone so far as to say that in the cities of Thailand there are schools where young transvestites study; in ordinary schools there is a special toilet for such children.
We often hear voice-over laughter in soap operas, but few people know that the same recording from 1950 has been dubbed over and over again for many years. Many of these people are no longer alive.
Napoleon Bonaparte has always been considered a short man. But during the 18th and 19th centuries, people were not tall. Napoleon's height was 170 centimeters, and he was even considered above average at that time.
On the planet Uranus there is no such off-season as on Earth. There winter constantly gives way to summer. Winter or summer lasts exactly forty-two Earth years.
Pluto has long been considered one of the planets of the solar system. This unusual celestial object was discovered in 1930, and its name was given to it by the 11th girl Venice Burney from Old England.
There is an amazing underground city on our planet. It is located in Australia and is called Coober Pedy. Precious opals are mined there, and local residents live in apartments literally carved out of caves.
According to statistics, a person kisses for about three years of his life. By the way, in some countries the French kiss is still considered extremely indecent and is equivalent to a kiss on the genitals.
The smallest dog breed is the Chihuahua. Usually these dogs do not reach a weight of more than two kilograms.
Up to 100 thousand bees live in one beehive; the queen bee lays more than a thousand eggs a day and lives on average two years. When the queen dies, the bees leave their hive.
Most copiers in the world break down after people try to “photocopy” their butt.
The most expensive houses are those painted yellow. There is less purchasing activity for white houses.
The famous yo-yo was once used in the Philippines as a weapon against enemies.
Bolivia is the only country in the world where there is a navy, but there is no access to the sea or ocean.
Everest is not the highest mountain in the world, there is a higher peak. It is called Mauna Kea, its height is ten thousand meters and it is located in the Hawaiian Islands.
The largest car in the world is the Ford F 650. Such a colossus weighs twelve tons!
Half an hour of listening to music on headphones increases the number of bacteria in the ear canal by 700 times!
The only animal that can laugh are ordinary rats. At the same time, all other animals in the world are deprived of this due to the lack of facial expressions.
Love is not a hindrance to marriage. The largest age difference was recorded in Malaysia. The groom was 105 years old, and the young bride was only 22 years old.
One day Pablo Escobar was very cold while hiding from the police. To keep warm, he threw wads of money into the fire; as a result, two million US dollars flew into the fire.
Every minute, mobile operators earn almost a million dollars from SMS.
In India a man must marry his daughter older sister. According to Indian canons, this is not considered incest.
Ancient Egyptian nobles kept crocodiles as pet cats, and even bought them jewelry made of gold and precious stones.
Most A tall man lives on earth in Turkey. His name is Sultan Kosen, and his height reaches a full two and a half meters. Such a giant can be seen a mile away, and in Turkey Sultan is a local celebrity who is often invited to TV shows.
The deepest hole in the ocean is Dean's Blue Hole. According to scientists, its depth is more than two hundred meters. Divers and ordinary travelers love this place. It is very picturesque.
North Korea is the most closed country in the world. It terrifies the common man with its strict rules. For example, on every street in Pyongyang there are loudspeakers that blare sirens at seven in the morning, signaling that people have to go to work.
Amancio Ortega is recognized as the richest man in Europe; he owns companies such as Pull and Bear, Bershka, Zara. At the same time, Amancio Ortega leads a rather secluded lifestyle and does not at all look like a rich man.
A child up to five years of age can learn several foreign languages. Children at a young age perfectly remember words and foreign expressions, and this knowledge is retained by a person almost until old age.
The most poisonous fish in the world of fugu, has a tetrotoxin poison that kills an adult in almost a few minutes. The poison is found in the innards, skin, gills and eyes of the fugu.
In ancient Japan, there was a cult of miniature female legs. Therefore, girls from rich families literally had their feet tightly bandaged from birth so that the bones practically did not grow. Such feet were compared to a lotus, and the smaller the foot, the more noble the bride was.
Colorblindness is a rather unpleasant phenomenon. Most colorblind people live in Europe, namely in the Czech Republic. Scientists noted that there are no colorblind people in Fiji and in a number of other island settlements.
Are you often annoyed by the fact that you did not have time to cross the road at a traffic light? Scientists have found that the average person living in a city spends three whole weeks in front of a traffic light.
The weight of our planet is not constant. The most amazing thing is that the earth annually gains about fifty tons in weight and sheds about a hundred tons. Scientists have not yet found an explanation for this phenomenon.
Have you ever thought about why the rabbit is the symbol of Playboy? The logo was created and developed by Aruthor Paul back in 1953, as a funny sketch and a kind of comic caricature. It was thanks to this sketch that the layout of the first Playboy magazine was created in 1954.
Scientists have created algae that tastes like bacon and ham. They contain a huge amount of vitamins and minerals necessary for our body. The main purpose of the invention is to fight hunger in a number of African countries. Seaweed is inexpensive and comes in a wide variety of flavors.
The most environmentally friendly city is located in Switzerland. In the city of Zermatt it is prohibited to drive cars, as they pollute the atmosphere. Horse-drawn vehicles, bicycles or electric vehicle travel are permitted.
The largest dinosaur was found in Argentina. His height was 32 meters, and the giant weighed approximately 80 tons.
The largest dog in the world is a cute Great Dane named Gibson. If Gibson stands on his hind legs, then his height is two meters!
Every three seconds people claim to have seen a UFO, but this is usually just an optical illusion. Of course, there have been mass UFO sightings, but there has always been a rational explanation for unidentified objects in the sky.
A jellyfish that kills with just one touch lives in Australia. Its venom is a hundred times more dangerous than that of a cobra. This baby only weighs a couple of grams!
The largest star in the visible universe is Betelgeuse. It is located at a distance of more than six hundred million light years from our planet. If you compare it with the sun, then the sun is a poppy seed, and Betelgeuse is an orange. By the way, in the next 3 thousand years the star will explode, and the glow from its explosion can be observed with the naked eye from the ground.
Robots are being developed not only for human needs in the field of science. Robotics is gradually entering everyday life. By 2070, scientists plan to invent robots that can replace humans. Single people will have a chance to find their soul mate, robots will be able to express their feelings and even have sex.
The city that has the longest name in the world is Bangkok. The capital of Thailand sounds like "Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Ayuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit" in Thai. It’s surprising that every Thai should know this fancy name by heart.
A lightning strike can incinerate a person in literally seconds. But it’s not for nothing that the American Roy Cleveland is called a “lightning rod man.” Throughout his life, he survived seven lightning strikes and remained alive. Roy is even listed in the Guinness Book of Records.
The deepest metro in the world is located not in New York, but in the Russian city of St. Petersburg. It's all about the rocks; during the construction of the metro it was necessary to make tunnels at a depth of eighty meters.
The tallest New Year tree was installed in Russia in 2013. The green beauty was placed on Poklonnaya Hill, and the height of the tree reached 50 meters in height. The record for the tallest tree has not yet been broken.
Humanity litters on a simply enormous scale. The largest and most impressive landfill is found in the Pacific Ocean. Right in the middle of the ocean there is a many-kilometer-long landfill of plastic, technical waste, fuel oil and oil.
In the Middle Ages there were rather strange beauty rules for women. To achieve a white complexion, ladies used lead powder, removed freckles with sulfur, and brushed their teeth with arsenic paste.
American scientists have found that the best relaxation in the world is contemplation aquarium fish. A 550-liter aquarium with multi-colored lighting was created especially for visitors to one of the New York parks.
Russia is considered the most big country in the world by territory. For quite a long time, Russia occupied third place in the honorable list of empires. The area of the Russian state is more than seventeen square million kilometers!
The crocodile is an amazing creature. Although the Nile crocodile breathes through its lungs, it can hold its breath underwater for about two hours.
The most terrible disease that has claimed the lives of almost half of the world's population is not the bubonic plague or the famous Spanish flu. This is malaria, which is caused by the malaria mosquito. In some parts of the planet, malaria is still rampant.

Test: do you know which of the things around us can really cause harm? Interesting Facts. Did you know that... Did you know that

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