Interesting Facts

One in three students in the East Midlands has been a victim of crime. (A lot of international students don't realise how important it is to stay safe whilst in the UK - http://www.educationuk.org/downloads/safety_1st.pdf)

Wild gorillas use tools. (So much for man's superiority.) PS - Don't confuse gorilla and guerrilla .

The opposing sides of a dice always add up to seven. (Seven up?)

A camel can lose up to 30% of its body weight in water and continue to cross the desert. A human would probably die of heat shock after sweating away only 12% of body weight in water. (Not to mention the smell!)

A letter by Fergal Keane to his newborn son was broadcast on the BBC radio program, "From Our Own Correspondent." Read it here .

Japanese knotweed can grow from a piece of root the size of pea. And it can flourish anew if disturbed after lying dormant for more than 20 years. (All parts of the plant are considered as controlled waste under the Waste Regulations. You can be fined for letting it grow. Fallopia japonica var. japonica, was introduced from Japan in the early 19th century as an ornamental plant. William Robinson refers to it under a previous name of Polygonum cuspidatum in The English Flower Garden (John Murray 1883, 1907 edn. cited) as "easier to plant than to get rid of in the garden".)

Although the US National Weather Service did not start using names until 1953, for hundreds of years hurricanes in the West Indies were named after the saint's day on which they occurred. (I have written an article on this, I'll publish it in the October English Magazine.)

The Church of Sweden is a major shareholder in H&M. (This made me laugh because I didn't even know there was a "church of Sweden".)

According to data gathered from drug centres, hospitals and police arrests, 46,000 Londoners are using crack. (I think I will have to start a new category - Worrying Facts.)

Since the 1970s, the number of strong hurricanes around the world has doubled. (Now that should make you think. Check your insurance policies - bet your not covered.)

Sensitive hacking equipment could tell what words are being typed on a keyboard by analysing the unique sounds made by each key. (Stop listening!)

Bob Dylan first visited Britain - in 1962 - to take part in a BBC play, Madhouse on Castle Street. (The recording was wiped (erased), it featured a 21-year-old Bob Dylan as a young protest singer - talk about being typecast.)

Britain produces 700 regional cheeses, more even than France. (But none are quite as smelly as Vieux Boulogne. The French can keep that record.)

The herb rocket (aka roquette, arugula and rucola - not the kind you send into space) was widely grown in English kitchen gardens in the 1600s. (It's back and trendy now.)

The average cost of a litre of petrol in the UK is 94.6p. (I remember when .....)

The rings around Saturn are fluffy. (There's something about this idea that I like. Fluffy sounds nice. Makes you want to be an astronaut.)

Twenty-one stray animals are put down in the UK each day. (A nation of animal lovers...)

George Bernard Shaw named his shed after the UK capital so that when visitors called they could be told he was away in London. (I think I'll rename my office Barbados.)

Fifty-seven Bic biros are sold every second - amounting to 100 billion since 1950. (That's a lot of biros. I wonder how many biros are lost every second?)

Ninety-five percent of today's 500,000 racehorses descend from a single stallion - the Darley Arabian, born in 1700. (He must have been a busy boy.)

According to the World Bank, the gross national income of the US is $37,870 per capita, in Indonesia it is $810 and in Niger just $200. ( Make Poverty History )

Norway is the world's third largest oil exporter. (And I always thought they only exported Norwegian wood.)

Road signs in an Austrian village - whose seven-letter name begins with "F" and ends in "ing" - are now encased in theft-proof concrete to stop tourists stealing them. (Want to know what the word is? Can't you guess? Then read on - over 18s only .)

The Spanish smoke more Gauloise cigarettes than the French. (Give up now!) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4217010.stm

China makes about 40% of the world's socks. (Thank you for all your hard work China.)

The section of coast around Cleethorpes in England has the highest concentration of caravans in Europe. (I don't think this is necessarily a good thing.)

Dutchwoman Hendrikje van Andel-Schipper, who died this week at 115 after becoming the oldest living person in the world, attributed her longevity to a diet of pickled herrings. (Was it worth it?)

The UK has over 18,000km of coastline. (I have only walked about a tenth of it!)

Britain has an average of 33 tornadoes every year in an area 38 times smaller than the USA, so you're twice as likely to witness a tornado in the UK as in the USA. (My nephew's bedroom usually looks as if a tornado has hit it!)