Interesting Facts

powered by ODEO According to a House of Commons report, 38% of British motorcyclists are driving without road tax. (Born to be wild.) And then according to Leon (see below) the government had to apologise, because this wasn't true. Which actually makes it even more interesting.

powered by ODEO According to research released by Sybase 365, Americans are obsessed with managing their personal finances. (More than a third of them, are able to state their bank balance at any given time, and an additional 42 percent typically know their bank balance to the nearest $200. What a shame they don't watch their economy that closely.)

powered by ODEO A bear called Voytek helped carry ammunition for Polish troops during World War II. (No wonder the Germans shot Bruno.)

powered by ODEO According to the Office of National Statistics just over two thirds (68%) of cigarette smokers in the UK said that they wanted to give up - but 59% said it would be difficult to go without smoking for a whole day. (It's easy actually - just give up. Stop. Now. Don't smoke another cigarette.)

According to the Office for National Statistics alcohol consumption in 2006 was higher in England (13.7 units a week), than in Wales (13.5) and Scotland (11.6). (I can't believe the English out drink the Scottish!)

Data from the Office for National Statistics suggests that wealthy people are more likely to drink alcohol than those in low-income homes. (Why would this surprise anyone? More money - more alcohol.)

In the UK, super-fast broadband fibres are being laid in the sewers. (Seemingly a company called H20 networks has been rolling out a fibre-via-sewers network - known as Focus (Fibre Optical Cable Underground Sewer) since 2003. Considering what often travels down the fibres, it's quite fitting really.)

"Plain vanilla" is a term for basic financial instruments such as shares. (Round where I come from it's only found in cornets or with wafers. Mind you, with the state of the money markets it's quite an accurate term, they are melting after all.)

Only offal-free versions of haggis are available in the United States. (They don't know what they're missing.)

In a study sponsored by mobile phone companies, using a mobile before bedtime can delay you getting to sleep. (The study suggests that radiation from the handset can cause insomnia, headaches and confusion. I think it's more likely to be caused by the person on the other end.)

The Scottish crossbill is the only bird unique to the UK. (That and the Nottingham totty.)

According to his ex-wife Cecilia, Nicolas Sarkozy never had dinner at home in eight years. (There's a moral in there somewhere.)

Brazil has more people of African descent than any country outside Africa. (Half the population of Brazil is said to be either black or mixed race.)

US and Canadian experts say that Christopher Columbus introduced syphilis to Europe. (You can just imagine it can't you. Syphilis may I introduce Europe? Europe, this is Syphilis.)

According to researchers at the University of Wroclawoth, Poland, men and women find long legs in the opposite sex attractive. (But not too long.)

British MPs can claim up to £250 a month in expenses without producing receipts. (I'll try that with the tax man shall I?)

According to Redhedd.com, the first online dating service exclusively for people with ginger hair, 13% of the Scottish population have ginger hair. (This is the highest proportion of any country in the world.)

Rodents used to weigh a tonne and have skulls half a metre long. (This means they would have been as big as a bull. So much for Roland rat.)

Only 50% of people survive a fall from three stories. (I nearly didn't survive a fall down a step.)

According to the rules of dining etiquette, at dinner parties, a man should always talk to the woman on his left during the first course, and right during the main course. (This is made possible by the man - woman - man - woman rule for seating arrangements. Hence the song - Here I am, stuck in the middle with you.)

According to a study by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, 40% of people admit to lying about having read certain books. (So, the next time I tell you I've read The Iliad, you know what to think.)

Low energy light bulbs contain small amounts of mercury. (Official advice from the Department of the Environment states that if a low-energy bulb is smashed, the room needs to be vacated for at least 15 minutes.)

Victorians believed smoking cleared the lungs. (A Dr Thomas Allinson was struck off for describing nicotine as a "foul poison". However, he went on to found a very successful bakery and advocated healthy eating.)

According to government statistics, half of British men aged 16-24 haven't read a book in the past 12 months. (I can't imagine not reading a book for 12 days!)

The Royal Marsden Hospital was founded in 1851. (It was the first hospital in the world to be dedicated to cancer.)

For the first time in 50 years neither the president nor his deputy will be seeking re-election in the United States. (There's something reassuring about that actually.)

Brits eat more fast food than Americans. (That's typical isn't it? They invent the darn stuff and we swallow it.)

Networks of sensors are embedded in road surfaces to beam back information to councils on ice, rain, wind and temperatures. (Why don't they just look out of the window?)

Once the evidence has been gathered, the police are not required to clean up a crime scene. (I think they should be issued with uniform rubber gloves, instead of rubber truncheons.)

According to a survey for the Office for National Statistics, 25% of adults in the UK have not read a single book. (Don't worry. I read enough to make up for all of them.)

Just 12% of people surveyed by the University of Hertfordshire managed to keep their New Year's resolutions for an entire year. (Just make a resolution not to make any more resolutions. It works!)