Interesting Things 11

Tweet

Another installment of interesting things. If you haven't noticed by now, I will continue this until I can find no more interesting things... so there will probably be a lot! Austria was the first country to use postcards. The dollar sign is a combination of the letters P and S. PS is the abbreviation for pesos, the principal coin in circulation in the United States until 1794 when the country started marketing its own dollars. Naval vessels of the United States military follow uniform naming standards. Battleships are always named after states, cruisers after cities and destroyers after naval heroes. The powder inside of an Etch A Sketch is aluminum that's ground so fine that it will stick to everything it touches. Small plastic beads are added to agitate the powder and keep it from clumping together. Undertakers report that human bodies do not deteriorate as quickly as they used to. The reason for this, many believe, is that the modern diet contains so many preservatives that these chemicals tend to prevent the body from decomposing too rapidly after death. Pollen never deteriorates. It is one of the few naturally secreted substances that lasts indefinitely. Coin banks are commonly shaped like pigs because frugal people in the 18th century saved their money in earthenware jars made of dense orange clay known as pygg. The paper used to make U.S. dollar bills is composed of linen and several types of cotton, including denim - which gives it its unique fabric-like feel and durability. Murder is the only crime that does not increase during the full moon. Theft, disorderly conduct, larceny, armed robbery, assault and battery, illegal breaking and entering, and rape all statistically increase dramatically during the full moon. Tires under-inflated by as little as five pounds can rob a car owner of as much as half a gallon of gas out of every twenty. Up until 1830, when a bar of soap was purchased, the grocer simply hacked off a chuck from a large block. A manned rocket reaches the moon in less time than it takes a stagecoach to travel the length of England. Technically speaking, World War II isn't over. There has never been a formal peace treaty between Germany and the Soviet Union. The original American Express card was purple. In the game "Monopoly," the space on which a player has the greatest statistical chance of landing is Illinois Avenue. The United States Treasury Department maintains a fund known as "The Conscience Fund," which accepts money sent in anonymously by taxpayers who think they've cheated the government. The money is used for miscellaneous expenses. Lightning strikes the Earth 100 times every second, from the 1,800 thunderstorms in progress at any given moment. The first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel was Anna Edson Taylor. She made the journey on October 24, 1901, and escaped unhurt. More to come later. Until then, enjoy!