Do You Know? Strange Facts – February 2021: Here’s the latest collection of weird and wonderful facts to win friends and influence people:
Bill Gates aimed to become a millionaire by the age of 30. He became a billionaire by 31!
Bill Gates’ children will “only” inherit US$10 million each. He has a US$72 billion net worth.
Autism affects about 21.7 million people in the world.
As of 2019, The Bible is wholly or partially available in 3,384 languages.
Stubbs the cat, so-called because he had no tail, was the mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska, for 20 years. He died in 2017.
About 50% of Japanese, Chinese and Koreans do not possess one of the enzymes that break down alcohol: aldehyde dehydrogenase. Consequently, they experience facial flushing when drinking beer, wine or spirits.
“Mortimer Mouse” was the original name of Mickey Mouse before Walt Disney’s wife, Lillian, convinced him to change it.
The average office desk has 400 times more bacteria than a toilet.
Surprisingly, chocolate has an anti-bacterial effect on the mouth and protects against tooth decay.
You create new brain connections as a result of forming a memory.
Researchers found that owning a cat can reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes by more than a third.
Thirty-one per cent of rock-star deaths are related to drugs or alcohol.
Couples who live together before engagement have a higher divorce rate than those who wait.
The wind blows sand from the Sahara all the way to the Amazon, thereby recharging its minerals. In this way, the desert basically fertilises the rainforest.
People with blue eyes have a higher alcohol tolerance.
Water in rock faults vaporises during an earthquake, depositing gold. All this is according to a model published in an issue of the journal Nature Geoscience.
In 1981, in an act of vigilante justice, 46 residents of a small Missouri town killed a man who had been bullying locals.
Coffee is particularly effective if consumed between 9.30am and 11.30am.
Avoiding tobacco and alcohol, having a healthy diet and physical activity could prevent over 30% of cancer.
Dogs poo in alignment with Earth’s magnetic field, a new study published in the journal Frontiers in Zoology says. Generally, they use the Earth’s magnetic field when they’re relieving themselves and do so in a north-south axis.
Chimpanzees can develop their own fashion trends from time to time.
Anne Frank’s father was an officer in the German army during World War One.
From birth to toilet training, a baby goes through an average of 8,000 nappy changes.
About 50% of Japanese, Chinese and Koreans do not possess aldehyde dehydrogenase, one of the enzymes that break down alcohol. Consequently, they experience facial flushing when drinking beer, wine or spirits.
Walt Disney World® Resort in Florida covers nearly 40 square miles. This area is about the size of San Francisco or two Manhattan islands.
Barack Obama won a Grammy in 2006 for the audio version of his memoir, Dreams From My Father.
At its peak, the Roman Empire comprised 12% of the world’s population.
One billion people speak English – that’s one in every seven people on Earth.
Eighty per cent of the information stored on all computers in the world is in English.
Kissing someone is more sanitary than shaking hands… if you want to avoid a cold.
A study suggests a lack of exercise is now causing as many deaths as smoking.
Three-hundred-and-fifty million people of all ages around the world suffer from depression.
Famous left-handed people include Napoleon, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Einstein, Newton, Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, Barack Obama and Jimi Hendrix.
In 1801, the Kingdom of Ireland and the Kingdom of Great Britain merged to create a United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Some fish, like the Triggerfish, can swim backwards.
We hope you enjoyed reading our “Strange Facts – January 2021” article. Click here for more from our Do You Know? series.
