*** World's Greatest Trivia Thread of All Time ***

24 karat gold is pure gold, with no other metals. 18 karat gold is 75% gold by weight but 61% by volume; the other (lighter) metals mixed with it are 25% by weight but 39% by volume. 10 karat gold is 41% gold by weight and 24% by volume, and 14kt gold is 58.5% gold by weight but only 39% by volume.

Canada is an Indian word meaning "Big Village".

The wingspan of a Boeing 747 is longer than the Wright brothers' entire first flight.

The names of the three wise monkeys are:

* Mizaru: See no evil
* Mikazaru: Hear no evil
* Mazaru: Speak no evil.

The only 15-letter word that can be spelled without repeating a letter is "uncopyrightable."

The quickest relief from stomach aches due to minor cases of food poisoning can often be had by drinking a few ounces of diluted apple cider vinegar (preferably the uncooked or "raw" kind) followed by a tablespoon or two of raw honey. They both are known to kill some kinds of germs.

A ‘jiffy’ is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.

The reason firehouses have circular stairways is from the days of yore when the engines were pulled by horses. The horses were stabled on the ground floor and figured out how to walk up straight staircases.

Emus and kangaroos cannot walk backwards, and are on the Australian coat of arms for that reason.

Sea temperature calculations prove that between 600AD and 1100AD world temperatures were about 2 degrees higher than they are now. During this period, northern Europe experienced a golden age for agriculture. Greenland, now a frozen wasteland, was then a habitable Viking colony and it was actually green, not white as it is now.

The hummingbird needs to eat twice its body weight in food every day.

In the 1940s, the FCC assigned television's Channel 1 to mobile services (two-way radios in taxicabs, for instance) but did not re-number the other channel assignments. That is why your TV set has channels 2 and up, but no channel 1.

It would take enough solar cells to cover 53,760 acres, or 84 square miles, in order to supply as much energy at the same rate as just one average gas station.

Does saving pennies add up? Well, American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating ONE olive from each salad served in first-class (too bad governments don't think that way!).

Why is real maple syrup so expensive? About 40 gallons of slowly- collected maple sap have to be boiled down to make just one gallon of syrup.

Especially when driving, sitting on a wallet, checkbook or anything else as thick will, more often than not, result in curvature of the spine, pinched nerves and backache over time. NEVER put anything in a back pocket thicker than a piece of paper.

The larger branches on old rotten or damaged trees can be deadly. Those from common hardwoods such as oaks can weigh as much as 3,000 pounds, and from giant redwoods (called "widowmakers") as much as 12,000 pounds. Any of these can plunge right through the roof of a house or a car when ripped loose in severe wind conditions, so avoid them during storms and keep them trimmed if they're on your property.

Rare Minerals:

More than 30 types of rare phosphate minerals have been discovered in the Blow River area. Many of these minerals are new to science. The exceptionally rare lazulite crystals gave Yukon its official gemstone. Samples of these minerals are on display in Whitehorse.
[link to www.travelyukon.com]

"Stewardesses" and "reverberated" are the two longest words (12 letters each) that can be typed using only the left hand.

The world's largest wine cask is in Heidelberg, Germany.

Louisa Adams, 1775-1852
John Quincy Adams’ wife was the only first lady born in a foreign country—England.

She played the harp, wrote satirical plays and raised silkworms.

[link to www.firstladies.org]

The world’s largest tyre manufacturer by volume, with interests in Dunlop and many other regional and second line brands worldwide, is the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.

Chocolate bunnies should be eaten ears first, according to 76% of Americans.

Five percent said bunnies should be eaten feet first, while 4% favored eating the tail first.

70% of kids aged 6–11 say they prefer to eat Easter jellybeans one at a time, while 23% report eating several at once. Boys (29%) were more apt to eat a handful than girls (18%).

Hot cross buns were among the earliest Easter treats, made by European monks and given to the poor during Lent.

When the Bible was written (and edited, re-edited) they believed the world was flat.

When opossums are playing 'possum, they are not "playing." They actually pass out from sheer terror.

Camel's milk does not curdle.

The TALLEST recorded horse was a Percheron crossed with a Shire named Firpon, foaled in 1959. He was 21.1 hh.

How to use a brandy snifter.

Roll the snifter between both hands and then cup it in one hand – warming the glass brings out the bouquet in brandy.