Fast Facts

March 23, 2006

  • Montgomery Ward’s first catalogue was printed in 1872 – on one sheet of paper.
  • Almost half the bones in your body are in your hands and feet.
  • Toads do not have teeth.
  • Jaguars are scared of dogs.
  • A domestic cat has 18 claws, five on each of the front paws and four on each of the back paws.
  • Akron, Ohio is “”the rubber capital of the world.”” The city also boasts the world’s largest fishing tackle industry.
  • The tip of a whip makes a cracking noise because it moves faster than the speed of sound.
  • Alaska’s coastline is longer than that of all the U.S. coastal states combined.
  • An ear of corn almost always has an even number of rows. You’re likely to find them in rows of 12, 14 or 16.
  • Earthworms have five hearts.
  • The only domestic animal not mentioned in the Bible is the cat.
  • The average person swallows 295 times while eating a meal.
  • The Fisherman’s Information Bureau in Chicago registers the catches of large and record-sized fish. The organization is known by its initials, FIB.
  • In the 1800s in England, anyone who unsuccessfully attempted suicide faced the death penalty.
  • A golf ball, when driven off a tee, can reach speeds up to 170 mph.
  • In 1911, a West Point applicant flunked his physical, so the military school granted admission to the next candidate – Dwight D. Eisenhower.
  • Elvis Presley had a reading chair in his bathroom.