Fast Facts

August 6, 2007

A human loses an average of 40-100 strands of hair a day.

Wyoming was the first state to give women the right to vote.

Pomology is the study of fruit.

A cucumber consists of 96 percent water.

Time magazine’s “”Man of the Year”” for 1938 was Adolf Hitler.

After decaffeinating coffee, processing companies no longer throw away the caffeine. Instead, they sell it to pharmaceutical companies.

An old superstition says that keeping an acorn by the window will keep away lightning.

The name for fungal remains found in
coal is sclerotinite.

Fingernails grow faster than
toenails.

Private Henry Gunther was the last soldier killed in World War I, on Nov. 11, 1918.

The term “”First Lady”” was first used in 1877, in reference to Lucy Ware Webb Hayes.

The Lone Ranger’s real name is John Reid.

The bola tie is Arizona’s official state neckwear.

James Buchanan was the only U.S. president never to marry.

In California, it is illegal to eat oranges while bathing.

Organized crime is estimated to account for 10 percent of the United States’ national income.

“”Quisling”” is the only word in the English language to start with “”quis.””

Potatoes were first brought to Europe in the 1500s on Spanish ships returning from Peru.

The “”infinity”” character on the keyboard is called a lemniscate.

“”Happy as a clam”” is from the expression “”happy as a clam at hide tide.”” Clams are only harvested when the tide is out.

The play “”Breath,”” by Samuel Beckett, was first performed in April 1970. The play lasts 30 seconds and has no actors or dialogue.

The Daily Wildcat