All facts — Page 22
The complete ONAURE library, newest first. Every fact has an explanation and a source you can check.
1196 facts
Ethernet was invented in the Xerox PARC laboratories.
Ethernet was invented in 1973 by Bob Metcalfe at the Xerox PARC laboratories in California. It was created to connect…
A tiger's roar can be heard up to 3 kilometres away.
The roar of an adult tiger can be heard about 3 kilometres away, thanks to the special structure of its larynx and…
Each dragonfly eye has more than 30,000 facets.
Dragonfly compound eyes contain up to 30,000 tiny lenses called ommatidia, giving them a nearly complete panoramic…
Human venous blood is not blue, but dark red.
Venous blood is often depicted as blue in books, but it is actually dark red. The bluish colour we see in veins is…
The smell of garlic only appears when the clove is cut or crushed.
Whole garlic contains alliin, an odourless compound. When the clove is cut or crushed, the enzyme alliinase converts…
The Altamira cave in Spain has cave paintings over 14,000 years old.
The Altamira paintings, discovered in 1879, include bison, horses and human handprints painted on the walls. They are…
A bee can carry up to half its own body weight in nectar.
Worker bees carry nectar and pollen in their stomachs and on their hind legs. Consequently, they can carry up to half…
Some migratory birds use Earth's magnetic field to navigate.
Birds such as the flycatcher and the thrush use Earth's magnetic field as an internal compass during migration…
The bone marrow produces about 500 billion blood cells per day.
The bone marrow produces about 500 billion blood cells per day, including red blood cells, white blood cells and…
Humans lose about 100 hairs per day.
Humans lose between 50 and 100 hairs per day, on average. Hair grows about 1.25 centimetres per month and each…
Lemon juice can prevent apples from browning.
Lemon juice contains ascorbic acid, which is an antioxidant. By covering cut apple with lemon juice, the ascorbic…
Lake Baikal contains about 20 percent of the planet's liquid fresh water.
Lake Baikal, in Siberia, is the deepest lake in the world, at 1,642 metres. It contains about 23,000 cubic kilometres…
The black hole at the centre of the Perseus cluster emits pressure waves that can be translated into sound.
The black hole at the centre of the Perseus cluster generates pressure waves in the hot gas surrounding it. These…
A sand battery can store thermal energy for months.
The sand battery heats sand up to 500 degrees Celsius using surplus electricity from renewable sources. The heat is…
Morse code was invented by Samuel Morse in 1837.
Morse code was invented by Samuel Morse and Alfred Vail in 1837 for the telegraph. Each letter is represented by a…
A brain-computer interface managed to decode speech and singing from brain waves.
A system developed by researchers uses artificial intelligence to decode brain waves into expressive speech and even…
Snakes detect the body heat of prey through sensory pits.
Some snakes, such as pit vipers and pythons, have loreal pits between their eyes and nostrils that detect infrared…
The sea otter has the densest fur of any mammal.
The sea otter has about one million hairs per square centimetre, the densest fur of any mammal. This density creates…
Coffee is a fruit.
Coffee beans are the seeds of the fruit of a plant of the genus Coffea. These fruits are red or purple berries…
La Paz, Bolivia, is the highest capital in the world.
La Paz is at an altitude of about 3,640 metres, making it the highest administrative capital in the world. Although…
The snow leopard uses its tail to balance on cliffs.
The snow leopard has a long tail that can measure almost as much as its body. It uses it to balance on narrow…
The Arctic fox changes colour in winter.
The Arctic fox has white fur in winter and brownish-grey fur in summer. This colour change helps it camouflage in the…
The star-nosed mole has 22 tentacles on its nose to detect prey.
The star-nosed mole has 22 fleshy appendages on its nose, covered by more than 25,000 touch receptors. These organs…
The spleen can be removed without the person dying.
The spleen plays a role in filtering blood and immune defence, but it can be surgically removed. After removal, the…
