Facts that sound false but are true — Page 22
Our highest surprise rating: the facts people most often refuse to believe until they read the explanation. Every one of them is documented.
1017 facts
Water is the only substance that expands when it freezes.
Water is one of the few substances that expands when it freezes. Unlike most liquids, water solidifies into an open…
Liquid oxygen has a pale blue colour.
Unlike oxygen gas, which is colourless, oxygen in the liquid state is pale blue. This colour is due to the absorption…
Olympus Mons on Mars is the largest known volcano in the solar system, about 22 kilometres high.
Olympus Mons is about 22 kilometres high, almost three times the height of Mount Everest, with a base hundreds of…
In 1997, the computer Deep Blue beat the world checkers champion.
IBM s Deep Blue defeated Garry Kasparov in a six-game match in 1997. It was the first time a computer beat a world…
The world's first webcam was created to monitor a zoo.
In 1991, researchers at the University of Cambridge set up a camera pointed at the laboratory coffee pot so they…
The pangolin is the only mammal covered in scales.
The pangolin is the only known mammal with true scales. The scales are made of keratin, the same material as human…
The octopus can taste with its arms.
The octopus has taste receptors on the suckers of its arms. This allows it to identify whether an object is edible…
The hyoid bone is the only bone in the human body not connected to other bones.
The hyoid bone, located in the throat, is not directly attached to any other bone. It is suspended by muscles and…
Africa is the only continent located in all four hemispheres.
Africa is the only continent in the world that extends across the northern, southern, eastern and western…
Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital, was built on a mountain.
Tenochtitlan, today Mexico City, was built on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco. The Aztecs created artificial…
Ancient Roman concrete had a self-healing ability.
Roman concrete contained lumps of lime that, on contact with water, dissolved and recrystallised, filling cracks…
The Sun contains about 99.86 percent of the total mass of the solar system.
The Sun contains about 99.86 percent of the total mass of the solar system. All the planets, moons, asteroids and…
The sailfish is the fastest fish in the ocean, reaching 110 kilometres per hour.
The sailfish can reach speeds of up to 110 kilometres per hour, making it the fastest fish in the ocean. Its speed is…
The Arctic tern migrates from the North Pole to the South Pole every year.
The Arctic tern migrates from the North Pole to the South Pole every year, a journey of about 70,000 kilometres. It…
The bar-tailed godwit can fly more than 11,000 kilometres without stopping.
The bar-tailed godwit (Limosa lapponica) is capable of flying more than 11,000 kilometres without stopping, from…
The boxer crab uses sea anemones as boxing gloves.
The boxer crab (Lybia tessellata) carries sea anemones in its claws and uses them as boxing gloves to defend itself…
The dung beetle is the only known insect that navigates by the Milky Way.
The dung beetle uses the Milky Way to orient itself when pushing its ball of dung. It is the only known insect…
The mantis shrimp has only 3 types of photoreceptors, like humans.
The mantis shrimp has between 12 and 16 types of photoreceptors, far more than the 3 in humans. Despite this, studies…
The human body contains enough phosphorus to make about 2,200 match heads.
The adult human body contains about 780 grams of phosphorus, most of it in bones and teeth. This amount would be…
The human body contains enough potassium to fire a toy cannon.
The adult human body contains about 140 grams of potassium, essential for muscle and nerve function. This amount…
The human body contains enough sulfur to kill all the fleas on a dog.
The adult human body contains about 140 grams of sulfur, present in amino acids such as cysteine and methionine. This…
The most expensive coffee in the world is made from civet droppings.
Kopi Luwak is produced from coffee beans that have passed through the digestive system of a civet. The civet's…
Da Hong Pao, the most expensive tea in the world, is grown in flooded rice paddies.
Da Hong Pao is grown in rock crevices in the Wuyi Mountains of China. The original bushes are over 350 years old and…
The Yubari King melon from Japan can sell for thousands of euros.
The Yubari King melon is grown only in Yubari, Japan, and is considered a status symbol. A pair of perfect melons can…