Did You Know?

The longest reigning monarch ever was Louis XIV of France. His monarchical tenure was 72 years.

Cigarette buts are the most common type of litter. Chewing gum is also a common type of litter and is illegal in Singapore.

The ten occupations that require the most walking at work are: police officers, nurses, secretaries, postal workers, doctors, actors TV reporters, store workers, public relations executives, real estate agents.

The most expensive bottle of wine ever sold at auction, was a 1787 Chateau Lafitte. Sold for 140,700 US dollars in 1985.

Cuba is the top sugar - consuming nation in the world. The country that produces the most cheese is the US. The world's oldest cake is more than 4,000 years old. It was baked in ancient Egypt.

The ten languages spoken by the most people in the world are: Mandarin, English, Hindustani, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Bengali, Portuguese, Malay - Indonesian, Japanese.

The highest price paid for a painting is 75,000,000 US dollars for a painting by Vincent Van Gogh. This happened in New York, Portrait of Dr. Cachet. Dr Cachet was Van Gogh's physician.

The ten longest rail networks in the world are: US, Russia, Canada, China, India, Germany, Australia, France, Argentina, Brazil.

The 1st motor race to use gasoline engine vehicles, took place in 1895 in France, from Paris to Bordeaux and back. Some ocean liners carry more than, 2,000 passengers. The longest passenger ship is the 'Monarch of the Seas.

The oldest recorded horse is 62 years. The smallest breed of horse is less than 76 cm tall. The flightless ostrich lays the largest eggs of all birds. About 600,000 parrots are caught each year and sold as pets.

The most venomous spiders are Brazilian wandering spiders. The fastest snake is the black mamba of the African, Indian Ocean. It is also the fastest snake, which can travel at 19 km/h. Sea turtles lay more eggs than any other reptile. They could lay 200 eggs in a single clutch.

The smallest country in the world is Vatican City. The country with the most tourists each year is France. The largest country in the world is Russia. Rome was the first city to have a population of 1 million in the 2nd century BC.

The worst tsunami in the world was in the Atlantic Ocean in 1775. It hit Morocco, killing 60, 000 people. In 1815, 92000 people were killed when Tambora in Indonesia, erupted in the worst ever volcanic eruption. The worst oil spill happened when 2 ships collided off the coast of Trinidad in 1979 and 330,700 tons of oil spilled.

Sources : Wikipedia, Websters encyclopedia, Excerpts from Quiz book. ( attribution : Russell Ash), Pixabay.