Opera-Science: Did you know . . . ? (1)

...that the tallest mountain in the Pyrenees is Aneto?
...that Orson Squire Fowler, who popularized the octagon house, was also a phrenologist?
...that the dismissive line about Canada being "a few acres of snow," commonly attributed to Voltaire is, in fact, a misquotation?
...that Tetricus I was the last of the Gallic emperors?
...that Wite-Out correction fluid was invented in 1966?
...that the infamous man-eating lions of Tsavo attacked workers who were building the Uganda Railway, which connects Uganda and Kenya?
...that Oriental metal is a kind of death metal music that originated in Israel which has traditional Jewish and "Oriental" influences?
...that Chicago mayor Jane Byrne moved into the notoriously miserable Cabrini-Green housing project in 1981?
...that George H.W. Bush flew a TBF Avenger while he was in the U.S. Navy?
...that Henry Wade never lost a case until Roe v. Wade?
...that most "tin cans" are actually made of steel?
...that the Fairey Barracuda was a British carrier-borne torpedo bomber used during World War II?
...that the author Pai Hsien-yung's father was Kuomintang general Pai Chung-hsi?
...that left-handed specialists in baseball frequently enjoy long careers because their pitching arms suffer less stress?
...that American Zoetrope was originally housed in a warehouse in San Francisco in 1969?
...that the 555th Parachute Infantry Company was the first African-American airborne forces unit in the United States Army?
...that the first elected president of Singapore was Ong Teng Cheong?
...that the gestation period of the ring-tailed lemur is approximately 146 days?
...that NASA astronaut Stephen Robinson has logged 497 hours in space?
...that the original "dreamer of dreams" was English poet Arthur O'Shaughnessy?

Friday, 26 September 2008

Did you know . . . ? (1)

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