Marie Curie was the first person ever to win TWO Nobel Prizes – one for physics in 1903, the other for chemistry in 1911 for her work on radioactivity.The longest reigning monarch ever was Louis XIV of France.Also, did you know Norway gets 0% electricity from coal? And Germany has installed 1 kW of renewable capacity per person in the last decade?Ī) (Climate change is the biggest global issue of our time, but there are some things to feel positive about!) In the UK in 2019, renewable energy generated more electricity than fossil fuels for the first time ever.If the first drop comes from the right eye, it’s tears of joy. Scientists say tears tell you the reason for someone crying.Brazil boasts the most biodiversity of any country on the planet, with more than 50,000 species of plants and trees.Note: The Statue of Liberty is 93m by comparison! The Statue of Unity in China’s Henan province is the tallest in the world, standing at a whopping 579 feet (182m).The wealthiest company in the world in 2020 was Saudi Aramco.“Avengers: Endgame” is the top-grossing film of all time, making over $2.7B!.92% of the world’s currency is digital.The most-visited country on the planet is France, with 90M visitors, according to figures from the UNWTO in 2018.“Salvator Mundi” by Leonardo da Vinci is the most expensive painting in the world, valued at $450.3M.The name “sandwich” comes from an 18th-century aristocrat called the 4th Earl of Sandwich.In 2019, scientists discovered the world’s oldest known work of art on an Indonesian Island called Sulawesi.Tim Berners-Lee created the first ever web browser (World Wide Web), in 1990.
Egypt is classified as the oldest country in the world, dating back to 3100 BCE.The largest contiguous land empire in history is The Mongol Empire (13th & 14th centuries).The printing press, which revolutionized the sharing of information, was invented by Gutenberg around the year 1440.The Anglo-Zanzibar War (1896) was the shortest war ever – lasting just 38 minutes!.The American Revolution (1765-1783) came before the French Revolution (1789-1799).In Ancient Egypt, the word for ‘cat’ was actually pronounced ‘mew’, or ‘meow’.Buzz Aldrin (the second man to ever step on the Moon, in 1969) actually peed himself while walking on the surface, apparently.The first hand-held mobile phone call was made on April 3rd, 1973, in NYC.The national flag with the most colors in it is Belize (1981), with 12.It would take you approximately 18 months to walk all the way along The Great Wall of China.Each limestone/granite block that makes up the Great Pyramid of Giza weighs 2.5 tons.(This is NOT an invitation to test the fact.) They emit gasses to alert other trees to produce the toxin tannin, which protects them from hungry animals. Acacia trees in Africa communicate with each other.It plunges to a whopping depth of 5,315 feet (1,620m). The deepest freshwater lake in the world is Lake Baikal, located in Siberia.Lobsters are not ‘biologically immortal’, but they do produce an enzyme that repairs their cells and helps their DNA to replicate indefinitely.
Its water resources are shared by 11 different countries, too.
The longest river in the world is the River Nile, clocking 6,853km in length.The deepest place on Earth is the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean.Finally, lean back slightly in your chair (indicating you are at ease with yourself).Lift your coca cola and swill it round the glass for a moment (showing your sophistication).Raise an eyebrow (creating an aura of intrigue).Master the body language of a seasoned academic with this simple 4 step technique: Then you’re ready to recite any of the 50 facts below and leave your company reeling in shock. You have to make yourself look cultured, like you really know what you’re talking about. Do you want to pull off this exquisite dinner-table trick?įirst, you need to build ‘presence’.
Facts that will leave everyone jaw-on-the-floor amazed. Have you ever sat around the table with friends or family, enjoying a perfectly acceptable lunch or dinner, and listened – powerless – as the conversation slowly turns to the topic of “culture” or “art” or “the world”?ĭon’t panic – instead arm yourself with some unbelievable fact nuggets about the world that will make you seem thoroughly cultured.