Random Stuff: 05/30/14
Voting in Greece is mandatory for all Greek citizens, although there are rarely sanctions for citizens that do not vote. Currently, Greek men must serve from one year to 18 months in any branch of the armed forces. According to Greek mythology, Athena and Poseidon agreed that whoever gave the city the best gift would become guardian over the city. Though Poseidon gave the gift of water, Athena's gift of an olive tree was deemed by the other gods to be more valuable. The world's third leading producer of olives, the Greeks have cultivated olive trees since ancient times. Some olive trees planted in the thirteenth century are still producing olives.
The United States of America is divided into 12 Federal Reserve Districts (Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas, and San Francisco). Additionally, typically 12 people are appointed to sit on a jury for felony trials, twelve men have walked on the moon and Alcoholics Anonymous has 12 steps, 12 traditions, and 12 concepts for world service. The number 12 is highly symbolic in the Bible. It is mentioned 189 times.
- The Tree of Life inside the City of Heaven yields 12 different kinds of fruit.
- The City of Heaven is described as having three gates in each corner, making 12 in all.
- The first recorded words of Jesus occurred when he was 12 years old.
- Jesus had 12 apostles, which represented the 12 tribes of Israel.
Contrary to popular belief, excavated skeletons show that the pyramid builders were actually Egyptians who were most likely in the permanent employ of the pharaoh. Graffiti indicates that at least some of these workers took pride in their work, calling their teams "Friends of Khufu," "Drunkards of Menkaure," and so on--names indicating allegiances to pharaohs. Although popular legend blames Napoleon and his troops during the French campaign in Egypt (1798-1801) for having shot the nose off the Great Sphinx, in fact this story just isn't true. It is not known who destroyed the nose of the Sphinx. There are sketches of the Sphinx without a nose in 1737, over 60 years before Napoleon reached Egypt and hundreds of years before the British and German armies of the two World Wars. The only person known to have damaged it was an Islamic cleric, Sa'im al-dahr, who was lynched in 1378 for vandalism.
Only recently, and mainly in Western countries, has smoking been seen as a serious health hazard. Smoking rates in the United States have dropped by half since 1965, from 42 percent to 26 percent of adults. Smoking in developing countries, however, is rising. Within 20 minutes of quitting smoking, a person's blood pressure returns to normal. Within one year, the chance of suffering a heart attack decreases by half. Tobacco smoking, particularly cigarette smoking, is the single-most preventable cause of the death in the United States.
On average, cats spend 2/3 of every day sleeping. That means a nine-year-old cat has been awake for only three years of its life. Every year, nearly four million cats are eaten in Asia.
Scientists suggest that stress is part of the evolutionary drive because it has enabled humans to survive. Specifically, stress temporarily increases awareness and improves physical performance. Stress also causes capillaries to close, which restricts bleeding if a flesh wound should occur, and makes the blood "stickier," in preparation for an injury. Such a reaction, however, also increases the probability of developing a blood clot. While it is a myth that stress can turn hair gray, stress can cause hair loss. Stress can also alter blood sugar levels, which can cause mood swings, fatigue, hyperglycemia, and metabolic syndrome, a major risk factor for heart attack and diabetes.
Inflation-adjusted federal tax revenues hit a record $1,320,793,000,000 in the first half of fiscal 2014, but the federal government still ran a $413,264,000,000 deficit during that time. If someone reports their company for tax evasion in the U.S., he or she will receive 30 percent of the amount collected.
The United States of America is divided into 12 Federal Reserve Districts (Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas, and San Francisco). Additionally, typically 12 people are appointed to sit on a jury for felony trials, twelve men have walked on the moon and Alcoholics Anonymous has 12 steps, 12 traditions, and 12 concepts for world service. The number 12 is highly symbolic in the Bible. It is mentioned 189 times.
- The Tree of Life inside the City of Heaven yields 12 different kinds of fruit.
- The City of Heaven is described as having three gates in each corner, making 12 in all.
- The first recorded words of Jesus occurred when he was 12 years old.
- Jesus had 12 apostles, which represented the 12 tribes of Israel.
Contrary to popular belief, excavated skeletons show that the pyramid builders were actually Egyptians who were most likely in the permanent employ of the pharaoh. Graffiti indicates that at least some of these workers took pride in their work, calling their teams "Friends of Khufu," "Drunkards of Menkaure," and so on--names indicating allegiances to pharaohs. Although popular legend blames Napoleon and his troops during the French campaign in Egypt (1798-1801) for having shot the nose off the Great Sphinx, in fact this story just isn't true. It is not known who destroyed the nose of the Sphinx. There are sketches of the Sphinx without a nose in 1737, over 60 years before Napoleon reached Egypt and hundreds of years before the British and German armies of the two World Wars. The only person known to have damaged it was an Islamic cleric, Sa'im al-dahr, who was lynched in 1378 for vandalism.
Only recently, and mainly in Western countries, has smoking been seen as a serious health hazard. Smoking rates in the United States have dropped by half since 1965, from 42 percent to 26 percent of adults. Smoking in developing countries, however, is rising. Within 20 minutes of quitting smoking, a person's blood pressure returns to normal. Within one year, the chance of suffering a heart attack decreases by half. Tobacco smoking, particularly cigarette smoking, is the single-most preventable cause of the death in the United States.
On average, cats spend 2/3 of every day sleeping. That means a nine-year-old cat has been awake for only three years of its life. Every year, nearly four million cats are eaten in Asia.
Scientists suggest that stress is part of the evolutionary drive because it has enabled humans to survive. Specifically, stress temporarily increases awareness and improves physical performance. Stress also causes capillaries to close, which restricts bleeding if a flesh wound should occur, and makes the blood "stickier," in preparation for an injury. Such a reaction, however, also increases the probability of developing a blood clot. While it is a myth that stress can turn hair gray, stress can cause hair loss. Stress can also alter blood sugar levels, which can cause mood swings, fatigue, hyperglycemia, and metabolic syndrome, a major risk factor for heart attack and diabetes.
Inflation-adjusted federal tax revenues hit a record $1,320,793,000,000 in the first half of fiscal 2014, but the federal government still ran a $413,264,000,000 deficit during that time. If someone reports their company for tax evasion in the U.S., he or she will receive 30 percent of the amount collected.
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