Honey never spoils
Archaeologists have found pots of honey in ancient Egyptian tombs that are still edible. Its low water content and acidity stop bacteria from growing.
Read the fact →Hot water can freeze faster than cold water
Known as the Mpemba effect, it has been observed for centuries — Aristotle mentioned it — and scientists still debate exactly why it happens.
Read the fact →Bananas are radioactive
They are rich in potassium, and a small fraction of potassium is the radioactive isotope potassium-40. The dose is tiny — you would need millions of bananas for any harm.
Read the fact →Glass is not a slow-moving liquid
The old story that medieval windows are thicker at the bottom because glass flows is a myth. The panes were simply made unevenly. Glass is an amorphous solid.
Read the fact →Lightning is about five times hotter than the Sun’s surface
A bolt can heat the air around it to roughly 30,000 °C. The Sun’s surface is a comparatively mild 5,500 °C.
Read the fact →Water can boil and freeze at the same time
At a precise pressure and temperature called the triple point (0.01 °C at 611.7 pascals), ice, liquid water and water vapour all exist together.
Read the fact →Canada has more lakes than the rest of the world combined
Around 60 percent of all the world’s lakes are in Canada — well over two million of them.
Read the fact →Russia spans 11 time zones
From Kaliningrad in the west to Kamchatka in the east, a traveller crossing Russia would reset their watch eleven times.
Read the fact →The Sahara was green 6,000 years ago
During the African Humid Period the Sahara had lakes, rivers, grassland and hippos. Rock paintings there show people swimming and herding cattle.
Read the fact →Mount Everest is not the tallest mountain from base to peak
Mauna Kea in Hawaii rises about 10,200 m from the sea floor, more than Everest’s 8,849 m — most of Mauna Kea is simply under water.
Read the fact →India’s Mawsynram is the wettest place on Earth
This village in Meghalaya receives about 11,870 mm of rain a year on average — more than ten times what London gets.
Read the fact →Africa is the only continent in all four hemispheres
It straddles the equator and the prime meridian, so it has land in the northern, southern, eastern and western hemispheres.
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