The Open University

The lighter was officially invented before the match and, moreover, was much more convenient. The first lighter is considered to be the Döbereiner's Lighter, which was produced by Johann Wolfgang Döbereiner in 1823. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

An outraged Indian King purchased 10 Rolls Royce cars and used them as garbage collectors, when he was insulted by a Rolls Royce salesman in Mayfair, London who said he could not afford the luxurious vehicle. [for more....] 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

Woodpeckers ram their bills at 25 times per second with 1200g’s acceleration.This research refutes the theory that their skulls act like helmets, absorbing the shock of impact. Instead, they minimize it to strike harder. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

This olive tree lived through the Iliad writing, the golden age of Athens, the rise of the Roman Empire and the birth of Christ, and then lived for 2,000 years after that. It is thought to be about 2,900 years old. Crete, Greece. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

Flamingos can eat only with their heads upside down. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

The world's oldest condom, ≈1640 AD. The oldest condoms ever found so far are dated between 1642 and 1647. They were probably made from pig or sheep intestines. They were found during an Archaeological excavation in the cesspit of Dudley Castle in West Midlands, England. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

Samosas are banned in Somalia. Prepared from refined flour and a filling of meat or vegetables, the snack has a triangular shape which seemed to be a symbol of Christianity to 'Al-Shabaab group'. The shape didn't go well with the group, as they thought it resembles the Christian Holy Trinity and so they banned Samosa in Somalia in the year 2011. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

A cockroach can live without a head for a couple of weeks until it dies of hunger. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

Lobster blood is colorless but when exposed to oxygen it turns blue. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

A person can hypnotize himself. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

Russian cosmonauts pee on the rear bus tire before a space launch. The tradition was started by Yuri Gagarin who did it out of necessity and Russians have since emulated him. Female cosmonauts bring along their urine in vials ready to dump on the tire so they can be part of tradition too. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

When hippos are upset, their sweat turns red. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

A bee sting can relieve arthritis pain. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

The sun is losing a million kilograms per second. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

In 1971, Nike hired a student to create a logo. She was paid $35 for her design. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

The number of stars in the sky exceeds the number of all grains of sand in the entire world. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

If you hold in too many farts, some of the gas can be reabsorbed into your circulation and then exhaled in your breath. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

The teeth of mice are so strong that they can gnaw through concrete. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

Exercise and spending time with pets can be effective strategies for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚

Grizzly bear has the best sense of smell in the world • His sense of smell is 100 times stronger than that of dogs. 📚 @TheOpenUniversity 📚