Ten Random Facts

South Africa ordered 100,000 nonwhite people to leave their homes within one year to make room for whites on August 25, 1956.
History

In 1966, Elliot Handler, one of the co-founders of Mattel, Inc. and part of the Barbie doll empire, was the inventor of Hot Wheels®. Handler experimented with axles and rotating wheels being attached to tiny model cars. The innovative gravity-powered car he developed had special low-friction styrene wheels. Hot Wheels® have been clocked at speeds of up to 300 miles per hour.
People » Inventors

There is evidence to suggest that ginger root is effective against motion sickness and nausea when taken in powdered form.
Food and Drink

On June 6, 1944, thirty-five young, local residents of Bedford, Virginia, went ashore with Company A. Nineteen of them were cut down in the first 15 minutes of fighting, and two more were dead before the sun set. These losses earned Bedford the horrific d
History

In 1500 B.C. in Egypt, a shaved head was considered the ultimate in feminine beauty. Egyptian women removed every hair from their heads with special gold tweezers and polished their scalps to a high sheen with buffing cloths.
History

While many people believe that a camel's humps are used for water storage, they are actually made up of fat. The hump of a well-rested, well-fed camel can weigh up to eighty pounds.
Animals

Lead poisoning is known as plumbism.
Medicine and Health

If you have three quarters, four dimes, and four pennies, you have $1.19. You also have the largest amount of money in U.S. coins possible without being able to make change for a dollar.
Words and Numbers

It was believed in earlier times that if a young woman saw a robin flying overhead on Valentine's Day, it meant she would marry a sailor. If she saw a sparrow, she would marry a poor man and be very happy. If she saw a goldfinch, she would marry a millionaire.
Holidays

Scheduled to be demolished in 1968, Grand Central Station was saved by a campaign led by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and architect Philip Johnson. The station was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
History

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