The first macaroni factory in the United States was established in 1848. It was started by Antoine Zegera in Brooklyn, New York.

The leaves of palm trees vary greatly in size. The largest are the talipot palm with fan-shaped leaves that may be 15 feet (4.6 m) wide, and the raffia palm whose leaves may be 65 feet (20 m) long and 8 feet (2.47 m) wide.

Male monkeys lose the hair on their heads in the same manner men do.

The Netherlands are the lowest country in the world. It is estimated that 40 percent of the land is below sea level.

Joe Namath, one-time New York Jets quarterback, donated pantyhose to Planet Hollywood. He wore the pantyhose on the football playing field on chilly days.

The origin of the English word “orgasm” derives from the Greek, “orgaein,” meaning “to swell” or “be excited or lustful.”

The oyster is usually ambisexual. It begins life as a male, then becomes a female, then changes back to being a male, then back to being female. It may go back and forth many times.

Almost every weekday morning, Kleenexes are handed to the commuters in front of Japan's rail and bus stations for free. The tissues are distributed by workers of the companies whose messages and advertisement are printed on the packages. The reason for this.... most public bathrooms do not have

Scientists estimate that they could fill a 1,000-volume encyclopedia with the coded instructions in the DNA of a single human cell if the instructions could be translated to English.

One prominent feature of the Greek climate is its ample sunshine. The sun shines in Greece about 3,000 hours per year. Greece's heavily indented shores give the country extraordinary beauty, quite unique in the Mediterranean. The length of the Greek coastline is estimated at 15,000 kilometers.

The praying mantis eats nothing but live food, predominantly insects. Its prey is taken only from flowers, leaves, bark, or the ground - never while the potential victim is in flight. Surprisingly, if quick and lucky, it will also consume and eat a hummingbird.

In medieval Europe, alchemists mixed powdered gold into drinks to "comfort sore limbs," one of the earliest references to arthritis.

A dog named "Simone" was featured in the first season of The Partridge Family, though she was phased out of production early in the second season. Like "Tiger" on The Brady Bunch, the dog simply disappeared without an explanation.

Pediatricians estimate that 58 percent of their young patients go to child care or school even when ill, according to a Gallup survey. This despite the fact that 81 percent of mothers working full-time have stayed home at times to care for a sick child.

Elephants are covered with hair. Although it is not apparent from a distance, at close range, one can discern a thin coat of light hairs covering practically every part of an elephant's body.

The Virginia opossum is the only marsupial (pouched mammal) indigenous to North America. They will play dead when threatened, and contrary to folklore, do not sleep hanging by their tails. They have a litter size of up to 22, but only a maximum of 13 offspring live. Their babies stay in the pouch

The nickname "Tinsel Town" was coined by Oscar Levant, the pianist, composer who observed: "Strip the phoney tinsel off Hollywood, and you'll find the real tinsel underneath.

The highest point in Pennsylvania is lower than the lowest point in Colorado.

An estimated 50 percent of U.S. landfill space is taken up by discarded packaging.