17/ix mmxv

Sometime around 1500 BC, after being hit by a terrible earthquake, the residents of Crete tried to calm the earth by lowering a large basket of olives into a well.

About one in four animals on earth is a beetle.

In Tanzania there are 125,000 people for every doctor, compared to one doctor for every 156 people in Cuba.

Asteroid 1227 is called geranium.

Novelist Joseph Conrad’s real name was Teodor Józef Konrad Nałęcz-Korzeniowski. He became fluent in English only in his 20s. He never lost his Polish accent.

See other: Quite Interesting Facts

23/i mmxiii

The name of the Hehe tribe of Tanzania comes from their feared ‘hee-hee’ battle cry.

Huli Wigman from the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea

Taphephobia is the fear of being buried alive. A phobia which sounds surprisingly natural. The great 18th century clown Grimaldi was so frightened of being buried alive that he specified his head must be cut off first, which his family duly arranged.

Both dogs and horses can smell fear in humans.

When Prime Minister Harold Macmillan was asked what he feared most he said: “Events, dear boy, events…”

In several areas in Papua New Guinea, women can be punished by public gang rape, often sanctioned by elders.

See other: Quite Interesting Facts

14/v mmx

Which Portuguese islands are located in the mid-Atlantic?
– The Azures

Which country sold Alaska to the USA?
– Russia

Which country is home of the Olduvai Gorge?
– Tanzania

Which Scottish mountain has a ruined observatory at its summit?
– Ben Nevis

What is the capital city of Pakistan?
– Islamabad