Fun Facts About Everything & Anything: Vol. #14
  Written By Girly

Did You Know...
The word “dollar” first originated in the Roman Empire. A mining hole in the mountains of Bohemia produced so much silver it became the official source of coinage for the entire Holy Roman Empire. The mine was in a valley called Joachimsthal, and the coins came to have the same name: "Joachimstalers." Over time this became shortened to "Talers" and over more time, the American pronunciation of the word became the name for the currency that you would like to have in your pocket.

The $ sign was designed in 1788 by Oliver Pollock, a New Orleans businessman, using a combination of Spanish money symbols.

Did You Know...
A green diamond is the rarest diamond.

Did You Know...
Credit was first used in Assyria, Babylon and Egypt 3000 years ago. The bill of exchange - the forerunner of banknotes - was established in the 14th century. Debts were settled by one-third cash and two-thirds bill of exchange. Paper money followed only in the 17th century.

The first advertisement for credit was placed in 1730 by Christopher Thornton, who offered furniture that could be paid off weekly.

From the 18th century until the early part of the 20th, tallymen sold clothes in return for small weekly payments. They were called "tallymen" because they kept a record or tally of what people had bought on a wooden stick. One side of the stick was marked with notches to represent the amount of debt and the other side was a record of payments. In the 1920s, a shopper's plate - a "buy now, pay later" system - was introduced in the USA. It could only be used in the shops which issued it.

In 1950, Diners Club and American Express launched their charge cards in the USA, the first "plastic money". In 1951, Diners Club issued the first credit card to 200 customers who could use it at 27 restaurants in New York. But it was only until the establishment of standards for the magnetic strip in 1970 that the credit card became part of the information age.

Did You Know...
The length from your wrist to your elbow is the same as the length of your foot.

Did You Know...
Boys wear blue and girls dress in pink, why is that? In ancient times, it was believed that certain colours could combat the evil spirits that lingered over nurseries. Because blue was associated with the heavenly spirits, boys were clothed in that colour, boys then being considered the most valuable resource to parents. Although baby girls did not have a colour associated with them, they were mostly clothed in black. It was only in the Middle Ages when pink became associated with baby girls.

Did You Know...
A recent nationwide poll confirms that Americans are making healthier food choices. The survey conducted with Cooking Light along with Yankelovich Monitor, a leading national marketing and consumer research company confirm this. 500 Americans were studied. The researchers discovered that 2 out of 3 respondents think that when choosing foods to eat, good health is more important than tradition, trying new flavors or convenience. An astonishing half said they eat “a lot” more healthy foods that they did 5 years ago, and consumption of ethnic and organic foods is also higher.

In one part of the survey, the respondents were asked why they choose to prepare meals at home, nearly a quarter said that doing so allows them to better control the healthfulness of their foods. When it comes to fruits and vegetables, Americans buy 21% more, and 102% more poultry than they did 30 years ago. On the other spectrum, beef sales have fallen by 11%. The total amount of fat in the respondent's diets consists of 33% of the calories they consume, down form nearly 40% in the late 1970's.

This survey clearly demonstrates how healthy lifestyle messages are shaping America's food consumption habits in a very positive way.

Did You Know...
Having sexual intercourse without a condom may actually elevate women's moods. A recent study conducted by Gordon Gallup PhD., a psychologist at the State University of NY, discovered that hormone rich sperm must contain powerful and potentially addictive mood altering chemicals. Within his findings, women who had sex without a condom, became increasingly depressed when there was a longer time elapse between their last sexual intercourse. He also noted that college women who do not use a condom, are more prone to finding a new partner as soon as their previous relationship ended. He concluded that “semen contains hormones including testosterone, estrogen, prolactin, luteinizing hormone and prostaglandins, and some of these are absorbed through the vaginal walls and are known to elevate mood.” Girls you know what to do!

Did You Know...
Nike has been an ongoing recycling activist for many years now. It's most recent recycling project, “Reuse-a-Wheel” is a program for turning used in-line skating wheels into new surfacing for tennis and basketball courts, gym floors and running tracks.

Did You Know...
We continually find ourselves in the laundry room. According to the environmental group Project Laundry List, some 35 billion loads of laundry and 100 million tons of clothes are washed annually in the US. That's 1000 loads started every second of every day, 50% of which use warm water, 35% cold and 15% hot. If your household is average, it's washing 7.4 loads and about 50 lbs of clothing per week for a total of over 6100 separate items every year.

Did You Know...
Unless we reduce our CO2 output, scientists project that the vast majority of the Great Barrier Reef will vanish due to climate change in the next 30 years.