100 things we didn't know last year

Follow the link to see the whole list, but here are a few:

Link: BBC News


1. Coach travel is the safest form of road transport in the country.

2. Saddam Hussein's codename while in US custody in 2004/5 was "Victor".

3. Adding milk to tea negates the health-giving effects of a hot brew.

4. The word "jaywalking" came from the US slang "jay", a term popular in the early 20th Century meaning a rustic newcomer unfamiliar with city ways.

5. Cloudy apple juice is healthier than clear, containing almost double the antioxidants which protect against heart disease and cancer.

6. Dishcloths are purged of 99% of their bacteria during two minutes in a microwave.

7. A haddock's mating call starts as a slow knocking sound, before turning into a quicker hum similar to a small motorcycle revving its engine.

8. Newcastle is the noisiest place in England.

9. The people who built Stonehenge lived at an ancient village in Durrington Walls.

10. Brazil nuts are seeds encased in an outer shell that weighs more than 1kg.

11. Astronauts wear nappies during launch and re-entry because they can't stop what they're doing should they need to urinate.

12. Georgic is a punishment dished out to Eton pupils which involves the copying out of hundreds of lines of Latin.

13. Tony Blair does not keep a personal diary.

14. Antony and Cleopatra were ugly.

15. 10% of university work from across the UK is plagiarised.

16. Chimpanzees make their own spears for hunting.

17. Two cups of spearmint tea a day is thought to control excessive hair growth for women.

18. Burglar alarms, traffic wardens and crowded buses are good news for home owners, signalling an area is on the up.

19. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez hosts a daily radio phone-in show.

20. More than half (52%) of smokers haven't told their parents about their habit.

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