Engineer Percy Spencer noticed a candy bar melting while he worked near radar equipment in the 1940s. Raytheon filed a patent for microwave cooking in 1945.
Wacky Facts
Nintendo once ran a taxi company and sold instant rice
Before video games Nintendo, founded in 1889 to make playing cards, tried taxis, a love-hotel chain and instant rice in the 1960s.
1932Australia lost a “war” against emus.
In 1932 soldiers with machine guns were sent to cull emus damaging crops in Western Australia; the birds proved so hard to hit that the operation was largely abandoned.
A piano has 88 keys.
Short answer: A standard modern piano has 88 keys—52 white and 36 black—covering seven and one-quarter octaves from A0 to C8. Specialist instruments can have more, so 88 is a standard rather than a law of nature.
How did the keyboard reach 88?
Bartolomeo Cristofori’s early eighteenth-century pianos had a much smaller range, around four octaves. As composers and performers demanded deeper bass and higher treble, builders enlarged the keyboard. Yamaha’s instrument history notes about 61 notes around Mozart’s era, roughly 73 in the early nineteenth century, and the familiar 88-note compass as the modern design matured.
What notes does it include?
The lowest key is A0, normally near 27.5 hertz when concert A is tuned to 440 hertz. The highest is C8, near 4,186 hertz. White keys carry the repeating natural-note pattern A through G, while black keys provide the sharps and flats that divide the octave into twelve semitones.
Why not keep adding keys?
Extending the bass makes strings longer, heavier and harder to fit into a practical case. Extremely low notes can lose a clear sense of pitch and sound more like rumble. Very high notes decay quickly and become difficult to distinguish musically. The 88-key range covers almost all standard concert repertoire while keeping the instrument manageable.
Do all pianos have exactly 88?
No. Many digital keyboards use 61, 73 or 76 keys for portability. Historical pianos often have fewer. Specialist concert grands can extend below A0, sometimes to 92, 97 or more keys. Extra bass strings may resonate sympathetically when other notes are played, enriching the sound even when the added keys are rarely pressed.
Keys are not the same as strings
A piano contains more strings than keys. Many middle and treble notes use groups of two or three strings struck together, while the lowest notes use one thick wound string. A typical instrument may contain roughly 220 to 230 strings, plus a separate hammer-and-action mechanism for every key.
What happens after a key is pressed?
The key moves a complex lever mechanism called the action. A felt-covered hammer accelerates toward the string and escapes just before contact, allowing the string to vibrate freely. When the player releases the key, a damper normally returns to stop the sound. The sustaining pedal lifts many dampers together.
Standard keyboard at a glance
- Total keys: 88.
- White keys: 52.
- Black keys: 36.
- Range: A0 to C8.
- Compass: seven and one-quarter octaves.
Evidence and limits
The statement applies to full-size modern acoustic pianos and full-range digital pianos. It should not be used to claim every piano or keyboard instrument has 88 notes. Yamaha and Steinway both document the standard and explain the instrument mechanics behind it.
Sources
Glass is not a slow-flowing liquid.
Old windows that are thicker at the bottom were made that way; glass at room temperature does not flow measurably over centuries.
The Apollo 11 guidance computer had about 4 KB of working memory.
It had 2,048 words of erasable memory and about 36,000 words of fixed “rope” memory woven by hand. A basic calculator today has more processing power.
Pineapples take about two years to grow.
A pineapple plant usually produces a single fruit after 18 to 24 months.
Neutron stars can spin hundreds of times a second.
Some pulsars — spinning neutron stars — rotate more than 700 times per second, sweeping beams of radiation like cosmic lighthouses.
Shampoo, jungle and pyjamas are English words borrowed from Indian languages.
Hundreds of English words come from Hindi, Urdu, Tamil and other Indian languages — including bungalow, shampoo, jungle, pyjamas and cot.
The telephone was once thought to be a toy.
Western Union reportedly turned down the chance to buy Bell’s telephone patent in the 1870s.
Water can boil and freeze at the same time.
At its triple point — about 0.01 °C and very low pressure — water exists as solid, liquid and gas together.
Amazon was almost called “Cadabra”.
Jeff Bezos reportedly changed the name after a lawyer misheard it as “cadaver”. He chose Amazon because it is the world’s largest river and started with an A.
Saturn would float in a big enough bathtub.
Saturn’s average density is lower than that of water, because it is mostly hydrogen and helium. It is the only planet in the Solar System less dense than water — though you would need a very large bathtub.
Microsoft Word’s first version ran on DOS in 1983.
Word started as “Multi-Tool Word” for Xenix and MS-DOS. Early versions even supported a mouse, which was unusual for DOS programs.
Python was first released in 1991.
Guido van Rossum began Python as a hobby project over the Christmas holidays of 1989 and released version 0.9.0 in February 1991 — the same year Linux was announced.
1974Rubik’s Cube has 43 quintillion positions.
Invented by Ernő Rubik in 1974, it can be solved in 20 moves or fewer from any position.
1924The Gateway of India was built for a royal visit.
It commemorates King George V’s 1911 visit and was completed in 1924.
Potatoes reached India only around the 17th century.
The potato originated in South America and was brought to India by Portuguese and later British traders.
Spam email is named after a comedy sketch
The word comes from a Monty Python sketch in which “Spam” is repeated until it drowns out everything else.
Humans can hold about four chunks in working memory.
Modern estimates put working memory capacity at about four items, which is why phone numbers are split into groups.
A cricket ball can travel over 150 km/h.
The fastest recorded deliveries are around 161 km/h, taking well under half a second to reach the batter.
A mantis shrimp punches so fast it creates bubbles that help smash shells.
Mantis shrimp strike with club-like limbs at speeds around 23 m/s, fast enough to create cavitation bubbles and break snail shells.
1899Aspirin comes from willow bark.
Willow bark was used for pain for thousands of years; Bayer launched aspirin in 1899.
“Wi-Fi” does not stand for “Wireless Fidelity”.
Wi-Fi is a brand name created by a marketing agency for the Wi-Fi Alliance as a catchier name than “IEEE 802.11b Direct Sequence”. The “Wireless Fidelity” expansion was added later by the Alliance and then dropped.
Penguins propose with pebbles.
Male gentoo and Adélie penguins search for smooth pebbles and present them to females; pebbles are used to build nests.
You blink around 15–20 times a minute.
Blinking spreads tears across the eye to keep it moist and clean. People blink much less when staring at screens, which can cause dry eyes.
1959Doordarshan began broadcasting in 1959.
Short answer: Doordarshan began with an experimental television broadcast in Delhi on 15 September 1959. The small public-service experiment later grew into India’s national public television network and is now a division of Prasar Bharati.
What did the first service look like?
The beginning was modest: a makeshift studio, a low-power transmitter and limited programming for viewers in and around Delhi. Early broadcasts focused on education and development rather than round-the-clock entertainment. Television sets were rare, and community viewing was important.
When did regular broadcasting begin?
The 1959 launch was experimental. A more regular service developed in Delhi in 1965, and television expanded to other cities during the following decade. Doordarshan was originally part of All India Radio, but broadcasting administration separated television into its own organisation in 1976.
How did it become a national network?
The 1982 Asian Games in Delhi accelerated colour television and transmitter expansion. Satellite distribution helped national programmes reach far beyond the cities where they originated. Through the 1980s, programmes such as news bulletins, Krishi Darshan, Hum Log, Ramayan, Mahabharat and educational broadcasts became shared cultural experiences for very large audiences.
What does the name mean?
“Doordarshan” combines Hindi and Sanskrit-derived words meaning a view or vision from afar. The familiar “eye” logo visually expresses broadcasting and remote sight. Many viewers simply call the organisation “DD,” as in DD National, DD News and its regional channels.
What changed after private television arrived?
Satellite and cable channels transformed Indian viewing in the 1990s, ending Doordarshan’s near-monopoly. The public broadcaster nevertheless retained a major role in terrestrial coverage, official events, regional-language programming, education, sports and emergency information. It now distributes content through terrestrial transmitters, satellite, websites and mobile platforms.
Why public-service broadcasting remains different
A commercial channel can concentrate on audiences most attractive to advertisers. A public broadcaster also carries material with civic value even when it is not the most profitable: parliamentary coverage, school lessons, agricultural advice, regional culture, election information and messages during disasters. Whether individual programmes fulfil that ideal is open to debate, but the public-service mandate explains why Doordarshan’s role cannot be judged only by entertainment ratings.
Timeline
- 15 September 1959: experimental public-service telecast begins in Delhi.
- 1965: a regular Delhi service develops.
- 1976: television separates from All India Radio.
- 1982: colour broadcasts and the Asian Games accelerate expansion.
- 1997: Doordarshan and All India Radio come under Prasar Bharati.
Evidence and limits
“Doordarshan began in 1959” refers to the experimental Delhi service, not an instant nationwide network. Dates such as 1965, 1976, 1982 and 1997 describe different institutional milestones. Distinguishing them prevents a short fact from implying that today’s multi-channel service existed fully formed on its first day.
Sources
Mimosa pudica folds its leaves when touched.
Known as “touch-me-not” or chhui-mui, it folds its leaves within seconds by changing water pressure in its cells.
Nepal has eight of the world’s ten highest mountains.
Short answer: Eight of the world’s ten highest mountains are in Nepal or on its borders. Those same eight are among the fourteen independent peaks worldwide that rise above 8,000 metres.
Which eight peaks are they?
The Nepal Tourism Board lists Sagarmatha or Mount Everest, Kangchenjunga, Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Dhaulagiri I, Manaslu and Annapurna I. In the usual global elevation ranking they occupy positions 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10. K2, ranked second, and Nanga Parbat, ranked ninth, are in the western Himalaya and Karakoram outside Nepal.
Why are so many concentrated there?
The Himalaya formed as the Indian tectonic plate moved north and collided with the Eurasian plate. The collision thickened and uplifted the crust over millions of years. That process is still active, which is why the region experiences earthquakes and why precise mountain heights can be remeasured after major geological events.
What does “in Nepal” mean?
Some summits stand fully inside Nepal, while others lie on an international boundary. Everest, Lhotse, Makalu and Cho Oyu are associated with the Nepal–China frontier; Kangchenjunga is on the Nepal–India boundary. Dhaulagiri, Manaslu and Annapurna are within Nepal. Saying the peaks “lie in Nepal” is convenient, but “in Nepal or on its borders” is geographically clearer.
Why height lists need care
Mountains can have several summits, and not every high point is counted as an independent mountain. Lists use topographic prominence and accepted naming conventions to separate a main peak from a subsidiary summit. Elevations also vary slightly between historic surveys. Nepal and China jointly announced Everest’s current official height as 8,848.86 metres in 2020.
The eight peaks
- Everest — 8,848.86 m
- Kangchenjunga — 8,586 m
- Lhotse — 8,516 m
- Makalu — about 8,485 m
- Cho Oyu — about 8,188 m
- Dhaulagiri I — 8,167 m
- Manaslu — 8,163 m
- Annapurna I — 8,091 m
Evidence and limits
Nepal’s official tourism material phrases the broader statistic as eight of the world’s fourteen “eight-thousanders.” The top-ten version is also correct when the principal peaks are ranked by elevation. Exact metres can differ between sources, so the geographic pattern matters more than a one- or two-metre discrepancy.
What to remember
The list is about principal mountain summits, not every high point or subsidiary peak. It also crosses political borders: a summit can be part of Nepal’s mountain geography while its ridge marks an international boundary. For trekkers and climbers, elevation is only one measure of difficulty; weather, route, avalanche exposure, acclimatization and rescue access can matter just as much as a mountain’s rank.
Sources
A ‘jiffy’ is a real unit of time.
In computing it is often the time between system timer ticks; in physics it has been defined as the time light takes to travel one centimetre — about 33.4 picoseconds.