Prior to about the 1950s, transmission fluid was mostly whale oil.

Copper (and also brass, which contains copper) is germicidal. Brass doorknobs can kill many bacteria within eight hours.

The average life span of a $1 bill is 21 months. The average life span of a $100 bill is 89 months.

Curry was introduced to the Japanese by the British.

Galileo’s two daughters lived their lives in a convent because he thought they would be unmarriageable.

Washington has the highest percentage of non-religious people in the United States. Oregon and Vermont are tied for second highest percentage.

Gaston Glock, the Austrian founder of the company that makes the Glock pistol, made curtain rods before he made guns.

Some Eastern European cultures have folktales about vampire pumpkins or watermelons. According to these stories, any pumpkin or watermelon kept too long (for a certain number of days, or sometimes past Christmas, depending on the story) will turn into a vampire. These vampires are not considered scary, as they lack teeth.

The oldest surviving pile carpet came from the 4th or 5th century BC, and was preserved in ice in a burial ground. In Europe, carpets were not commonly used on floors until about the 18th century. Until then, they went on tables and walls.

The first medical use of radiation was in 1936. A leukemia patient was treated with a radioactive isotope of phosphorous-32.