Did you know that a bolt of lightning is about 54,000°F (30,000°C); six times hotter than the Sun.

Did you know that:

Oxygen is the most abundant element in the Earth’s crust, waters, and atmosphere (about 49.5%).

A stroke of lightning discharges from 10 to 100 million volts & 30,000 amperes of electricity.

A bolt of lightning is about 54,000°F (30,000°C); six times hotter than the Sun.

Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the Universe (75%).

The average distance between the Earth & the Moon is 238,857 miles (384,392 km).

Did you know that the North Atlantic gets 1 inch wider every year.

Did you know that:

It takes 70% less energy to produce a ton of paper from recycled paper than from trees.

Every year in the US, 625 people are struck by lightning.

Hawaii is moving toward Japan 4 inches every year.

The rocket engine has to supply its own oxygen so it can burn its fuel in outer space.

The North Atlantic gets 1 inch wider every year.

Did you know that depression is?

Did you know that depression is an illness that causes a person to feel sad and hopeless much of the time?It is different from normal feelings of sadness, grief, or low energy.

Did you know that anyone can have depression? It often runs in families. But it can also happen to someone who doesn't have a family history of depression. You can have depression one time or many times.

Did you know what causes depression? The causes of depression are not entirely understood. Things that may trigger depression include:

Did you know that these major events help create stress?

Childbirth or a death in the family.
Illnesses, such as arthritis, heart disease, or cancer.
Certain medicines, such as steroids or narcotics for pain relief.
Drinking alcohol or using illegal drugs.

These and other factors can cause certain brain chemicals to get out of balance. As soon as the imbalance is corrected, symptoms of depression generally go away.

Did you know that these are the symptoms?

Have trouble concentrating, remembering, and making decisions.
Have changes in their eating and sleeping habits.
Lose interest in things they enjoyed before they were depressed.
Have feelings of guilt and hopelessness, wondering if life is worth living.
Think a lot about death or suicide.
Complain about problems that don't have a physical cause, such as headache and stomachache.

Did you know how depression is treated?

Depression is usually treated with counseling or antidepressant medicine, or both. It sometimes takes a few tries to find the right treatment, and it can take several weeks for the medicine to start working. Try to be patient and stay with your treatment.
If you have mild or moderate depression, you may be diagnosed and treated by your family doctor and a therapist or psychologist.

Did you know that women have depression twice as often as men. But men are more likely to commit suicide because of depressionSeparated or divorced people, especially men, are more likely than married people to become depressed.

Did you know that people who have a serious illness are more likely to have depression.

Did you know that you should Learn the warning signs of suicide?

So if you see them in a loved one, get help fast.
Planning to, or saying they want to, kill themselves or someone else.
Having a way to commit suicide, such as having a gun.
Being out of touch with reality, having severe anxiety, or thinking they hear voices giving them commands.
Using alcohol or drugs, especially in large amounts.
Talking, writing, or drawing about death. This includes writing suicide notes and talking about items that can cause physical harm, such as pills, guns, or knives.
Spending long periods of time alone.
Acting mean and aggressive, or suddenly acting calm.
If a suicide threat seems real, with a specific plan and a way to carry it out, the following guidelines may help:
Call 911 , a suicide hotline, or the police.
Stay with the person, or ask someone you trust to stay with the person, until the crisis has passed.

Did you know what a Ponzi scheme is ?

A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to investors out of the money paid by subsequent investors rather than from profit. The term "Ponzi scheme" is used primarily in the United States, while other English-speaking countries do not distinguish colloquially between this scheme and other pyramid schemes.

The Ponzi scheme usually offers abnormally high short-term returns in order to entice new investors. The perpetuation of the high returns that a Ponzi scheme advertises and pays requires an ever-increasing flow of money from investors in order to keep the scheme going.

The system is destined to collapse because the earnings, if any, are less than the payments. Usually, the scheme is interrupted by legal authorities before it collapses because a Ponzi scheme is suspected or because the promoter is selling unregistered securities. As more investors become involved, the likelihood of the scheme coming to the attention of authorities increases.

The scheme is named after Charles Ponzi, who became notorious for using the technique after emigrating from Italy to the United States in 1903. Ponzi did not invent the scheme, but his operation took in so much money that it was the first to become known throughout the United States. His original scheme was in theory based on arbitraging international reply coupons for postage stamps, but soon diverted investors' money to support payments to earlier investors and Ponzi's personal wealth.

Entering a Ponzi scheme can be rational even at the last round of the scheme if a government will likely bail out those participating in the Ponzi scheme.


Suppose an advertisement is placed that promises extraordinary returns on an investment – for example 20% for a 30-day contract. The golden key is to bamboozle ordinary people who have no in-depth knowledge of finance or financial terms. High flown terms that sound impressive but are essentially meaningless or have unrelated meanings will be used to dazzle investors; terms such as "global currency arbitrage", "hedge futures trading", "high-yield investment programs", "offshore investment" might be used. Taking advantage of the lack of investor financial sophistication, the promoter will then proceed to sell them a stake in his pot of gold.

With no proven track record for the investors, only a few investors are tempted, usually for smaller sums. 30 days later the investor receives the original capital plus the 20% return. At this point, the investor will have more incentive to put in additional money and, as word begins to spread, other investors grab the "opportunity" to participate. More and more people invest, and see their investments return the promised large returns.

The reality of the scheme is that the "return" to the initial investors is being paid out of the new, incoming investment money, not out of profits. No "global currency arbitrage", "hedge futures trading" or "high yield investment program" is actually taking place. Instead, when investor D puts in money, that money becomes available to pay out "profits" to investors A, B, and C. When investors X, Y, and Z put in money, that money is available to pay "profits" to investors A through W.

One reason that the scheme initially works so well is that early investors – those who actually got paid the large returns – quite commonly reinvest their money in the scheme (it does, after all, pay out much better than any alternative investment). Thus those running the scheme do not actually have to pay out very much (net) – they simply have to send statements to investors showing them how much they earned by keeping the money, in order to maintain the deception that the scheme is a fund with high returns.

Promoters also try to minimize withdrawals by offering new plans to investors, often where money is frozen for a longer period of time, for example 50% return per month for one year. They then get new cash flows as investors are told they could not transfer money from the first plan to the second. If a few investors do wish to withdraw their money in accordance with the terms allowed, promoters do promptly process the redemptions, so this gives the illusion to all other investors that fund is solvent.

The catch is that at some point one of three things will happen:

the promoters will vanish, taking all the remaining investment money (minus the payouts to investors) with them;
the scheme will collapse under its own weight, as investment slows and the promoters start having problems paying out the promised returns. When the promoters start having problems, the word spreads and more people start asking for their money, similar to a bank run;
the scheme is exposed, because when legal authorities begin examining accounting records of the so-called enterprise they find that many of the "assets" that should exist do not.

On December 11, 2008, Federal Bureau of Investigation agents arrested Madoff on a tip-off from his sons, Andrew and Mark, and charged him with one count of securities fraud. On the day prior to his arrest, Madoff told his senior executives at the firm that the management and advisory segment of the business was "basically, a giant Ponzi scheme." Five days after his arrest, Madoff's assets and those of the firm were frozen and a receiver was appointed to handle the case. Madoff's alleged fraud may be valued at a loss of up to a $50 billion in cash and securities.Banks from outside the U.S. have announced that they have potentially lost billions in U.S. dollars as a result. To date, it is the largest investor fraud ever attributed to a single individual.
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Did you know that The moon is one million times drier than the Gobi Desert?

Did you know that?

The moon is one million times drier than the Gobi Desert.

Just twenty seconds worth of fuel remained when Apollo 11's lunar module landed on the moon.


A Boeing 707 uses four thousand gallons of fuel in its take-off climb.

The planet Saturn has a density lower than water. So, if placed in water it would float.

Since 1959, more than 6,000 pieces of 'space junk' (abandoned rocket and satellite parts) have fallen out of orbit - many of these have hit the earth's surface.

A 9-year-old Texas boy was decapitated, survived and is recovering?

Did you know a 9-year-old Texas boy has almost fully recovered after suffering an orthopedic decapitation in a car accident 3 months ago, CBSNews.com reported Monday.
Jordan Taylor had a 1-2 percent chance of surviving this type of injury, which occurred when his skull separated from his neck. His spinal cord remained intact, however.
“I just kept screaming,” Jordan’s mom, Stacey Perez told CBSNews.com. “I just wanted him to wake up.”
Perez was driving when a dump truck plowed into her car after running a stop sign, authorities said. Although Jordan was buckled up in the back seat, the impact was too much.
“The energy basically made his head lift up off his neck, and then move forward,” said Dr. Richard Roberts of Cook Childrens’ Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas, the pediatric neurosurgeon that saved Jordan’s life.
“All of the connective tissue that essentially keeps your head connected to your neck was destroyed,” Roberts said.
Doctors reattached Jordan’s skull with a metal plate and titanium rods. His head was stabilized by a “halo” or carbon fiber ring that is screwed to his skull and attached to a vest. more

Did you know 10 people a week are injuried playing Wii?

Did you know up to ten people a week are being hospitalized with injuries caused by playing Nintendo Wii games, prompting doctors in Britain to issue warnings of the dangers associated with the video game system.
"There has been a 100 percent increase in patients complaining of Wii-itis," Dr. Dev Mukerjee of Broomfield Hospital, Essex, told The Sun newspaper.
Most patients are admitted after playing tennis or running games which involve sudden movements, resulting in tendon stretching or tearing.
"It's possible Wii-itis may lead to rheumatism or arthritis later in life. Patients often have inflamation of the shoulder or wrist," said Dr. Mukerjee. more