Every second around 100 lightning bolts strike the Earth.

In the 14th century the Black Death killed 75,000,000 people. It was carried by fleas on the black rat.

A quarter of the world's plants are threatened with extinction by the year 2010.

The driest inhabited place in the world is Aswan, Egypt where the annual average rainfall is .02 inches.

At over 2000 kilometres long The Great Barrier Reef is the largest living structure on Earth.

On the day that Alexander Graham Bell was buried the entire US telephone system was shut down for 1 minute in tribute.

The wingspan of a Boeing 747 is longer than the Wright brother's first flight.

Inbreeding causes 3 out of every 10 Dalmation dogs to suffer from hearing disability.