Here are your Friday Factoids - For 50 years, Canadian astronomer and renowned eclipse chaser J. W. Campbell traveled around the world trying to catch 12 different eclipses. He came across overcast skies every time. - Although it’s generally believed Frederick Graff Sr., Chief Engineer of the Philadelphia Water Works invented the fire hydrant in 1801, it cannot be verified 100% because the office that held the patent—wait for it—was destroyed in a fire. - According to legend, the last words of second US president John Adams were, “Jefferon lives.” Unbeknownst to Adams, third US president Thomas Jefferson had died hours before him. What day was this? July 4th, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence, a document they both worked on. - Mark Twain was born on November 30, 1835, two weeks after an appearance by Halley’s Comet. He predicted he would die when the comet next appeared, which turned out to be April 20th, 1910. Twain died of a heart attack the following day. - Ernest Vincent Wright’s 1939 novel ‘Gadsby’ has 260 pages and 50,000 words, none of which include the letter “E”.
Posted on: Fri, 09 May 2014 12:36:23 +0000
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