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Olive

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Olive

“Whoever loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich.” Proverbs 21:17 (NIV Bible)

  • Olives are fruit found on the tree Olea europaea and are from the family Oleaceae, a family of flowering plants, and they range from 1 to 2.5 centimetres (0.4 to 1 inches) in length.
  • Olives are native to Asia, Africa and the Mediterranean and were first cultivated significantly in the Middle East, and later the Mediterranean.
  • The word ‘olive’ originates from the Latin word ‘ŏlīva’, which is derived from the Greek ‘elaía’ and ‘elaíon’, and the fruit is a renowned symbol of wisdom, victory, fertility, peace, power and purity.
  • The colder months of autumn and winter, is the time that olives are typically harvested, and they are eaten at their various stages of ripening, and start as a green colour, and then turn brown, purple then black, although, sometimes black coloured olives are produced by chemicals.
  • Olives, when fresh, are notably bitter, and the bitterness is generally removed via various curing or fermentation processes.

Olives, Black, Green, Stuffed, Sliced, Variety, Some, Few. Ten Random Facts

  • Spain was the main olive producer in the world in 2011, growing 7,094,000 tonnes (7,820,000 tons) of the world production of 18,003,000 tonnes (19,845,000 tons), and only 5% of the world’s production is grown outside of the Mediterranean region.
  • Olives can be eaten uncooked or cooked usually in savoury dishes and often in Italian cuisine, notably with cheese, breads, pizza, pasta, fish and meat.
  • Olives are usually very high in sodium, due to the curing process, and are a good source of vitamin E.
  • Commercially, 0lives can be obtained in their natural state, pickled, spiced, stuffed, or pitted, and are often stuffed with pimento (sweet peppers).
  • Of all olives harvested, a massive 90% are used to make oil, and the oil is used extensively in cooking.
Bibliography:
Olive, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olive
Olives: The Noble Fruit’s Place in History and at the Table, 2014, Dellalo, http://www.delallo.com/articles/olives-noble-fruits-place-history-and-table

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Fingal’s Cave

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Fingal’s Cave

Fingal’s Cave is a cave full of sound.

  • Fingal’s Cave is a cave located on the coast of the small deserted island called Staffa, that is part of Europe’s Scotland.
  • Fingal’s Cave is primarily made of basalt columns, caused by volcanic action, that are largely hexagonal prisms.
  • Fingal’s Cave has an arch shaped roof and gaping mouth, formed by erosion caused by water, and water can be found in the cave.
  • ‘Fingal’s Cave’ is also known as ‘an uaimh binn’, and its literal Irish translation is ‘the melodic cave’.
  • The sounds of the nearby waves echo throughout Fingal’s Cave, creating strange sounds.
Fingal's Cave, Entrance, Scotland, Ten Random Facts, Basalt, Island, Deserted, Stone, Europe, Flickr
Entrance of Fingal’s Cave
Image courtesy of Luxpim/Flickr
  • ‘Fingal’s Cave’ was named after a heroic character, ‘Fingal’, in a poem said to be translated by James Macpherson, a Scottish poet and historian in the 1700s, which was likely a reference to the Irish myth of a giant named Fionn mac Cumhaill (or Finn McCool).
  • Fingal’s Cave has been mentioned or pictured in numerous art and literary pieces, and possibly the most famous is the overture that German composer Felix Mendelssohn wrote, titled ‘The Hebrides’ (known also as ‘Fingal’s Cave’) after he visited the site in the late 1820s.
  • Tourists can access Fingal’s Cave by boat, or by foot once on the island, although the cave is not suitable for boats to enter.
  • Fingal’s Cave measurements are disputed, and the height is said to range from 20 to 23 metres (66 to 75 feet), while the depth ranges from 45 to 85 metres (150 to 279 feet), and the widest part is said to be approximately 12 metres (40 feet).
  • The basalt columns of Fingal’s Cave are similar to those that form the Giant’s Causeway, in Europe’s Northern Ireland, and it is possible that both sites were created by the same volcanic action.
Bibliography:
Fingal’s Cave, 2014, Atlas Obscura, http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/fingal-s-cave
Fingal’s Cave, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fingal’s_Cave

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Fennec Fox

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Fennec Fox

Aren’t fennec foxes cute?

  • Fennec foxes are the smallest foxes on earth and live in dens located in the hot Sahara desert in North Africa, and they are the national animal of North Africa’s Algeria.
  • ‘Fennec foxes’ are also known as ‘fennecs’ and have the scientific name Vulpes zerda, are from the Vulpes genus of true foxes, and are from the family Canidae, the family of canids or dog-like animals.
  • Fennec foxes have cream coloured fur and a long tail that has a black tip, and they grow to be 24 to 41 centimetres (9 to 16 inches) in length, and weigh 0.7 to 1.6 kilograms (1.5 to 3.5 pounds).
  • Compared to their body size, fennec foxes have large ears that are 10 to 15 centimetres (3.9 to 5.9 inches) long, that expel heat stored in the fox’s body via the position of blood vessels in the ears, to help balance body temperature.
  • Fennec foxes communicate with barks, snarls and purrs; they live in packs of approximately ten; have litters that range between one and four babies; and the young live with their parents for a year or more.
Fennec Fox, Desert, Rocks, Large Ears, Canid, Ten Random Facts, Flickr, Animal, Norfolk ZooFennec Fox Image courtesy of Drew Anvery/Flickr
  • Fennec foxes are nocturnal mammals, and have a diet that mainly consists of vegetation, eggs, insects, rodents, rabbits and birds.
  • Fennec foxes have an average lifespan of 12 -16 years and they can live up to 14 years in captivity, and they are preyed on by eagle owls and possibly large canids (animals from the dog family), although this is uncertain.
  • Fennec foxes can live without water for extended time periods, due to their uniquely functioning kidneys that reduce the loss of water from their body.
  • Fennec foxes can be kept as pets, although numerous rules and restrictions exist, which vary depending on the state and country.
  • Fennec foxes can leap lengths of 120 centimetres (4 feet), jump as high as 61 cm (2 feet), and can run up to 40 km per hour (25 miles per hour).
Bibliography: Fennec Fox, 2013, A-Z Animals, http://a-z-animals.com/animals/fennec-fox/
Fennec Fox, 2014, National Geographic, http://animals.nationalgeographic.com.au/animals/mammals/fennec-fox/
Fennec Fox, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fennec_fox

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Correction Fluid

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Correction Fluid

Correction fluid has ensured these facts are correct.

  • Correction fluid is a liquid mixture used on text surfaces like paper, to cover mistakes in text, and it can be written on after drying.
  • ‘Correction fluid’ is also known as ‘liquid paper’, ‘white-out’ and ‘white away’, which are all names derived from popular fluid brands.
  • Correction fluids are typically coloured white, to match the traditional colour of paper, which is white.
  • Correction fluids are most often bought in bottles, and the fluid is applied by a brush or dabber, or flows through a ball point, although correction tape is also available and has the added advantage of being able to correct mistakes immediately, without having to wait for it to dry.
  • Correction fluids were commonly used throughout the age of typewriters, but the fluid is less prominently used today due to the use of computers and being able to correct mistakes before printing.

Correction fluid, liquid paper, brand, 2 in 1, stationary, paper, Ten Random Facts, Mistake remover

  • Correction fluids can be dangerous when swallowed or inhaled, due to its chemical content, which can be fatal.
  • Some solvents in correction fluids may eventually escape the mixture causing the fluids to solidify, which can become reliquefied by adding a thinner.
  • To prevent inhaling, some correction fluid manufacturers include foul odours in their fluids.
  • Correction fluid was invented in the 1950s by the notable American secretary Bette Graham, who got the idea to use water-based tempera paint to cover mistakes, as an artist would, on typed documents.
  • The first correction fluid invented was called ‘Mistake Out’, which later had a name change to ‘Liquid Paper’.

 

Bibliography: Correction Fluid, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correction_fluid
What is correction fluid?, 2014, WiseGEEK, http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-correction-fluid.htm

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Sun-dried Tomato

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Sun-dried Tomato

The most natural dried tomatoes are sun-dried tomatoes.

  • Sun-dried tomatoes are tomatoes that lack significant water content due to being dried via the sun, and it is the preferred method of drying tomatoes.
  • ‘Sun-dried tomatoes’ are also known as ‘sun dried tomatoes’ and ‘sundried tomatoes’, and the practice of drying tomatoes in the sun was originally done on roof riles and most likely originated in Italy, in Europe, for the purpose of preserving the tomatoes for use during winter.
  • Sun-dried tomatoes, prior to drying, are often salted, or gassed with sulphur dioxide, which improves the colour of the tomatoes and acts as a preservative.
  • Tomatoes usually need exposure to the sun for 4 to 10 days to become sun-dried tomatoes, and they will only weigh approximately 10% of their original weight.
  • Sun-dried tomatoes range in texture, colour, and size, along with the tomato variety used, and red plum tomatoes, like Roma tomatoes, are the most common tomato variety used.

Tomatos, Sundried, Sun-dried, Red, Ten Random Facts, Juice, Plate, Three, few, Ten Random Facts

  • Sun-dried tomatoes usually have a deeper and richer flavour than fresh tomatoes, and often contain extra flavouring, additives or preservatives.
  • The top producer of sun-dried tomatoes is said to be Europe’s Turkey, producing 40% of the world’s production.
  • Sun-dried tomatoes can be used in, but not limited to, main dishes, baking, salads, and sauces.
  • Sun-dried tomatoes can be bought raw, as a paste, or bottled in oil with herbs and are commonly available in jars in supermarkets.
  • Sun-dried tomatoes are very high in potassium, sodium, and manganese and are high in vitamin C, niacin, vitamin K, iron, copper, and fibre, and they have significant quantities of other vitamins and minerals.
Bibliography:
Sun-dried Tomato, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun-dried_tomato
Sundried Tomatoes, 2004, Bedemco Inc., http://www.bedemco.com/vegetables/sun_tom.htm

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Princess Diana

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Princess Diana

“Helping people in need is a good and essential part of my life, a kind of destiny,” – Diana, Princess of Wales

  • Princess Diana was a prominent English noblewomen and became a princess when she married Charles, Prince of Wales, of the British Royal Family in the 1980s.
  • Princess Diana was born on 1 July, 1961, as Diana Frances Spencer, into a family of royal heritage, in England’s Sandringham in Norfolk, in the United Kingdom.
  • While ‘Princess Diana’ is often referred to as such, it is incorrect to say so, and correct titles during various stages of her life included ‘The Honourable Diana Frances Spencer’, ‘Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales’, ‘Diana, Princess of Wales’, and ‘Lady Diana Frances Spencer’, which was often shortened to ‘Lady Di’.
  • When Princess Diana was eight years of age, her parents divorced and her father, Edward John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer, gained custody of her.
  • In her lifetime, Princess Diana suffered from depression and a food related mental disorder, bulimia nervosa; had significant interest and concern for children; was involved in extensive charitable work; had skills in dance and music; and was often regarded as the ‘most photographed woman in the world’.
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Princess Diana
Image courtesy of Sougata Ghosh/Flickr
  • Princess Diana married Charles, the Prince of Wales on 29 July, 1981, after they first met each other in late 1977, and they officially divorced in 1996, after a very troubled marriage.
  • With Prince Charles, Princess Diana had two sons, Prince William in 1982 and Prince Henry (or ‘Prince Harry’ as he is commonly known) in 1984, that were cared for lovingly by Diana.
  • Princess Diana died due to a car crash in France’s Paris while fleeing from paparazzi, along with Diana’s then boyfriend Dodi Fayed, on 31 August, 1997.
  • As Princess Diana was a highly celebrated public figure, her death was a great shock, the funeral was watched by millions around the world and metres of flowers, left as tributes, surrounded Diana’s home, Kensington Palace.
  • Princess Diana owned a large quantity of dresses, including the famous Travolta dress, many of which were sold at various auctions to raise money for charitable causes.
Bibliography:
Diana, Princess of Wales, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diana,_Princess_of_Wales
Princess Diana, 2014, Bio, http://www.biography.com/people/princess-diana-9273782

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