Fingertips:

1. The Origin of the Octothorp
(Matching tags: Punctuation,Factoids,Octothorp)

Origin of the Octothorp (#): The odd name for this ancient sign for numbering derives from 'thorpe', the Old Norse word for a village or farm that is often seen in British placenames. The symbol was ...

2. The Origin of the Ampersand
(Matching tags: Factoids,Punctuation,Ampersand)

Origin of the Ampersand (&): This symbol is stylized "et", the Latin word for “and.” Although it was invented by the Roman scribe Marcus Tullius Tiro in the first century B.C. as a part of his Tironian ...

3. The Origin of the Equal Sign
(Matching tags: Factoids,Mathematics,Equal Sign,Punctuation)

Origin of the Equal Sign (=): The equal sign was invented by Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde in 1557.  He wrote: “I will settle as I doe often in woorke use, a paire of paralleles, or Gmowe [i.e., ...

4. The Origin of the Exclamation Point
(Matching tags: Factoids,Punctuation,Exclamation Point)

Origin of the Exclamation Point (!): Like the question mark, the exclamation point was invented by stacking letters. The mark comes from the Latin word io, meaning “exclamation of joy.” Written vertically, ...

5. The Origin of the Question Mark
(Matching tags: Punctuation,Question Mark,Factoids)

The Origin of the Question Mark (?): When early scholars would write in Latin, they placed the word "questio" (meaning “question”) at the end of a sentence to indicate a query. To conserve valuable ...

6. Leaving Tips at Restaurants in the United States
(Matching tags: Minimum Wage,Tipping,Factoids)

  How to Quickly Calculate the Tip in the United States Written by Andrew B. Bartels, October 2011   Introduction: Tipping at restaurants isn't always done in all countries, and in ...

7. Bible Trivia: What Were the Names of the 12 Apostles?
(Matching tags: Religion,Factoids,Christianity,Bible)

Bible Trivia: What were the names of the 12 Apostles? They were: Simon (also known as Peter) Andrew (Simon's brother) James son of Zebedee John (James' brother) Philip Bartholomew ...

8. Meaning of the Word Sudoku
(Matching tags: Factoids,Sudoku)

Sudoku, or "Su Doku", is a Japanese word (or phrase) meaning something like "Number Place".

9. Angel Falls, Venezuela
(Matching tags: Venezuela,Niagara Falls,Waterfalls,Factoids,Geography)

The water of Angel Falls (the world's highest) in Venezuela drops 3,212 feet (979 meters). They are 15 times higher than Niagara Falls.

10. Eisenhower Interstate System
(Matching tags: Preparations for War,Airstrips,United States,Eisenhower Interstate System,Roads,Factoids,Highways)

The Eisenhower Interstate System requires that one mile in every five must be straight.  These straight sections are usable as airstrips in times of war or other emergencies.

11. Kola Superdeep Borehole, Russia
(Matching tags: Russia,Kola Superdeep Borehole,Geography,Factoids,Mining)

The deepest hole ever drilled by man is the Kola Superdeep Borehole located in Russia. It reached a depth of 12,261 meters (about 40,226 feet or 7.62 miles). It was drilled for scientific ...

12. Statistics About Paved Roads in North America
(Matching tags: Canada,United States,Roads,Highways,Factoids)

Chances that a road is unpaved: in the U.S.A. . = 1% in  Canada = ...75%

13. Historical Name of City of St. Paul, Minnesota
(Matching tags: St. Paul,Minnesota,Pierre Parrant,Pigs Eye,Geography,Factoids)

St. Paul,  Minnesota, was originally called Pig's Eye after a man named Pierre 'Pig's Eye' Parrant who set up the first business there.

14. Meaning of the word "Spain"
(Matching tags: Factoids,Rabbits,Spain,Geography)

Spain literally means 'the land of rabbits'.  

15. Driest Place on Earth
(Matching tags: Factoids,Antarctica,Geography,Sahara Desert,Algeria,Ross Island,Rainfall)

In the Sahara Desert, there is a town named Tidikelt, Algeria, which did not receive a drop of rain for ten years. Technically though, the driest place on Earth is in the valleys of the Antarctic ...

16. Sovereign Military Order of Malta
(Matching tags: SMOM,Geography,Italy,Sovereign Military Order of Malta,Factoids,Vatican)

The actual smallest sovereign entity in the world is the Sovereign Military Order of  Malta (S.M.O.M). It is located in the city of  Rome, Italy, has an area of two tennis courts and, ...

17. Forests in Siberia, Russia
(Matching tags: Geography,Forests,Russia,Factoids,Siberia)

Siberia contains more than 25% of the world's forests.

18. Historic Population of Rome, Italy
(Matching tags: Italy,Factoids,Geography,Rome)

The first city to reach a population of 1 million people was Rome, Italy in 133 B.C. A strange fact:  There is a city called Rome on every continent.

19. Pitcairn Island, Polynesia
(Matching tags: Factoids,Geography,Polynesia,Pitcairn Island)

The smallest island with country status is Pitcairn, in Polynesia, at just 1.75 sq. miles / 4,53 sq. km.

20. No Natural Lakes in Ohio
(Matching tags: Natural Lakes,Ohio,Factoids)

There are NO natural lakes in the state of  Ohio.  Every one of them is man made.