Christmas was introduced in Japan by the Christian missionaries, and for many years the only people who celebrated it were those who had turned to the Christian faith. But now the Christmas season in Japan is full of meaning and is almost universally observed.

Not really -- Today, the discipline is of interest mainly to historians of science and philosophy, and for its mystic, esoteric, and artistic aspects. Nevertheless, alchemy was one of the main precursors of modern sciences, and we owe to the ancient alchemists the discovery of many substances and processes that are the mainstay of modern ...Read more

The original story of a knight rescuing a damsel in distress from the clutches of a marauding dragon came in the tale of Saint George. He was a Roman Calvary officer that rode to the aid of a town in Cappadocia. The people their had been plagued by a dragon and sacrificed their best sheep to try and appease it, failing they offered up a village ...Read more

Of devout coffee drinkers, about 62 percent of those who are 35 to 49 years of age say they become upset if they don't have a cup of coffee at their regular time. Only 50 percent of those under age 35 become upset.

One square inch of skin on the human hand contains some 72 feet of nerve fiber.

If you read or listen to all the words in all four stanzas of "The Star-Spangled Banner," you'll find that there are three words missing. The words "United States" and the word "America" are never mentioned in the song. The U.S. Congress didn't make the song the official anthem of the U.S. until

St. Amand of Maastricht is the patron saint of beer and wine sellers.

The animal with the largest brain in proportion to its size is the ant.

Fashion in the U.S. during the late 1950s had interesting restrictions. Women's trousers usually had side fastenings, as front zippers for women were considered "naughty."

M&M candies debuted in 1941. They were originally packaged in cardboard tubes and sold only to the military. They became a popular treat amongst soldiers who later clamored for more after the war ended.

Americans eat an average of 18 pounds of fresh apples each year. The most popular variety in the United States is the Red Delicious.

A horse focuses its eye by changing the angle of its head, not by changing the shape of the lens of the eye, as humans do.

More than 60 percent of all recipients of organ donations are between the ages of 18 and 49.

Arizona boasts a great variety of fossils, the best known of which were of creatures that lived during the Triassic Period. These include early dinosaurs and the trees that left us Arizona petrified wood, (Araucarioxylon arizonicum), the state's fossil. Arizona petrified wood is protected in Petrified Forest National Park. Another famous Arizona...Read more

If all of the water were drained from the body of an anverage 160-pound man, the body would weigh 64 pounds.

Flamingoes feel safest when they are crowded together, hundreds in a group.

The sound of a snore (up to 69 decibels) can be almost as loud as the noise of a pneumatic drill (70–90 decibels).

The first guest host of NBC's Saturday Night Live was comedian George Carlin on October 10, 1975.

Mary Anne Nichols, Martha Turner, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, and Catherine Eddowes were London prostitutes who were murdered and dismembered by the notorious "Jack the Ripper" in the autumn of 1888. The perpetrator of these chilling atrocities was never found, although many theories as to

The coffee filter was invented by Melitta Bentz, in Germany in 1908. She pierced holes in a tin container, put a circular piece of absorbent paper in the bottom of it and put her creation over a coffee pot.