Fast Facts
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Friday, February 6, 2004
Things you always never wanted to know
The worst college campus riot prior to the 20th century erupted in medieval Oxford - the "town and gown" battle of 1354. Originating in a tavern quarrel, the violence lasted for three days, involved dozens of townsmen and students, and ended with several dead and many injured.
Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone and teacher of the deaf, was a speed demon. His hydrofoil boat set a world water speed record in 1919, when Bell was 72, by topping 70 mph.
Louis Pasteur, whose work with wine, vinegar and beer led to pasteurization, had an obsessive fear of dirt and infection. He refused to shake hands, and he carefully wiped plates and glasses before dining.
Dueling was so popular among wealthy gentlemen in Ireland during the 18th century that travelers could always find a special set of dueling pistols at an inn - in readiness for those who had forgotten their own.
When the first escalator, or "inclined elevator," was installed in the department store Harrod's in London around the turn of the 20th century, brandy was served to passengers who felt faint.
The foundations of the great European cathedrals go down as far as 40 or 50 feet. In some instances, they form a mass of stone as great as that of the visible building above the ground.
A cat fell from the 20th floor of a building in Montreal, in 1973, and suffered only a pelvic fracture.
When he became governor of New Jersey in 1911, Woodrow Wilson had never before held public office. One year and 10 months later, he was elected president of the United States.