Surprising fact 1: Jet lag
Jet lag is worse if you travel from west to east. Recent research has
discovered finally why this happens.
Our internal clock has a natural sleep/wake cycle slightly longer than
24 hours.
Traveling from west to east makes the day shorter, while traveling from
east to west makes the day longer.
Therefore it is easier for the brain to adjust to.
Surprising fact 2: Working while on vacation
Working while on vacation is very worse than you think.
A recent study found that sifting through work emails on the beach has a
significant impact of making you remember your vacation less well.
Surprising fact 3: Forget people names
When you meet new people on a trip, you often forget their names the
second, they show up.
Science says this isn't because you're rude or stupid, but because your
brain is focused on something else: how to make a good first impression.
The easiest trick to help your gray matter do its job is to use the
person's name immediately after hearing it.
Surprising fact 4: Best part of your trip
Do you know what the best part of your trip is?
It's not during your trip at all, but during the planning and
preparation phase.!
A 2010 study found that going on vacation does not necessarily make you
happier.
The mere anticipation of free time, however, does lead to higher levels
of reported happiness.
So, why not start planning now with your travel agent (if you're
stressed out organizing it that kind of spoils the fun).
Surprising fact 5: Travel Vs problem-solving
Traveling can improve problem-solving skills and stimulate creativity.
New sounds, smells, tastes, languages, and sites create new synapses in
the brain and promote neuroplasticity.
Surprising fact 6: The happiest language
Did you know that there is
research revealing which languages are the "happiest", i.e. those
with the most positive words?
According to this measure, the happiest language is Spanish, followed by
Portuguese, English, Indonesian and French.
Surprising fact 7: Russia and the US
Did you know that Russia and the United States are only...four
kilometers apart.?
Indeed, it is at the level of the Bering Strait that it happens.
The Bering Strait separates the Asian continent from North America, and
at its narrowest point, the distance is 85 kilometers.
But here's the trick: there are two islands in the middle, Little
Diomede, which belongs to the United States, and Big Diomede, which is Russian.
The distance between these two islands is only four kilometers. Here is
information to remember to stick your relatives at the next family dinner!
Surprising fact 8: Challenger Deep
The underwater world is as fascinating as it is disturbing.
But do you know how far down into the silent world you can go? The
answer is 10.9 kilometers! It's called the Challenger Deep.
The deepest point ever measured below sea level. It is found near the Mariana
Islands, in the north of Micronesia.
Surprising fact 9: Transamerican
Want to go on a road trip that really lasts? Then you might want to take
the Trans-American Highway, the longest road in the world…
According to the Guinness World Records. No less than 48,000 kilometers
of fun await you.
Surprising fact 10: the
pyramid of Cheops
You know of course the
seven wonders of the ancient world. But did you know that among these wonders?
There was only one that is
still visible today?
It is the pyramid of
Cheops, the oldest and largest of the three pyramids of Giza.
This is therefore a gift
from the past that we can still admire.
Surprising fact 11: Scotland National
animal
Scotland is a country that
has as its national emblem, a mythological animal!
It is not a joke; the unicorn
is indeed recognized as "national animal of Scotland".
As we know, myths and legends
have had a place of choice in the popular culture of the country for centuries,
starting with the Loch Ness monster.
Nothing unique either,
since the Welsh have chosen the dragon as their national animal and Greece the
Phoenix.
Surprising fact 12: twinning world rate
Don't ask us why, we don't
know, but Nigeria has the highest twinning rate in the world.
Four times that of the
rest of the world at about 18 to 30 pairs of twins per 1,000 births.
Surprising fact 13: Shifting
continents
Did you know that the
continents move at about the same speed as your fingernails grow? Hard to see
with the naked eye in both cases...
Surprising fact 14: Heart
Reef
When you see it in
pictures, you immediately think that a graphic designer has gone through it.
He had fun with his image
editing software to give this island the shape of a heart.
However, no digital work
was necessary, this heart-shaped coral reef does exist, it is found in Australia.
In the Great Barrier Reef
of the Whitsundays, it is called Heart Reef, to discover from a helicopter or a
seaplane.
