The Mysteries of the Dead Sea

Did you know that the Dead Sea is the lowest spot on Earth?** True fact! The extremely low elevation can have interesting health benefits because of the increased atmospheric pressure and the reduced UV rays. Did you know that the Dead Sea is shrinking? Also true! It has shrunk by a third since the 1960s! This shrinkage (if you will), has been creating dangerous sinkholes that can suddenly burst open and ruin roads and beaches and even swallow people whole! I read all about it here in a fascinating article. I learned even more from wikipedia. Read it-- you'll learn something new.

** The Marianas Trench in the Pacific Ocean is the lowest spot on the planet's entire surface, while the Dead Sea is the lowest spot not in an ocean.

Wow, that's... uh....

I've said it before, but I'll say it again. National Geographic is amazing. Meet Baby Sloth!

Finally!

I finally got 10 out of 10 on the National Geographic Geography Bee Quiz! It was this quiz.

You all know I like geography, right?

Well, I really like geography. When my geography knowledge is being tested I even get a little adrenaline rush. I love it! Recently, I have taken a few challenges which I would encourage others to explore as well. The first test was to see how many countries I could name in 5 minutes. I hand wrote 67 correctly spelled country names in 5 minutes. Then I decided I would just try to write out as many countries as I could remember without timing myself. I named 165 different countries. There are approximately 193 countries in the world (the number varies according to different sources). I'd say that's not bad.

State Facts

Alright, I know many of you have probably been waiting for me to post my answers to the California state trivia instead of look it up yourselves, so, finally, here it is!

State Bird: California Valley Quail
State Flower: California Poppy
State Rock: Serpentine
State Butterfly: Dogface
State Tree: California Redwood
and just for good measure...
State Fish: Golden Trout

For more fun facts about California symbols check out the State Library website.

Also, thanks to Jeremy for the New Jersey fast facts!
State Bird: Eastern Goldfinch
State Flower: Common Meadow Violet

Doesn't Everyone Know...

I was recently having a discussion with a fellow originally from New Jersey and I asked him what the state bird and state flower are. I figured those are the two random facts everybody knows about their home state, right? Not so in this particular case! Now, I understand that sometimes my fascination with certain things (Geography is a prime example) leads me to have a skewed vision of what other people know. So, I wanted to know how many of my faithful readers do in fact know the state bird and flower of which ever state they grew up in.

On a side note, I can name California's state bird, flower, rock, butterfly, and tree with a great deal of confidence. If anyone else would like to share their knowledge here of California or any other state, please feel free!