The Jewish tradition of covering up mirrors during shiva (the seven-day period of mourning by the deceased's immediate family) is still practiced today. According to several Jewish sources, when the soul departs from this world, a void is created. This void may end up attracting evil spirits to fill it. These demonic ghosts have a penchant for attaching themselves to mirror reflections. To prevent this from happening, Jews cover their mirrors until the end of shiva.

A list of Jupiter facts would be incomplete without mentioning the planet's rings. Unlike Saturn's more well-known rings, Jupiter's are faint and composed of dust rather than ice. These rings were too faint for astronomers to notice for centuries. Imagine how surprised everyone was when NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft returned images of Jupiter's rings in 1979. The three-ring system begins 92,000 kilometres above Jupiter's cloud tops and extends more than 225,000 kilometres away from the planet. They range in thickness from 2,000 to 12,500 kilometres.

Couples perform the horo, a classic Bulgarian folk dance. It is a vibrant, vivacious dance with numerous variations. The horo, which has two dancer circles—one inside and one outside—is the most popular variation.

Because of the island's hidden coves and the absence of European powers for centuries, Madagascar was once a secure sanctuary for hundreds of pirates. Captain James Misson allegedly established an anarchist colony (Libertatia) there in the late 17th century, whereas Ile Sainte-Marie, four miles off Madagascar's east coast, was simply referred to on maps as "the island of pirates" at the time. When they weren't robbing treasure, countless brigands, including Captain Kidd, found refuge there. Some are buried in the cemetery on the island.

Since roughly 600 B.C., when a child has paraded around in a basket in honour of Dionysus, the god of fertility, an infant has been a symbol of the occasion (and wine). The infant symbolises the rebirth that occurs at the beginning of each new year.

Since they have so many additional legs, centipedes don't actually need their first set of legs for walking. Instead, they have altered the front pair of their legs to function as pincer-like appendages. Forcipules, the name for these modified legs, are poisonous. Fortunately, centipedes rarely bite people.

The high phytonutrient content of fennel seeds aids in sinus-clearing. These small seeds provide bronchial relaxation, which aids in the relief of asthma, bronchitis, and congestive symptoms.

Section 32 of the Salmon Act 1986 stipulates that it’s an offence to handle salmon under suspicious circumstances. This section creates an offence in England and Wales for any person who receives or disposes of any salmon in circumstances where they believe or could reasonably believe that the salmon has been illegally fished. The maximum penalty is two years imprisonment.

The Nyepi day of quiet is a Hindu New Year festival held in the Balinese calendar, which only has 210 days a year, and on this day the entire island shuts down! This includes shops, enterprises, and even the airport - no employment, no travel, and no noise are permitted. This 'Day of Silence is observed as a time for introspection and is imposed by the pedaling (local security offers). Beaches, streets, stores, and bars are all closed to visitors.

Different raw materials can be processed on the same line depending on the desired output quality and equipment design. The maker must take special care to label his finished items with allergens.

Oscars have been won by many well-known couples, but only one Hollywood family—The Minellis—can truly lay claim to having won an Oscar. Liza Minelli, the daughter of Judy Garland (who received a miniature Juvenile Award in 1940) and Vincente Minnelli (who won Best Director for Gigi in 1959), won Best Actress for Cabaret in 1973.

Despite being in the middle of Europe, Bulgaria has never been colonized, which is one of its more interesting things. This is probably because of where it is and the mountains surrounding it.

Pigeons can find their way home from 1,300 miles away, believe it or not! Furthermore, they have demonstrated that they can do so after being relocated in full isolation to a region they had never been to before. The cages were even rotated during shipment to keep the birds guessing which way they were going. Scientists aren't sure how pigeons manage to find their way back when there are no visual, olfactory, or magnetic cues to help them. They now believe that pigeons have compasses and map mechanisms that aid in navigation. While the mapping mechanism is unknown, the compass mechanism is most likely based on the location of the sun.

If you want to boost the bacteria in your bowel, eat a high-fiber diet or take fiber supplements. Fiber is a prebiotic that the bacteria can convert to healthy chemicals for nourishment (that can also help prevent colon cancer).

Pirates preferred grog, a concoction of rum, water, lemon juice, and sugar. (Hmmm, I wonder where the inspiration for our rum punch came from?)

No, caramel and dulce de leche are not synonymous. Caramel, as we all know, is nothing more than water and sugar. Dulce de leche, on the other hand, is milk and sugar, as the name suggests (if you've practiced your Spanish).

You can swallow thousands of microscopic algae by simply swallowing one drop of ocean water. The oceans contain more algae than there are stars in the entire universe.

This lowers your risk of developing acne but also makes it easier for your skin to become dry. Insufficient skin hydration is one of the main causes of fine wrinkles, but fortunately, it's simple to address with a decent moisturizer.

Not surprisingly, the city of Alexandria was named after the conqueror of Egypt in 331 BC. One of the ancient wonders of the World, the Lighthouse of Alexandria was here.

In his Poor Richard's Almanac, founding father Benjamin Franklin got one over on rival Titan Leeds, also an almanac writer, by "predicting" the exact date and time of his death. When Leeds obviously didn't die on the given date, Franklin kept the prank going, claiming that he actually had passed on and that an imposter was publishing his almanac.

 

Walt was the literal man behind the mouse from 1928 to 1947. Walt kept doing Mickey's voice for shorts on The Mickey Mouse Club even after the voice work was formally given to Jimmy MacDonald in 1947.

Yes! You read that right. Parrots have zygodactyl feet. Parrots' feet are much like human hands that they use to pick up their food and bring it to their mouth. They have one of the strongest feet among all the birds, which they use to clench branches for a long period. The strong feet even allow these birds to hang upside down from the branches.