The Hiroshima bombing was so powerful that the shadows of persons and things were permanently seared into the earth. These were dubbed "Hiroshima shadows."

Japan is made up of nearly 7,000 islands. The little island of Okunoshima in the Inland Sea is best-known for its curious, big-eared population. The island was used to test chemical weapons during World War II, and it’s said the test subjects roamed free after the war. Either way, the numbers flourished in a predator-free environment (dogs and cats are banned from entering), and today Okunoshima is a popular spot for cuddle-bunny tourists.

Though pig includes some sodium naturally (as does all meat), the saltiness we appreciate in ham, bacon, and a variety of other pork products is really the result of curing and brining procedures. After soaking in salt or salt water, fresh meat gets dehydrated, seasoned, and preserved. This is also the method used to make salami, pepperoni, and other cured meats.

You're probably thinking of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and possibly Pinterest as you consider your social media options. But have you thought about YouTube? Even if you don't consider it a social platform, it drives more engaged traffic than any other social site. Visitors from YouTube stay on sites the longest, visit the most pages, and bounce the least of any social platform referral traffic.

With a surface size of 26,300 square miles, the Aral Sea was formerly the world's fourth biggest lake. However, the lake has been rapidly diminishing since the 1960s. The lake is diminishing due to the divergence of the main rivers away from the lake for irrigation projects. As of 1997, roughly 10% of the lake had vanished, leaving only patches of smaller lakes. The majority of the south-eastern lake had already dried up by 2009, while the majority of the southwestern lake had dwindled to become a narrow strip along the old southern sea. NASA images from 2014 showed the eastern section of the old Aral Sea, which had completely dried out and is now known as the Aralkum Desert.

The number four (‘shi’) is widely avoided in Japan since it sounds too similar to the Japanese word for death. Keep an eye out in Japan and you’ll notice buildings don’t have a fourth floor, items are sold in sets of three or five and special care is taken to avoid encountering the number in daily life.

According to new research based on minutes of conversations between Japanese government officials in the run-up to capitulation, the Soviet Union's surprise entry into the conflict with Japan had a more crucial impact.

Technically, it is a degree in "Viticulture and Enology" (a.k.a. grape cultivation and the science of winemaking), but we're still applying.

The most common mode of transportation for citizens in Paris is the city's subterranean rail system, which is used by over 5 million people every day. It is Europe's busiest subterranean network after Moscow. Count your stations when using the subway - you never know where you'll wind up if you don't, as the Paris Metro system, unlike other big cities, does not announce its stops.

In Japan, people don’t have signatures – they have their own seal. Known as Hanko, the seal is typically your name translated into Kanji characters, and are made from silk or plant-based paste. Adults will often have three Hankos; one for signing off letters and personal matters, a bank seal and an identify seal. They’re not necessary for tourists, but foreigners living in Japan can have one handmade in small, local shops.

Folk dance is a significant aspect of Russian history and culture. One of the most popular styles of Russian folk dance is khorovod. People dance in a circle while holding hands in this kind of dance. Folk dances are performed by Russians during festivals, marketplaces, and in the theatre. If you have the opportunity to visit Russia, make sure to attend a Russian folk dance performance to learn more about Russian culture and traditions.

William "Willy" Patrick Hitler, Adolf Hitler's half-brother, was born in Liverpool to a British mother and a German father. Willy wrote an essay in Look magazine titled "Why I Hate My Uncle" when Anglo-German ties began to deteriorate as a result of his uncle's flamboyance. As the war broke out, he relocated his family to the United States, where he attempted to enroll in the United States Navy but was denied. After the Japanese destroyed Pearl Harbor, Franklin D. Roosevelt reconsidered Willy's application and ultimately authorized him to fight the Nazis.

There are several theories as to how the phrase "it's raining cats and dogs" came to be. One example is that when houses had thatched roofs, pets and other small animals (squirrels, groundhogs, and so on) would nestle into the straw for warmth. When it rained, however, the straw became slick and the animals slid out, giving the impression that it was literally raining cats and dogs.

In the 1860s, the famed political cartoonist Thomas Nast began painting drawings of Santa Claus for Harper's Weekly as part of an advertising campaign. In a couple of his illustrations, he mentioned that Santa's postal address was the North Pole—a location that had already caught the world's interest as they watched several explorers attempt to reach the icy site. What about the actual St. Nicholas? He was born in modern-day Turkey.

Peppers are delicious, even if most people use them as a spice rather than a food. Cayenne peppers have the ability to promote blood clotting over wounds, which is a little-known fact. Cayenne pepper can be sprinkled into a wound to act as gauze, according to experts. This will assist in halting the bleeding. Eating cayenne pepper can also help to balance blood pressure and promote internal clotting. That is, whether you eat it or apply it directly to the wound, it will help it heal faster.

With 3863 hours of sun every year, Aswan is the third sunniest spot in the planet, averaging 10 hours of sun per day!

If you ate a Macintosh apple and planted the seed, the tree that grew would produce apples that didn't look or taste like Macintoshes. Instead of planting seeds, growers graft a cutting from a genetically desirable tree onto an existing branch or sapling (called the "rootstock"), resulting in apples that are genetically identical to those on the tree from which it was cut. If you look closely at the tree in the photo, you can see that there are several different types of apples on the various branches, all of which are grafted onto the same rootstock tree.

Mexico has a lot to offer in terms of culture, from the Metropolitan Cathedral to the Bellas Artes [Fine Arts] Museum and the ruins of Aztec buildings. Over 170 museums may be visited in this megalopolis, which has a great amount of museums. In terms of museums, it is the world's second largest city. It is only slightly surpassed by London, which has approximately 200 museums.

Einstein was not a participant in the Manhattan Project, although he was essential in its inception. German scientists discovered nuclear fission of uranium in the late 1930s, which was a crucial step toward the construction of the atomic bomb. Much of the world's uranium was stored in the Congo, which was then a Belgian territory, so two Hungarian-American physicists called Leo Szilard and Eugene Wigner persuaded Einstein to send a letter to his friend, the Queen of Belgium. Instead, Einstein advised writing a letter to a Belgian minister, but a chance meeting with an economist who knew President Roosevelt resulted in a change of heart and a letter that pushed America to begin its own tests.

Kokura, Hiroshima, Yokohama, Niigata, and Kyoto were on the list. Kyoto was spared, according to legend, because US Secretary of War Henry Stimson loved the ancient Japanese capital and had spent his honeymoon there decades before. In its place, Nagasaki was established. On July 25, 1945, the United Kingdom approved the bombing of four Japanese cities: Kokura, Niigata, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki.

Almost three-quarters of adults with Internet access have at least one social media account, with 52 percent having two or more. This means that your current and potential customers are not only likely to use social media, but they are also likely to use multiple sites.

Ophiocordyceps, a tropical fungus, infects the central nerve systems of ants. After nine days in the insect bodies, the fungus gain total control over the host's motions. They drive the ants to climb trees before convulsing and falling into the cold, wet earth below, where fungus thrive. When the fungus arrives, it waits until exactly solar noon to induce the ant to bite a leaf and kill it.

Shakespeare produced some of the world's most renowned and cherished works of literature. Yet, to build his plays and poetry, he occasionally made up his own words. In fact, Shakespeare is credited with coining over 1,700 terms, including moonbeam, hilarious, eyeball, bump, vomiting, champion, bedroom, thrill, and zany.