Interesting Facts - Page 177

Around 10,000 B.C. the Sahara was much wetter than it is today. Lake Chad was nearly the size of the Caspian Sea. This larger lake is sometimes referred to as Lake Megachad.

Until 1947, the United States had a Department of War not a Department of Defense.

In the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, a silver star marks the spot where Jesus Christ was born. In 1847, the star went missing, possibly stolen by Greek monks who wished to remove the Catholic item. The resulting religious tension between Catholic France and Orthodox Russian helped to spark the Crimean War.

According to one estimate, 27% of the adult male population of China was addicted to opium at the turn of the 20th century.

At times, the ampersand (&) has been regarded as the 27th letter of the alphabet.