Fascinating Facts ... Are They True?

The state with the highest percentage of people who walk to work: Alaska. True, according to the U.S. Census Bureau --  4.3% compared to the national average of 1.3%. Next is Vermont at 3.1%. The District of Columbia beats both at 5.8%, but the nation’s capital is not a state.

What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers and laser printers have in common? Is it true they were all invented by women? 

Contrary to a popularly circulating "fascinating facts" email, women were not solely responsible. The first commercially available bulletproof vest was patented by a man, Casimir Zeglen, in the late 1800's. However, a woman, Stephanie Kwolek, who was a chemist at DuPont Laboratories, invented Kevlar, which is used in most modern bullet proof vests today.

The laser printer was invented by Gary Starkweather of Xerox in 1969. However, the invention of fire escapes is credited to Anna Connelly in 1887 and Mary Anderson gets the credit for windshield wipers in 1903.

What is the only food that doesn't spoil? Honey? That’s a popular claim, but it’s also true of salt, a vital nutrient. Quite a few other foods don’t spoil if kept in air-tight containers, including sugar and water

Is it true that only two people signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4? They were John Hancock and Charles Thomson, right? What about reports that most of the rest signed on August 2, but the last signature wasn't added until 5 years later?

According to the historians at the National Archives, on July 2, 1776, twelve of the thirteen colonies approved a draft resolution for independence with New York finally agreeing on July 9. The draft was "Signed by Order and in Behalf of the Congress, John Hancock, President. Attest. Charles Thomson, Secretary."

However, that draft version is’t the famous one you’ve seen. On July 19th, Congress ordered that the Declaration be "fairly engrossed on parchment” under a headline of “The unanimous declaration of the thirteen United States of America." That one was to be signed by every member of Congress, however, it took quite a while to get everybody’s signature for the printing and Pennsylvania’s Thomas McKean was the last person to sign. As a result, his signature doesn’t appear on some early copies.

You may have read widespread reports that the average number of people airborne over the U.S. in any given hour: 61,000.

What a fun statistic. But as far as we can tell, the airline industry has never compiled any data to prove or disprove this popularly circulated statistic.

The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of eleven:  $16,400. True? Well, maybe say the folks at peteducation.com, who say that it can vary, but $16,000 is a nice enough fiture. Vet bills, grooming bills, supplies and food do add up over the years. They estimate the expenses over a 14-year-old dog’s lifetime ranging between $4,242 and $38,905.