do it. think it. blog it! ... a twisted world

I just received this (chain) in an email this AM, and was quite amused or impressed rather... A real nice way to start a weekend.. and just like the email header described, "there was more GK packed in this than a mini encyclopedia".

1. There are more telephones than people in Washington, D.C.
2. A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top.
3. A duck's quack doesn't echo. No one knows why.
4. 40 percent of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals.
5. 315 entries in Webster's 1996 Dictionary were misspelt.
6. On an average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily.
7. Chocolate kills dogs! True, chocolate affects a dog's heart and nervous system. A few ounces is enough to kill a small sized dog.
8. Most lipstick contains fish scales.
9. Ketchup was sold in the 1830's as a medicine.
10. Leonardo da Vinci could write with one hand and draw with the other at the same time.
11. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
12. There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos.
13. Leonardo da Vinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years to paint Mona Lisa's lips.
14. Bruce Lee was so fast that they actually had to slow a film down so you could see his moves. That's the opposite of the norm.
15. The original name for the butterfly was "flutterby"!
16. By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you can't sink in quicksand.
17. Mosquito repellents don't repel. They hide you. The spray blocks the mosquito's sensors so they don't know you're there.
18. Dentists recommend that a toothbrush be kept at least six feet away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles resulting from the flush.
19. The first product to have a bar code was Wrigley's gum.
20. The first owner of the Marlboro company died of lung cancer.
21. Michael Jordan makes more money from Nike annually than all of the Nike factory workers in Malaysia combined.
22. Marilyn Monroe had six toes on one foot.
23. Adolf Hitler's mother seriously considered having an abortion but was talked out of it by her doctor.
24. The three most valuable brand names on earth: Marlboro, Coca-Cola, and Budweiser, in that order.
25. "Stewardesses" is the longest word that can be typed with only the left hand.
26. To escape the grip of a crocodile's jaws, prick your fingers into its eyeballs. It will let you go instantly.
27. A mathematical wonder: 111,111,111 multiplied by 111,111,111 gives the result 12, 345, 678, 987, 654, 321.
28. The most common name in the world is Mohammed.
29. The average person falls asleep in seven minutes.
30. The "pound" (#) key on your keyboard is called an octothorp.
31. The only domestic animal not mentioned in the Bible is the cat.
32. Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated.
33. The average person's left hand does 56% of the typing.
34. "Dreamt" is the only word in the English language that ends in "mt".
35. It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.
36. In Chinese, the KFC slogan "finger lickin' good" comes out as "eat your fingers off".
37. A cockroach can live for 10 days without a head.
38. We shed 40 pounds of skin a lifetime.
39. Yo-Yos were once used as weapons in the Philippines.
40. Coca-Cola can be used as car oil.
41. Mexico City sinks abut 10 inches a year.
42. Brains are more active sleeping than watching TV.
43. Blue is the favorite color of 80 percent of Americans.
44. When a person shakes their head from side to side, he is saying "yes" in Sri Lanka.
45. There are mo re chickens than people in the world.
46. It's against the law in Iceland to have a dog.
47. The thumbnail grows the slowest, and the middle nail grows the fastest.
48. The only word in the English Language with all vowels in reverse order is "subcontinental".
49. Look at your zipper. See the initials YKK? It stands for Yoshida Kogyo Kabushibibaisha, the world's largest zipper manufacturer

I was lashed at in a "mild manner" by quite a few members of the blogosphere mafia via emails and phone conversations over the last few days on my post on India An IT Superpower, Who Are WE Kidding ?. WHY ? Is it because I had an opinion ? Is it because I came across as a anti-Indian ? Or was it because I am foolish ? The Indian Technology industry sector comprises of a huge magnitude of organizations offering consultancy services, call centers and BPO markets. It's no longer a question that India has made it's mark in the Information Technology marketspace. But what I always question is whether India would be able to sustain itself in this space. The statistics, put forth by business intelligence firms, merchant bankers and leading IT industry associations such as NASSCOM, McKinsey & Co., Goldman Sachs, among others, seem to point to a robust, high growth Indian IT industry in the future. Can India make it to IT Superpower status? According to a Goldman Sachs report released in 2004, India's IT workforce could grow to 2 million in 10 years. We tend to only read up on analysts reports that picture the good. We harp on how good and great Infosys is doing. But how many of us have read the negatives? Here's a post on Stop calling India an IT superpower - courtesy : rediff.com India is a democracy right? Here's a statement excerpt from the Communist Party Of India's Website. "No country which treats its human resources as a liability rather than an asset can aspire to be a superpower" (not that I'm a communist) We also keep a justification slogan in out backpack and use it whenever we feel cornered. "that India has been independent for only 58 years, while America has been independent for 219 years" Some More Facts: (before I end this thread) The number of patents from India are far below the level expected. Of course India has a lot of talented minds. But it's all wasted as "employees" of MNC's where they have to simply work rather than think. There is a huge gap between working and thinking or developing innovative ideas. PS: Also read this post on "India as an Information Technology Giant" by Dr. Abhishek Puri This whole topic is so debatable that one could go on and on without ever coming to a conclusion. I guess it's all because we are trying to forecast things, and IF we were so good at forecasting the unknown, We would not be where we are right now.I'd do timetravel if I could I end this post with. I Wish India Was a Superpower and Hope that it DOES attain that status someday. I also wish that I win the Super Lotto someday.