KNOWLEDGE TO GAIN

Did You Know? The hottest planet in the solar system is Venus, with an estimated surface temperature of 864 F (462 C). The second planet from the sun and Earth's closest neighbor, Venus is famously known for being the brightest object in our night sky aside from the moon. Venus is very similar to Earth both in size and in gravity levels. It is a terrestrial planet and is visible to the naked human eye. One of the most fascinating facts about Venus is the planet's day and year length. One rotation on Venus lasts for the equivalent to 243 Earth days, which is the longest length of any planet in the Solar System! Interestingly, Venus takes 224.65 Earth days to complete a revolution around the Sun. This means that a day on Venus is technically longer than a year. The composition of Venus is similar to that of planet Earth. It has a rocky surface and an iron core at its center. The atmosphere of Venus is mostly made out of carbon dioxide. The planet has a very strong greenhouse effe

Did You Know? A rare Stradivarius viola valued at US$45 million (S$56 million) could become the most expensive musical instrument ever sold in 2014. A rare Stradivarius viola valued at US $45 million (S $56 million) could become the most expensive musical instrument ever sold when it is auctioned later this year. Auction house Sotheby's has invited sealed bids to be received by June 26 for the nearly 300-year-old instrument made by Italian master craftsman Antonio Stradivari in 1719. Musical instrument expert Tim Ingles described the sale of the instrument, one of only 10 Stradivarius violas still in existence, as a "once in a lifetime" event. Known as the Macdonald viola in a reference to a previous owner - Baron Macdonald who purchased it circa 1820 - it is said to be in perfect condition and has never been restored. The current record for the most expensive instrument sale is held by the 1721 Lady Blunt Stradivarius violin which was sold for US $15.9 million in June

Did You Know? Goldfish can see both infrared and ultraviolet light. A goldfish is the only aquatic animal (or fish) on earth that can see infrared and ultraviolet light. Most goldfish retina ganglion cells and wavelength photopic spectral sensitivity functions reflects both wavelength additive mechanisms and wavelength opponent mechanisms. Scientists discovered that they could track submarines, intercept trace reflections of communication lasers that took bad bounces of atmospheric interference, and even decode the ultra-faint emanation that are shed of trans-oceanic communication cables, and so much more.

Did You Know? Mars is red because its surface contains a lot of rust. The simple explanation for the Red Planet's color is that its regolith, or surface material, contains lots of iron oxide — the same compound that gives blood and rust their hue. But why does Mars have so much iron, why is that iron "oxidized," and why does iron oxide look red? It all started 4.5 billion years ago. When the solar system formed, many of the planets landed a dose of iron. Forged in the heart of long-dead stars, the heavy element swirled around in the cloud of gas and dust that gravitationally collapsed to form the sun and planets. Whereas the bulk of Earth's iron sank to its core when the planet was young and molten, NASA scientists think Mars' smaller size (and weaker gravity) allowed it to remain less differentiated. It does have an iron core, but abundant iron exists in its upper layers, also. Plain-old iron looks shiny black. The element only takes on a reddish tinge when it ha

Did You Know? Antarctica is about 1.3 times as large as Europe. A trip to Antarctica is a journey to one of the most fascinating and beautiful places on the planet. It really changes your perspective on the world thanks to the unique wildlife and the stunning icy wilderness that you will experience. It's also quite a fascinating continent, too as our fun facts about Antarctica show: 1. Antarctica is always covered in ice. Unlike its northern counterpart, the North Pole, the ice on Antarctica never melts. 2. Antarctica is a landmass that is covered in ice. The North Pole and the Arctic is not land, but a frozen mass on top of the ocean. 3. Antarctica is the windiest, highest and driest place on earth. 4. The average thickness of the ice covering Antarctica is one mile. It can be as thick as three miles in places. 5. Antarctica is 1.3 times as large as Europe, almost 1.5 times the size of the United States of America. It is almost double the size of Australia, also.

Did You Know? Volkswagen Group owns Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Audi, Ducati, Porsche, and others. The car industry is a massive, complicated place. If you've been a car fanatic for long enough, you probably already know that the Bentley's, Bugatti's, and Lamborghini's you had on your wall as posters as a kid were, in fact, VW's. If you didn't, newsflash: Volkswagen Group owns Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, and among others, Porsche. However, a lesser known fact about the German automotive multinational - that rests easily in the top 10 of the Fortune Global 500 list - is that it's indirectly majority owned by the Austrian Porsche-Piech family. Porsche, as in the Porsche also owned by Volkswagen AG. So there you have it. Porsche is both owned by and an owner of Volkswagen Group and vice versa. Here's a look into how this strange hierarchy happened and what is now housed beneath the massive Volkswagen umbrella.

Did You Know? Almost all of the ordinary matter (99.9999999% of it) is empty space. If you took out all of the space in our atoms, the entire human race (all 7.7 billion of us) would fit into the volume of a sugar cube. Some days, you might feel like a pretty substantial person. Maybe you have a lot of friends, or an important job, or a really big car. But it might humble you to know that all of those things – your friends, your office, your really big car, you yourself, and even everything in this incredible, vast Universe – are almost entirely, 99.9999999 percent empty space. If the nucleus were the size of a peanut, the atom would be about the size of a baseball stadium. If we lost all the dead space inside our atoms, we would each be able to fit into a particle of dust, and the entire human species would fit into the volume of a sugar cube.

Did You Know? Nepal is the birthplace of Buddhism. In South Asia, between China and India, lies Nepal. Here, you'll find lowlands, as well as the highest mountain peaks in the world. Nepal has endured years of war and many people live in poverty. The country is home to exotic animals, such as tigers, snow leopards, rhinos and fresh water dolphins. These animals are all endangered, though. As the population grows, people cut down forests for homes and farmlands, displacing the animals. When the trees are cut down, the soil blows away so crops don't grow as well. Nepal is the birthplace of Buddhism, although many people in Nepal are Hindu. Like India, the people of Nepal have used a caste system – or social ranking system – for many years. Although illegal, the caste system endures, especially in poor, rural areas. The social rankings include the Hindu caste, the Bhotes, the hill tribes, including Sherpas, and the Newar.

Did You Know? A cat has 32 muscles in each ear. A cat has 32 muscles in each ear, compared to a human's 6 muscles each. A cat can rotate its ears independently 180 degrees, and turn in the direction of sound 10 times faster than those of the best watchdog. 32 individual muscles in each ear allow for a manner of directional hearing; a cat can move each ear independently of the other. Because of this mobility, a cat can move its body in one direction and point its ears in another direction. Most cats have straight ears pointing upward.

Did You Know? Cats recognize owners' voices but seem too cool to care, according to a study. Any cat owner will tell you that although they are sometimes kept as pets, felines are beholden to no one. A new study from the University of Tokyo has confirmed this, showing that although pet cats are more than capable of recognising their owner's voice they choose to ignore them. Carried out by Atsuko Saito and Kazutaka Shinozuka, the study tested twenty housecats in their own homes; waiting until the owner was out of sight and then playing them recordings of three strangers calling their names, followed by their owner, followed by another stranger.