Trivia Pills: 10 interesting facts about the USA
These small snippets are extracted from longer posts on the United States. Be sure to check out the USA page for more information and articles.
history
#1 – They Bought the Entire State of Alaska for Pennies
country
#2 – Hawaii Is the Widest State
Hawaii is the only archipelago state made up entirely of islands and the widest state of the U.S.
New Zealand is often referred to the first place to give women the right to vote in 1893 but it was actually Hawaii to be the first to give universal suffrage in 1840 (this was later denied and overturned in 1852, but still)
society
#3 – Presidential Focus
The United States is the first country to use the word president. When it comes to presidents R. Reagan was the oldest president, B. Obama the first black president, and G. Washington was not the first president and not the first face on the one dollar bill.
Speaking of US dollars, it is the Federal Reserve mandate to maintain all bills legal tender. This is one of the reasons why the banknotes never change and mostly remain the same contrary to what happens in many other countries.
history
#4 – Iconic Flags
The stars and stripes flag was revised 27 times and originally designed by a high-schooler. The 50 stars represent the 50 states, while the 13 stripes the original states.
The state flag of the Republic of California depicts a grizzly bear and is the state animal although there are no grizzlies since 1922.
Speaking of grizzlies, there have been records and studies on increase in grizzly-polar bear hybrids creating the grolar bears and pizzly bears. This is presumed to be because of the increase in deforestation and urbanization which is pushing the grizzly bears further north into the habitat of polar bears.
society
#5 – Doesn’t Have an Official Language State Religion
It might be surprising, given the makeup of the country, but in the US there isn’t an official language nor a state religion. Clearly the de facto language is English (with an enormous amount of Spanish in second place) and Christianity (mainly Protestantism but with several other denominations, some uniquely specific to the US), and many other religions, as the country is a melting pot of different cultures.
country
#6 – Military Might
The US is the leading country in military technology and spending with a budget higher than the next 10 countries combined. To maintain its military supremacy around the world the United States has over 800 military bases, more than any other country.
The Department of Defense is also the largest employer of the country with almost 3 million employees, and the Pentagon is still recorded as the largest building in the world.
society
#7 – First in Thew World in Many Aspects, Good and Bad
The US is home to some of the most world changing and culturally influential companies and industries in the world such as Hollywood, the tech companies in Silicon Valley, the fast food industry, NASA, and many others. In general there are a myriad of areas where the US ranks as number 1 from military, to music, scientific research, national parks, global charity and humanitarian aid, and clearly in the financial world.
This supremacy applies also in the negative and among the unflattering statistics, the US has the 4th largest wealth gap in the world and the 3rd worst poverty rate among developed nations. 62% of personal bankruptcies are caused by medical bills, it has the highest number of gun wound deaths, and the world’s largest imprisoned population.
history
#8 – New York City
New York was originally called New Amsterdam, until the British captured it changing the name to pay tribute to the Duke of York.
The iconic Statue of Liberty is located in New Jersey and was donated by the French 1886, as a symbol of the shared ideals of freedom and democracy. The 7 spikes on its crown represent the seven seas and continents, recalling the universal concept of liberty.
geography
#9 – A vast country of unique natural beauty
With 63 national parks, 423 sites protected and maintained by the National Park Service, and 2,474 state parks the US boasts some breathtaking natural landscapes.
When it comes to rankings of the best national parks in the world, the US consistently ranks in the top tiers, together with Canada and African countries such as Tanzania, Kenya and South Africa.
The United States is also the only country to have all five major climate zones, making it a place where one can find all possible natural wonders
history
#10 – The A in America stands for Anything but Metric
Most countries that have a British colonial past use the imperial measuring system, coupled with the metric system. Imperial system is used for everyday life and cultural aspects (such as ordering a pint of beer), whereas the metric system is used for actual measurements. The US stubbornly uses the imperial system for most things. Also what is up with the MM/DD calendar, and the drinking age limit of 21?
