Lightning!

The only man in the world to be struck by lightning seven times is ex-park ranger Roy C. Sullivan (US), the human lightning conductor of Virginia, USA. His attraction for lightning began in 1942 (lost big toe nail) and was resumed in July 1969 (lost eyebrows), in July 1970 (left shoulder seared) on 16 Apr 1972 (hair set on fire), on 7 Aug 1973 (new hair re-fired and legs seared) and on S Jun 1976 (ankle injured), and he was sent to Waynesboro Hospital with chest and stomach burns on 25 Jun 1977 after being struck while fishing. In September 1983 he died by his own hand, reportedly rejected in love.


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Snake



The longest prehistoric snake was the python-like Gigantophis garstini, which inhabited what is now Egypt about 38 million years ago. Parts of a spinal column and a small piece of jaw discovered at Fayum in the Western Desert indicate a length of about 11m 36 ft. This is 1m3ft 3 in longer than the present-day longest snake.

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Seven Wonders of the World



The Seven Wonders of the World were first designated by Antipatar of Sidon In the 2nd century BC. They were:- the Pyrarnids of Giza, lhe Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the Tomb of King Mausolus, the Colossus of Rhodes and the Pharos of Alexandria.Only the Pyramids of Giza still exist substantially today. They are to be found near El Qiza (El Gizeh). south- west of El Oahira (Cairo) in Egypt. They were built by three Fourth Dynasty Egyptian Pharaohs: Khwfw (KhufLi or Cheops), Kha-f-Ra (Khafre, Khefren or Chepren) and Menkaure (Mycerinus). The great pyramid fThe 'Horizon of Khufu') was built C.2550 BG. Its original height was 146.6m 481 ft Oin (now, since the loss of its topmost stones and the pyramidion. reduced to 137.5 m 451 ft I in) with a base line of 230.4m 755ft IOIn. thus covering slightly more than 5 ha 13acres. It has been estimated that a permanent work force of 100,000 required 30 years to manoeuvre into position the 2,300,000 limestone blocks averaging 2lhtonnes each, totalling about 5,840,000 tonnes and a volume of 2,593,000 mJ 91,571.000RJ. Soma blocks weigh 15tonnes. Of the other six wonders only fragments remain of Ihe Temple of Artemis (Diana) of the Epheslans, built 'C.350BC at Ephesus, Turkey [destroyed by the Goths in AD262), and of the Tomb of King Mausolus o( Caria, built at Halicarnassus, now Bodrum,Turkoy,c.S258C.

No trace remains of:- the Hanging Gardens of I Semiramis, at Babylon, Iraq C.600BC. the statue oi Zeus (Jupiter}, by Phidias (5th century BC) at Olympia, I Greece (lost In a fire at Istanbul) tn marble, gold and I ivory and 12m 40ft tall; the figure of the god Helios (Apollo), a 35m 117ft tall statue sculptured '292-2SOBC. by Chares of Undus (destroyed b/m ;earthquake in 224BC); and the world's earliest lighl-house, 122m 400ft tall built by Sostratus ot Cnidus (C.270BC) as a pyramid shaped towar of while l marble, on the Island of Pharos (Greek, phams-light house), off the coast of El lskandariya (Alexandria), 'Egypt (destroyed by earthquake in AD 1375).