The lightest known particles in the universe are neutrinos which have a maximum mass of 0.0000000000000000000000000000000000018 kg. Neutrinos are come in three varieties – electron, muon and tau neutrinos. The mass is an average of the three types. Neutrinos are created by radioactive decay and nuclear fusion (the process that powers the sun). The mass of the particles was successfully calculated by scientists at Cambridge University and announced at the Royal Astronomical Society’s annual conference in Bristol on 10 April 2002. These particles interact only Continue reading →

The longest span of an Olympic competitor is 40 years by: Dr Ivan Joseph Martin Osiier (Denmark) (1888-1965) in fencing, 1908-32 and 1948; Magnus Andreas Thulstrup Clasen Konow (Norway) (1887-1972) in yachting, 1908-20, 1928 and 1936-48; Paul Elvstrom (Denmark) in yachting, 1948-60, 1968-72 and 1984-88; and Durward Randolph Knowles (Great Britain 1948, then Bahamas) (b. 2 Nov 1917) in yachting, 1948-72 and 1988.

The world’s longest avenue is the Nikko Cryptomeria Avenue comprising three parts converging on Imaichi City in the Tochigi Prefecture of Japan, with a total length of 35.41 km (22 miles). Planted in 1628–48, over 13,500 of its original 200,000 Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) trees survive, at an average height of 27 m (88 ft 6 in). For updates: http://www.pref.tochigi.jp/kokusai/english/overview/nature.html   Email: kocho@pref.tochigi.jp

Early pinball machines paid out cash prizes for high scores, which led to pinball being classified as gambling in the USA. In 1942, pinball machines were banned in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. The mayor of New York City, Fiorello LaGuardia, even went so far as to smash pinball machines during a press conference. Most bans were lifted by the early 1970s, but New York stood firm until 1976, which, at 34 years, makes it the longest ban in gaming history.

P. Jairaj, who made his debut in 1929, has had an acting career spanning 70 years. Although he has acted in more than 300 films, he is better known for character roles than as a lead.

The six-lane, T-shaped Qingdao-Haiwan road bridge, which spans Jiaozhou Bay in China’s Shangdong Province, is 42.5 km (26.4 miles) long. The earthquake- and typhoon-proof bridge opened in 2011 and is designed to withstand the impact of a 300,000-tonne vessel. Image via Alamy.

The longest bridge fountain is located on the Banpo Grand Bridge over the Han River in Seoul (South Korea) which measures 1,140 metres (3,740 ft 1 in). It was constructed by Seoul Metropolitan Infrastructure Headquarters. Running along the length of the bridge are 380 nozzles that send 54 tonnes (60 tons) of water cascading 43 m (140 ft) horizontally and 20 m (65 ft) down into the river every minute. In the evening, LED lights illuminate the water spray, which “dances” in time to 100 Continue reading →

In April 2007, Ermanno Pietrosemoli (Venezuela) shot an 802.11 wireless signal 382 km (237 miles) between two mountains in the Venezuelan Andes. Pietrosemoli, the president of Latin American networking association Escuela Latinoamerica de Redes, achieved a throughput of 3 Mbps of data.

The longest hanging bubble chain consisted of 30 bubbles and was achieved by Hold Enterprise Co., Ltd. (Chinese Taipei) in Taipei, Chinese Taipei, on 15 May 2013.

The roof of the Busan Cinema Center (South Korea) features a cantilever that extends 85 m (278 ft 10.45 in) from its single cone-shaped column support. This roof has a surface area of 60 m by 163 m (196 ft by 535 ft) and weighs 6,376 (metric) tons. Its 9,531 m² (102,591 ft²) of ceiling is clad with 42,600 LED lights. The complex was designed by Wolf D. Prix / Coop Himmelb(l)au (Austria), with the roof raised into final position on 23 March 2011. The Continue reading →