Strange But True: Canadian Mac and Cheese

By Lucie Winborne

  • America's first dentist, John Baker, trained Paul Revere to be a dentist.

  • A German word for nightmare is "alptraum," or "elf dream." In German folklore, elves were dangerous figures who could control dreams and create nightmares.

  • Canadians eat more macaroni and cheese than any other nation in the world.

  • No matter how badly fingerprints are damaged, they will still grow back in their original pattern.

  • Eggnog originated from the medieval hot, milky ale-like drink known as a posset.

  • The band name Imagine Dragons is an anagram. Lead singer Dan Reynolds described it as a "phrase that meant something to all of us," but the group has yet to confirm what that is.

  • Though dragonflies have six legs, they cannot walk.

  • Ancient pagan cultures such as the Celts believed that benevolent, helpful spirits lived in trees. Knocking on tree trunks roused a spirit for protection, which led to the saying "knock on wood."

  • Sea otters have the thickest fur of any mammal, at 1 million hairs per square inch.

  • The Muppet vampire Count von Count, from "Sesame Street," was based on actual vampire myth. One way to supposedly deter the bloodsucking creatures is to throw seeds outside a door. Vampires are compelled to count the seeds, delaying them until morning.

  • In 1951, Sir Hugh Beaver, the managing director of Guinness Brewery, got into a spat with someone over the world's fastest game bird. When the pair couldn't locate an answer in a book, Beaver had the idea of writing one that would solve pub arguments.

  • The sun weighs 2,000 million million million million tons.

Thought for the Day: "The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits." -- Albert Einstein

(c) 2025 King Features Synd., Inc.

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