You Can't Make This Stuff Up!

[Lee Stewart]

The red-billed quelea is the most common bird on Earth.

[Lee Stewart]

With around 950 million native speakers and an additional 200 million people speaking Mandarin Chinese as a second language, it's the most popular language in the world.

[Lee Stewart]

During his lifetime between 1162 and 1227, Genghis Khan fathered countless children. And while we may never know exactly how many offspring the leader of the Mongol Empire had, scientists now believe that around 1 in every 200 (or 16 million) men is a direct descendant of his, according to a 2003 historical genetics paper.

[Lee Stewart]

With each generation that passes, more and more people are learning how to read, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). These days, around 86 percent of adults around the world are able to enjoy a book.

[Lee Stewart]

Do you use Facebook? If you don't, you're among a number that gets increasingly smaller every day. In fact, 2 billion active users have an account on the social media platform, which is more than the population of the United States, China, and Brazil combined.

[Lee Stewart]

You might find yourself saying "the" before various countries and place names when referring to them thanks to grammar and common pronunciation, which is why we say the United States or the Maldives. However, only The Gambia and The Bahamas formally include "The" in their nation's names.

[Lee Stewart]

People who live in New Zealand seem to love having an animal companion around. That's why 68 percent of households in the country have a pet, which is more than any other nation in the world. Americans also happen to love furry friends, which is why more than half of all U.S. homes have either a dog or cat (or both).

[Lee Stewart]

Tokyo is a booming city, not only by Japanese standards, but also compared to cities around the world. With around 37 million people living in Tokyo, it's the world's largest city when it comes to population size, according to Reuters. The next largest city is Delhi, India (population 29 million) and Shanghai, China (26 million).

[Lee Stewart]

These days, Interpol (or the International Criminal Police Organization) may be well known for tracking down outlaws around the world. But the group dates all the way back to 1914 when the International Criminal Police Congress was held in Monaco. That meeting saw police and judicial representatives from 24 countries get together with the goal of improving contacts between police forces in different countries in order to increase the effectiveness of international investigations.

[Lee Stewart]

While four babies are born on Earth every second, it's estimated that around two people pass away at the same time. That means that 105 people die each minute, 6,316 people each hour, 151,600 people each day, and 55.3 million people each year.