Trivia

In 1553, one J. Day put out a London publication imprinted with his personal motto: “Arise, for it is Day!” This is said to have been the first known use of the exclamation mark.

Q. Don’t snakes, bees and scorpions, in that order, kill more people worldwide than any animal?

A. Except man, quite right.

Q. How come so much scrimshaw, that artwork etched long ago by sailors on walrus ivory and sea shells, has no words in it?

A. Not many of those early artists could read or write.

Evidence suggests Leonardo da Vinci also sang most impressively.

Fishers oceanswide are catching about as many fish now as they caught seven years ago. But there are 630 million more people. Our chief prognosticator, that Sherlock, figures the price of fish will go up and an ever-increasing number of the world’s fish-eaters without cash to pay the upped price will have to dine on diverse substitutes.