26Vanilla Capital
Though Madagascar now produces 80% of the world’s vanilla, the vine is native to Mexico. Mayans were the first to cultivate it in the jungles of the Yucatan peninsula. They flavored their chocolate drink with vanilla.
27. A Polish man received a building permit for a single-family home in the Polish village of Lapalice in the 1980s. He then spent his fortune building a 52-room castle, with 365 windows and 12 turrets. Once the authorities found out, they put an end to construction. He’s still fighting with them now, 35 years later, to complete it.
28. About 26 states in the U.S. do not require employers to provide meal or rest breaks to their employees.
29. Due to a copyright issue, George Romero’s film Night of the Living Dead is in the public domain and can be downloaded for free on the internet. It is currently the most downloaded film on the Internet Archive, with 3.1 million downloads.
30. In Kentucky, five million gallons of the “angel’s share” from bourbon evaporates every year, which is also covering the state in a black fungus called “Baudoinia” that feeds off the ethanol vapor released by liquor as it ages.
