The 48 mile long Panama Canal separates two continents and connects two oceans. The waterway saves approximately 8,000 miles of sea travel compared to sailing around the tip of South America. The famous canal also crosses the same continental (hydrological) divide that passes through Alaska, Canada, the Rocky Mountains and Mexico. "Pro Mundi Beneficio."

On April 15, 1912 the R.M.S. Titanic sank. There were approximately 1500 lives lost on that fateful day. Numerous maritime safety upgrades resulted from the tragedy. Changes included requiring 24 hour mandatory ship radio service (1912), extended lifeboat capacities (1912), patrols that monitor icebergs (1914) and improved ship evacuation training for both passengers and crews (ongoing). There have been no ships sunk by an iceberg collision in the North Atlantic since the 1912 disaster.

The #1 format for radio stations in the U.S.A is COUNTRY (2000 stations in 2009).

The top grossing (double entendre?) musical tour of all time was the Rolling Stones effort in 2005 ($162 million in 38 cities).

In 1917, Schick sold the first electric razors to be offered on the U.S. markets. Safety razors were first retailed in 1895 by the Gillette Company. I am now incredibly careful when I shave (I was once foolishly careless and severely nicked my leg).

A large number of patents are annually recorded in the U.S. Patent Office – many from foreign interests. In a recent year, citizens of Japan received 33,682 U.S. patents.

Russia is the nation with the most forest acreage. Brazil holds the Number Two spot.

Saturn has 60 known moons while that show-off Jupiter has 63. Our Earth has only one moon and the object that is no longer even classified as a planet (Pluto) has 3 moons.

The year 2012 for us is 1433 for the Islam world and 4710 for the Chinese. BTW, should you not have a calendar for 2012, one might consider recycling an old 1990 calendar which had the same setup (except for the year thingy).

The dreaded black mamba (a serious snake) can travel at speeds in excess of 20 mph over short distances. The land tortoise can zip along at .17 mph when in an all-out panic. The tortoise I can outrun, and the black mamba might well be impressed at my sincere sprinting efforts as I attempted to leave his/her personal space. Well, use caution when grooming with a blade – and have a great week.