Bring on the FactBook and Behold the Summer Extravaganza

This post is just a formal Monthly Report of the Factorium for the month of April. This Month has been dominated by the Names, the Biggest, the Tiniest and not to forget, Genericised Trademarks. Today's post of Generic Trademarks ends the month of April and now we are looking forward to an action-packed May. The whole month of May (except the first day) and two-thirds of June will be dominated by 'Sumer Extravaganza' which is 50-day fact series coinciding with my Summer Holidays.

The question that arises is what is the 'FactBook'. Just to summarise, the FactBook is an 'Anthology of facts presented in an eBook Format (on Google Docs)'. There will be 7 Editions of the FactBook spanning the whole Summer Extravaganza (50 days). I have specially created a Blog for the FactBook on which you will find more information on the FactBook are also links to the week's eBook. The post on the Blog will have detailed info on the FactBook and we will have a post on the second of May which will dealing on info on the Summer Extravaganza.

So, to summarise the Month, I have created a Facebook page for the Factorium and we have had 25 followers to our blog and the Factorium has till date about 70 posts that too @ 1 fact a day. So, that's all for April, let's head on to May...

Generic Trademarks

Today is the last day of the Month of April, so it means that we will have our Monthly Report today. The Factorium is going to start another fact series that will span the 7 weeks of my summer holiday and is named Summer Extravaganza. We will see something about it too in today's report. Before that, let us move on today's fact in which we will see some common genericised trademarks. Today, we will have a list with 5 trademarks:

This list contains 10 trademarks that were originally legally protected but have lost their legality as being a common name within that product or service:

1. Aspirin: Aspirin still continues to remain a trademark name for the Bayer company. It has been declared Generic in some countries due to its popularity in the medical sector. As the chemical name acetylsalicylic acid is too difficult to remember, people prefer to say Aspirin.

2. Cellophane: It is still a registered trademark of Innovia Films Limited and was originally a trademark of DuPont and has become generic due to its widespread use.

3. Escalator: It was originally a trademark of Otis Elevator Company but has become Generic due to its huge Popularity and widespread use and the fact that Otis Elevator Company invented the Escalator or the Lift (as it is called generally).

4. Petrol: Carless, Capel and Leonard invented the Trade name 'petrol' for refined petroleum spirit. Since then, it has slowly and steadily become Generic.

5. Yo-Yo: It is still a Papa's Toy Co. Limited Trademark in some countries but has become genericised in many countries, especially USA and India. It is a good example of a Trademark as almost all the small kids refer to the 'Spinning Toy' as a Yo-Yo.

Generic Trademarks

We are nearing to the end of the Month of April and ahead of us, the Summer Extravaganza of Facts awaits. So let us wrap up the 2 remaining days with lists of some common Generic Trademarks and the firms that have genericised these Trademarks. On the first day, we will see what exactly a Generic Trademark is and on the second day, we will see a list of Generic Trademarks:

A Generic Trademark is trademark or a brand name that has become colloquial or synonymous with a group of Products or Services. It is also known as a Generecised Trademark or a Property Eponym. A classic example of a Generic Trademark is the household use of the Brand 'Dalda'. A many times, 'Dalda' is referred to as Ghee or has become synonymous wit Ghee, but actually it is a Brand Name that is owned by Bunge Limited. Now, when does a particular Brand Name or a Trademark becomes Generalised? Actually, the whole process takes place slowly but steadily depending upon the popularity of that Brand and the fact that it has acquired substantial market dominance over other products or services in its own class is also taken into considerence. An interesting fact regarding generelisation of trademarks is that when that particular Trademark becomes popularised or generic, it puts its legal protection at risk and the Company's rights in the trademark may be lost.

Tomorrow, we will see about some common Generic Trademarks....

Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest - Maps

Today we have the last fact of our Series 'Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest'. Today, we are going to see facts about the Smallest Three-Dimensional Map in the World. There is basically no such added criteria in today's Fact.

The World's Smallest Three-Dimensional Map was created by a team of Scientists of Computer Giant IBM and is so small that 1000 such maps can fit on 1 grain of salt. This complete 3D map of the world measuring only 22 by 11 micrometers was "written" on a polymer. The map is composed of 500,000 pixels, each measuring 20 sq.nanometer, and was created in an astounding time of 2 minutes and 23 seconds. The said team of scientists accomplished this through a new, innovative technique which uses a tiny, silicon tip with a sharp apex that is 100,000 times smaller than a sharpened pencil to create patterns and structures as small as 15 nanometers at greatly reduced cost and complexity. This new innovative technique can be used for developing future nanosised objects in different fields.

Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest - Plants

For the third time this week, we are going to see facts on the Tiniest in the world of Organisms. Today we are going to see facts on the Smallest Flowering Plant in the World. Now, the Criteria for today's fact is that the Organism should be a plant still in existence and the plant should be a Flowering Plant. So, the Plant that meets our criteria is the Wolffia Plant (Photograph on the right).

So, the Smallest Flowering Plant in the World is the Wolffia Plant whch bears the World's Smallest Flowers. It is a type of Duckweed in the Lemnacae Family of Plants . Wolffia is a genus of 9-11 species that include the world's smallest flowering plants. Commonly called Watermeal, these aquatic plants resemble specks of cornmeal floating on the water, thus the name 'Watermeal'. Fully grown, they measure only 300 Micrometres by 600 micrometres and reach a mass of just 150 micrograms. It is said that a bouquet of Wolffia Flowers would fit on the head of a pin. It is a very useful plant when we see from the commercial point of view, and has a great potential in commercial food use as it is 40% protein but it is also considered as a nuisance plant in some lakes and rivers in North America.

The last of the 'Tiniest' up tomorrow....

Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest - Amphibia

Today we are going to see something more about tiny organisms as we saw about the Smallest Living Mammal in the World by Mass the other day. Today, we are going to see facts on The Smallest Living Amphibian in the World by Size. The criteria for today is that the Organism has to be an Amphibian, its Species must not be extinct, but can be on the Endangered or on the Vulnerable List. Thirdly, it has to be the Tiniest by Size, not by any other measurement. The Organism that meets our criteria is the Brazilian Gold Frog (Photograph on the right).

The Brazilian Gold Frog (Brachycephalus didactylus), also known as Izecksohn's Toad, is the smallest living amphibian in the World. It was previously known as Psyllophryne didactyla. Adult Brazilian Gold Frogs measure to only 9.8 millimeters in body length. The Brazilian Gold Frog is named after their beautiful golden colour. They are smaller than a regular dime and are also the World's Smallest Living Frog and the World's Smallest Living Tetrapod.

The Monte Iberia Eleuth is another frog and an amphibian giving tough fight to the Brazilian Gold Frog as both the species of frogs are of the same size. In this post, I have mentioned that the latter is the smallest, as most of the reliable encyclopaedias and internet source cite it as the smallest. So, I request the readers to please comment on the factual accuracy of today's post.

Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest - The Smallest Newspaper

Today we are again going to search for the 'Tiniest' in Mass Media (remember the earlier post on the Tiniest Book). Today, we will see about the Newspaper which holds the Guinness World Record for the Smallest Newspaper in the World.

The Smallest Newspaper in the World is the First News Children's Newspaper (photograph on the Right) which was published in West Horsley, Surrey UK on the November 8, 2007 in celebration of Guinness World Records Day.This smallest newspaper measures a minute 32 x 22 mm (1.25 x 0.86 in). First News is a weekly newspaper aimed at 7-14 year olds. It is in tabloid format, and aims to present current events in a child-friendly format, alongside news on entertainment, sport and computer games. The Smallest Newspaper was just a special edition aimed at setting the World Record on the Guinness World Records Day and the size of the regular weekly paper is normal.

Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest - Mammals

Today we are going to see something about tiny organisms. Today, we will see facts about the Tiniest or Smallest Living Mammal in the world by Mass. The criteria for today is that the Organism has to be a Mammal, its Species must not be extinct, but can be on the Endangered or Vulnerable List. Thirdly, it has to be the Tiniest by Mass, not by size. The Organism that meets our criteria is the Etruscan Shrew (Photograph on the right).

The Etruscan Shrew (Suncus etruscus), also known as the Etruscan Pygmy Shrew or the White-toothed Pygmy Shrew is the smallest known mammal by mass, weighing only about 2 grams, although the smallest known mammal by skull size is the Bumblebee Bat. The smallest mature specimens of this shrew are thought to weigh about 1.3 grams and measure 36 mm (1.42 inches) long. This small mammal is 60 mm from the tip of the nose to the base of the tail; the tail is about 40 mm long. This shrew has a lifespan of 15 months.

Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest - Books

Today we will peek into the world of Literature, to see facts about the Smallest Published Book in the World. This credit first and foremost goes to Nanotechnology, for which without this could not be possible.

The world’s first nanoscale book was published as a work of fine art on April 9, 2007 by at the Nano Imaging Facility of Simon Fraser University. This book, complete with an International Standard Book Number (ISBN-978-1-894897-17-4), is entitled ‘Teeny Ted From Turnip Town’. It was written by Malcolm Douglas Chaplin and is a fable concerning the success of Teeny Ted, from Turnip Town, and his victory in the Turnip contest at the annual county fair. It is at present the world’s smallest published book. The book was typeset in block letters with a resolution of 40 nanometers, and is made up of 30 micro-tablets, each carved on a polished piece of single crystalline silicon. The carving of the letter forms invokes the look of ancientcuneiform tablets, the undisputed root of publication. The entire collection of micro-tablets is contained within an area of 69 x 97microns square, with an average size of tablet being 11 x 15 microns square. Altough the Guinness Book of World Records has cited two other books as the smallest, there is no doubt that this is the Smallest Book in the World.

Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest - Songs

Today we began the new series Tiny, Tinier, Tiniest. This is an antonym to the previous series Big, Bigger, Biggest. This series will showcase 7 of the Smallest, Tiniest and Shortest objects, people or any other nouns. Before beginning, let me tell you that today is Earth Day. Today we will be discussing facts about the World's Shortest Recorded Song.

'You Suffer', a song by British Grindcore band 'Napalm Death' is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the Shortest Recorded Song Ever. It was written for their debut album 'Scum'. This song is precisely 1.316 Seconds long. This song was written by band members Nicholas Bullen and Justin Broadrick is 1986 and it featured in the album 'Scum' in 1987. The lyrics of this song are "You Suffer, But Why?". According to the writer, this song was meant to be a ridiculous comedy thing that was meant to be a hit amongst the kids. For viewing this song on youtube, please click here .

More 'Tiny' coming up tomorrow....

Big, Bigger, Biggest - The Tallest Statue

Today we will see something that is tall, and thus it fits into our 'Big' category. Today we will see facts on the Tallest Existing Statue. This credit goes to the Spring Temple Buddha. The Criteria to be remembered is that the statue must be still standing and it should include only the height of the Statue itself, ignoring the additional height of the pedestal on which it stands.

The Spring Temple Buddha (photograph on the right) currently holds the world record as the Tallest Existing Statue in the world. Located in Lushan, Henan in the People's Republic of China, this statue is 128m (420 ft.) high, surpassing the previously held record of 116m held by the Laykyun Setkar in Myanmar. The Spring Temple Buddha depicts the Vairocana Buddha. It was completed in 2002 and stands on a 25m high pedestal, thus taking the total monumental height to 153m. The height of the statue includes a 20m Lotus Throne. It is planned that the hill on which the statue stands will be shaped in to 2 further pedestals, taking the total monumental height to 208m.

Big, Bigger, Biggest - Stadia

Today we are going to see about big things in the sports arena. Today we have facts about the Biggest Current Non-Auto Racing Sports Stadium in the world in terms of Seating Capacity. Before beginning, remember that there is a lot of criteria to be met in this fact, it is that the Stadium should be still standing, it should not house Auto Racing (as the seating capacity is cited differently by different sources) and it is selected on the criteria of seating capacity. This is done to increase the factual accuracy of today's content, thus avoiding mistakes.

So the Stadium that meets our criteria is the Rungrado May Day Stadium (photograph on the right) situated in Pyongyang, North Korea. It has a seating capacity of about 150,000, making it the Largest Non-Auto Racing Sports Stadium in the World. It is a multi-purpose stadium used for mass games, football and athletics. It has a total floor space of more than 207,000 sq.m and the pitch is over 22,500 sq.m. It has eight storeys and is about 60m high. The stadium has 80 exits and ten lifts. It was built in two and a half years on the picturesque Rungra Island in the Taedong River, and commissioned on May 1, 1989.

Big, Bigger, Biggest - The Biggest Residence

Today we are going to see something that is really big and is very unique. Today we will see about the Biggest Residence:

The Biggest Residence in the world in terms of Area is the Istana Nurul Iman (photograph on the right) Palace which is the official residence of the Sultan of Brunei. Hassanal Bokiah, the present Sultan of Brunei, currently resides in this palace, that is approximately 200,000 sq.m in area. The name 'Istana Nurul Iman' literally means 'Palace of the Light of Faith'. It is located in Brunei's capital, Bandar Seri Begawan. It is also the Biggest Presidential Residence in the world. In contrast to its sprawling area, the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official Residence of the President of the Republic of India is 19,000 sq.m.

Big, Bigger, Biggest - The Biggest Record Book

Today we have something that is not big in size or volume, for today we are going to see some facts about the Biggest Record Book (read: The record book selling most number of copies, for the number of copies sold, not the size or volume of the book, is big). Let us see something about the Biggest Record Book in terms of number of copies sold:

So the Guinness Book of World Records (logo on the right) has the Guinness World Record for The Best Selling Copyright Book in the world. Considering that it is not very big in size, it has been added in this series in terms of Number of Copies Sold. It has sold about a 100 million copies worldwide, with the 100 millionth copy being sold in November 2003. It was first published in October 1955 by Guinness Superlatives, a subsidiary of Arthur Guinness Son Co. (Park Royal) Ltd and has since gone global, selling in some 37 languages. It has been publishing a book every year since 1955 and has had various authors. It broke the previous existing World Record in June 2001.

Big, Bigger, Biggest - The Biggest Democracy

The ongoing series 'Big, Bigger, Biggest' shows everything that is the biggest in their own class. This also may include the words 'Large' and 'Great' and other relating words. The topic for today is 'Democracy'. We will see facts about the World's Largest Democracy (World's Biggest Democracy) today with the help of certain criterion. We had seen about Democracy in the series 'Republics, Monarchies and Dictatorships' previously. Firstly, We will see what exactly is a democracy:

Democracy is a form of a political government that is carried out directly by the people or by elected representatives (elected by the people). We are today going to see the 'Biggest Democracies' divided by specific criterion of Area, Population and Population Density.

The Biggest Democracy by Area: The world's Biggest Democracy by Area is The United States of America. At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million sq.km) and with about 309 million people, the United States is the fourth largest country by total area, and the third largest both by land area and population. It has the world's oldest surviving federation and the government is a form of democracy called representative democracy.

The Biggest Democracy by Population: The Biggest Democracy by Population is India. At 3,287,240 sq.km (1,269,210 sq.miles) and with about 1.3 Billion People, it is the seventh largest country by area and the second largest country by population. The constitution of India is the most longest and exhaustive than of any other independent nation in the world.

The Biggest Democracy by Population Density: The Biggest Democracy by Population Density is Singapore. At 710.2 sq.km (274.2 sq mi), Singapore is a microstate and the smallest nation in Southeast Asia. With a population of about 0.4 million people and a population density of about 7022 per sq.km, it is the world's second sovereign state in terms of population density and the World's Biggest Democracy considering its population density.

More 'Big' coming up tomorrow....

Big, Bigger, Biggest - Empires

We will see something today about the Biggest Empire which is or was the biggest at its peak. An empire is called so when a particular sovereign state extends itself over other external territories. The criterion in this fact used to select the Biggest Ever Empire is 'The Landmass of the Particular Empire at their Greatest Extent'. So, the empire that meets this criterion i.e the Biggest Empire was the British Empire (At its peak, for the British Empire still exists today). Let us see something about the British Empire:

At its height, the British Empire was the Largest Empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost Global Power. By 1922, the British Empire had the population of about 458 million people, one-quarter of the world's population at that time, and covered more than 13,000,000 square miles (33,670,000 sq.km) approximately a quarter of the Earth's total land area. Because of the British Empire's territories around the globe, it was often said that 'The sun never sets on the British Empire.' The time period between 1815-1914 is referred to as Britain's 'Imperial Century' by some historians. The process of decolonisation of the British Empire had shortly begun after the Second World War. Though shortened, the British Empire still exists today, with the United Kingdom retaining sovereignty under 14 territories outside the British Isles, together known as The British Overseas Territories and shares the Head of State with 16 other Commonwealth States, together known as Commonwealth Realm.

More 'Big' coming up tomorrow....

Big, Bigger, Biggest - Telescopes

We begin the brand new weeklong series 'Big, Bigger, Biggest' today. Well, as the name suggests, I will be attempting to post some of the world's biggest objects in this one week. We will start today with Telescopes.

So a telescope is an instrument designed for observation of any remote object that is generally very far away from the telescope. There are three main types of Telescopes. They are Refractor Telescopes, Reflector Telescopes and Combined Lens-Mirror Systems. In this post, we will briefly discuss the biggest telescopes of the 2 most widely used types of Telescopes- The Refracting and the Reflecting Telescopes.

The Biggest Optical Refracting Telescope: The Great Paris Exhibition Telescope of 1900, with an objective lens of 1.25m, was the Largest Optical Refracting Telescope in the ever constructed. It was built as the centerpiece of the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1900. Due to its extremely large size, the telescope was mounted in a fixed horizontal position, and it was also difficult to be pointed at astronomical objects and was not suited for scientific use.

The Biggest Optical Reflecting Telescope: The Large Binocular Telescope located on 10,700-foot Mount Graham in the Pinaleno Mountains of southeastern Arizona and is a part of the Mount Graham International Observatory is one of the world's highest resolution and most technologically advanced optical telescopes. It was built in 2004 and has an aperture of 464.6 approxiamately.

If there is any mistake regarding the factual accuracy in this fact, please be free to point it out by commenting or mailing us as different sources list different material. More 'Big' coming up tomorrow...

What's Behind the Name? - Country Etymologies

The last batch of lists and the last post in the series 'What's Behind the Name?' is up for today. It is as follows:

1. Sao Tome and Principe: This is the Portuguese word for 'St. Thomas and Prince Islands'. It was named Sao Tome as it was discovered on St. Thomas's Day.

2. Scotland: This word translates to 'Land of the Scots' in Old English. Scot comes from the Old English word 'Scotta'.

3. Sudan: This word comes from the Arabic Term 'Bilad as-Sudan' meaning Land of the Blacks.

4. Togo: From the settlement Togo, currently Togoville. In Ewe, 'to' means 'water' and 'go' means 'shore'.

5. Tonga: This word comes from the Tongan word 'South' or 'Southern' describing the country's location in relation to Samoa.

6. Turkmenistan: This word can be divided into two parts 'Turkmen' and 'Stan'. These words translate in Persian to 'Land of the Turkmen People'.

7. Uzbekistan: This word can be divided into three parts 'Uz', 'Bek' and 'Stan' with 'Uz meaning 'Self'' in Turkic, 'Bek' meaning 'Master' in Sogidan Language and 'Stan' meaning 'Land' in Persian. This translates to The land the Self Masters.

8. Vanuatu: This word is derived from a phrase found in some of the languages of Vanuatu meaning 'Our Land'.

9. Venezuela: This word comes from the Italian word Venezuola meaning 'Little Venice', from the diminutive form of 'Venezia'.

10. Zambia: This country is named after the River Zambezi, which flows through the east of the country and also forms the border with Zimbabwe.

From tomorrow, we begin a weeklong series named 'Big, Bigger, Biggest'.

What's Behind the Name? - Country Etymologies

The list for today is as follows:

1. Kyrgystan: This word is derived from three words- 'Kyrg' meaning 'Forty', 'Yz' meaning 'Tribes and 'Stan; meaning land, thus the Land Of Forty Tribes.

2. Liberia: This word comes from the Latin 'Liber' meaning 'free'. It is so named because the country was established as a homeland for freed (liberated) African-American slaves.

3. Mozambique: This word comes from the name of the Island of Mozambique, which in turn probably comes from the name of a previous Arab ruler, the sheik Mussa Ben Mbiki.

4. Nauru: The name "Nauru" may derive from the Nauruan word Anáoero, which means "I go to the beach". The German settlers called the island Nawodo or Onawero.

5. Phillippines: The word literally means 'Lands of King Phillip'.

6. Poland: This word literally means 'Land of the Polans' or the territory of the tribe of Polans.

7. Qatar: This word is derived from 'Qatara', believed to refer to the Qatari town of Zubara, an important trading port and town in the region in ancient times.

8. Rwanda: This word comes from the name of the Vanyaruanda people, a word of unknown origin, but probably cognate to the name of Rwanda.

9. Samoa: The islands allegedly derive their name from that of a local chieftain, or from an indigenous word meaning 'place of the moa'.

10. San Marino: This country takes its name from Marinus, a legendary Christian Stonemason and the counrty is called Saint Marinus in Italic.

The last batch of 10 countries is up for tomorrow...

What's Behind the Name? - Country Etymologies

When we think of a name, we generally also think of its origin, its etymology. For the next three days, we are going to see similar lists of 10 countries and their name etymologies, totaling to 30 countries. The list for today is as follows:

1. Australia: Comes from Latin 'Terra Australis Incognita' meaning 'Unknown Southern Land'.

2. Bahamas: From Spanish 'Baja Mar' which roughly means "Shallow Sea" or "Low Tide". The islands were named by the Spanish Conquistadors after the waters around them.

3. Cuba: From Taino Indian Cubanacan meaning "centre place". It it also possible that the name comes from the Arabic word "Ka'bah." meaning "Shrine".

4. Dominica: From Medieval Latin "Dies Dominica" meaning "Sunday": the day of the week on which Christopher Columbus first landed on the island.

5. England: Derived from the Old English name Englaland, literally translatable as "land of the Angles".

6. Fiji: From the Tongan name for the islands 'Viti'.

7. Guyana: From the indigenous peoples who called the land "Guiana", meaning "land of many waters", in reference to large number of rivers in the area.

8. Honduras: Christopher Columbus named the country "Honduras", Spanish for "depths", referring to the deep waters off the northern coast.

9. India: Derived from 'Sindhu', the original name of the Indus River which gave its name to the land of Sindh. The word 'Hind' was later applied prior to the separation of India.

10. Jamaica: From Taino/Arawak Indian Xaymaca or Hamaica, "Land of wood and water" or perhaps "Land of springs".

What's Behind the Name? - Company Etymologies

The last list of 10 companies and their Etymologies is up for today. It is as follows:

1. Volvo: Thus name originates from the Latin word 'Volvo' meaning 'I Roll' referring to a Ball bearing.

2. Wal-Mart: Named after founder Sam Walton. The 'Wal' was taken to make the name look better.

3. Warner Bros.: Named after the Warner Brothers Jack, Sam, Harold and Albert Warner.

4. Wipro: Short Form of Western India Vegetable Products Limited with the 'W' from Western, 'I' from India and 'Pro' from Products.

5. Wrigley Company: This chewing-gum company is named after its founder William Wrigley Jr.

6. WWE: Short Form of World Wrestling Entertainment, which was formerly called World Wrestling Federation (WWF).

7. Xerox: The name is derived from the word Xerogaphy, a word derived from the Greek word 'Xeros' meaning dry and 'Graphos' meaning Writing.

8. Yahoo!: The word Yahoo (Invented by Jonathan Swift) represents a person who is barely human and is repulsive in appearance and is also associated with an expression of joy. The company founders thus named their company Yahoo.

9. Zuse: This pioneering German Computer Company was named after its founder Konrad Zuse.

10. 20th Century Fox: This Film Studio company was named after the merger of William Fox's 'Fox Film' and 'Twentieth Century Pictures'.

So this subseries has now ended. In the past 7 days we have seen the Company Name Etymologies of 70 major companies in India and Around the World. Three more exciting facts remain to be published in the series 'What's Behind the Name?'.