Editorial Reviews
Product Description
Did you know? In just one minute the Earth travels 1,100 miles around the sun. Cartwheel champ Brianna Schroeder turns 48 cartwheels. 28,824 photographs are taken (822 of them at Disney World). Over $60,000 is spent on eBay. You lose 8 brain cells, 40,000 skin cells, and one taste bud. (How weird.) A ladybug flaps its wings 60,000 times. 6,805,555 e-mails are sent (35% of them Spam). Jean-Yves Mulot breaks 42 flaming concrete blocks with his bare hand. Whew!
Filled with hundreds of incredible and true facts and statistics, The 60-Second Encyclopedia puts a whole new spin on math, science, nature, the human body, and popular culture, too. And, with a one-minute sandglass packaged with the book and dozens of interactive activities, readers can test what they (or their hamster) can accomplish in the same amount of time it takes "the wave" to move through 1,200 stadium seats. Or the amount of time advertisers paid $4.6 million for during Super Bowl XXXVIII.
In just one minute . . .
• The Franklin Mint produces 36,458 coins.
• Racehorses are halfway around the Kentucky Derby racetrack.
• Giant machines make over 6,000 feet of toilet paper.
• 9 million telephones ring, and over 580,000 messages are recorded on answering machines.
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Customer Reviews
Great fun October 17, 2008
happy reader (Harrison, AR USA)
I have this little book and the "minute glass" on the coffee table in my family room My grandchildren....5th through 7th graders and teenagers....love to look through it as do adult guests. This would make a great gift for anyone.
Must Have--Time's a wastin'! December 20, 2005
home educator (rural Ohio)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I saw this book featured on The Today Show: Gene Shalit chose it as one of a dozen best books for the holidays 2005, saying how it's packed with fun and facts for all ages. True enough. Not a trivia book, really, since the curious things shared here (more than 1000, I'd guess) are told in a humorous AND scientific sort of way. Plus there are dozens of time trials to do with the minute glass that comes with the book. All in all, the kind of educational entertainment that we all like. My 10 year old read it cover to cover in one entire evening. My husband has in the car, and browses a few pages whenever he's waiting on appointments My 14 year old daughter challenges her brother to one-minute tests. For less than nine bucks on Amazon.com, it's worth getting copies for a whole scout troup, which is what I did. Time's up!
Oddball Facts to Intrigue Children & Adults September 1, 2005
Virginia Allain (Poinciana, FL)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
My first thought was "who really wants to know all this stuff?" The book comes with an hourglass (actually a minute-glass)and is filled with umpteen activities that can take place in a sixty seconds. This kind of trivia fascinates kids, especially boys. I must admit that as an adult, I found it pretty intriguing too.
Did you know that a woodpecker raps its beak against a tree 100 times a minute? How about 6,000 lightning bolts flicker across the sky each minute (living in Florida, I can believe that one)?
This has nature, history, and sociology all reduced to 60 second segments. Sounds like a good way to get kids curious.
To enhance the learning experience, it includes some games and activities that take 60 seconds (like timing the wags of your dog's tail). Might encourage an interest in math too. Cute illustrations too.
Now is the right time to have this book. July 30, 2005
Mimi, an educator (Brooklyn, NY)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
We bought this book for all our relatives and friends. Every child found fascinating pages and excitedly shared surprising discoveries. Great gift book for any, every, or no occasion. GREAT! A unique mix of information and humor. Practical, and a laugh on practically every page.
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