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Although the Roman numeral for the number 4 has always been taught to have been "IV," according to historians, the ancient Romans probably used "IIII" most of the time. This is partially backed up by the fact that early grandfather clocks displayed IIII for the number 4 instead of IV. Early clockmakers apparently thought that the IIII balanced out the VIII (used for the number 8) on the clock face and that it just looked better.
Ether was used widely for surgeries but became less popular because of its flammability and its tendency to cause vomiting. In England, it was quickly replaced by chloroform, but this agent caused many deaths and lost popularity.
People with high total cholesterol have about two times the risk for heart disease as people with ideal levels.
Human kidneys will clean about 1 million gallons of blood in an average lifetime.
More than 2,500 barbiturates have been synthesized. At the height of their popularity, about 50 were marketed for human use.