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When Gabriel Fahrenheit invented the first mercury thermometer, he called "zero degrees" the lowest temperature he was able to attain with a mixture of ice and salt. For the upper point of his scale, he used 96°, which he measured as normal human body temperature (we know it to be 98.6° today because of more accurate thermometers).
Computer programs are available that crosscheck a new drug's possible trade name with all other trade names currently available. These programs detect dangerous similarities between names and alert the manufacturer of the drug.
The immune system needs 9.5 hours of sleep in total darkness to recharge completely.
In 1864, the first barbiturate (barbituric acid) was synthesized.
The Romans did not use numerals to indicate fractions but instead used words to indicate parts of a whole.