Things I learned lately - 14 Dec

• Historic Route 66 is about to undergo an electric revival. The Illinois Route 66 Electric Corridor will have charging stations along a roughly 300 mile section between Chicago and St. Louis. The city of Normal is also home to a large number of Mitsubishi i-MiEV and other electric cars, thanks to an aggressive infrastructure and incentive program.
• At Whole Foods, everyone knows what everyone else gets paid. Also, exec pay is capped at 19x what the average worker gets paid. This is quite low.
• There are more than 37 million motorcycles in Vietnam.
• A study says at least 86% of vegetarians go back to eating meat at some point in their lives.
• There is no evidence to support the notion that students learn better when they are taught information via their preferred modality, such as auditory, visual or by doing.
• Indonesia has a male birth control pill made from the gendarussa plant that is 99% effective.
• Watching a crackling fire reduces blood pressure and promotes relaxation.
• In Iceland, fairies are a big deal. So much that there have been protests to stop a road that might disturb them. The new route would slice through the Alftanes peninsula and the protesters say that the beings who live among the rocks would be disturbed.
• Tommy Chong (of Cheech & Chong) grew up in Calgary, hung out with 'the brothers', joined several bands and was signed by Motown to Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers. Tommy co-wrote their one hit single, 'Does your mama know about me?'
• It is a myth that you need to drink 8 glasses of water per day. Most of the water you need is already contained in the food you eat. How much more do you need to drink? Drink whenever you're thirsty.
• Sugar does NOT make kids hyper. It's a myth.
• Your tongue's receptors can taste sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami (savory).
• At one time, you had to pass a literacy test to vote in the US, which prevented non-educated (blacks) from voting. This was happening as late as the 1960s. 
• If you're at a crowded table and you can't remember which bread plate or glasses are yours, just remember BMW - from left to right - bread, meal, water.
• Florida should really be named 'the lightning state' as it has more of that than any other state.