Strange But True: Feb. 7, 2019

* It was Henry Brooks Adams, American historian and descendant of two U.S. presidents, who made the following sage observation: "They know enough who know how to learn."

* Spanish explorers named California after a mythical island of Amazon women ruled by a warrior queen named Califa.

* Though an electric eel is born with the ability to see, by the time it becomes an adult it is blind. This lack of sight is not a hindrance, though; the fish uses electricity to create an image of its surroundings in much the same way that we use radar. The electricity also is how the electric eel kills its prey, producing a 600-volt shock -- five times more powerful than the shock you might receive from a household outlet.

* You might be surprised to learn that Philadelphia-brand cream cheese was originally made in New York.

* With 1.45 million lightning strikes per year, Florida experiences more lightning than any other state in the country. Though it's not a tagline you'll see in any tourism brochures, Central Florida is unofficially known as the Lightning Capital of the World.

* In 1811 and again in 1812, earthquakes caused the Mississippi River to temporarily reverse course.

* If you're of a certain age and facing up to wrinkles, you might be interested to learn that, according to the American Academy of Dermatology, one of the top causes of skin wrinkles is your habitual sleeping position. Rounding out the top five contributing factors are sun exposure, gravity, smoking and facial expressions.

* If you ever travel to China, keep in mind that the menu item known colorfully as phoenix talons are actually just chicken feet.

Thought for the Day

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."

--Albert Einstein

(c) 2019 King Features Synd., Inc.