10 things I bet you never knew
This week, we take a look at some of the world’s largest man-made objects.
1 The world’s largest Sudoku puzzle was carved into a hillside in Chipping Sodbury, near Bristol, England, in view of the M4 motorway. Measuring 275 ft by 275 ft, up to a million cars passed by the giant puzzle in a seven-day period in July, 2005. The puzzle has 1905 solutions.
2 This mother-of-all writing utensils (a pencil) weighs in at 21,500 lbs and stretches to 76 feet long and it’s a version of the classic No 2. The huge pencil was built in New York by Ashrita Furman and many talented craftsmen.
3 Breaking the Guinness Record for the world’s largest pinata, according to an onsite Guinness adjudicator, this giant mock donkey measured 28.5 metres long; 7.2 metres wide and 18 metres tall and was filled with 8,000 pounds (3,628 kilograms) of candy. A wrecking ball was used to help smash the pinata during a public event, where Carnival Cruise Lines was producing a television commercial.
4 The Ukrainian city of Lvov has recently installed what might just be the world’s largest crossword (in physical size). The puzzle covers the entire side of a residential tower block that’s approximately 30 metres tall. During the day the crossword appears empty — with the answers light up at night. The questions for the puzzle are located in different point of interests of the city: monuments, theatres, fountains, etc, so people walking around the city can try to solve the puzzle and write down their answers. When night comes they can meet at this house and check how they did.
5 Weighing in at 123 pounds, the world’s largest burger features an 80-pound beef patty, a 30-pound bun, 12 tomatoes and 160 slices of cheese. Made at Denny’s Beer Barrel Pub, a Pennsylvania restaurant, they also throw on a pound each of lettuce, ketchup, mustard and mayo — and up to five onions. The menu price for the Beer Barrel Main Event Charity Burger comes at $379.
6 The world’s largest jigsaw puzzle called LIFE: The Great Challenge was created by Royce B McClure. The puzzle has 24,000 pieces and the finished size is 428cm x 157cm ((14’5″x 5’1.8″) .
7 Made in 1962 for the Seattle World’s Fair, the world’s largest birthday cake weighed 25,000 pounds and stood 23 feet tall. The ingredients list includes the 10,500 pounds of flour needed for the cake.
8 The world’s largest swimming pool, in San Alfonso del Mar Seawater pool in Algarrobo, Chile, is more than 1,000 yards long, covers 20 acres, had a 115ft deep end and holds 66 million gallons of water. Acknowledged by the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest pool, it took five years to build, cost nearly £1 billion and the annual maintenance bill will be £2 million.
9 The award for the largest published book goes to author and scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Michael Hawley. The 133-pound book is five by seven feet, 112 pages, needs a gallon of ink for printing, and costs $2,000 to produce. It’s title? Bhutan: A Visual Odyssey Across the Kingdom.
10 Certified by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest bottle of wine, a 490-litre Grande Cuvee TBA NV No 7 2005 comes from Austrian wine maker Krache. This bottle holds the equivalent to 640 regular bottles of wine.
— Melaine Warren