In the spirit of C.A.N.I. (Continuous And Never-ending Improvement), here are this week’s new facts—one for each day of your coming week. Pass them on to others to keep the spirit alive or invite your friends and family to visit our blog where they can also view previous entries.

• A hippopotamus’ scream has been recorded at 115 decibels—louder than a jet airliner at takeoff.
• A cricket an inch long has a chirp that is audible for nearly a mile.
• Polar bears are champion long-distance swimmers among land mammals, and it is not uncommon to find them at sea as far as 50 miles from land or an ice floe.
• The United States had a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in 1866, or eight years before it had a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
• Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first U.S. president to appoint women to high government posts.
• A mosquito flaps its wings 600 times a second.
• The term “red tape” was made famous in the 1900s by Thomas Carlyle, who charged the english government with “red tapism.” He referred to the government’s practice at the time of binding official papers in red ribbon. As matter going through the government had a habit of slowing down by the tying and untying of stacks of these bound documents, the process became known as “going through the red tape.”

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of motivational speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management.  For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2MAX or fill out our contact form.