LEAST HABITABLE CITY
As of Mar 2017, Damascus in Syria has the lowest rating
on the Global Liveability Ranking 2016, based on a survey
of 140 cities by the Economist Intelligence Unit. It scored
30.2 out of a possible 100, below Tripoli in Libya (35.9).
Ratings are based on five factors: Stability, Healthcare,
Education, Culture & Environment and Infrastructure.
The most habitable city is Melbourne
in Australia, which scored 97.5.If all the displaced citizens in the world in 2016 were brought together
to form a single nation, it would be the 21st largest on Earth.Tallest population
According to the journal
eLife on 26 Jul 2016,
the tallest men are from
the Netherlands, with an
average height of more than
182.5 cm (5 ft 11.85 in). The
tallest women live in Latvia,
with an average height
topping 168 cm (5 ft 6.14 in).
In terms of the shortest
population, Guatemalan
women had an average
height of 149.4 cm (4 ft
10.8 in) according to eLife’s
survey. East Timor was
home to the shortest men,
whose height averaged just
under 160 cm (5 ft 3 in) as
of the same date.Lowest ratio
of men to women
According to the 2016 CIA
World Factbook, there
are only 84 men for every
100 women in the east
African country of Djibouti.
The United Arab Emirates
(UAE) has the highest ratio
of men to women, withSociety Round-Up
SOCIETY
HIGHEST LIFE EXPECTANCY
According to data from the Central Intelligence Agency’s
World Factbook in 2016, citizens of Monaco enjoy a life
expectancy of 89.5 years. Japan was replaced at the top of
the list, its life expectancy of 85 years seeing it fall to joint
second place alongside Singapore.
The lowest life expectancy is 50.2 years, in the African
country of Chad. Only Chad and Guinea-Bissau (50.6) have
life expectancy below 51 years.Lawtey, Florida, USA, as
verified on 25 Feb 2016.Oldest ruling house
The Emperor of Japan,
Akihito (b. 23 Dec 1933),
is the 125th since Jimmu
Tennō, the first Emperor.
Jimmu’s reign was long held
to have begun on 11 Feb
660 bce, but more likely
dates to c. 40 to 10 bce.Largest social/global
development project
competition
Technology festival Campus
Party (MEX) attracted
267 completed submissions
in Guadalajara in Jalisco,Mexico, on 2 Jul 2016.
The award for the winning
project – whose goal was
to bring internet access
to rural villages – was
1,000,000 Mexican pesos
($54,605; £41,046). The
aim of such competitions
is to promote initiatives
that will improve the lives
of developing communities
by enacting positive and
sustainable change.Highest-altitude award
ceremony on land
On 28 Nov 2016, Ram
Bahadur Subedi and Puskar
Nepal (both NPL) organized
the National Box Office
Film Fare Awards – which
celebrates the Nepalese
film industry – to take place
at an altitude of 4,627 m
(15,180 ft) in Thukla,
Solukhumbu, Nepal.Highest pilgrimage
A 53-km-long (33-mi)
route on Mount Kailash
(or Khangrinboqê) in Tibet
stands at an altitude of
6,638 m (21,778 ft). Kailash
is sacred to followers
of Buddhism, Jainism,
Hinduism and the pre-
Buddhist religion of Bonpo.
The lowest pilgrimage
is to the ancient city of
Jericho in Israel, which is
located at 800 ft (244 m)
below sea level. Jericho
is close to the Dead Sea,218 males for every 100
females, according to the
same source.Longest-running
corporate games
The Juegos Bancarios
(“Bank Games”) in Mexico
have been held annually
since 1966. Over the course
of 50 years, more than
207,000 employees of
financial institutions and
banks have taken part.Longest career
as a lawyer
Palestinian Fuad Shehadeh
had served for 66 years
187 days as a professional
lawyer in Ramallah, West
Bank, Palestinian Territory,
as verified on 31 May 2016.
The longest career as
a language teacher is
55 years, achieved by Ren
Zuyong (CHN). He began his
career as a Chinese teacher
in 1959 and continued to
work in Xinghua, Jiangsu,
China, until 30 Aug 2014.
Millard M Jordan (USA)
is the longest-serving
chief of police. Between
1962 and his retirement on
6 Jan 2014, Jordan served
for 51 years 243 days inFIRST ASTRONAUT
TO VOTE IN SPACE
Russian cosmonauts Yuri
Onufriyenko (far left) and Yury
Usachov (left) voted in the
Russian presidential election
on 16 Jun 1996 using proxies
on Earth while travelling on
board the Mir space station.
The next year, following
changes in Texas legislation
regarding absentee voting,
astronaut David Wolf (USA,
above) was able to vote in
a US local election using a
secure line from Mir.