25 FACTS ABOUT THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD

From: Tom F.

Sent: May 15, 2012

To: undisclosed recipients

Subject: Fw: 25 FACTS ABOUT THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD

     

     











     
     
        Depending upon your definition, and whether or not you count Taiwan,
        there are “approximately” 196 countries in the world as of this
        writing.  So while you may consider yourself to be a knowledgeable
        global citizen, and we’re sure you are, given the dynamic and complex
        nature of our planet there are certain to be at least a couple facts on
        this list that you will find surprising.

        Here are 25 things that
        you would not believe about these
        countries.   
     
             
        25: Covers the most time zones –
        France
             
        If you count everything, including overseas territories, then France
        claims the title by covering 12 time zones. The United States would be
        the runner-up with 11 and then Russia with 9.

             
        24: Most likely to disappear beneath the waves –
        Maldives
             
        With all the talks of global warming and rising sea levels, it is the
        residents of the Maldives that have the greatest reason to fear. With an
        average height of around 1.8 meters above sea level their nation is the
        lowest on
        Earth.


             
        23: Most overweight population –
        Nauru
             
        With over 95% of its population being overweight, the small island
        nation of Nauru is by far the fattest country on Earth. Its obesity
        epidemic is primarily attributed to the importation of western fast food
        that coincided with an increased standard of living in the 20th century
        due to the global popularity of its phosphate exports. It’s almost non
        sequitur…almost.

             
        22: Roads made of coral –
        Guam
             
        Because Guam doesn’t have any natural sand, but rather coral, the island
        nation makes its asphalt using a mix of ground coral and oil rather than
        importing sand from
        abroad.

             
        21: Has 350 sheep for every person – Falkand Islands
        (UK)
             
        With only about 3,000 people the Falkland Islands are home to
        approximately half-a million-sheep. Not surprisingly wool is a major
        export.

             
        20: Oldest sovereign state –
        Egypt
             
        This largely depends upon your definition of a sovereign state but if
        you are going by first acquisition of sovereignty then Egypt would be
        the first country in the world to achieve sovereignty based upon the
        formation of the first dynasty in 3100
        BC.
             
        19: Most lakes in the world –
        Canada
             
        WITH OVER THREE MILLION LAKES, 9% of CANADIAN TERRITORY is actually
        FRESH water and OVER  60% of ALL THE LAKES IN THE WORLD are found
        WITHIN ITS
        BORDERS.

             
        18: Least likely place to meet your neighbor –
        Mongolia
             
        At 4 people per square mile Mongolia is the least densely populated
        country on
        Earth.
             
        Compare this to the Mong Kok district of Hong Kong that has the highest
        population density in the world with 340,000 people per square
        mile.

             
        17: Largest number of tanks –
        Russia
             
        It is a strange title to hold, but Russia has by far the most tanks of
        any army in the world
        (21,000).
             
        Unfortunately for the motherland most of these outdated machines are
        tributes to its
        past,
             
        and although outnumbered (16,000), the United States has a much more
        advanced tank
        inventory.

             
        16: The land of no rivers – Saudi
        Arabia
             
        Sounds a bit strange doesn’t it? For a country as big as Saudi Arabia
        there has to be at least some sort of flowing water. Well, there isn’t.
        Most of their fresh water comes from desalinization plants or
        underground
        reservoirs.

             
        15: Youngest population of any country –
        Niger
             
        Generally the world's youngest country is determined by calculating the
        portion of the population that is younger than 15. Presently it is Niger
        that holds this distinction with roughly half of its population having
        barely reached puberty
        (49%).

             
        14: Most diverse country in the world –
        India
             
        In almost every category – culturally, economically, climatically,
        racially, linguistically, ethnically, and religiously India is either
        the most diverse countries in the world, or the
        runner-up.

             
        13: Fastest disappearing nation –
        Ukraine
             
        With a natural decrease in population of .8% annually, between now and
        2050 Ukraine is expected to lose around 30% of its
        people.

             
        12: Most of its citizens live abroad –
        Malta
             
        After some rough economic times coupled with an increased birth rate,
        Malta experienced significant immigration. It was so significant that
        there are now more Maltese living abroad than within the country
        itself.

             
        11: Smaller than Central Park in New York City –
        Monaco
             
        Although Vatican City is smaller (.17 sq mi) than Monaco (.8 sq mi),
        unlike Monaco it doesn’t have any permanent residents which leaves
        Monaco as the smallest permanently inhabited nation in the world…smaller
        than Central
        Park.

             
        10: Almost entirely covered in jungle –
        Suriname
             
        With 91% of its land covered in jungle Suriname’s half-a-million
        residents live primarily along the coast near the capital. Only 5% of
        the population (mainly indigenous people) live
        inland.

             
        9: Almost entirely treeless –
        Haiti
             
        On the opposite end of the spectrum is Haiti, a country that has been so
        badly deforested that you can tell where it borders the Dominican
        Republic by looking at a satellite image (Haiti is on the left in the
        photo
        above).

             
        8: Largest country with NO farms –
        Singapore
             
        Although there are a number of small nations in the world that show no
        hint of having an agriculture based economy, (take Vatican City for
        example) Singapore is the largest of these urban
        city-states.

             
        7: Most languages spoken – Papua New
        Guinea
             
        Although English is its official language, only 1-2% of the population
        actually speak
        it.
             
        As the most linguistically diverse country in the world, over 820
        languages are spoken in Papua New Guinea, or 12% of the world’s
        total.

             
        6: Most educated people –
        Canada
             
        With 50% of its population having been educated at the POST SECONDARY
        level, Canada easily has the most educated populace in the world. It is
        followed by Israel at 45% and Japan at
        44%.

     
        5: The “country desert” –
        Libya
             
        With 99% of the country covered in desert, Libya is one of the most arid
        places in the world and in some regions DECADES may go by without a
        single drop of
        rain.

             
        4: Least peaceful nation in the world –
        Somalia      
     
             
        Although for the last three years IRAQ has been ranked as the least
        peaceful country in the world, according to the 'Global Peace Index',
        Somalia overtook it this year for the top
        spot.

             
        3: Produces most of the world’s oxygen –
        Russia
             
        Siberia is home to approximately 25% of the world’s forests that span an
        area larger than the continental United States, making Russia the
        largest converter of CO2 into breathable
        compounds.

             
        2: World’s largest opium producer –
        Afghanistan
             
        Producing a whopping 95 PERCENT of the world’s opium, not even 10 years
        of occupation by American forces have slowed down the
        industry.

             
        1: Most people behind bars – 
        United States
             
        When it comes to incarcerating its population, the United States is the
        WORLD'S UNCONTESTED LEADER.
        With 2.2 million people BEHIND
        BARS,  it has 5% of the WORLD'S population, but 25% of the WORLD'S
        INCARCERATED POPULATION. China comes in second place at 1.5 million and
        Russia comes third at 870,000.