Read this and you'll look smart. You don't have to be intelligent to impress people -- you just have to fake it. Here's a daily list of fascinating articles that will wow your friends, surprise your co-workers and make you seem sharp at a cocktail party or over the lunch counter....
- Researchers have put together the most accurate rendering of Cleopatra to date. The computer-generated 3D image is very different from the version portrayed by Elizabeth Taylor when she played the legendary beauty in the 1961 film.
- Why is throwing a shoe considered a supreme insult in Iraq? Essentially it is to show that the designated target is no better than dirt.
- The world's oldest spiderweb was discovered in a prehistoric piece of amber that is 140-million-years old. The web indicates that spiders date back to the dinosaur age and have been weaving the same type of circular pattern for just as long.
- The world's largest facility dedicated to changing toilet water to tap is located in one of the wealthiest residential areas in the U.S.
- Employees at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette will be getting holiday bonuses this year. The paper, based in Little Rock, maintained its tradition of year-end bonuses for all employees despite hiring and wage freezes.
- Mac is slated to launch a new Mac Mini in January.
