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Over the Moon for Guinness World Records’ Diamond Anniversary

For the record, let’s start here.

First publication of Guiness World Records

Next month, Guinness World Records will officially celebrate its 60th anniversary as the leading authority on “record-breaking achievement.” A long-cherished favorite for holiday gifting and the coffee table, Guinness World Records not only provides a unique collection of knowledge but also encourages people to challenge the application of those facts. That’s not limited to the public, either; GWR itself holds the record for best-selling annual publication, a record set in 2013 that has yet to be overthrown.

As it’s their diamond anniversary, and such things should be commemorated, we wanted to join in with some unique, Wolfram|Alpha knowledge fun. We can tell you what the world’s largest cut diamond is or who currently holds the title of fastest human; we can even put some of these records to the test.

Speed of bullet vs fastest human speed

Looks like Superman will have to hold onto the record of “faster than a speeding bullet” for a little while longer.

Guinness tells us that the largest living tree is Hyperion, a redwood in California, and that the tallest living man is Sultan Kösen. How many Sultans would we need to reach the top of Hyperion?

How many Sultans to reach top of Hyperion

Ever wondered how old the longest-lived animal was? Her name was Ming, and she was a mollusc (bet you thought it would be a tortoise!).

How about something more data driven? What is the most frequent word in the longest text, the Holy Bible (KJV)?

Most frequent word in the longest text

“The”—shocking. Maybe that’s too pedestrian. In this space age when Pluto can send love across the galaxy (who knew the planet had such a big heart?), maybe we should be taking our records to the stars. What if Javier Sotomayor took his 82kg self and high jumped on the moon?

Javier Sotomayor high jump on the moon

It may be purely hypothetical, but at six times higher than the 1993 record of 2.45m, it would certainly be a giant leap for mankind! Perhaps Guinness should consider taking their 60th anniversary edition out of this world to continue inspiring all of us to dream bigger and reach higher.

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