In fact

German chancellor Angela Merkel is afraid of dogs. As Russian president, Vladimir Putin tried to exploit this by having Koni, his black Labrador, sit in on their meetings. Foreign Policy, May 2010

In the 1950s, over half of Britons ate cooked breakfasts daily; now less than 1 per cent do. Sunday Times, 11th April 2010

Barack Obama has played golf 32 times since taking office, more than George W Bush did during his entire presidency. BBC News website, 19th April 2010

Labour increased its share of the vote in 80 seats in the 2010 general election. UK Polling Report, 8th May 2010

In 1997, a PowerBook cost $5,700. But if you had put the money into Apple shares instead, they would now be worth $330,563. KyleConroy.com

Outside Barbados, the largest population of Barbadians is in Reading. The Economist, 31st March 2010

Flying return from London to Hong Kong has the same carbon footprint as 340,000 plastic carrier bags. “How Bad are Bananas” by Mike Berners-Lee

The phrase “long time no see” is a word-for-word translation of a Chinese saying. New York Times, 2nd May 2010

Since 1945, every British prime minister who has won a general election either went to Oxford (Attlee, Eden, Macmillan, Wilson, Heath, Thatcher, Blair, Cameron) or did not go to university at all (Churchill, Major). Politicalbetting.com

Goldfish can see ultraviolet light. Vision Research, Volume 31, Issue 3, 1991