An all-new compendium of strange-but-true history and science facts from the author of Einstein’s Refrigerator.

When high school teacher Steve Silverman started posting fascinating facts on the internet, what began as a Web site for his students became an internationally sensation. He then compiled the silliest, most peculiar stories into the book Einstein's Refrigerator. Now comes silliness squared with Lindbergh's Artificial Heart, Silverman's second collection of offbeat and often hilarious stories that are absolutely true, yet not often taught in school.

Fascinating entries include:

The exploding whale: What did the Oregon Department of Transportation do with a dead whale that washed up on one of its beaches? Suffice it to say their decision to blow it up was quite the blubber blunder.

Nose picking: Delve into the humorous findings of a study of this bad habit conducted by one of our institutions of higher learning.

The fastest charcoal lighter ever: Using liquid oxygen at your family barbecue may speed up the cooking, but it does have its drawbacks . . . such as vaporizing your grill.