Part 6: Ten Facts About the Construction of the Great Wall of China, the Panama Canal, and the Burj Khalifa

      Hello everybody and welcome back to the sixth edition of my 300 Fast Facts series! Today, we're going to be taking a look at the construction of three famous structures, buildings, and canals. Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get into it!

     The Great Wall of China:

1. The wall took more than 1800 years to build.
2. The structure isn't actually one long wall, but actually a collection of walls. The wall breaks when there are natural barriers, such as lakes or mountains.
3. An ingredient in the wall was sticky rice. It was used for its adhesive properties.
4. Wall construction was often given out as punishment for criminals. 
5. Roosters were often brought to the wall to honor the dead.
6. The wall was not that great at keeping out invaders. 
7. Despite many legends saying so, the wall is not visible from space.
8. Thousands of miles of the original wall have disappeared.
9. Pieces of the wall were recycled to build homes in the 1960s and the 1970s. 
10. Certain portions of the wall might disappear before 2040.

     Source(s): https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/67539/15-colossal-facts-about-great-wall-china

     The Panama Canal:

1. The idea for a canal across Panama arose in the 16th century.
2. America originally wanted a canal across Nicaragua, not Panama. 
3. More than 25,000 men died during the construction of the canal.
4. Between 13,000 and 14,000 ships use the canal each year.
5. The United States originally controlled the canal until 1999, where control was transferred to Panama.
6. The canal is being expanded to allow the passage of modern megaships that weight thousands of tons and carry thousands of tons.
7. 2014 marked the 100th year anniversary of the canal.
8. It is considered one of the manmade wonders of the world.
9. Over one million ships have traveled through the canal since its construction.
10. $2 billion in tolls are collected annually.

     Source(s): https://www.history.com/news/7-fascinating-facts-about-the-panama-canal

     https://www.avantiworldtravel.com/blog/8-facts-about-the-panama-canal

     The Burj Khalifa:

1. The Burj Khalifa is the tallest building in the world, standing at 2716 feet. 
2. The Burj Khalifa took six years to construct.
3. The building is three times as tall as the Eiffel Tower and twice the size of the Empire State Building.
4. Roughly 12,000 workers worked around the clock to complete the massive tower.
5. Those workers put in roughly twenty-two million hours in total to finish construction.
6. The exterior of the tower is covered in 26,000 sheets of glass, hand-cut to withstand the high heat of Dubai.
7. The total amount of concrete used in the Burj Khalifa exceeds the weight of 100,000 elephants combined.
8. The entire project of building the Burj Khalifa cost $1.5 billion dollars.
9. The tower is 160 stories high.
10. The design of the tower was inspired by the shape of a Hymenocallis Flower also known as the Spider Lilly, a regional desert flower.

     Source(s): https://hoteljules.com/burj-khalifa-facts/