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The Homestead Act offered 160 acres of land

The Homestead Act of 1862 granted adult heads of families 160 acres of public land for a small fee and five years of residence.

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Most of the land still went elsewhere. Of some 500 million acres handed out between 1862 and 1904, only 80 million went to homesteaders.

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The first satellite was the size of a beach ball

Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, was about the size of a beach ball and weighed 183.9 pounds.

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The Liberty Bell is mostly copper

The Liberty Bell is bronze, about 70 percent copper and 25 percent tin, and weighed 2,080 pounds when it was ordered.

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The United States bought Alaska for 2 cents an acre

The United States paid Russia $7.2 million for Alaska, less than 2 cents an acre.

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