1 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:08,559 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff from How Stuff Works. Hey, brain Stuff, 2 00:00:08,560 --> 00:00:11,440 Speaker 1: this is Christian Sega. Have you ever wondered how long 3 00:00:11,480 --> 00:00:13,880 Speaker 1: it would take you to walk around the world, Well, 4 00:00:14,720 --> 00:00:16,680 Speaker 1: here's the facts. There are a lot of ways to 5 00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:20,079 Speaker 1: answer this question. The simplest way to think about it, though, 6 00:00:20,200 --> 00:00:25,919 Speaker 1: begins with the circumference of the Earth being twenty four thousand, 7 00:00:26,360 --> 00:00:33,400 Speaker 1: nine and one miles at the equator, or seventy kilometers. Obviously, 8 00:00:33,760 --> 00:00:36,720 Speaker 1: not everybody walks at the same speed, and the same 9 00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:40,200 Speaker 1: person doesn't even walk at the same speed all the time. 10 00:00:40,440 --> 00:00:44,440 Speaker 1: But let's assume that a reasonable figure for average adult 11 00:00:44,720 --> 00:00:48,720 Speaker 1: human walking speed is three point one miles per hour, 12 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:53,279 Speaker 1: or about five kilometers per hour. Given these numbers, if 13 00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:55,960 Speaker 1: you were able to walk in a straight line around 14 00:00:56,040 --> 00:01:00,560 Speaker 1: the Earth at the equator, never stopping, maintaining a constant 15 00:01:00,600 --> 00:01:03,760 Speaker 1: speed a three point one miles per hour, it would 16 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:08,640 Speaker 1: take you about eight thousand, thirty two point six hours 17 00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:11,840 Speaker 1: to do it. That works out to be about three 18 00:01:11,959 --> 00:01:14,720 Speaker 1: hundred and thirty four three hundred and thirty five days. 19 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:17,680 Speaker 1: It's not too bad. You got the entire planet in 20 00:01:17,760 --> 00:01:20,640 Speaker 1: less than a year. But of course, nobody could actually 21 00:01:20,680 --> 00:01:24,080 Speaker 1: walk without stopping for three d thirty five days. So 22 00:01:24,440 --> 00:01:27,679 Speaker 1: let's say you just stop long enough to lie down 23 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:30,120 Speaker 1: on the ground wherever you are and sleep for eight 24 00:01:30,120 --> 00:01:32,319 Speaker 1: hours a night. Then you hop right back up and 25 00:01:32,360 --> 00:01:35,279 Speaker 1: you resume your walk. Then it would take you about 26 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:39,400 Speaker 1: five hundred and two days. Now an interesting side note here. 27 00:01:39,640 --> 00:01:43,039 Speaker 1: According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the fastest 28 00:01:43,080 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 1: growing species of bamboo can grow up to nine centimeters 29 00:01:47,960 --> 00:01:50,600 Speaker 1: or thirty five inches per day. In the time it 30 00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:53,280 Speaker 1: took you to make your five hundred two day trip 31 00:01:53,320 --> 00:01:57,080 Speaker 1: around the world, this bamboo could grow seventeen thousand, five 32 00:01:57,160 --> 00:02:00,360 Speaker 1: hundred and seventy inches or a thousand, four hundred and 33 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:02,840 Speaker 1: sixty four feet, And that is going to be some 34 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:06,480 Speaker 1: long bamboo. Of course, if the bamboo itself wanted to 35 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:08,760 Speaker 1: take over the world by growing all the way around 36 00:02:08,760 --> 00:02:12,000 Speaker 1: the circumference of the Earth, thus gaining a literal stranglehold 37 00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:15,000 Speaker 1: on the planet at a rate of thirty five per day, 38 00:02:15,080 --> 00:02:19,919 Speaker 1: it would take more than forty five million days. So, okay, 39 00:02:20,200 --> 00:02:23,680 Speaker 1: we've got a headstart compared to bamboo, I guess. But 40 00:02:23,760 --> 00:02:26,640 Speaker 1: of course, you can't just walk continuously or in a 41 00:02:26,720 --> 00:02:29,880 Speaker 1: straight line all the way around the world unless you 42 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:31,760 Speaker 1: know you're some kind of holy figure who has mastered 43 00:02:31,800 --> 00:02:35,040 Speaker 1: the whole walking on water thing. There are some oceans 44 00:02:35,040 --> 00:02:38,080 Speaker 1: in the way, so really you can only walk all 45 00:02:38,160 --> 00:02:41,200 Speaker 1: the way around the world in an approximate kind of sense, 46 00:02:41,240 --> 00:02:44,000 Speaker 1: for example, by starting at the tip of South America, 47 00:02:44,280 --> 00:02:47,600 Speaker 1: heading north to Alaska, crossing somewhere over to Russia, and 48 00:02:47,639 --> 00:02:50,200 Speaker 1: then traveling as far on foot as you can to 49 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:55,480 Speaker 1: some westernmost destination in Europe or Africa. Or you could 50 00:02:55,520 --> 00:02:59,440 Speaker 1: fly to each continent individually and walk across them one 51 00:02:59,560 --> 00:03:02,079 Speaker 1: at a time. Time. No matter what route you pick, 52 00:03:02,360 --> 00:03:06,760 Speaker 1: you'll have to go around mountains, dense forests, killer deserts, 53 00:03:07,080 --> 00:03:11,440 Speaker 1: bodies of water, and other obstacles. Typically, it makes more 54 00:03:11,480 --> 00:03:14,240 Speaker 1: sense to follow roads than to try to cut straight 55 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:17,200 Speaker 1: through the wilderness. Plus you have to stop to rest 56 00:03:17,280 --> 00:03:20,760 Speaker 1: and sleep and eat. So how long does it take 57 00:03:20,919 --> 00:03:24,400 Speaker 1: once all of that is factored in. Well, there are 58 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:26,720 Speaker 1: actually quite a few people who have done it in 59 00:03:26,760 --> 00:03:30,680 Speaker 1: one form or another. Between nineteen ten and nineteen twenty three, 60 00:03:31,080 --> 00:03:36,200 Speaker 1: a Romanian geographer named dumitrue Dan completed a fairly exhaustive 61 00:03:36,360 --> 00:03:41,760 Speaker 1: around the world walk. He traveled across every continent except Antarctica, 62 00:03:42,080 --> 00:03:44,600 Speaker 1: and would walk back and forth across the decks of 63 00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:48,960 Speaker 1: ships during the necessary ocean crossings. When he started in 64 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:53,280 Speaker 1: nineteen ten, Dan had three human companions and a dog 65 00:03:53,360 --> 00:03:57,080 Speaker 1: with him. All three of his human companions died during 66 00:03:57,080 --> 00:04:00,800 Speaker 1: the journey. One fell while traversing a mountainous region in China, 67 00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:04,880 Speaker 1: one overdosed on opium in India, and one died of 68 00:04:04,920 --> 00:04:09,160 Speaker 1: some medical condition affecting his legs in Florida. The journey 69 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:12,640 Speaker 1: took thirteen years, but it wasn't just trying to go 70 00:04:12,800 --> 00:04:15,480 Speaker 1: all the way around the planet once. This trip had 71 00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:19,440 Speaker 1: the four globe trotters going back and forth across several 72 00:04:19,480 --> 00:04:22,840 Speaker 1: continents to really cover pretty much all of the world. 73 00:04:22,880 --> 00:04:26,280 Speaker 1: Plus there was a major delay of the trip unrelated 74 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:29,120 Speaker 1: to the journey itself, caused by the outbreak of World 75 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:31,520 Speaker 1: War One in In other words, if not for World 76 00:04:31,560 --> 00:04:35,600 Speaker 1: War One, Dan could have completed the journey much sooner. Then. 77 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:40,039 Speaker 1: On June twent nineteen seventy, another man named Dave Kunst 78 00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:44,480 Speaker 1: set out from Washsaka, Minnesota to walk around the world. 79 00:04:45,240 --> 00:04:48,640 Speaker 1: He took along his brother John and a mule named 80 00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:52,960 Speaker 1: Willie make it yep, that's that's the mule's name. Dave 81 00:04:53,040 --> 00:04:56,599 Speaker 1: and John were shot by bandits in Afghanistan, John was killed, 82 00:04:57,040 --> 00:05:00,440 Speaker 1: Dave was only injured. The journey from Wassaca and back 83 00:05:00,480 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 1: again took him four years, three months and sixteen days, 84 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:07,800 Speaker 1: but that includes delays such as the four month period 85 00:05:07,839 --> 00:05:10,960 Speaker 1: of medical recuperation Dave had after he was shot in 86 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:16,080 Speaker 1: Afghanistan and one more. The British globe trotter Fiona Campbell, 87 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:19,960 Speaker 1: received fame in the nineteen nineties after she completed a 88 00:05:20,120 --> 00:05:23,960 Speaker 1: round the World walk in several stages over the course 89 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:27,799 Speaker 1: of about eleven years. So if there were a perfect 90 00:05:27,839 --> 00:05:31,200 Speaker 1: highway going straight around the equator and you never got 91 00:05:31,240 --> 00:05:34,960 Speaker 1: attacked by bandits or injured or sick or detained it 92 00:05:35,000 --> 00:05:37,880 Speaker 1: a border and had to quit because of exhaustion, and 93 00:05:38,040 --> 00:05:41,200 Speaker 1: you really only stopped to sleep, well, well, we'll assume 94 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:43,960 Speaker 1: that there's someone driving along next to you constantly supplying 95 00:05:43,960 --> 00:05:45,960 Speaker 1: you with water and feeding you with cheeseburgers to make 96 00:05:46,040 --> 00:05:48,400 Speaker 1: up for all the calories you're burning. And we're also 97 00:05:48,440 --> 00:05:50,000 Speaker 1: going to assume that when you have to go to 98 00:05:50,040 --> 00:05:52,479 Speaker 1: the bathroom, you just you know, you you go. It 99 00:05:52,480 --> 00:05:57,440 Speaker 1: would take a little more than five hundred days. But 100 00:05:57,960 --> 00:05:59,760 Speaker 1: if you look at people who actually try to do 101 00:05:59,800 --> 00:06:02,719 Speaker 1: it for real, it tends to take many years and 102 00:06:02,920 --> 00:06:11,880 Speaker 1: is very often interrupted. Check out the brainstuff channel on YouTube, 103 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:14,160 Speaker 1: and for more on this and thousands of other topics, 104 00:06:14,320 --> 00:06:29,520 Speaker 1: visit how stuff works dot com.