SortStack #249 — 2027-02-13

By duration · Order from shortest to longest.

1. One heartbeat of a hummingbird in flight 48 ms

   Hummingbird hearts can hit 1,260 beats per minute in flight, then crash to about 50 at night when the bird enters a hibernation-like torpor.

2. Usain Bolt's 100 m world record run 9.6 sec

   Bolt ran 9.58 in Berlin 2009, hitting a top speed of 44.7 km/h — faster than the speed limit on many city streets.

3. Sunlight travelling from the Sun's surface to Earth 8.3 min

   If the Sun vanished right now, we'd keep seeing it — and orbiting it — for another 8 minutes and 20 seconds before noticing anything.

4. The First World War 4.3 years

   The armistice was signed at dawn but set for 11 am — nearly 2,700 men died in those final six hours, the last just one minute before peace.

5. The Second World War 6 years

   From the invasion of Poland to Japan's surrender, it remains history's deadliest conflict — fighting officially ended on a battleship in Tokyo Bay.

6. The Hundred Years' War between England and France 116.6 years

   Despite the name, it lasted 116 years (1337-1453), punctuated by long truces — and technically England and France stayed at war on paper even longer.

← All puzzles · Play today’s SortStack