SortStack #620 — 2028-02-19

By duration · Order from shortest to longest.

1. The elevator ride up the Burj Khalifa's observation deck 1 min

   The lifts climb at around 10 metres per second. Your ears pop on the way to the 124th floor — the building is so tall it has distinct climate zones.

2. An episode of The Simpsons, without adverts 22 min

   The Simpsons is the longest-running scripted primetime series in US history — Bart has been ten years old for over three and a half decades.

3. A standard university lecture 50 min

   Attention research suggests student focus starts lapsing after 10-15 minutes — which is roughly when most lecturers are just warming up.

4. The Apollo 13 mission, launch to splashdown 6 days

   After the oxygen tank exploded, the crew used the lunar module as a lifeboat and slingshotted around the Moon — NASA's 'successful failure'.

5. 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.

6. The Berlin Wall standing, from construction to fall 28.2 years

   Since 2018, the Wall has been down longer than it ever stood — and more of it now sits in museums worldwide than in Berlin.

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