James Baquet We have met the world’s oldest person, and the world’s tallest. What about their opposites? Well, the world’s youngest would be a silly thing to look for. We were each the world’s youngest person at the instant of our birth! But the world’s shortest person is a little more interesting. The certified shortest man was Chandra Bahadur Dangi of Nepal. He was 21.5 inches (54.6 centimeters) tall when measured at age 72. Born in a remote village about 250 miles west of Kathmandu, Mr. Dangi lived most of his life in obscurity with his five brothers, all of whom were average in height. He wove traditional Nepalese clothing for a living. All that changed when a wood cutter came through his village, and alerted the local media to his incredibly short stature. The Guinness World Record people were notified, and met him in the national capital, Kathmandu, for an official measurement in 2012. The head of the Guinness organization said, “[Dangi’s] life changed immeasurably after his record was confirmed — he was showered with gifts and invitations overseas, and he became an instant global celebrity.” Dangi himself said at the time, “I’m very happy that I’m being recognized by Guinness World Records and that my name will be written in the book. It’s a big thing for my family, my village and my country. I am very happy.” After traveling to many places in the world, he expressed gratitude for the love that was shown him wherever he went. One of the people he met was Jyoti Amge, an Indian woman born in 1993, who measures 24.7 inches (62.8 centimeters) tall, making her the shortest woman alive. (The shortest woman ever was Pauline Musters of the Netherlands, who after her death in 1895 measured 24 inches (61 centimeters), slightly taller than she had been in life due to some relaxing of the muscles.) Mr. Dangi died in 2015 at age 75, a remarkable feat considering that people such as him who suffer from primordial dwarfism (a condition originating during gestation, not after birth) rarely survive beyond 30. Vocabulary: Which word above means: 1. notified (of), told 2. from the beginning, in biology, from the earliest stage of development 3. established that something is true, verified 4. made cloth, as on a loom 5. (the) exact moment (of) 6. gave a lot of 7. condition of being unknown or unimportant 8. in ways that cannot be counted 9. height 10. period of development before birth | 