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30 Random Facts We Found in the Great Fact Library

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30 Random Facts We Found in the Great Fact Library

October 11, 2023

Welcome to the Great Fact Library! Please take care to be gentle with the variety facts that you’ll find on display here, and do your best not to disturb any of the patrons while you rifle through our catalogue of options. Oh, there’s no organization system or anything, we legit just took a bunch of boxes and dumped them out over the floor. If you’re looking for somethings specific, that’s not really what we do here.

Still! There's some interesting stuff all around! Did you know, for example, that country stations banned a Garth Brooks song because it dared to imply that being gay is fine? Or that Lynyrd Skynyrd got their name making fun of someone from their youth? Or, more importantly, what kind of sandwich managed to get smuggled into space?

All this and more in the Great Fact Library…

30

Iraq

Iraq's minister of higher education and scientific research did math problems in solitary confinement. GRACKED.COM Hussain al-Shahristani was forced into solitary con- finement in prison for 8 years under Saddam Hus- sein. Не kept his sanity by making up mathematical problems, which he then tried to solve. — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

29

Lynyrd Skynyrd's Name

Lynyrd Skynyrd based the group's name as a mocking tribute to their old P.E. teacher. Coach Leonard Skinner at Robert Е. Lee High School in Jacksonville, Florida disciplined two of the band's members for letting their hair grow long. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

28

Space Corned Beef

A corned beef sandwich was smuggled into space. Astronaut John Young smuggled a corned beef sandwich into space aboard the Gemini 3 mission. Не hid the sandwich in his spacesuit pocket and shared it with the other crew members. NASA banned smuggled sandwiches from future missions. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

27

Naked Mole Rat

Naked mole rats can go 18 minutes with no oxygen by metabolizing fructose. Naked mole rats can survive for six hours in extremely low oxygen environments, and for 18 minutes with no oxygen at all. When a mole rat's brain and heart are deprived of oxygen, its cells switch to digesting a fructose instead of glucose. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

26

The English Light to Right

There is a Right to Light in England. CRACKED.COM The owner of a building with windows that have received natural daylight for 20 years or more is entitled to forbid any construction or other obstruction that would de- prive him or her of that illu- mination. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

25

Mistletoe

The Christmas mistletoe tradition isn't big on consent. CRACKED.COM Tradition dictates that a man is allowed to kiss any woman standing under- neath mistletoe and that bad luck will befall any woman who refuses. With each kiss, a berry is to be plucked until none remain. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

24

Power Girl

Power Girl's artist kept drawing her boobs bigger until editors noticed. CRACKED COM When the character was created, the writer and art- ist were convinced that they were being ignored by editors, so for 8 issues they steadily increased her bust size until someone spoke up. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

23

The Banned TaleSpin Episode

There is a banned episode of TaleSpin where Baloo gets involved with terrorists. E TALESPIN CRACKED.COM In the series finale, Flying Dupes, Baloo is tricked into delivering a bomb planted by munitions man- ufacturers who wish to provoke a war in order to boost weapons sales. This was a kid's show. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

22

Haunted Venetian Island

There is a haunted, uninhabited Venetian island. CRACKED COM Poveglia has been used as a defensive fort, a quarantine sta- tion, a confinement area for the sick, and a mental asylum. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

21

Migrating Eagles

Migrating eagles being tracked by scientists ran up huge data roaming charges. CRACKED.COM A Russian eagle named 'Min' and 3 other eagles un- expectedly flew into Iran/Pakistan. Scientists had to take out a loan and ask for help on social media to pay off the phone bill. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

20

FDR Snubbed Jesse Owens

FDR snubbed Jesse Owens after winning 4 Golds at the 1936 Olympics. GRAGKED.COM Jesse Owens said, Hitler didn't snub me - it was our president who snubbed me. The president didn't even send me a telegram. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

19

Naples Supervolcano

The supervolcano near Naples could erupt for the first time since 1538. CRACKED COM Previous eruptions of Campi Flegrei have triggered volcanic winters globally, caus- ing widespread crop failures and resulting in famines. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

18

2000 Magic Mountain Meals

A man ate over 2000 meals at Six Flags Magic Mountain with a $150 annual pass. A California man named Dylan ate most of his meals at the amusement park over seven years by spending $150 on an annual unlimited meals pass. This comes to about 50 cents a meal. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

17

Aluminum Prices

Aluminum became more precious than gold and silver in the 19th century, because it was harder to obtain. The French government once displayed Fort Knox-like aluminum bars next to the crown jewels, and the minor emperor Napoleon III reserved a prized set of aluminum cutlery for special guests at banquets. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

16

There Used To Be More Duels

President James Monroe and his Treasury Secretary dueled with fireplace tongs and a cane. During a contentious White House meeting, Treasury Secretary William H. Crawford became so angry at President James Monroe that he began whipping his cane at the President, forcing Monroe to use fireplace tongs to defend himself. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

15

Bread Was Expensive

In the years preceding the French Revolution, the price of bread cost 88% of a laborer's income. The average 18th-century worker spent half his daily wage on bread. But when the grain crops failed two years in a row, the price of bread shot up to 88 percent of his wages. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

14

Wyatt Earp Westerns

Wyatt Earp consulted on Hollywood westerns. GRACKED.COM Wyatt Earp was the last surviving participant of the OK Corral shootout, dying in 1929, aged 80. He'd held many jobs throughout his career, such as an enforcer at a brothel and Hollywood consultant. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

13

Steves Love Evolution

There are more scientists named Steve that support evolution than any Creationist list. CRACKED.COM Project Steve is a list of scientists who support evolution, oppose intelli- gent design, and are named Steve (or a varia- tion). As of September 27, 2018, 1432 Steves have signed the statement. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

12

The Invention of Anesthesia

Anesthesia was criticized as a needless luxury when it was introduced in the 1840s. CRACKED.COM Before dentist William Morton insisted that he had found a gas that could render patients insensible to the pain of surgery, even a minor tooth extraction was excruciating. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

11

Formaldehyde

Formaldehyde is an appetite stimulant. SIGMA-ALDAID Lot#SZBC0620 - Contains Formaldehyde Methanol: 252549-100ML MU 30.00 gimol Formaldehyde solution 37 wt. % in H2O Formaldehyd Lösung* Formaldéhyde Solution* Formaldeide Soluzione* Formaldehido Solución Formalin CRACKED.COM reament. 37 wt % in H2O, contains hilizer (to prevent Formaldehyde Hun- ger is a well-known phenomenon in anato- my labs where med stu- dents get hungry while dissecting cadavers. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

10

The Miniature Monument

There's a miniature Washington Monument under a manhole in D.C. The 12ft tall replica of the Washington Monument hides under a manhole near the actual monument. It's part of the network of a million control points across the country that helps the National Geodetic Survey synchronize all of the government's maps. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

9

Burger King Table Service

In 1993, Burger King briefly offered table service during dinner hours. KING BURGER BURGER FRESHLY KING KING CRASPY Staumtow Street Sales Not DO adidas #A a #3 K FLAME GRILLING SINCE 1954 Hearts WHOPR, Your choices were a Whopper dinner basket, steak sandwich, chicken, or shrimp. They also offered popcorn as a table appetizer. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

8

Dark Souls Summons

The idea for summons in Dark Souls came from people helping the creator when he got his car stuck. DARK SOULS REMASTERED Hidetaka Miyazaki was inspired to design its summoning based on an experience he had when his car got stuck in the snow on a hill and a bunch of strangers came and helped before vanishing. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

7

Candy Crush

17,000 divorce cases in Egypt cited Candy Crush as the cause of divorce in 2018. It seems like between mobile and console gaming, it's PlayStation that is breaking up the most families with 250,000 divorce cases. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

6

How Much Water Do You Need, Really?

People need the equivalent of 8 glasses of water a day, but that's only half the story. CRACKED.COM When the 1945 Food and Nutrition Board said hu- man's need 2.5 liters of wa- ter a day, they went on to clarify that we get most of the fluid we need from food and other beverages. — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

5

Garth Brooks Banned

Some country radio stations banned a Garth Brook's song in 1993. CRACKED.COM Brooks's 1993 song We Shall Be Free was boycotted be- cause it included the line When we're free to love anyone we choose. Scandal! — Source: 15 Head-Spinning Facts That Really Boggled Our Minds

4

Sewn into Sacks!

British parliament debated a resolution for bankers to be sewn into sacks with snakes and dumped into the Thames river. One of the first recognisably modern financial crises was the South Sea Bubble in 1720. Many thousands of British citizens, including Sir Isaac Newton, invested their savings in a scam and were impoverished when it burst. CRACKED.COM — Source

3

Smelling Ants

Some people can smell ants. Ants typically smell of formic acid, although this scent is only smell-able by some people. We call these people unlucky. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

2

The Earth's Crust

The crust of the Earth is so thin that it can be compared with the peel of an apple. The crust only makes up 1% of the earth's volume at just 25 miles deep, yet this comparatively small area contains all known life in the universe. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

1

IRS Computers

The IRS still operates largely on mainframe computers running 60 year old code. REGISTER MEMORY ACCUMULATOR REGISTER REGISTER INSTRUCTION COUNTER INSTRUCTION CARDA LOND SELECTOR FSSTRUCTIG ENTRY The 200,000 lines of code for the Individual Master File systems from the Kennedy administration were coded in assembly language 59 years ago. CRACKED.COM — Source: 15 Now-You-Know Facts That Sat On Our Chests Like A Sleep Paralysis Demon

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