A jellyfish’s mouth is also its anus. There might be a saying that goes, “Don’t eat where you sh*t,” but that would be physically impossible for jellyfish. All species of jellyfish eat and excrete from the same hole.
100 Mind-Blowing Be Facts
People used to answer the phone by saying “Ahoy!” What would you do if you called someone and they answered with, “Ahoy!” I, for one, would throw my hands at how unnecessary that would be. However, when the public started using the phone in the 1800s, inventor Alexander Graham Bell decided that phone calls should be answered with “ahoy” instead of “hello.” However, Thomas Edison wanted users to answer the phone with “hello.” By 1880, “ahoy” was just something a pirate would say.
Saffron is more expensive than gold. Iran is the world’s main producer of saffron, supplying 95% of the saffron market. Each flower produces about three red stamens which must be hand-picked. For every 150 flowers, only 1 gram of saffron is produced. The lengthy process plus its rarity makes this precious spice cost $3,000 per kg.
Craving ice is a symptom of iron deficiency. If you like munching on ice, you might have anaemia. The compulsive eating of ice is also known as pagophagia and could be a subconscious way of cooling mouth inflammation caused by iron deficiency.
The longest ear hair in the world may be longer than your actual hair. At 25 cm, the world record for the longest ear hair in the world belongs to Radhakant Bajpai of India. His wife highly disapproves of the hair, but he believes it brings him good luck and refuses to get rid of it.
The loudest burp in the world is louder than a chainsaw. Have you ever woken up annoyed at the construction ongoing near your flat, or your neighbour blasting music? If yes, then you’d better stay away from Paul Hunn – or at least be out of earshot. Hunn made the world record for the world’s loudest burp which clocked in at 109.9 decibels. If you have no idea how loud that is, an average chainsaw is 106 decibels loud, while a jackhammer is 130 decibels. That’s probably the loudest of these WTF facts.
A man once ate an entire plane. You read that right. Michel Lotito was a famous French entertainer known for eating inedible things. Lotito ate metal, glass, rubber and other industrial materials. He disassembled, cut, and ate items such as bicycles, shopping carts, televisions, and – most notably – a Cessna 150. The 680kg plane took roughly two years to be “eaten” by Lotito from 1978 to 1980.
You can’t bring a Furby to the Pentagon. Since its release in 1998, Furbies have been a staple in the toy industry. You may find them adorable or creepy, but one thing for sure is that the American government doesn’t trust them. If you’ve ever encountered conspiracy theories about satanic Furbies, you’d be surprised that Furbies are banned from the Pentagon. One of Furby’s main features is speech imitation. Since most (if not all) of the communications in the Pentagon are confidential, they can’t risk a rogue Furby leaking everything to the public. As of 1999, the National Security Agency has banned Furbies from the Pentagon. See for yourself if a Furby would give away all of your secrets.
Babies are born without kneecaps. Turns out, babies are as soft and delicate as they look. Babies may have more bones than the average fully-grown human, but they definitely won’t be doing any stunts anytime soon. Babies are born with a cartilaginous structure in their knees that will eventually develop into kneecaps by the time they are four years old.
Mary Shelley allegedly lost her virginity on her mother’s grave. It is widely believed that the author of Frankenstein did the devil’s tango with her would-be husband, Percy Shelley, on her mother’s final resting place. Does it get any more gothic than that?
The average person spends 2 years using their phone. We’ve heard it from adults billions of times: “You spend way too much time on that phone!” However, they may not be exaggerating. So far, the average person spends an entire 2 years on their phones throughout their lifetime.
Lego bricks can be combined in nearly a billion ways. Six pieces of the standard eight-studded Lego bricks can be combined in 915,103,765 ways.
Marvel action figures helped ToyBiz save money. In the U.S., dolls based on human figures are taxed more heavily than other toys. Owning the rights to several Marvel Comics characters, ToyBiz successfully convinced the court that X-Men and Fantastic Four action figures should be taxed less. Their argument? The action figures were based on mutants, not humans. Following their appeal, the toy company won a reimbursement on the year’s taxes and cut their rate in half.
Salt used to be a currency. For ancient civilizations, salt was so valuable that the Romans used it as money. They even paid their soldiers in salt rations instead of money.
Mr. Potato Head used to be made of actual potatoes. When Mr. Potato Head was first released in 1952, the toy only included eyes, noses, and mouths. For the potato body, kids were expected to provide their own. However, due to the possible safety hazards of the sharp pieces, the plastic body was provided in 1964.
You can’t see the Great Wall of China from space. You may have seen fact sites claiming that the Great Wall is the only man-made structure visible from space, but this is not the case. According to the Apollo astronauts, the Great Wall cannot be seen from space. However, city lights at night, roads, and the Pyramids of Giza are said to be visible.
You have a one in 2 billion chance to live over 100 years old. Only one person out of two billion will live to be 116 or older.
Portugal is the top country for cork production. Out of 2,200,000 hectares of cork forest worldwide, 34% is in Portugal. With annual cork production at 200,000 tons, 49.6% comes from Portugal. They must be serious about their wine.
The remote control was invented earlier than the television. 30 years before the first digital television, Nikola Tesla invented a “teleautomaton” that could control certain devices at a distance through radio waves. His first remote-controlled device was a remote-controlled boat in 1898. Since then, people adapted the wired remote for television. However, due to injuries, they developed it further to be a wireless remote.
Standard CDs are always 74 minutes long. Sony and Philips set the standard CD length in 1980 as 74 minutes based on Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. The executives decided that the standard CD should be able to fit the Ninth Symphony, giving it a 74-minute length.
Maps sometimes have fake places to prevent plagiarism. Plagiarism can be hard to avoid for mapmakers. After all, what should they do? Invent new places? You’d be surprised to know some mapmakers do just that. Cartographers can add wrong streets, fake towns, or other landmarks to prove whether a competitor mapmaker is copying their work.
A coin toss isn’t 50-50. The next time you’re trying to decide something, a coin toss may not be the best idea. Typically, the chances for a coin toss are 51-49, not 50-50. If you flip a coin, there is a 51% chance it will land on the side that it started on.
Scientists believe the Earth will be destroyed by celestial phenomena in the next billion years.
The film explores the concept of legacy. Through their adventures, the characters contemplate the impact they will leave behind and what they want to be remembered for.
Spielberg initially didn’t want to direct the film. He felt that the story was too important to be told by a commercial director, but eventually took on the project after being deeply moved by the book.
The movie emphasises the importance of empathy and compassion. Schindler’s List” serves as a reminder to be vigilant against discrimination and prejudice and to stand up for what is right.
Mr. Potato Head was the first toy to be advertised on TV.
Brain waves can be used to power an electric train.
No piece of A4 paper can be folded more than 7 times.
Bubble wrap was originally invented to be a kind of plastic wallpaper.
The number ‘172’ can be found on the back of the U.S. 5 dollar bill in the bushes at the base of the Lincoln Memorial.
The Eisenhower interstate system requires that one mile in every five must be straight. These straight sections are usable as airstrips in times of war or other emergencies.
A skunk’s smell can be detected by a human a mile away.
Dentists have recommended that a toothbrush be kept at least 6 feet (2 m) away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles resulting from the flush.
A lion’s roar can be heard from five miles away.
In ancient Rome, it was considered a sign of leadership to be born with a crooked nose.
Revolvers cannot be silenced because of all the noisy gasses which escape the cylinder gap at the rear of the barrel.
Nobody knows who built the Taj Mahal. The names of the architects, masons, and designers that have come down to us have all proved to be latter-day inventions, and there is no evidence to indicate who the real creators were.
7.5 million toothpicks can be created from a cord of wood.
Goodbye came from “God bye” which came from “God be with you.”
The “sixth sick sheikh’s sixth sheep’s sick” is said to be the toughest tongue twister in the English language. This tongue twister is considered the toughest one to say by the Guinness Book of Records known as “sixth sick sheikh’s sixth sheep’s sick”. This tongue twister is extremely difficult to say as this string of words quickly multiple times. This may not make much sense, but then tongue twisters are not more than just a series of words put together to exercise your tongue.
Rhythm is the longest English word without a vowel. Without using any vowel letter, the longest English word can be formed which is a letter word – ‘Rhythm’.
Like fingerprints, everyone’s tongue print is different Did you know that everyone has a different tongue print like fingerprints? Our tongue prints also have unique identifying marks. As reported by researcher David Zhang, the tip of the tongue has a unique physiological texture and geometric shape that can be used for verification purposes.
Oranges weren’t always orange. In Southeast Asia, oranges were originally the colour of green and they were tangerine-pomelo hybrids. Oranges in warmer countries like Vietnam and Thailand continue to be green even after reaching maturity.
For now, Scotland has 421 words. Some examples of them would be skelf, sneesl, spitters, feefle, finnikin and many more.
Cats are believed to be the only mammals who don’t taste sweetness.
A lion’s roar can be heard from as far as five miles (eight kilometres) away, making it one of the loudest roars in the animal kingdom.
Lions are known to be very social animals, often seen grooming each other or napping together in the shade.
It won’t be possible to walk on planets like Jupiter, Neptune, Saturn or Uranus as they don’t have a solid surface and are made of gases mostly.
Left-handedness can run in families, so if your parents are left-handed, you’re more likely to be too.
If you have a twin brother or sister, there’s a higher chance that one of you might be left-handed.
American swimmer Michael Phelps, who is known to be left-handed, holds the record for the most Olympic medals won by any athlete, with 28 Olympic medals, including 23 golds.
The Eiffel Tower gets taller in the summer. When the iron heats up, the tower can be up to 15 centimetres (6 inches) taller due to thermal expansion.
Supermarket apples can be a year old. Are those apples you just bought a year old? Maybe! Farmers often pick apples in the fall, cover them in wax, hot-air dry them, and then put them in cold storage. This keeps them edible and ready to sell for 6 to 12 months!
McDonald’s serves spaghetti in the Philippines. The McSpaghetti meat sauce pasta comes with a side of “McDo” fried chicken. This sounds too tasty to be considered one of our weird fun facts!
3 Musketeers candy bars used to come in three flavours. The original candy from the 1930s had three different kinds of nougat: chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry (hence the name!). Unfortunately, it had to be cut down to one during World War II due to rations being too expensive.
Cat urine glows under a black light. Black lights can be used to detect any body fluids, but cat urine glows particularly bright under ultraviolet light primarily because it contains the element phosphorus.
A blue whale’s heartbeat can be detected up to 2 miles away. And their hearts weigh almost 400 pounds!
Ketchup used to be sold as medicine. Back in 1834, people with indigestion were given a prescription for the condiment.
Humans are the only animals that blush. Some people believe we may be the only animals who feel embarrassed.
The Eiffel Tower was supposed to be in Barcelona. When Gustave Eiffel’s design was rejected by the Spanish city for being too ugly, he pitched it to France. The locals weren’t in love with it either, but tourists from around the world flock to Paris to see it!
Animals can be allergic to humans. Not only can dogs be allergic to cat dander and people dander, but our pets can also suffer from the same allergens as humans, including pollen!
Most ginger cats are male. Ginger males can come from red/ginger, calico, and tortoiseshell mothers, whereas ginger females need to have one fully red/ginger father, and the mother must be red, calico, or tortoiseshell.
The average colour in our universe is “cosmic latte.” Astronomers observed the light coming from galaxies tended to be this beige colour. Starbucks needs to turn that into a drink!
There’s no such thing as a straight line. No matter how hard you try, if you look closely, there will always be irregularities. We say things are “laser-focused,” but even laser beams are slightly curved!
Scotland chose the unicorn to be its national animal.
Giraffes are more prone to be struck by lightning than humans. Each year, there are about 0.003 lightning deaths per thousand giraffes. This means that it is 30 times the rate at which lightning strikes humans.
The world’s oldest dog lived to be 29.5 years old. The Australian cattle dog named Bluey lived to be 29.5 years old when the average age for dogs is from 10-15 years. This weird animal fact should resonate with dog lovers around the world.
Once a chicken lived without its head for 18 months. Perhaps you’ve already heard of Mike the Chicken. Well if you haven’t, you’ll be surprised to find out that in the 1940s, Mike survived because his jugular vein and brainstem were still functioning. But don’t expect this for every chicken. It’s a weird animal fact, but a rare one.
The oldest cat in the world lived to be 38 years and three days old. Creme Puff lived a sweet, long life. On average, cats tend to live around 15 years.
The heartbeat of a blue whale can be detected from 2 miles away. The blue whale’s heart also weighs 400 pounds.
Chainsaws began to be used for woodchopping at the start of the 20th century. But before then, chainsaws were used for childbirth to speed up the widening of the pubic cartilage.
Back in the day, ketchup used to be sold as medicine.
Before Americans had toilet paper, they used corn husks. This weird historical fact proves to be uncomfortable as well.
On May 27, 2005, at 10:07 p.m. Big Ben’s clock stopped. It was a hot summer day in London, and the heat is presumed to be what caused the famous clock to stop.
In 1524, the last letter to be added to the English alphabet was the letter “J.” Before it became a letter, the letter “i” was used for both “i” and “j.”
The Eiffel Tower was originally supposed to be for the city of Barcelona. But they rejected the famous tower at the time because they considered it too ugly.
You can be very pregnant and not know it. About 1 in 500 people don’t realize that they are pregnant until halfway through their pregnancy.
Water might not be wet. Coming in as another weird science fact, water itself is not wet. This is the case because of how scientists have defined wetness. It’s in the liquid’s ability to sustain contact with a solid surface. Startling, I know.
Sound can be in negative decibels.
The Earth has so much gold that there is enough to coat the planet. About 99 per cent of gold can be found in the Earth’s core.
The moon is shrinking. But they are shrinking at a glacial pace. Moonquakes could be the root cause of the matter.
Apples you find in the supermarket can be a year old. It is one of the many weird facts about food at the supermarket! Those supermarket apples might be a year old. Farmers often harvest them in the fall, wax them, and store them away.
Most of the wasabi you eat isn’t wasabi. Because actual wasabi can be quite expensive, store-bought wasabi is often made out of horseradish.
The pope cannot be an organ donor.
Mars has 2 moons called Deimos and Phobos. They are named after the two horses that pull the Roman God of war, Mars’, chariot. They may be asteroids captured by Mars’ gravity.
Mars’ surface has many channels, plains, and canyons which could have been caused by water erosion (water wearing away the surface). This could be evidence that open water in liquid form once existed on the surface billions of years ago.
Sharks kill fewer than 10 people per year. Humans kill about 100 million sharks per year. They should be much more scared of us than we are of them.
Male gentoo and Adelie penguins “propose” to females by giving them a pebble. These are precious because the penguins use them to build their nests, and they can be hard to find along the barren Antarctic shoreline. If the female accepts the pebble, the pair bonds and mates for life.
Warmer weather causes more turtles to be born female than male.
“J” was the last letter to be added to the alphabet.
The Statue of Liberty was originally supposed to be located in the Suez Canal.
Tug-of-war used to be an Olympic sport.
The Milky Way smells of rum, raspberries and booze. In 2009, astronomers exploring a giant cloud of gas and dust at the centre of the Milky Way made a surprise discovery – the cloud was packed full of a chemical known as ethyl formate, which has a couple of intriguing properties: it is responsible for giving raspberries their flavour, and has the smell of rum. Another nearby region is also notable as it’s full of ethyl alcohol, or ethanol, the type we use to make alcoholic beverages. It contains enough alcohol to supply every person on the planet with 300,000 pints of beer per day for the next billion years! If bottled at the source, the proof for this beer would be very low, with an alcohol content of less than 1%, but as the cloud also contains plenty of other nasty chemicals, among them carbon monoxide and hydrogen cyanide, it would still leave you with quite a headache the next morning.
You could survive for a couple of minutes in a leaky spacesuit. Although films such as Total Recall show instant explosions and rapidly puffed-up spacesuits, the effects of being exposed to space are slightly less dramatic. Although it would be unpleasant, you could survive for a couple of minutes. After around 10 seconds, you would lose consciousness. The lower pressure of the vacuum would cause your blood to boil, along with other body fluids (the moisture on your tongue, for example) – but this boiling alone would not be fatal due to the pressure maintained by our blood vessels themselves. Gas bubbles would form in your bodily fluids, causing your body to swell up and bloat. The low humidity of space would cause you to cool down rapidly, and your eyes may freeze over. Within one to two minutes, the lack of oxygen would be deadly. The stress of the situation may make these symptoms worse – you would become oxygen-deprived more quickly. A rapid decompression would cause damage to your lungs, eardrums and sinuses, along with bruising and bleeding from soft tissues.
1 tsp of neutron star weighs the same as the human population. A neutron star’s density is mind-boggling. These stars are composed almost entirely of neutrons packed together in a tiny radius. Just a teaspoonful of this material would weigh over a trillion kilograms — more than the weight of the entire human population (which reaches a few hundred billion kilograms). To make something as dense as a neutron star, the whole of humanity would need to be crammed into a space the size of a sugar cube.
There are stars we will never be able to see. Ever since the Big Bang, most objects in space have been moving away from one another. The expansion of the Universe is accelerating. This is one of the facts about space that has rocked the cosmological boat over the past few years. As regions of space are whizzing away from one another at an ever-increasing rate, the first population of stars to form in the Universe are now too far away for us to ever hope of spying on them – even using the best present or future telescope. Hope is not lost; we can attempt to spot them indirectly via the energetic bursts of radiation they emit at the end of their lives.
Jupiter’s magnetic field is bigger than the Moon. The region of space in which a mass’s magnetic field dominates is known as its magnetosphere. These regions surround planets, pulsars and even our Galaxy. The planets in our Solar System have magnetospheres that interact with and are shaped by the charged particles in the wind streaming from our Sun. The largest magnetosphere in our Solar System surrounds Jupiter. Jupiter rotates very fast and has a very strong magnetic field, and its magnetosphere is filled with plasma from its volcanically active moon, Io. These features, coupled with the fact that the solar wind is slower and less dense at Jupiter than at Earth, lead to a very sizeable Jovian magnetosphere. It is easily big enough to contain a body the size of our Sun and, if visible, would be larger than the Moon in our night sky; quite an achievement considering that it is over 1,500 times farther away.
Planets can wander through space without a parent star. Not all planets form and stay around stars: astronomers estimate that there could be more than 200 billion of them floating free and drifting through our Galaxy. These ‘rogue’ planets were thought to have been kicked out of their home systems. While this is true for some, other planets may have formed completely independently of an accretion disk (as was the case for our Solar System) instead of forming from the collapse of tiny, cold clouds known as globulettes.
Most Sun-like stars in our galaxy are in multiple star systems. Our Sun may be a single star, but it is in the minority. Over half of the Sun-like stars in the Milky Way are part of multiple star systems, binaries or triplets, with stars orbiting around a common centre of mass. Most lower-mass stars like red dwarfs, however, live alone without a companion.