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35 Random Bits of Trivia to Cram Into Your Brain With a Hydraulic Press

June 26, 2024

Michelangelo's grand-nephew published the famous artist's love letters, but changed all the pronouns so people wouldn't know who he really loved.

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35

Voting in the US is done on Tuesdays because it took farmers a long time to travel in the 1800s. GRACKED.COM It could take rural farmers up to a day of traveling to get to a voting station. Wednesday was typically market day and Sunday was the Biblical Sabbath, so Tuesday was chosen to allow ample travel time. — Source

34

Yellow fever helped end slavery in Haiti. CRACKED.COM An epidemic broke out during the Haitian Revolu- tion, killing two-thirds of the French army. It killed almost none of the slaves. France was therefore forced to sur- render the island. — Source

33

Detroit Red Wings fans throw octopuses onto the ice. RBK m Gas brid TANLE EMER IO : 99 MISTROM SHAWAH 3 14 C 14 5 RITON 34 44 EA NTON 10m min GLC GRACKED.COM The Legend Of The Ос- topus is a sports tradi- tion during Detroit Red Wings games. In 1995, fans threw 35 octopuses including a specimen weighing 38 lbs. — Source

32

A Virginian man planted a flag near Egypt so his daughter could be a princess. CRACKED.COM The flag was placed in Bir Tawil, a 2,060 square km swath of land between Egypt and Sudan that is the last habitable land on earth that is not taken or claimed by any government. — Source

31

Large hotel chains purposely overbook rooms by up to 15%. CRACKED.COM The no-show rate at hotels is between 5% and 15%. When guests don't get rooms at the booked hotel, they end up at a nearby branch, with a room of similar value, which is called walking a guest. — Source

30

A fast food freezer was used to hold dead bodies during a Miami crime wave. BURGER BURGER KING KING TM Karl Johans gate - - 1:12 FLAVA FLAVA BURGER KING Murder rates in Miami were so high during the 1970s and 1980s that the Dade County Medical Examiner's Office had to rent a refrig- erated trailer from Burger King to handle the over- flow of corpses. — Source

29

Caribbean sperm whales have their own dialect and are sort of discriminatory. CRACKED.COM The whales have a distinct culture and are known to in- teract only with other whales with their own unique dialects and 'ac- cents' which are variations of clicks unique to that area. — Source

28

Chekov was added to Star Trek to attract young viewers. CRACKED.COM Pavel Chekov did not ар- pear on 'Star Trek' until the first episode of the second season. The character was created to attract young viewers by resembling Davy Jones of The Monkees.

27

A private company illegally dumped 100 tons of iron sulfate off the coast of Canada. CRACKED.COM This was to promote the growth of plankton capa- ble of absorbing car- bon-dioxide from the air. It is the world's most sig- nificant geoengineering project to date. — Source

26

Arabic countries stopped broadcasting the 1978 Eurovision Song Contest before Israel could win. CRACKED.COM Jordan replaced the live broadcast with a picture of daffodils and later announced that Belgium, the sec- ond place finalist, had won. — Source

25

Some birds of prey can see bands of UV light that other animals cannot. CRACKED COM Because mouse and rat urine reflects UV light, birds have been ob- served following trails of rodents pee like a glow in the dark path to their prey. — Source

24

The New Orleans Jazz drafted the first only woman in the NBA. GRACKED.COM During the 1977 NBA Draft, Lusia Harris was selected by the Jazz, but she was pregnant at the time and de- clined to attend train- ing camp. — Source

23

A gorilla named Shabani gained the attention of flocks of screaming women in 2016. CRACKED.COM The male gorilla was seen as extremely handsome and manly by women around the world, who showed up at his Japanese zoo. The staff had to put up signs telling the women to stop yelling, as it made him uncomfortable. — Source

22

'Dumb & Dumber To' was funded using money stolen from a Malaysian government investment fund. CRACKED.COM Corrupt officials and finan- ciers stole $4.5 billion from 1Malaysia Development Ber- had between 2009 and 2015, laundering the money through a series of shell companies with bank ac- counts in the US and abroad. — Source

21

Eating grapefruit while taking medication can lead to an overdose. CRACKED.COM One whole grapefruit, or a small glass of grapefruit juice, can cause drug over- dose toxicity. Even fruit consumed three days be- fore the medicine can still have an effect. — Source

20

Hoia baciu forest is referred to as the Bermuda Triangle of Romania. CRACKED.COM It's known for paranormal activity and unexplained events, including intense feelings of being watched, ghost sightings, bi- zarre-looking vegetation, UFO sightings, and hun- dreds of missing persons. — Source

19

Some people have a tiny, extra spleen. CRACKED COM Not only do 1 in every 10 people have a tiny second spleen called an accessory spleen, but also that if the main spleen is removed, the tiny second spleen can grow to function as a new spleen. — Source

18

Leonardo da Vinci's full name is Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci. CRACKED.COM Leonardo's last name isn't da Vinci. It just means from Vinci as in Vinci, Florence in Italy (where he's from). — Source

17

MTV's 'Clone High' was canceled after it sparked controversy in India. GRACKED.COM Due to its portrayal of Gandhi as a loose party an- imal, 100 people in India began a hunger strike and even a national protest where members of parlia- ment got involved. — Source

16

During the Cold War, CIA agents communicated based on how their shoelaces were tied. GRAGKED.COM During the Cold War, the CIA hired stage magician John Mulholland to teach their covert operatives sleight-of-hand tricks and secret signals they could use in the field. — Source

15

The most decorated American unit in WWII was almost exclusively a Japanese-American infantry regiment. CRACKED.COM The 442nd Regiment re- ceived more than 18,000 awards, including 9,500 Pur- ple Hearts, 5,200 Bronze Star Medals, 588 Silver Stars, 52 Distinguished Service Cross- es, and 7 Distinguished Unit Citations. — Source

14

An Indian book from the 4th century accurately described the Earth's diameter. CRACKED.COM Surya Siddhanta was only off by 72 miles by current standards, describing the planet as 8,000 miles in di- ameter. The book also pro- vided an accurate distance between the Moon and Earth, much before Galileo. — Source

13

Phil Collins was the only artist to perform at both Live Aid 1985 benefit concerts. CRACKED.COM Не played at Live Aid Wembley, went by heli- copter to Heathrow, flew to New York on the Con- corde, then another heli- copter to Live Aid Phila- delphia. — Source

12

Stan Lee was initially worried that blind people would take offense to the character Daredevil. CRACKED.COM Lee was worried about how far he exaggerated the way a blind person's other senses are enhanced, until he received letters telling him that blind peo- ple greatly enjoyed having the comics read to them. — Source

11

Tony Hawk published a book called Tony Hawk's The A to Z of Skateboarding. HIGHPOINTE GRACKED.COM The book was written by British comedian Tony Hawk, who was frustrated with being mistaken for the pro-skateboarder, and contains nothing about skateboarding. — Source

10

The British planned to seal 6 men in a cave if the Axis ever captured Gibraltar during WWII. CRACKED COM The men would be situated in a secret cave overlook- ing the harbor to secretly monitor and radio back en- emy movements. The cave had enough provisions for the men to stay for up to 7 years. — Source

9

A test used to determine brain damage involves pouring water into the ear. CRACKED.COM If you pour cold water into a per- son's ear, their eyes will move in the direction of the opposite ear. If you pour warm water into their ear, their eyes will move towards that ear. This is used to test for brain damage and is called 'ca- loric stimulation.' — Source

8

Areas in Northeast France are deemed too physically and environmentally damaged by conflict for human habitation. CRACKED COM The 460 square miles area contains so much human and animal remains and millions of items of unexploded clas- sic and chemical ordnance from WWI that it's been le- gally defined as Impossible to clean. — Source

7

Bette Davis owned a nightclub in Hollywood for US servicemen and women where everything was free. CRACKED.COM The Hollywood Canteen was a place for troops to have fun before embark- ing on tour, and other ce- lebrities would regularly volunteer to serve food or perform. — Source

6

Like birdshot and buckshot, there is a shotgun round called a Rat Shot. CRACKED COM It's a small caliber bullet cartridge that can be load- ed into handguns and rifles to be used as a low power shotgun round effective for killing small pests and birds without damaging buildings. — Source

5

Michelangelo wrote poems to another man, Tommaso dei Cavalieri. CRACKED COM After his death, his grand-nephew pub- lished his poems and changed the pronouns of the person ad- dressed from mascu- line to feminine. — Source

4

Jakarta is sinking 10 inches per year. CRACKED COM This is in part due to ex- cessive use of groundwa- ter and lack of piped wa- ter. It is expected that the city will be completely submerged in the next 30 years. — Source

3

An NBA player had to retire because he fell asleep with a pack of ice on his ankle. CRACKED COM B.J. Tyler accidentally fell asleep with a pack of ice on his ankle, causing severe nerve damage. Robbed of the speed that his game was based on, he was subse- quently forced to retire. — Source

2

'Umarells' is a term used in Italy used to describe old men that watch construction sites. G10 GRAGKED.COM The elderly men gather to observe, comment and criti- cize, often with their hands clasped be- hind their backs. — Source

1

Two students planned to poison Chicago's water supply with typhoid, anthrax, and other pathogens. CRACKED.COM Steven Pera and Allan Schwander were arrested in 1972 for the plan. They hi- jacked a plane once out on bond and flew to Cuba. One died in prison while the other made it back home and was given 5 years probation. — Source

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