1Goose
If a goose gets sick or is wounded while flying, a couple of other geese may drop out of formation to help and protect him. They will try to stay with the disabled goose until he dies or is able to fly again.
2. The first human cardiac catheterization was done by Werner Forssmann who, after failing to get permission from his department chief, anesthetized his arm, inserted a catheter into his vein and threaded it into his heart. He then walked down to the X-ray department and took a picture to prove it.
3. Autistic savant Daniel Tammet learned Icelandic in just one week and then went through a live interview on national TV in the language.
4. Arnold Schwarzenegger made $75,000 for his role in Terminator, but in Terminator 2 he made $15 million about 7 years later.
5. It is possible to travel from Portugal to Vietnam solely by train. At 17,000 kilometers, this is the longest train journey in the world.
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15 Most Controversial & Costly Blunders in History
6Trojan War
A 1997, comedy movie by the name of "Trojan War" made only $309 in ticket sales. It was made with a budget of $15 million.
7. During the London riots of 2011, the looting and vandalism which took place throughout the city were almost totally avoided by bookshops. One man said his store would probably stay open during the unrest, stating: "If they steal some books, they might actually learn something."
8. A 480-pound woman named Gayle Laverne Grinds died after having spent her last 6 years of her life stuck in a couch and died attached to the couch as well. By the time of her death, her skin had literally become one with the fabric of the sofa.
9. Cockle bread was a bread baked by English women in the 17th century, which was supposed to act as a love charm. The dough was kneaded and pressed against the woman’s vulva and then baked. This bread was then given to the object of the baker’s affections.
10. There is a Royal Navy superstition that whistling on a ship can summon strong winds. Traditionally, the only person allowed to whistle is the ship's cook, as it means he's not eating the food.
11Charles Harrelson
Woody Harrelson's dad (Charles Harrelson) was a hitman and died in prison while serving a life sentence for killing a Federal Judge.
12. Sir Jeffrey Hudson, the Court Dwarf of Charles I, challenged a man who insulted him to a duel on horseback. The man thought it was a joke, and showed up to the duel with a water gun, instead of a real pistol. Unfortunately, Hudson was quite serious and shot the man in the head, killing him.
13. Paper can be recycled only six times. After that, the fibers are too weak to hold together.
14. For those who have trouble sleeping, researchers say that one week of camping, without electronics usually resets our biological body clock and synchronizes our melatonin hormones with sunrise and sunset.
15. When a journalist innocently asked Pope John XXIII, "Your Holiness, how many people work in the Vatican?" He replied, "About half of them."
16Rick Moranis
Actor Rick Moranis was fired from the set of The Breakfast Club movie after he kept playing the janitor as a goofy Russian character.
17. Horseshoe-crab blood, at $60,000/gallon, is valued to such an extreme degree because it is not only employed worldwide in bacterial contamination tests, it is also used in testings for every single drug approved by the FDA, making it a $50 million/year industry.
18. Reintroducing wolves to Yellowstone in 1995 changed the entire geography of the park as elk were displaced, saplings that would have been eaten by elk were spared, riverbank erosion was brought under control, and streams and rivers shifted their courses.
19. A Colombian drug trafficker named Carlos Lehder bought himself an island in the Bahamas where he put an airstrip which controlled the drugs coming in from South America and entering the United States. He became so wealthy that he offered to pay Colombia's foreign debt for amnesty.
20. "Strawberries" and "peaches" in Quaker Instant Oatmeal are actually flavored dehydrated apples. The "blueberries" are flavored dried figs.
21John Swartzwelder
John Swartzwelder, a writer for the Simpsons used to write episodes while sitting in a booth at a coffee shop, "drinking copious amounts of coffee and smoking endless cigarettes." When California passed an anti-smoking law, he bought the diner booth and installed it in his house.
22. Yang Yuanqing (Lenovo's CEO) received a $3 million bonus as a reward for record profits, which he in-turn redistributed to about 10,000 Lenovo's employees. He did the same thing again in 2013.
23. Jams are made from fruit, while jellies are made from juice. Preserves have chunks of fruit, conserves have dried fruit or nuts, and marmalades have peel and pulp. Fruit butter is slowly cooked to a smooth consistency.
24. The waffled style ice cream cone, hamburgers, hot dogs, iced tea, cotton candy, and Dr. Pepper, were all first introduced to mass audiences or popularized at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair.
25. A Japanese stock trader named Takashi Kotegawa turned $13,600 into $156 million over 8 years and he still "eats cup ramen for almost all of his meals."
