1Eric Moussambani
The first time Eric Moussambani saw an Olympic size swimming pool was when he swam in the 2000 Olympics. He has by far the slowest time in Olympic history and struggled to finish the race. He won his heat after his competitors were disqualified and set a personal best and a national record.
2. Eddie Gaedel, a dwarf, became the shortest person in MLB history when he went up to bat a single time in 1951. His jersey number was 1/8.
3. Wellie Wanging is a sport in which the objective is to throw a Wellington boot as far as possible.
4. In the 2005 Formula One United States Grand Prix, 14 of the 20 cars quit the race after the formation lap out of protest since their Michelin tires were found unsafe for the final turn.
5. There is a restaurant in Japan named Kayabukiya Tavern that uses macaques as waiters.
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6JFK Reloaded
The creators of the 2004 video game "JFK Reloaded" awarded over $10,000 to the person who could best recreate the assassination in-game.
7. The novel Gadsby, with a total of around 50,000 words, never used the letter E.
8. Hemmingway once wrote a story that was only six words long. “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”
9. In Casorzo, Italy, there is a unique tree called Bialbero di Casorzo, meaning "double tree of Casorzo". It is actually a cherry tree growing straight on top of a mulberry tree.
10. Chickens sometimes engage in cannibalism. Historically, rose-tinted chicken eyeglasses were used on some chickens to prevent them from seeing blood and thus discourage them from cannibalizing injured chickens.
11London Underground mosquito
The London Underground has its own subspecies of mosquito, which is more aggressive towards humans than its surface-dwelling relative.
12. The larvae of the Epomis genus are notable for being obligate role reversal predators. Amphibians such as frogs are normal predators of beetles, however, Epomis larvae feed exclusively on frogs and other would-be predators.
13. There was a procedure developed in the 1960s that restored vision to those that were blinded, but a critical step involved pulling a healthy tooth from the patient. It's called osteo-odonto-keratoprosthesis.
14. Medical students’ disease (also known as second year syndrome or intern's syndrome) is a condition frequently reported in medical students, who perceive themselves to be experiencing the symptoms of a disease that they are studying.
15. There is a series of organic molecules called NanoPutians whose structural formulae resemble human form.
16English surname
The man often falsely cited as having the longest English surname on record, "Leone Sextus Denys Oswolf Fraudatifilius Tollemache-Tollemache de Orellana Plantagenet Tollemache-Tollemache", has a brother whose first 15 initials spell "LYONEL THE SECOND."
17. There is an Indian politician named "Adolf Lu Hitler Marak". Asked about his name, he said, "Maybe my parents liked the name and hence christened me Hitler... I am happy with my name, although I don't have any dictatorial tendencies."
18. Praise-God Barebone (1598-1679) was a radical English Puritan preacher and member of Oliver Cromwell's parliament. He gave his son Nicholas Barebone (or Barbon) the legendary middle name, “If-Jesus-Christ-Had-Not-Died-For-Thee-Thou-Hadst-Been-Damned.”
19. The Pauli effect is a term referring to the supposed tendency of technical equipment to encounter critical failure in the presence of certain people. The term was coined after mysterious anecdotal stories involving Austrian theoretical physicist Wolfgang Pauli, describing numerous instances in which demonstrations involving equipment suffered technical problems only when he was present. According to the principal, a functioning device and Wolfgang Pauli may not occupy the same room.
20. The man with the longest personal name ever used is Hubert Blaine Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenbergerdorff, Sr. That's only the abbreviation for it; in total his surname is made up of 26 other names and contains 666 letters.
21Mumbai "sweet" seawater incident
The 2006 Mumbai "sweet" seawater incident was a strange phenomenon during which residents of Mumbai claimed that the water at Mahim Creek had suddenly turned sweet. Within hours, residents of Gujarat claimed that seawater at Teethal beach had turned sweet as well. This caused mass hysteria among people who started coming in large numbers to drink the seawater.
22. In 1888, a scientist named Gerard Smets found a fossil fragment which he determined was a dinosaur, "Aachenosaurus". When it was proved that the fossil was in fact petrified wood, he withdrew from science completely from pure embarrassment.
23. Mannanafnanefnd is a committee in Iceland that determines whether a name is suitable for integration into the Icelandic language. New names are considered based on compatibility with Icelandic tradition and the likelihood that it might cause the bearer embarrassment.
24. There is a rare mental disease called the "Rapunzel Syndrome" named after long-haired Rapunzel from the Grimm's fairy tales. The disorder causes a patient to develop an irresistible urge to pull out their own hair, and sometimes eat it.
25. Approximately 7000 years ago, humans used to drill holes in their heads to allow spirits to flow in and out of the body. This practice is called 'Trepanation.'
