37 Quirky Random Facts Most People Don’t Know – Part 168

The US army guys who took part in the clean up of Enewetak Atoll after nuclear testing are dying from radiation-related illnesses and the US government won't recognize them.

27. 40 years before James Cameron's "Avatar" was released, the "Noon Universe" Russian sci-fi novels were published. Set on a forest planet called Pandora in the 22nd century, inhabited by humanoids called Nave (compared to the "Na'vi" in Avatar).

28. VeggieTales never recreated any new testament stories from the bible because the show's creator, Phil Vischer, refused to portray Jesus as a vegetable.

29. A 7-year-old boy named Titus Adams walked barefoot in the snow for half a mile to get help for his mom after she was thrown from her crashed pick-up truck. His courageous half-mile walk amid 23-degree weather saved his mother's life, authorities in Greeley, Colorado, said.

30. Baby Got Back by American rapper Sir Mix-a-lot was a call to see beauty in diversity. Sir Mix-a-lot used the song to blame the media for skewing the notion of beauty and hoped his music would empower women of all shapes and sizes.

In 1982, the Danish Navy accidentally fired a Harpoon missile during maneuvers in the Kattegat. The missile ended up destroying several properties though no human injury was reported. They later called this the 'oops' missile.

32. Louis Pasteur, the scientist who discovered pasteurization, originally did not experiment with milk, but beer.

33. The famous "guilty look" dogs have when they realize they've done something wrong isn't actually guilt. It's actually fear of being punished.

34. In December 1987, Nikki Sixx from Mötley Crüe was presumed dead from a heroin overdose. On route to the hospital the paramedic, who was a big Crüe fan, revived Sixx with two shots of adrenaline. His 2 minutes in death were the inspiration for the song "Kickstart My Heart".

35. The World Chess Federation rearranges tournament matchups so that the Iranians never have to play Israelis because Iran does not recognize the existence of Israel.

85 million years before butterflies existed, there was another insect named Oregramma illecebros that looked and acted exactly like a butterfly.

37. According to a psychological study, being a friend with your manager would come at a cost. To avoid the perception of favoritism, managers are more likely to deny their coworker-friends bonuses and other perks, even if they deserve such rewards.