50 Random Facts List #196

In the 1930s, dust storms were so severe that the static electricity generated would arc from your body to the nearest metal object and knock you head-over-heels. Two men shaking hands could literally knock each other out.

27. In 1978, three Indiana teenagers were killed when their Ford Pinto was involved in a rear-end collision. Ford was indicted on three counts of reckless homicide. Indiana v. Ford was the first time a corporation faced criminal charges for a defective product and charged with murder.

28. Adolf Dassler, who went by the name “Adi,” returned to the ruins of post-war Germany and decided to abandon his career of baking and follow his passion for making athletic gear. He then founded Adidas.

29. During the Prohibition era, the U.S. Government allowed Whiskey to be sold through pharmacies. As a result, Walgreens grew from 20 retail stores to almost 400.

30. 1816 was a year where the New England states did not have a summer. Frost and cold snaps throughout the summer months killed crops and made life miserable.

During the Battle of the Bulge, German troops who could speak English were air-dropped behind Allied lines while wearing American uniforms to raise confusion among the Allies.

32. Although they spend 16 hours a day in the water, hippos can't swim because they are too muscular and sink. Instead, they just run around under the surface.

33. Ants manage large-scale infrastructure projects with no coordination at all. Each ant acts alone, solving problems such as removing obstructions as they are encountered. Research points to the simple, evolutionary energy-saving principle of: "If you do not need to communicate, don't!"

34. The studies focusing on human nature and behavior overlook 85% of the people on Earth. Majority of these studies take into account a narrow slice of humanity - college students, people living near universities and highly educated residents of wealthy and industrialized countries.

35. There are companies with the fake first class plane, yacht, sports car interiors, etc so you can fake an upscale lifestyle for your social media.

Thousands of Americans may have died after 9/11 just because they were too afraid to fly. Since 9/11 led travelers to choose driving over flying, Cornell researchers believe that the attacks caused an estimated increase of 242 deaths per month because statistically flying is much safer than driving.

37. In 2018, tenant of a Paris flat was evicted and ordered to pay her landlord the entirety of her €47,000 short-term rental earnings for illegally subletting the property on Airbnb.

38. The guitar solos finishing "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd were added to give lead singer Ronnie Van Zant a chance to rest while playing several sets per night.

39. The city of Topeka, Kansas was renamed to Topikachu for a day in both 1998 and 2018 to celebrate the release of new Pokémon games.

40. Inside Airforce One, commemorative packs of red, white, and blue-colored M&M's are given to guests in lieu of cigarette boxes. This tradition was started on Nancy Reagan's request to ban smoking on Airforce One in 1988.

Sarah Halley Finn has been the casting director for every single Marvel movie to date (except The Incredible Hulk). She has chosen over 1000 actors for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

42. Kobe Bryant and his parents were not on speaking terms because they don't approve of his interracial marriage and because they sold his high school memorabilia.

43. Silent film comedian Buster Keaton got his start in his father's vaudeville act at the age of 3. His act would be to goad his father into throwing him across the stage, and he became so good at falling that he rarely got bruises. He was eventually billed as "The Little Boy Who Can't Be Damaged."

44. Harry Wilhelm was an unemployed veteran who memorized the entire US Constitution during the Great Depression. Rep. Sol Bloom bet he couldn't recite it perfectly. When Wilhelm proved him wrong, Bloom immediately gave him a job.

45. During times of war and other crises in Britain, men with seafaring experience would be taken against their will by press gangs to become part of the Royal Navy crew. Sometimes they were taken in the middle of the street and would find themselves trapped on a ship and with no hope of escape.

The Seven Kingdoms from Game of Thrones are based on a real period of British History called the “Heptarchy.”

47. The previously unknown glymphatic system was first described in 2012. Previously, scientists did not fully understand how the brain, which maintains its own closed ecosystem, removed waste. During sleep, a system of plumbing pumps cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) through the brain to wash away waste.

48. Melanophila beetles (known as fire chaser beetles) are able to sense forest fires from 80 miles away and seek them out since burnt wood is the source of nutrition for their young.

49. Fritted glass is a special kind of glass that has small opaque dots to ensure birds can see the glass while humans can see straight through it.

50. US nuclear power plants, by law, are built strong enough to withstand the impact of a fully-loaded commercial airliner crashing into it without rupturing.