Random Fact Sheet #206 – Enchanting World of Random Knowledge – 30 Facts

Sean Connery was offered to play in Manchester United but chose to decline it and move on to the film industry.

2. The "debate" about vaccines and autism, began after a fraudulent paper was published. The author is no longer licensed to practice. Countless dollars have been spent to debunk his claims, and innocent children have probably died due to his lies.

3. Sean Conway, the first man to swim the length of Great Britain grew a beard to stop jellyfish stinging his face.

4. Liquid helium has zero viscosity and can flow through microscopic holes and up walls against gravity.

5. In August 2001, actor James Woods reported 4 suspicious individuals on his flight. Authorities did not act on his claim and they later turned out to be the 9/11 hijackers.

According to a study by the British Academy of Sound Therapy, the song Weightless by Marconi Union is the most relaxing song ever.

7. During a pledge drive, a DJ at a Portland, or radio station promised that the station would never play "Stairway to Heaven" again if someone made a $10,000 donation. Robert Plant was driving on the Oregon coast, heard the offer, and made the donation.

8. A Japanese man named Yasuo Takamatsu has been learning to scuba dive specifically so that he can look for his wife's remains after she was presumably swept away during the 2011 tsunami. He says her last email to him was "... I want to go home", and he is determined to make that happen.

9. While Bob Barker was the host of The Price is Right, he banned fur, wool, and leather prizes, fake display meat products, zoo trips, and cars made by foreign-owned automobile companies. Only fur products remain banned.

10. A groom named Jason Anderson forgot his wedding pants in the dressing room of a Minnesota clothier and flew to Costa Rica for his wedding. The clothier sent his daughter on an 11-hour flight to deliver the pants personally because UPS and FedEx said they could not help.

In 1984, a woman named Jennifer Thompson-Cannino mistakenly identified Ronald Cotton as her rapist. Cotton spent 11 years in prison until DNA evidence proved his innocence. Upon his release, the two became good friends and currently travel the country speaking of the dangers of false identification.

12. Subway's most popular sandwich, the Italian BMT, stands for 'Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit', which is literally a Subway.

13. Sudden testicular pain can be a symptom of testicular torsion. It occurs in about 1 in 160 males before 25 years of age and if not treated within 6 hours, can result in loss of the testicle.

14. Johnny Cash was born with the name J.R. Cash because his parents couldn't think of a name. When he enlisted in the Air Force, they wouldn't let him use his initials, so he began to call himself John.

15. 800 different languages are spoken in New York City, making it the most linguistically diverse city on Earth.

There is a bed called the Cuddle Mattress, where it is divided into layers of foam for your arm to slip through.

17. There was a professor who did a study on 1000s of elderly people and what advice they had about life. On happiness there was a consensus: "Almost to a person, the elders viewed happiness as a choice, not the result of how life treats you."

18. The US Government has rigorous specifications for the pens (Skilcraft pens) it buys. They ought to be assembled by blind people, the pens must be able to write for a mile and in temperatures 160°F to -40°, are designed to fit undetected into uniforms, can stand in for a two-inch fuse, and be used for an emergency tracheotomy.

19. Gardens of Versailles with its more than 2000 fountains consumed more water per day than the entire city of Paris. To solve the water shortage, the fountaineers would signal each other upon the king's approach to turning on the fountain. Once the king passed the fountain, it would be turned off again.

20. In the early nineteenth century, the United States had a hundred and forty-four separate time zones.

Fair Oaks Farms in Indiana produces compressed natural gas from its cows' waste and uses it to fuel their fleet of delivery trucks and farm equipment. This practice saves 1.5 million gallons of diesel and reduces CO2 emissions by 1.4 million metric tons.

22. ESPN won an Emmy for the creation of the superimposed yellow line representing the first down line for American football games.

23. When Pearl Jam released their cover of 'Last Kiss' as a single, they decided all proceeds would go to Kosovo War refugees. The song raised over $10 million.

24. Elias Disney, Walt Disney's father was unimpressed when his son took him on a tour of his new film studio until Walt pointed out that it could be converted into a hospital if his animation business fails.

25. Bike Helmet Law was defeated in Denmark partly because "the overwhelming evidence is that enforced helmet laws lead to very much less cycling, particularly for utility journeys and amongst young people."