Random Fact Sheet #89 – 45 Facts That Will Give You a Whole New Outlook

The US Postal Service banned the mailing of people in 1914 after a 4-year-old was sent by her parents across the state of Idaho for 53¢.

27. In one variation of the Milgram experiment, subjects were directed to shock a "cute, fluffy puppy" instead of a human. Only half of the male subjects and all of the female subjects obeyed the orders.

28. Kevin Peter Hall, the actor who played the Predator (1987), was involved in a near-fatal car accident in 1990. While receiving a blood transfusion at the hospital, he contracted AIDS and died less than a year later.

29. A cattle farmer, while clearing land on his Texas ranch, wrote his name (LUECKE) in letters that were 1 kilometer in length, producing the world’s largest signature. It lies on major flight paths into Houston and NASA uses it to evaluate satellite imagery.

30. The painting of George Washington used for the dollar bill was never finished.

There is a village in China named Huangfeng village that publishes the names of those who neglect their elderly parents as a means of shaming those people.

32. Almost all the stones/rocks used in the sport of 'Curling' is from the small uninhabited Scottish island of Ailsa Craig. The only other source of the stone is a quarry in Wales.

33. Texas Ranger Frank Hamer (1884-1955) is credited with having killed between 53 and 70 people. Over his career, he was shot 17 times and left for dead 4 times. He is best known for his lead role in tracking down Bonnie and Clyde.

34. The tiny island country of Tokelau’s electricity is generated entirely by solar power. However, when it is overcast outside, the island runs on generators powered by coconut oil.

35. Norway has won the most gold medals in Winter Olympic history and is the only nation to have at least 100 medals of each gold, silver, and bronze.

The first online transaction was weed bought by Stanford students from MIT students in 1971 or 1972. The deal occurred over the ARPANET, a precursor to the modern internet which was meant for students to use to communicate with other universities.

37. The famous Mexican legend Zorro was actually an Irishman called William Lamport.

38. Viagra can help make flowers stand straight up for a week past their natural lifespan.

39. Wi-Fi doesn’t stand for anything; it’s a made-up word. IEEE 802.11' didn't have much of a ring to it, and the industry association wanted a catchy name. They came up with wi-fi, and that's what's been used ever since.

40. Greeks invented "Worry Beads" (kompoloi) as a tool to de-stress. While many cultures and faiths created beads for religious purposes (Catholic Rosaries or Buddhist Mala for example) these beads aren't related to a religious practice. Greeks carry and play with them to relax or fidget.

Napoleon Bonaparte was the greatest general in human history, according to a detailed quantitative analysis in 2017 that was inspired by baseball sabermetrics.

42. African countries like Kenya struggle in getting McDonald's because of difficulties in tracing its supply chain. Ghana’s average disposable income has been declared too low by McDonald’s to enter the market and it canceled plans to open in Zimbabwe in 1999.

43. New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner was so moved by a police officer's funeral that he started the Silver Shield Foundation. The foundation pays educational costs for the children of New York City police officers and firefighters who gave their lives in the service of New York.

44. Roman slaves wore collars of iron with messages like a modern dog collar, for example, this one, which reads "I have run away; hold me. When you shall have returned me to my master, Zoninus, you will receive a solidus."

45. Tarot decks were originally used to play various card games similar to bridge, and are still used this way in parts of Europe. They did not become widely associated with the occult until more than 300 years after they were invented.