Random Revelations: Article #106- 31 Unexpectedly True and Interesting Random Facts

NASA's 50-year project to research gravity and prove Einstein's theory of gravity was nearly abandoned after its research probe's instruments were off. It was saved by the donations of Dr. Turki Al Saud, a Saudi Prince whom holds a Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics.

2. The song "...baby one more time" was actually written for the American R&B group TLC. It was suggested to Britney Spears after the band rejected it.

3. The climate of the Sahara undergoes enormous variations between wet and dry every 20,500 years due to a tilt of the earth. At present, we are in a dry period, but it is expected that the Sahara will become green again in 15,000 years.

4. During the Great Depression, a Canadian woman strangled her daughter, drowned her son, poisoned herself and left a note "I owe the drugstore 44 cents."

5. Stalin hated soldiers who surrendered and considered them traitors. This included his own son, Yakov Stalin. When informed that the Nazi's had captured Yakov and sought a possible prisoner exchange with the USSR, Stalin replied: "I have no son called Yakov".

Richard Benjamin Harrison (The Grandpa from Pawn Stars) was arrested for stealing a vehicle and was given the choice to go prison or join the military. He chose to join military. He ended up serving in the military for 20 years.

7. According to a report about movie theater popcorn by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, "A medium-size buttered popcorn contains more fat than a breakfast of bacon and eggs, a Big Mac and fries, and a steak dinner combined."

8. Mexican jumping beans are seed pods that have been inhabited by the larva of a small moth. The beans “jump” when heated because of the larva spasms in an attempt to roll the seed to a cooler environment to avoid dehydration and consequent death.

9. There was a hotel named Historic Anderson House Hotel in Wabasha, Minnesota. It was famous for the cats which hotel guests could stay with for overnight companionship.

10. DMX, Jay-Z, and Busta Rhymes attended the same junior high school (George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School) with Biggie Smalls, at the same time.

A handful of paper scraps recovered from the 300-year-old wreck of Blackbeard’s ship Queen Anne's Revenge have been identified as fragments of the 1712 book A Voyage to the South Sea, and Round the World.

12. Loveseats were not invented so that two lovers could sit together. Originally, they were just oversized chairs designed to allow more space for excessively wide women's dresses up until the 18th century.

13. Grapefruit has a number of adverse drug interactions, and when eaten with certain drugs, can lead to accidental overdoses.

14. The British invented the "toast sandwich" which is literally a sandwich with buttered toast as the filling. An 1861 recipe suggests adding salt and pepper to taste and that it "will be found very tempting to the appetite of an invalid."

15. In Brazil, the term “Goal for Germany” (gol da alemanha) is now used if something terrible is happening to you.

The Vandals was a large East Germanic tribe originating from Poland and who, fleeing from the Huns, gradually migrated to Roman territories during the 5th century. They conquered Spain and most of Northern Africa and eventually sacked and looted Rome. The word "vandalism" is named after them.

17. There is a group of towns who call themselves 'the League of Extraordinary Communities', composed of Bland, Dull, and Boring.

18. American comedian David Letterman was blackmailed for $2 million when he had sexual relationship with female staff members of his TV show. He worked with authorities to catch the perpetrator.

19. The Vatican has noted that gluten-free wafers cannot be used in holy communion.

20. Friedrich Kellner was a civil servant in Nazi Germany who wrote a diary showing how nazism slowly crept into Germany's everyday life. He later said: "My eyewitness account would record the barbarous acts, and also show the way to stop them." It was published in English in 2018.

For almost 20 years an organization called the Blind Babies Foundation has supported a Beeper Egg Hunt for Blind Children to participate.

22. In Norway’s maximum-security Halden Prison, prisoners are paid 53 kroner ($9) per day to leave their cells, which are equipped with a video game console, mini-fridge, and a window with no bars. Guard stations are tiny and cramped to encourage them to interact with the prisoners.

23. The Mississippi River has been forced through New Orleans artificially by a series of floodgates. If they fail it will shift course 85 miles west and make America's largest port effectively useless overnight.

24. The Alpine Spaniel, a now extinct dog was bred by Augustinian Monks for rescuing travelers stuck in the snow of the Great St. Bernard pass. Dogs were sent in pairs so one could alert the monks when they found someone. They are said to be ancestors of modern-day St. Bernards.

25. Hungry men tend to be more attracted to women with higher body weight than men who have eaten the food.