For about 600 years, until around the 14th century, the official language of Britain was...
French was the official language of England for over 600 years.
Peanuts are not actually nuts. They are technically...
Peanuts are not at all nuts. They grow in the ground and are in the same family as beans. They are both part of the legume family, which consist of edible seeds enclosed in pods.
True or False: a can of Diet Coke will float… even though a can of regular Coke won’t.
Grab a bucket and fill it with water. Then throw in a can of Diet Coke, and a can of regular Coke. The Diet will float, while the other can sinks straight to the bottom.
Which country has a flag with a design that contains the flags of six other countries? (Hint: the countries are Finland, France, Indonesia, Netherlands, Poland, and Thailand.)
Norway's flag has the flags of six other countries contained in it: Finland, France, Indonesia, Netherlands, Poland, and Thailand.
In 1898, an American writer named Morgan Robertson wrote a mildly popular novel called the Wreck of the Titan, which accidentally predicted which event?
In 1898, an American writer named Morgan Robertson wrote a mildly popular novel called the Wreck of the Titan. The book centered around the sinking of a massive ship called the Titan, and the ensuing disaster stemming from a lack of lifeboats onboard? Sound familiar? You'd think that Robertson simply ripped off the story of the Titanic to create his dramatic story... but that's where things get really weird: the Titanic didn't sink until 1912... 14 years after Robertson published his story.
Hippopotamus milk is naturally what color?
The milk of a hippopotamus is naturally pink.
What is the closest US state to Africa?
Maine is the closest of any American state to the continent of Africa.
Before we bred them to be orange, carrots were naturally...
Carrots were originally purple, and made Orange through selective breeding.
A blue whale’s heart is roughly the size of...
Blue Whales are so large, a human can swim through their arteries. Their heart is the size of a small car. We don't know why you'd want to though.
Which was around first: Oxford University, or the Aztec Empire?
Oxford University is one of the oldest educational institutes on the planet. It predates the beginning of the Aztec Empire. Think about how insane that is. Entire societies have risen and fallen in the lifetime of this single institution.
What is the national animal of Scotland?
The national animal of Scotland is the Unicorn. Leave it to the Scottish people to choose a mythical creature for their national symbol. Every other country on Earth was busy choosing real-life animals like a bunch of dorks--- so Scotland just went ahead and chose the coolest thing available.
Which of these fruits is NOT technically a berry?
Avocados and watermelons are berries. Strawberries are not.
True or False: American fighter planes once dropped a nuclear bomb near the state of Georgia.
True! During a 1958 a practice exercise, an American jet collided with a bomber carrying a nuclear bomb. To protect the crew from detonation, the bomb was jettisoned. After several searches, the bomb was considered lost somewhere along the coast of Georgia.
How many countries lie between North Korea and Finland?
North Korea and Finland are technically separated by one country: Russia.
Surprisingly , Lewis and Clark were asked by President Thomas Jefferson to search for…
The expedition of Lewis and Clark is famous for many reasons, but they had one goal you might not expect. Thomas Jefferson had a thing for mammoths (or, more accurately, American Mastodons). He was completely enamoured with the extinct behemoths, and held out hope that they continued to live many miles away in the west of America. So when he sent Lewis and Clark out on their famous expedition, he told them to keep a weather eye out for any furry elephants.
From the moment it was discovered, to the time it was declassified as a planet, how many times did Pluto orbit the sun?
From the moment it was discovered, to the time it was declassified as a planet, Pluto never made a full trip around the Sun.
Which of these food items will basically never spoil or become inedible?
Honey is one of the only food items in your home that will never spoil. Turns out, the precise mixture of acids and sugar that make up this delicious nectar are absolutely perfect for preventing rot and spoilage. Bees must know what they're doing.
Which of these animals actually has three hearts?
An octopus has 3 hearts. Of course, there's at least one octopus reading this who would say that their ex actually had no heart at all.
True or False: diamonds are incredibly rare in the rest of the universe. They basically only appear on Earth.
On Saturn and Jupiter, it literally rains diamonds.
In fact, it turns out that nearly everywhere else in space, diamonds are about as rare as water is on Earth. Scientists speculate that large pockets of methane on Uranus and Neptune also produce diamonds at a high rate, while there may well be other planets in the universe that are 80% diamond or higher. Some researchers have even come to the conclusion that diamond was the first mineral that ever formed in space.
What is the only species of bird that can fly backwards?
Hummingbirds are the only bird that can fly backwards.
Which country is famous for being so literate, that 1 in 10 people there will publish a book in their lifetime?
1 out of every 10 Icelanders will publish a book in their lifetime. Turns out, the tiny island nation is just an absolute haven for authors. There's even a common saying in Icelandic to describe this phenomenon: "ad ganga med bok I maganum", meaning that everyone is born with a book in their stomach.
Human fingerprints are virtually indistinguishable from those of which animal?
Human fingerprints are indistinguishable from Koala fingerprints. Not even careful analysis under a microscope can distinguish the swirling, curving prints on those fuzzy paws from the prints on our own fingers.
Before we knew better, Heroin used to be prescribed over-the-counter as...
Heroin used to be sold over the counter to treat coughs. And not just in adults, either--- we're talking about children's coughs as well!
In 1925, an American con-man managed to pull off an outrageous scam when he “sold” which world-famous landmark to a misinformed buyer?
In 1925, Victor Lustig pulled off what might just be the greatest scam in the long history of bamboozlement. This guy literally sold the Eiffel Tower.
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