12 Trivia Tidbits for Monday, May 20, 2024
Somewhere in New York City, there’s a duck who’s almost definitely run in more marathons than you have.
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A Woman Lived in the Empty Space Above a Grocery Story Entryway for a Year
Workers noticed an extension cord on the roof of a Family Fare, and found a woman living up, inside the store’s sign, with little more than a computer and a coffee maker.
Elephants Will Fart Hello
Researchers have noticed particular greeting behaviors when two elephants see each other for the first time in a while. They’ll swing their trunks and flap their ears (boring), and also poop, pee and fart to release chemicals that say, “What’s up?”
Paris Hilton’s Brother-in-Law Bought His Way Onto a Pro Soccer Team
Forty-five-year-old Courtney Reum was an Ivy League soccer player a couple of decades ago, and was recently able to finagle a spot on the roster of a Portuguese soccer team. A six-figure loan on behalf of his investment firm caught the team’s attention, and Reum then spent another five figures on a 10-week training course to get in as close to tip-top shape as possible.
Two Crypto Bandits Pulled Off an Extremely Unique Heist
There’s never been a crime quite like it, but they’re being charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Two MIT graduates figured out how to redirect money in the split-second between the time an Ethereum transaction occurs, and when it’s logged in the blockchain. They managed to squirrel away $25 million in about 12 seconds.
There Are One-Dollar Bills in Circulation Worth $150,000
The U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing screwed up in 2014, and then again in 2016, resulting in 6.3 million bills with misprinted, often duplicated serial numbers. If you have a pair of bills with the same serial number, collectors are paying up to $150,000.
NYC Is Only the Third-Most Rat-Infested City in the Country
According to Orkin, New York slid down from number two to number three in 2023. Los Angeles took second place, while Chicago came in first.
An Economist Has Estimated the Cost of Both Death Stars
Professor Zachary Feinstein calculated the cost of the first Death Star at $193 quintillion, while the new and improved Death Star would have cost $226 quintillion in steel alone, ultimately topping out at $419 quintillion.
You Can Own an Isolated, Dilapidated Lighthouse for $450,000
A rusty lighthouse on a tiny island in the Chesapeake Bay is up for sale for just a half million dollars. It comes with complementary gigantic lightbulb servicing, courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard.
Norway’s Wildly Successful Middle School Phone Ban
After three years of a phone ban in middle schools, Norwegian kids have reported 46 percent less bullying, while girls in particular saw a 60 percent decrease in mental health professional visits, and a general uptick in their GPAs.
A Chinese Zoo Made Fake Pandas
Visitors are upset that Taizhou Zoo’s newest addition was a couple of Chow Chows dyed black and white. But the intriguing new species was clearly labeled as a “panda dog,” so they technically weren’t lying.
A Gigantic Carbon Capture Facility Just Revved to Life
A Swiss start-up just flipped the switch on a facility that hopes to capture 36,000 metric tons of atmospheric carbon per year, the largest such facility in the world. It works almost impossibly simply, with industrial fans shooting air through huge filters.
A Duck Ran in Four Marathons
Wrinkle the duck has been in three NYC Marathons and the Long Island Marathon over the last few years. She’s probably only run about a half mile in each, but that’s still a lot for a duck. Her owners were training her for parading, and noticed she had exceptional endurance, so they decided to see how far she could go.