12 Fresh Trivia Tidbits for Wednesday, September 4, 2024
What did Hvaldimir know, and when did he know it?
Click right here to get the best of Cracked sent to your inbox.
Space Beer Will Ferment Faster — But Taste a Little Off
The University of Florida fermented wort and yeast in simulated microgravity and found that, while that caused it to ferment faster than in Earth gravity, it yielded fewer esters, meaning it’ll taste a little bit different.
NASA Wants to Sail Through Space Like an Old-Timey Pirate Ship
NASA just tested a prototype of its 900-square-foot solar sale, a huge but ultra-lightweight sheet that’s propelled with photons from the sun.
How Much Are Students Spending on Dorm Room Decor?
Students are spending an average of $1,365 each on dorm-room decorations, for a total of $87 billion nationwide. That’s not even the peak either; last year’s total was $94 billion.
Some of Them Are Hiring Interior Designers
There are reports that some rich kids are shelling out $10,000 to have personal interior designers deck out their dorms.
Just How Important Is Exercise?
A new study has shown that one minute of exercise can add as much as five minutes to a person’s life, with researchers calling exercise “the single most potent medical intervention ever known.” Clearly they’ve never had a boo-boo kissed by my mommy, but few have.
Seriously, What Can’t Ozempic Do?
Ozempic and Wegovy, two wildly popular and effective weight-loss drugs, have already been found to potentially help with addiction, and have now been found to lower a person’s risk of dying from COVID.
Which Animal Is the Best at Backflipping?
The globular springtail is a hexapod (once considered an insect, but now classified as something else) that can backflip a distance of 60 times its body length.
Did the Eiffel Tower Get an Olympics Tattoo?
Paris’ Mayor Anne Hidalgo has proposed keeping the Olympic rings on the Eiffel Tower permanently. There’s been some controversy, but Hidalgo has said, “The decision is up to me... so yes, they will stay on the Eiffel Tower.”
Scientists Just Discovered a New Mountain
There’s an underwater mountain off the coast of Chile that scientists have only just begun to map that may be home to around 20 never-before-seen species.
Rock Paper Scissors Deluxe
WhatBeatsRock.com lets you type in any noun you can possibly think of, to play an ever-heightening game of Rock Paper Scissors. It’ll even tell you if you’re clever or not, by letting you know how many other people tried your noun.
The U.S. Mullet Champions
The USA Mullet Championships have crowned new champs in child, teen and adult leagues. Todd Grubb won the top prize of $5,000 with a mullet he named Flow Motion.
Who Took Out the Russian Spy Whale?
Hvaldimir, a friendly white beluga whale that became popular among Norwegians, despite having a GoPro and a harness that read “Equipment of St. Petersburg,” has been found dead off the Norwegian coast.