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40 Random Bits of Trivia That Will Take Seven Years to Digest If You Swallow Them

June 27, 2024

Before sliced bread, the analogy for life-changing technological advancement was “wrapped bread.”

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40

John Adams represented the British troops who fired on civilians during the Boston Massacre in 1770. Prior to British troops firing on civilians, they were pelted with oyster shells, ice, stones, sticks, and beat- en with clubs by an unruly mob. At the trial, John Ad- ams got the soldiers acquit- ted of murder. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

39

Instead of providing famine relief, most of Live Aid's money went to funding an Ethiopian Dictator. The Ethiopian dictator, Mengistu, was using the money the west gave him to buy sophisticated weap- ons from the Russians, and was now able to efficiently and viciously crush the ор- position. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

38

One of Ronald Reagan's agents was inspired to join the Secret Service by Reagan's films. Agent Jerry Parr joined the service after seeing movies as a child about the Secret Service, starring Ronald Reagan. Parr would go on to save Reagan from an as- sassination attempt. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

37

There was a 1700% increase in bank robberies during the Great Depression. in The Texas Bankers Asso- ciation created the Dead Bank Robbers Reward Program, paying $5000 to anyone who killed a robber during the crime, no questions asked. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

36

Arnold Schwarzenegger accidentally went to a restaurant still in his Terminator face prosthetics. During a break in filming, Schwarzenegger went into a restaurant in downtown LA and realized too late that he was still in Termi- nator makeup with a miss- ing eye, exposed jawbone and burned flesh. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

35

The Holy Roman state of Hesse-Kassel became a mercenary state renting out its army to other major powers. The state maintained strict neutrality, to the point that it would rent out soldiers to both sides of a conflict and the Hessian soldiers would end up fighting each other. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

34

The 'Forgettable Presidents' resided in the White House from the end of the Civil War until the 1890s. They were either im- peached, assassinat- ed, disgraced by their own party, surround- ed by corruption, or possibly fraudulently elected. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW

33

Leprino Foods has control over 85% of the pizza cheese market. The cheese used by major pizza companies like Dom- inoes, Papa Johns, and Piz- za Hut is monopolized by this single cheese compa- ny. They sell one billion pounds of cheese per year for $3 billion. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

32

During the Great Depression Al Capone started one of the first soup kitchens. Called Free Soup Coffee & Doughnuts for the Un- employed, Capone's soup kitchen served breakfast, lunch, and din- ner to an average of 2,200 Chicagoans every day. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

31

A Harvard business school professor threatened to sue a Chinese restaurant over $4. ML ante Chine Golden-Garden Golden Garden Ben Edelman was overcharged a total of 4 dollars, because the prices on the restau- rant's website were out of date. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

30

The reason Ray Lewis wore 52 on his jersey was because of his deck of cards workout routine. Growing up, Lewis would pull a card from a deck and do however many reps the card was. An ace was 25 and a Joker 50. Не would go through the whole deck. In the NFL, he would do it 3 times for each exercise. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

29

Through the process of grafting it is possible for one tree to produce multiple types of fruit. The Tree of 40 Fruit pro- duces up to, you guessed it, 40 different stone fruits simultaneously. This is one of a series of fruit trees created by the Syracuse University Professor Sam Van Aken. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

28

Children are less likely to develop allergies if their pacifier is placed in their parent's mouth first. A study showed that chil- dren whose parents placed the children's pacifiers in their own mouths before giving it to the child were less likely to develop aller- gies like eczema and asth- ma later in life. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

27

Long-term hiccups may be caused by hair in your ear touching your eardrum. A cause of long-term hic- cups is damage to or irrita- tion of the vagus nerves or phrenic nerves, which serve the diaphragm muscle. It could also be a tumor, cyst or goiter in your neck, so have fun with that. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

26

The CIA proposed to commit acts of terrorism on American soil and blame it on Cuba. 118 118 Operation Northwoods called for MiG jets to be painted in Cuban colors to create public support for a war. John F Kennedy re- jected this proposal and removed the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

25

The smell of infants triggers the same response in mothers that hungry people feel about food. The odors activate re- ward-related areas of the brain, the same regions that trigger a pleasurable rush of dopamine when we get our hands on a de- sirable bit of food. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

24

Reggie Jackson passed on playing for Oklahoma because they told him to stop dating white girls. Alabama, Georgia, and Okla- homa were willing to break the color barrier just for Jackson, but he passed on all three because he feared the South (understandable) and didn't like his dating habits dictated (also understand- able). CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

23

The University of Southern California's Spirit of Troy is the only collegiate band to have two platinum records. They have performed at the Oscars, the Grammys, on Fleet- wood Mac's Tusk, for five U.S. Presidents, and at the fall of the Berlin Wall. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

22

The distance between Europe and Africa is only 9 miles at the narrowest part of the Strait of Gibraltar. A hypothetical bridge or tunnel spanning the gap, called the Strait of Gibraltar Crossing, would con- nect Europe and Afri- ca. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

21

An unexplained massacre happened at the ring-fort of Sandby Borg in Sweden 1,500 years ago. During the European Mi- gration Era in Sweden, the fort was swiftly attacked, with all its inhabitants killed and left where they fell. The fort was then abandoned, but no goods or livestock were looted. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — Source

20

By 1933, around 80% of bread sold in the US was pre-sliced. GRACKED.COM When sliced bread was first announced in 1928 it was referred to as, the greatest for- ward step in the bak- ing industry since bread was wrapped. — Source

19

The people of Kenya's Dorobo tribe steal fresh kills from lions. CRACKED.COM They find a pride that has had a fresh kill during daytime, then walk up to them while they are feeding and cut off some meat. The lions are too startled to react and usually run away. — Source

18

Allowing park guests in 'Roller Coaster Tycoon' to drown was easier than programming them to swim. CRACKED.COM The original designer didn't set out to make a violent game, but the alternative re- quired a lot more program- ming (and graphics) than a simple animation of the guest waving for help and fi- nally disappearing. — Source

17

Conservationists recycle Wimbledon tennis balls as predator-proof shelters for Harvest Mice. CRACKED COM An adult mouse weighs as little as 4 grams. The mice normally weave their homes out of shred- ded grass and reeds, at- tached to stems well above the ground. — Source

16

Pigeons give their flock leader performance reviews. CRACKED.COM Pigeons can understand when a flock leader is do- ing a poor job and course correct. The poor leader will also spend less time as head bird and lose flock mates due to poor perfor- mance. — Source

15

Samuel Little was the most prolific American serial killer. FBI WASHINGTON FIELD OFFICE EVIDENCE RESPONSE TEAM CRACKED.COM Не claimed to have killed as many as 93 women and the FBI has confirmed his involvement in at least 50 murders, the largest num- ber of proven cases for any serial killer in US his- tory. — Source

14

All astronauts have to learn how to speak Russian, and all cosmonauts have to learn how to speak English. CRACKED.COM It's part of the require- ments for basic training, says Canadian astronaut and medical doctor David Saint-Jacques, you have to pass a certain compe- tency test in Russian. — Source

13

Only 8 actors voiced all of the speaking roles in the 1984 cartoon series 'ThunderCats.' CRACKED.COM Each actor had to voice an average of 8.25 characters to bring the 66 speaking roles to life. Lynne Lipton provided voices for every single female character in the first season. — Source

12

Coolio was beaten and robbed in 2009 after attempting to stage dive. CRACKED.COM The rapper was performing to a Students Union at Stafford University in the UK, when he decided to launch himself off the stage into the crowd. No one caught him, and his shoes were stolen. — Source

11

You can have your own police-escorted parade in New Orleans for a few hundred dollars. CRACKED.COM For 30 minutes, you and your friends can lead a five-man brass band down the streets of New Orleans while uniformed officers on Vespas clear the way through the crowds. — Source

10

A moth adapted a tongue many times its body length to reach the nectar of an extremely deep flower. CRACKED.COM Charles Darwin theorized such a moth existed in 1862, just by seeing the Madagascar flower that was sent to him. 130 years later, Xanthopan morganii was discovered feeding on the flower. — Source

9

1 gram of botulinum neurotoxin makes 90% of the world's supply of botox for a year. CRACKED.COM A company in Ireland pro- duces about 90% of the world's commercial Botox, which is the biological product of this toxin. The single gram that is import- ed into Ireland is enough to kill one million people. — Source

8

Bill Nye's relative is responsible for the international ban against whaling. CRACKED.COM The Science Guy is a di- rect descendant of the founder of Nye Lubri- cants' brother, Captain Nye, who invented a new type of synthetic oil that was more reliable than its organic predecessors. — Source

7

Jim Caviezel was struck by lightning whilst filming 'The Passion of the Christ.' GRAGKED.COM Assistant director Jan Mi- chelini was struck twice by lightning minutes be- fore Caviezel, who played the titular Christ, on loca- tion a few hours from Rome. — Source

6

In 2020, 9 members of the same family died in China after eating noodles that were in the freezer for a year. CRACKED.COM The corn-based noodles, a local Chinese dish called Suantangzi, gave them Bongkrekic acid poisoning. Three children in the fami- ly didn't like the taste and refused to eat them, sav- ing their lives. — Source

5

A massive planet in the Milky Way named SIMP ironically does not orbit anything. CRACKED.COM SIMP J01365663+0933473 is a free-range planet 13 times the mass of Jupiter, with stunningly bright au- roras that are generated by a magnetic field 4 million times stronger than Earth's. — Source

4

Parents in Iceland often leave their infants outside in the stroller when they go to restaurants. CRACKED.COM Iceland's crime rate is so low, there is basically no need to worry about the babies. This became a common occurrence when tuberculosis took over in the 20th century, to give the children fresh air. — Source

3

Babies learn a language by hearing it spoken directly to them in person. CRACKED.COM As little as 12 hours with a human tutor produces dra- matic results in babies, compared with no results even after many more hours of exposure to for- eign language TV shows. — Source

2

Men's sweat smells like cheese and womens' smells like onions. CRACKED.COM The odor is not caused by the sweat itself. Bacteria that live on the body in- gest compounds present in the sweat, the metabo- lism of which causes the smell. — Source

1

African spiny mice can shed up to 60% of the skin on their backs to escape predators. CRACKED COM They then regrow hair follicles, skin, sweat glands and fur instead of scar tissue. It is spec- ulated that we could switch this mechanism on in humans. — Source

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