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Hey, a mangled fact is still a fact

35 Random Bits of Trivia That Were Half-Off at the Grocery Store Because They Got Mysteriously Dented

September 17, 2024

What? You’re such a fact connoisseur that you can’t even take in a few sloppy facts?

Pfft. You’ve changed. When we first met, you were sucking up any little tidbit you could get your brain on. Now that we’ve given you thousands of facts over the years, you want to get picky?

Well, even the stuffiest food critic does a late-night McDonald’s run from time to time. So just consider this list a guilty pleasure, would ya?

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35

When pirates caught a. merchant vessel, some of its crew joined the pirates. That was relatively common, anyway, and the reason was simple: the conditions aboard merchant (and military) ships were terrible. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

34

Gigantic dinosaurs look super heavy, but they were actually surprisingly light. 3-FINGERED HAND Some of them, anyway, including the largest ones - and it's all because they had really light bones, plus air sacs throughout their body. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

33

The popularity of the death by meteor theory of dinosaur extinction is new. Other ideas include a ton of volcanic eruptions, or a similar worldwide catastrophe - but the meteor thing emerged as the leading theory in the '80s. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

32

Salami are completely uncooked, but still totally safe to eat as they are. The curing process, which involves the sausage maturing in its skin, makes them safe and gives them their characteristic intense flavor. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

31

The Statue of Liberty sways a little during a strong wind -up to 3 inches. That happens in 50 mph winds, and the torch alone swings up to 6 inches. But considering the statue is over 151 feet high, that's imperceptible from the ground. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

30

Justin Timberlake was paid $6 million to sing the I'm Lovin' It jingle M i'm lovin' it™ Timberlake recorded the McDonald's jingle expanded into a full song, written by Pharrell Williams. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

29

In Victorian England, drunk homeless people would sleep on a rope. It was called a two-penny hangover, because you'd pay two pennies to spend the night hanging over a rope. At around 5 or 6 AM, you'd be woken up by falling onto the ground, as the rope would get cut (and you'd then get kicked out onto the street). NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

28

When President McKinley got shot, a gynecological surgeon operated on him. Dr. Matthew Mann was the first doctor who responded, so he did the surgery. They did try to call experienced abdominal surgeon Dr. Roswell Park, but he was with another patient and said he couldn't leave even for the president of the United States. They told him that's who it was for, but it didn't change Park's mind. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

27

The East German secret police, the Stasi, took odor samples from interview subjects. GK Vorname Name Datum: 1/86 PKZ: Zeit: 1000 Delikt: Reg.Nr.: Dienstateller They used special chairs that had a sterile cloth - the cloth would hold the odor, and they'd keep it in a glass jar. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

26

Dolphins can tell the difference between predators and (nearly identical) playmates. Bigg's killer whales snack on dolphins, while southern resident killer whales avoid red meat (including dolphins). They're so similar that they're considered the same species, but dolphins only play with the safe kind. Science isn't sure how they do it, but it might be down to the whales' calls. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

25

Pulp Fiction wouldn't have gotten made without Danny DeVito. His production company Jersey Films bought the Pulp Fiction script from Tarantino. DeVito was the person who then shopped the script around, and eventually brought it to Miramax, which made the movie. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

24

They had to push Jimmy Fallon's jeep in his Band of Brothers cameo. It was a real WWII jeep, and he was a pretty bad driver, so he couldn't make it move. Two guys ended up having to push the jeep forward at the right moment while Fallon pretended to drive. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

23

Halle Berry spent 3-4 hours a day training dogs for John Wick: Chapter 3. It came after three hours of martial arts training and two hours of gun training. She didn't have to train dogs, but she did it just to be able to say she could. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

22

Don't Let These Facts Out Of Your Sight!

A deleted scene from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer explains why Cornelius licks his ax. After Rudolph guides Santa to the Island of Misfit Toys, Cornelius picks up his ax after throwing it in the air, then licks it and says Peppermint! What I've been searching for all my life! I've struck it rich. So he was just licking his ax to see if he'd finally found peppermint. NOW YOU KNOW CRACKED.COM — Source

21

WEIRD WORLD In California, they're trying to fight crows with actual laser beams. Crows have been plaguing Sunnyvale, CA, for a while, so the city plans to try and scare them off with green lasers. CRACKED.COM — Source

20

WEIRD WORLD In New Jersey, a very honest patron returned a book after 42 long years. The book was Paddington Abroad by Michael Bond, and the library said in a Facebook post that it's a Good thing we're fine free. CRACKED.COM — Source

19

WEIRD WORLD In Maryland, a lawmaker who's also a surgeon tried to combine those jobs. Terri Hill showed up in virtual legislative meetings while literally in the middle of surgery - and got fined a total of $15,000 for it. CRACKED.COM — Source

18

WEIRD WORLD A guy in Indiana got strange powers thanks to a horrible, freakish incident. X-X I Y-Y x2 2-X After a head injury from a violent attack, he became kind of a math genius - and even found a home thanks to his gift. CRACKED.COM — Source

17

WEIRD WORLD In Syracuse, a deer smashed through the window of a business called iSmash. It's a place where you can, well, smash things for fun, and the deer got in on the action. Nobody, human or animal, was harmed. CRACKED.COM — Source

16

WEIRD WORLD There's a corona monument in Belgium, but you can't go to the unveiling. Nobody can, and it's purely because of corona restrictions. We'll have to wait until the pandemic is over to see a monument to the pandemic, we guess. CRACKED.COM — Source

15

CRACKED APPLE SEEDS ARE POISONOUS. Amygdalin is a compound found in apple seeds, and it is poisonous to humans. However, it would take around 40 apples to produce enough seeds for a fatal dose. — Source

14

CRACKED A POPPED CHAMPAGNE CORK CAN TRAVEL UP TO 50 MILES PER HOUR. The reason for this is that the pressure inside a bottle of champagne is around three times that of an average car tire. — Source

13

CRACKED THE OLDEST KNOWN DOOR IN EUROPE WAS UNEARTHED IN SWITZERLAND. Tree rings suggest the door was made in 3063 BCE - around the time of Stonehenge. — Source

12

CRACKED THE OLDEST KNOWN JOKE IS A FART JOKE. It was made in Sumeria around 1900 ВСЕ. — Source

11

CRACKED FIGS ARE BELIEVED TO BE THE OLDEST FRUIT CULTIVATED BY HUMANS. They were introduced to our agriculture systems over 11,000 years ago. — Source

10

CRACKED YOU HAVE ABOUT 100,000 HAIRS ON YOUR HEAD. Blonde people average the most amount of hair, while redheads average the least. — Source

9

CRACKED HINDUISM IS THE WORLD'S OLDEST SURVIVING RELIGION. It is over 4,000 years old, and is currently the third largest religion behind Christianity and Islam. — Source

8

CRACKED THE LARGEST ORGANISM IN THE WORLD IS A FUNGUS THAT COVERS OVER 2,200 ACRES. It is located in Oregon, and is anywhere from 2,400 to 8,650 years old. — Source

7

CRACKED THE WORLD'S FIRST NEWSPAPER ORIGINATED IN CHINA. It dates back to 740 CE. — Source

6

CRACKED THE TALLEST MOUNTAIN IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM IS ON MARS. Olympus Mons is three times taller than Everest, and roughly the width of France. — Source

5

CRACKED YOU SPEND FOUR MONTHS OF YOUR LIFE WAITING AT RED LIGHTS. The average red light runs anywhere between 60 and 90 seconds. — Source

4

CRACKED THE SHORTEST DISTANCE BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE UNITED STATES IS ONLY 2.4 MILES. It can be crossed on foot during the winter months, when the Bering Strait freezes over. # - - - fice Noskan Kotsebue kotski 850+ Dezneva Diomede Shishmaref strov Uelen diBering Mys S ..I. avrentija Pe Wales Teller lngiaran Novoje Str. Caplino King 1. Nome Mys Caplina 30 No me - - Gamball and — Source

3

CRACKED SALT WAS SO VALUABLE IN ANCIENT TIMES THAT IT WAS USED AS CURRENCY. The word salary comes from the Latin word salarium, which was the allowance of salt given to Roman soldiers as part of — Source

2

CRACKED SNAKES CAN PREDICT EARTHQUAKES. If it's a big one, they can start behaving extremely erratically and smash their heads against walls. — Source

1

CRACKED THE OLDEST LIVING TREE IN THE WORLD IS IN CALIFORNIA. It is a pine named Methuselah, and is over 4,800 years old. — Source

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