Friday Fun Facts - December 14, 2018

·         Pyramids are not just for pharaohs apparently, as there are over 20 extravagant pyramid mausoleums built in the U.S.

·         The word "jizz" is used to refer to the "overall impression or appearance of a bird" which leads to sentences in bird watching books like "The soaring jizz is quite majestic."

·         Before she landed the role in the 'High School Musical,' Vanessa Hudgens said she considered auditioning for American Idol. She turned 30 today!

·         Laurence Tureaud named himself professionally as Mr. T because he hated how his father, uncle, and brother who returned from Vietnam, were disrespectfully called "boy" by whites. He wanted the first word from everybody's mouth to be "Mister" when speaking to him.

·         After tourists began leaving bras on a fence in rural New Zealand, the trend caught on making the "Cardrona Bra Fence" a popular tourist attraction.

·         The average 18-year-old is only about halfway done with "mental puberty."

·         The largest and oldest known chestnut tree in the world is called Hundred Horse Chestnut, and is said to be about 4,000 years old.

·         When Mr Rogers heard his limo driver was going to be waiting outside while Rogers was in a meeting, he asked the driver to come in. On the way back they passed the driver's home and Rogers asked if they could stop and meet his family. Rogers kept in touch with the driver for the rest of his life.

·         If a Qtips breaks off inside your ear canal, it can lead to fatal otogenic meningitis and brain abscess.

·         There is a pill called "Father Christmas" that makes your farts smell like chocolate.

·         43 years ago today, 'Saturday Night Live' used a 5-second broadcast delay for the very first time during their seventh episode hosted by comedian Richard Pryor.

·         Frank Zappa was a futurist who was enthusiastic for the possibility of holographic imagery. So much so that he recorded footage of himself in the early 70s with the intention to be used when technology got to that point. A Frank Zappa holographic tour using that footage starts next year.

·         The assassin bug wears the corpses of its prey as camouflage.

·         In 2010, a goat farmer discovered that his goats produced more milk while listening to "All I Want for Christmas is You," by Mariah Carey.

·         The 'Rat Pack' never actually called themselves by that name. They referred to their group as 'The Summit.'

·         In Hinduism, atheism is considered to be a valid path to spirituality, as it can be argued that God can manifest in several forms with "no form" being one of them.

·         People plotting revenge experience heightened activity in the brain's reward center, according to a 2004 study in the journal Science.

·         While less than 10% of the general population is left-handed, about 20% of all identical twin pairs have one right-handed twin and one left-handed twin.

·         Cartoonist Thomas Nast was the first to publish the modern idea of Santa Claus in an 1863 issue of Harper’s Weekly.

·         Peter Weir wanted to have cameras installed in behind every theater showing ‘The Truman Show’ and have the projectionist cut the power at some point during the film, cut to the viewers so they'd be watching themselves, and then cut back to the movie.

·         Studies show that napping at work can boost your productivity.

·         Doctors' sloppy handwriting kills more than 7,000 people annually.

·         Hawaii King David Kalakaua was the first reigning monarch to visit the U.S. and was also the first king to attend the very first White House state dinner hosted by Ulysses S. Grant.

·         An orangutan named Ken who escaped from his enclosure at the San Diego Zoo multiple times in the 80's. His apparent goals were visiting other animals, throwing rocks at a despised orangutan rival and taking photos with tourists.

·         Roses taken to space have more "floral rose aroma" than the same roses on Earth, according to a 1998 experiment by NASA.

·         Even after dying and being cooked, squid will try to impregnate anything they can; including the mouth of the person eating them.

·         Poinsettias are actually not poisonous. You would have to eat at least 500 leaves for it to have any harmful effects.

·         While waiting for his audition for 'The Office', John Krasinski was telling someone about how he was worried the producers were going to screw the show up because of how great the British version is. The person he was talking to was Greg Daniels, the show’s executive producer.

·         On April 28, 1996, a gunman opened fire on tourists at an Australian resort, killing 35 people and wounding 23 more. Australia enacted strict gun laws and have had no mass shootings since.

·         A study found that women can increase their chances of being approached by a man if her arms are uncrossed, she makes subtle eye contact and smiles.

·         Historians believe Queen Elizabeth I made the first gingerbread man. She had them made to look like visiting dignitaries and then served them to the dignitaries as gifts.

·         After Michael Jackson's hair caught fire in 1984 he founded a burn center. “I wanted to do something because I was so moved by the other burn patients I met...” He suffered painful burns, but hospital staff remember him spending much of his time visiting and comforting other patients.

·         A soldier of the Indian Army once fought off 40 train robbers with a knife, killing 3 and injuring 8 to save a girl from getting raped.

·         Researchers found that taking the underarm sweat from a man and putting it on a woman's lips can improve her mood and regulate her menstrual cycle.

·         Every December 25th, a village in Peru hosts a festival called Takanakuy, which consists of dancing and people fighting each other to settle disputes.

·         Alcohol doesn't make you forget anything. When you get blackout drunk, the brain temporarily loses the ability to create memories.

·         There is a German man who was born in 1905 (when Germany was still ruled by Emperors), was 12 at the end of WWI, 40 at the end of WWII, 84 at the fall of the Berlin Wall, and is still alive at 113 years old.

·         Being able to respond with sarcastic wit within seconds of being asked a silly question is a sign of an efficient brain.

·         If you ate Ramen for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for an entire year, it would cost you about $143 total.

·         Former Prime Minister of Australia Bob Hawke had a serious accident at 17. This near-death experience acted as his catharsis, driving him to make the most of his talents and not let his abilities go to waste. Later he set a world record by drinking 1.4 liters of beer in 11 seconds.

·         "Imposter Syndrome" is a psychological pattern in which an individual doubts their accomplishments and has a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a "fraud."

·         The first 250 printed copies of 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' contained a penis illustration that led to a recall and reprint. It is unknown who drew it on there in the first place.

·         Charles Manson tried out Scientology and subsequently declared it as "too crazy."

·         Pineapple isn't just one fruit, but rather "multiple fruits consisting of coalesced berries."

·         France adopted the metric system 219 years ago. It was the first country to do so.

·         Smoky the Yorkie, a pet dog to soldiers in the south pacific, weighing 4lbs, who kept operational 40 United States fighters by running a wire tied to her collar through a 6in pipe, completing a 3 day construction job in minutes. Also had 10 recognized combat flights, 8 combat stars.

·         People born during the winter have a higher risk of developing mental disorders later in life.

·         President Theodore Roosevelt was the first American to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

·         R. Lee Ermey did such a stellar job with his performance in Stanley Kubrick's 'Full Metal Jacket,' that he only needed 2 or 3 takes to get his scenes right. This was extremely rare for Kubrick who, as a perfectionist, was known to do well over 100 takes for his scenes.

·         Electricity was first installed in the White House in 1891. It was such a new concept that President Benjamin Harrison and his wife both refused to touch light switches due to their fear of electrocution so the White House staff had to follow them around and turn the lights off and on for them.