The world is a truly fascinating place, full of little quirks and oddities. Most of these fun facts don’t pop up in the history books, and that’s unfortunate, because they’re truly the spice of life.
If you’re the type of person who ponders the more peculiar questions of the universe, then you’re going to love this list of 35 fascinating facts about our past and present. For example, have you ever wondered how many mosquitoes it would take to drink all your blood? Or what Neil Armstrong carried with him on the moon? If so, we’ve got the answers for you right here. #8 is absolutely insane.
#35. The Spanish national anthem has no lyrics.
#34. It’s possible for corpses to get goosebumps.
#33. Tupac Shakur’s ashes were smoked (along with marijuana), by his friends.
#32. Jousting is the state sport of Maryland.
#31. Breathing through your nose, you always inhale more air from one nostril than the other. Additionally, the nostril that gets the most air changes every so often.
#30.It would take 1,200,000 mosquitoes, each sucking once, to completely drain the average human of blood.
#29. Harry Truman didn’t accept any sort of paycheck once he left office, believing that taking advantage of his past time as president would destroy the integrity of the office. He lived on $113 per month, via his old army pension.
#28. By the age of 12, Andre the Giant could not fit on a school bus.
#27. When George Washington died, Napoleon ordered 10 days of mourning in France
#26. Neil Armstrong carried a piece of the Wright Brother’s first airplane when he walked on the moon.
#25. James Harrison got a blood transfusion at 13, and therefore vowed to donate blood as an adult. It was then discovered that his blood has a rare antigen that cures Rhesus disease. He has subsequently donated blood over 1,000 times, saving 2,000,000 lives in the process.
#24. One researcher found that the Mona Lisa actually did have eyelashes and eyebrows – they were simply lost after years of over-cleaning.
#23. Saudi Arabia imports many of its camels from Australia.
#22. A full head of human hair is strong enough to support 12 tons of weight – but definitely don’t test this theory at home.
#21. The full-length national anthem of Greece has 158 verses.
#20. According to Conneticutt state law, a pickle has to bounce in order to qualify as a pickle.
#19. The Gigantopithecus was a 10 ft. ape that has now gone extinct. Analysis of their fossils show that this species was self-aware enough to bury its dead.
#18. Most of the time, cats only meow to communicate with humans – not other cats.
#17. Kangaroos can’t jump backwards.
#16. Alpacas can die of loneliness. As such, they always need to be bought in pairs or groups.
#15. Dolphins are known for coercive sex: Sometimes, they even sexually assault humans swimming near them.
#14. Dalmations are generally born white, without spots.
#13. The woodpecker’s tongue folds around its brain when it’s at rest.
#12. Blue whales are the largest animals on the planet – and have been throughout history. They are twice the size of the largest dinosaur.
#11. Male capuchin monkeys urinate on themselves to attract mates.
#10. If NYC were its own country and the NYPD its army, it would be the 20th best-funded army in the world, just behind Greece and just ahead of North Korea.
#9. In a large airplane, there is enough fuel to drive a car around the world – four times.
#8. Crocodiles swallow stones to help them dive deeper.
#7. Nepal is the only country that doesn’t have a rectangular or square flag.
#6. The real Colonel Sanders was disgusted by what the KFC franchise had done to the food. So much so that he described the product as “the worst fried chicken I’ve ever seen” and said the gravy was “wallpaper paste.”
#5. In 1986, a volcanic lake in Cameroon, Africa released a massive cloud of CO2 that killed 1,746 people in minutes.
#4. Being hit by lightning causes marks on the skin called “Lichtenberg figures.”
#3. For the last 15 years, a cat has been the mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska.
#2. Hippopotamus’ milk is actually pink.
#1. Many expensive brands of perfumes contain whale feces.
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