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PAGE 339!
HYPE REMINDER!
Did you know... Arkansas hosts the annual World Championship Duck Calling Contest.
If you're skilled at quacking like a duck, then you should consider heading to Stuttgart, Arkansas. That's where the Annual World Championship Duck Calling Contest is held. Founded in 1936 and taking place every Thanksgiving week, contestants must first win a sanctioned preliminary state or regional duck-calling contest before being able to compete in the main event. The winner takes home a prize package worth more than $15,000.
Fun fact: You can never count your teeth with your tongue correctly.
Another fact: You just tried the above mentioned fact!
Did you know... There's such a thing as a fear of buttons.
Those who suffer from koumpounophobia will do their best to avoid anything and everything to do with buttons—looking at them, touching them, wearing clothing affixed with them, even thinking about them. If you suffer from this affliction, you're repulsed by buttons of every shape, size, color, and material. Anecdotal evidence, according to The Guardian, suggests that one in every 75,000 people lives with this phobia. But only one case study (from 2002) has ever been done.
Did you know... The first TV commercial didn't air until the 1940s.
On July 1, 1941, the L.A. Dodgers were playing the Philadelphia Phillies in New York at Ebbets Field. And while the game was surely exciting on its own, those who were watching at home on the NBC-owned WNBT—now WNBC—also saw another exciting historical moment: the very first TV commercial shown in the United States.
As reported by WJCT News, the ad cost just $9 and was disarmingly simple: Over a silhouette of the continental United States, a watch face pops up, and a voiceover says, "America runs on Bulova time." Today, of course, America runs on Dunkin'.
Did you know... Singapore maybe planing to build floating burbs.
With a fast-growing population of nearly 6 million people, all of whom must cram on a mere 719 square kilometers—or about 447 square miles—of land, Singapore needs more space than ever. And, according to a report in Hakai magazine, they're working on plans to create that space on 40 floating rafts.
The each individual section would be about the size of a baseball diamond, weigh more than 7.5 metric tons, and be tethered to the seabed about 18 meters below.
Did you know... The stars and flashes of light you see when you rub your eyes are called "phosphenes."
Rubbing your eyes a little too hard might leave you seeing stars—which are actually phosphenes, according to Troy Bedinghaus, OD, of Verywell Health. "The optic nerve translates this pressure into various images," Bedinghaus says. "Pressure phosphenes can remain for a few seconds after the rubbing stops and the eyes are opened, allowing the phosphenes to be seen."
Did you know... There is a fish with transparent bones and white blood.
There are some pretty extraordinary creatures living down in the deep sea. Take, for instance, the Antarctic blackfin icefish. Not only does this creature lack scales and have transparent bones, but it's also unique in that it doesn't have red blood cells or hemoglobin pigments for transporting oxygen, causing the fish to have a very unique characteristic: white blood.
Did you know... Tarantula bites are about as painful as bee stings.
Despite their incredibly scary reputation, it turns out that tarantulas have a bite that is about as painful and as venomous as a bee sting. And according to Burke Museum, "None of the North American species or those commonly kept as pets are considered to pose even a mild bite hazard."
In fact, the museum's website says, "Hollywood is squarely to blame for these spiders' toxic-to-humans reputation. Tarantulas are large, photogenic and many are easily handled, and therefore they have been very widely used in horror and action-adventure movies."
Did you know... Tree seeds were taken into orbit and planted as "Moon Trees."
When astronaut Stuart Roosa, a former U.S. Forest Service smoke jumper, orbited above the moon during the Apollo 14 mission in 1971, he brought with him hundreds of seeds from five different kinds of trees: loblolly pine, sycamore, sweetgum, redwood, and Douglas fir.
When he returned to Earth, the seeds were planted throughout the U.S. and around the world in order to grow into what were affectionately deemed "Moon Trees." If you're interested in seeing one in person, you can find a list of the trees as well as their locations on NASA's website.
Did you know... A cow-bison hybrid is called a "beefalo."
Cows and bison may not be the most common mates in the animal kingdom, but as a result of a failed crossbreeding experiment, the "beefalo" was born. And, according to the BBC, the hybrid beast caused trouble in the Grand Canyon, depleting the area's watering holes and food sources.
Did you know... Pittsburgh is the only city in the USA where all three major sports teams share the same colors.
Black and gold are beloved colors in Pittsburgh, especially for sports fans who proudly wear them whether they're rooting for the Steelers (NFL), the Penguins (NHL), or the Pirates (MLB). According to The Witchita Eagle, the inspiration for the choice of color is "pretty simple—they are the colors of Pittsburgh's flag, which is based on the coat of arms of William Pitt, the 18th century British prime minister for whom the city is named."
Did you know... A chameleon's tongue is twice as long as its body.
According to National Geographic, the sticky tongues of chameleons are roughly twice the length of their bodies—for humans, that would be like having a tongue that measured 10 to 12 feet long. In addition, the color-changing lizard has one of the fastest tongues in the animal kingdom. Quite the combo!
Did you know... Hippos have the largest mouths of any animal on land.
Hippos might seem like jovial creatures, but you don't want to mess with them. According to Guinness World Records, the African animal can open its jaws almost a full 180 degrees—making for an average gape of about four feet. And oh yeah, their teeth typically measure over two feet long.
Did you know... Goats have accents.
In 2012, according to NPR, researchers from Queen Mary's School of Biological and Chemical Sciences at the University of London studied baby goats from when they were just starting to socialize and found that the little animals eventually began to sound like each other, i.e. they had accents. Scientists believe that the accents help the animals determine whether another goat is from their same area or from some place unfamiliar to them.
Did you know... One of the world's largest falafel weighed 223 pounds.
Falafel fans might find it hard to believe that there could ever be too much of the deep-fried deliciousness, but even they might find themselves overwhelmed by the world's largest falafel, which was served up on May 31, 2019 at a resort on the Dead Sea in Jordan. How big was it? Oh, just a mere 223 pounds.
Did you know... If you heat up a magnet, it will lose its magnetism.
The right magnets can exert a force powerful enough to crush bone. However, all it takes is a little heat to render them useless. While cold makes magnets stronger, extreme temperatures can significantly reduce their magnetism, according to Sciencing.
Did you know... A relative of the T. rex stood just 3-feet tall.
The Tyrannosaurus rex is known as one of the largest, most ferocious species of dinosaur to ever have existed—which was more than 60 million years ago. However, an early T. rex relative, Suskityrannus hazelae, lived around 92 million years ago and stood at a modest height of three feet and only weighed between 45 and 90 pounds, according to Smithsonian magazine.
Did you know... Your brain is sometimes more active when you're asleep than when you're awake.
Even when you fall into a deep sleep, the activity inside your head is still buzzing in order to keep your body running while processing your subconscious thoughts—so much so, says National Geographic, that your brain is at times more active while you're sleeping than it is when you're awake.
Did you know... England is hit with more tornadoes per square mile than any other country in the world.
America definitely experiences its fair share of dangerously blustery weather, but England is considered to be the tornado capital of the world. The country, on average, gets hit with 34 tornadoes each year, which is about 2.2 every 3,861 square miles. The U.S., on the other hand, experiences about 1.2 every 2,970 square miles.
Did you know... The word "kimono" means "a thing to wear."
If you translate the garment's name from its Japanese roots—ki means "wear" and mono means "thing"—the word literally means "a thing to wear."
Did you know... The world's oldest open to the public operating library is in Morocco.
Dating back to 859 A.D., the Al-Qarawiyyin Library in Fez, Morocco, had long been off limits to visitors who weren't the select few researchers and academics that had been granted access. However, in 2016, the world's oldest library, which houses a 9th century version of the Quran, finally opened its doors to anyone wishing to explore its ancient texts.
Did you know... The patient in the game Operation has a name.
Now you'll be able to tell everyone that the incision-filled patient you are about to perform surgery on goes by the name Cavity Sam.
Did you know... The space between your eyebrows is called the glabella.
You know that space between your eyebrows that requires a good plucking from time to time? Of course you do. But do you know what it's called? Well, that's your glabella.
Did you know... Shakespeare's plays feature the word "love" about 10 times more than the word "hate."
Of course, William Shakespeare wrote about both love and hate. However, he focused much more on the former than on the latter. In his plays alone, he used the word "love" 1,640 times and the word "hate" 163 times. And when it comes to Shakespeare's complete works, "love" appears a total of 2,209 times, according to Open Source Shakespeare.
Did you know... There was a flying dinosaur the size of a giraffe.
The pterosaurs—comparable in size to your average giraffe—had a wingspan of 35 feet and could fly for thousands of miles, according to National Geographic. "Instead of taking off with their legs alone, like birds, pterosaurs probably took off using all four of their limbs," paleontologist Michael Habib told The Telegraph. He says that using their strong arms as "the main engines for launching instead of their legs may explain how pterosaurs became so much larger than any other flying animals known."
Did you know... There's an asteroid that's worth ~$95.8 trillion.
Way up in space, there's an asteroid by the name of 241 Germania that's 100-miles wide and holds a heck of a lot of minerals. On Earth, those minerals, including hydrocarbons such as oil, would be worth around $95.8 trillion.
Did you know... Donkeys and dolphins are sometimes used as guard animals.
Dogs tend to make great guard animals, but they're not the only creatures that you can count on to watch your back. In fact, donkeys, dolphins, geese, ostriches, emus, llamas, and alpacas are also used as guard animals around the world—doing everything from protecting sheep to patrolling harbors for the U.S. Navy.
Did you know... The horse on the Wyoming license plate is named Steamboat.
If you live in—or have ever driven through—Wyoming, you might know that there is a horse featured on the state's license plates. But this isn't just any old animal. The horse's name is Steamboat and he was a famous bucking bronco who thrilled rodeo fans from 1901 to 1914.