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People Break Down The Most Useless Facts They Know

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

The mind is an amazing muscle. The amount of information it holds is awe inspiring. Why is it that sometimes one can solve the answer to a historical question (like who created bread) but can't remember how to change a tire? Knowledge is power and useless knowledge is abundant and always at the ready. If you are that person brimming with mundane facts... get yourself to Jeopardy!

Redditor u/ReverseFlash_94 wanted everyone to divulge all the information our minds have downloaded that seems to be useful if we end up on 'Jeopardy' by asking.... What is your most useless fact?

Hey J....

Michael J Fox Waiting GIF by Back to the Future Trilogy Giphy

Michael J. Fox's middle name is Andrew.

WatchTheBoom

I before O

Confetti is the plural word, the singular is confetto.

zarina897

Oh, like how macaroni is plural and the singular is macaronous.

uvero

Say what you Mean

The term "third world country" refers to countries not allied with NATO or the USSR during the Cold war, not developing nations.

Reddit

Like the word "literally" literally meaning "figuratively," and only figuratively meaning "literally."

Or "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" originally being a saying to demonstrate how impossible something is, but now being considered (by some, at least) the standard for how hard-working a person should be.

nWo1997

What about a Hiney?

sexy the simpsons GIF Giphy

A "butt" is a unit of measurement equivalent to 126 gallons. So if you claim that you have a buttload of something, you better have 126 gallons of that something.

raxaboko

Thanks Bill

Bluegrass music isn't named after the type of grass.

It's named after Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys (the original blue grass band the category comes from)

It's interesting... but I haven't found a use for it.

_MikePossibly_

Dumbo is Lucky

timothy q mouse disney GIF Giphy

Elephants can move their skin to crush mosquitoes between their rolls.

FlorenceRichman

Wish I could do that. Lord knows I have the rolls.

nWo1997

The List is Long...

Oh boy do I have a few! I collect these!

  1. A chinchillas fur is so thick it can suffocate fleas
  2. Cows have best friends and accents!
  3. The human nose is one of the best predictors of when its going to rain because it can pick up its scent
  4. The reason zebras are black and white is for camouflage! Their main predators are lions which are black and white color blind! Seeing a moving wave of stripes makes it harder to single out one sole zebra to focus on!
  5. The human brain has the consistency of soft butter and is mostly water which is why staying hydrated is so important
  6. There are such things as underwater lakes. Water meets another liquid which has a different density creating the illusion of a lake under water. Think oil and water. You should honestly look up pictures they look amazing.
  7. Squirrels have been known to adopt other squirrels babies if they have been abandoned!
  8. The reason dogs look to their owns when they poop is because they feel scared and vulnerable and like knowing your keeping an eye out
  9. Albino plants exist! However, they are really rare and often don't survive due to the chlorophyll (which makes plants green) being necessary for photosynthesis
  10. Popcorn was an accident! I don't remember the details but essentially they were trying to eat the kernels but couldn't so they said they were useless and threw them away into the fire. Boom. Popcorn. Honestly_Done

Go Fish

sushi GIF Giphy

'Sushi grade' fish isn't a real thing.

Fish grading is a real process, but it's to do with weight and size, and it doesn't go C, B, A, Sushi.

AMarmaladeSandwich

Here comes the Sun

The diameter of the sun is roughly 400 times that of the moon but it's also approximately 400 times farther away from earth. These two things cancel each other out and, with astronomical odds, they end up looking the same size from earth.

Reddit

King Shot

elvis love GIF Giphy

I learned this yesterday that Elvis was asked in 1956 before going on the Ed Sullivan show if he'd get a polio vaccine in front of cameras, that photo was put in newspapers nation wide. There was a vaccination gap in teens of the time they were not getting it, that photo caused I believe a 15+% increase in the total vaccinated population of the US.

henejidu

Centered

  1. The center hole of a CD/DVD/BD is based on the Dutch 10 cent coin called dubbeltje.
  2. The dubbeltje was the smallest coin in the world until it was replaced by the Euro. AncientMumu

Twisted

Death Becomes Her 80S Movies GIF by absurdnoise Giphy

It takes a full three rotations to remove the human head due to the elasticity of skin.

redeemer84

So Much Knowledge

You're more likely to die on the way to buy a lottery ticket than to win the jackpot.

You're nose is always in view but your brain blocks it out.

Homosexuality occurs in 90% of known species, none more than spiders who are predominantly homosexual rather than heterosexual like most species.

In Harry Potter all pure blood wizard families follow naming schemes and are closely related and accidental incest was caught on an official family tree JK Rowling made for Pottermore.

Deus-system-failed

Following Dinner

Crows are symbols of death because they followed the soldiers to war because they knew that there would be something to eat afterwards.

I_ate_your_skin

Cars Then?

easy rider motorcycles GIF Giphy

It's illegal to have sex on a parked motorcycle in London.

FoulBiscuit

The Family Süd

The store Aldi was founded by two brothers in Germany. At one point, they had a falling out, and the store was split into two different corporations - Aldi Nord (north) and Aldi Süd (south). As you might guess, you can find Aldi Nord in northern Germany, and Aldi Süd in southern Germany. The Aldi that exists in the US is owned by Aldi Nord. For trademark reasons (I believe), Aldi Süd was unable to come to the US and call itself Aldi. However, Trader Joe's is owned by Aldi Süd.

JoeyJoeJoeJrShab

In Time

A second is called a second because it is the 2nd division of the hour by 60 (pars minuta secunda), the 1st division being a minute (pars minuta prima).

elee0228

Mhmmmm.....

Giphy

The phrase "I told you so".

  1. It is a fact since you told me.
  2. The fact that you told me doesn't help me at all which makes it a useless fact. Boring_Youth3531

How about Bare?

Bears were not always called bears. The word bear was used as a placeholder name for the animal; as medieval folk thought that saying the real name of the animal would cause one to appear. The original name for a bear has since been lost and no one knows what it was.

thefruiteefrielos

Falling

squirrels GIF by Cheezburger Giphy

Squirrels can fall from any height and not get hurt. It something to do with their terminal velocity.

beansandmoo

Squirrels can fall from any height up to about 4800 miles, because they are able to spread out their body, which slows their terminal velocity to a slow enough fall that they survive. The only reason they can't survive from 4800 miles is that they will starve to death (assuming they were somehow managing to fall at terminal velocity towards earth, since that is in the frigid cold that is space).

IWishIWasAGoomba

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most useless facts

People Describe The Most Traumatizing Thing They Ever Experienced As A Child

Image by Anemone123 from Pixabay

Life is hard. It's a miracle to make it through with some semblance of sanity. We are all plagued by grief and trauma. More and more people of all backgrounds are opening up about personal trauma and its origins. Finally! For far too long we've been too silent on this topic. And with so many people unable to afford mental health care, the outcomes can be damaging.

All of our childhoods have ups and downs and memories that can play out like nightmares. We carry that, or it follows us and the first step in recovery is talking about it. So who feels strong enough to speak?

Redditor u/nthn_thms wanted to see who was willing to share about things they'd probably rather forget, by asking:

What's the most traumatizing thing you experienced as a child?
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childhood

People Divulge The Real Reason Why They're Still Single

Image by klimkin from Pixabay

Being single can be fun. In fact, in this time of COVID, being single can save lives. But the heart is a fickle creature.

And being alone can really suck in times of turmoil. None of us are perfect and it feels like that's all anyone is looking for... perfect.

Now that doesn't mean that all of us are making it difficult to partner up. Sure, some people are too picky and mean-spirited, but some of the rest of us are crazy and too much to handle. So one has to be sure.

The truth is, being single is confusing, no matter how much we try to match. So let's try to understand...

Redditor u/Mcxyn wanted to discuss some truths about love and our own issues, by asking:

Why are you single?
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being single

Chefs Divulge The Most Important Tips That Amateur Cooks Need To Know

Tiard Schulz/Unsplash

Whether you're an at home parent, a college student just leaving the nest, or a Food Network junkie, there are a few basic tips that everyone should know.

Chef's gave us some of their top tips for amateurs and beginner at home cooks that will really make a difference. They are trained professionals with years of experience in the kitchen, so they definitely know what we're all missing.

If you're looking to improve some of your cooking skills and techniques, but you're still learning how to boil water correctly, this list is for you.

Redditor BigBadWolf44 wanted in on the secrets and asked:

"Chefs of Reddit, what's one rule of cooking amateurs need to know?"

Let's learn from the masters!


What a common mistake!

"A lot of the time when people add salt to a dish because they think it tastes flat, what it really needs is an acid like lemon juice or vinegar."

- Vexvertigo

"Instructions unclear I drugged my dinner party guests and now they're high on acid."

- itsyoboi_human

"Yes! Or tomatoes. They're pretty acidic too and go with so many things. Our dinners are so much better once the garden tomatoes are ripe. Or if a dish is too acidic, oil/butter or a little sugar can help add balance to it."

- darkhorse85

"Like tomato and eggs. Every Chinese mom makes those slightly differently and I haven't had a tomato egg dish I didn't like yet."

- random314

"There's a book called 'Salt Fat Acid Heat' that comes highly recommended to amateur cooks."

- Osolemia

"Reading even just the first chapter about salt made a lot of food I cooked immediately better, because I finally understood salt wasn't just that thing that sat on the dinner table that you applied after the meal was cooked."

- VaultBoy42

"Salt is important for sweets. A batch of cookies without that little hint of salt doesn't taste quite right."

- Osolemia

Unfortunately, this tip might not be accessible to everyone. Many people who contracted COVID can no longer use their sense of smell the way they used to.

"Have a friend that lost his smell from COVID, and now he only recognizes if food is salty, sweet, sour or bitter."

- AlphaLaufert99

"Just wait until he gets his sense of smell back and a ton of foods smell like ammonia or literal garbage now. Yeah, that's fun... It's been 7 months for f*cks sake just let me enjoy peanut butter again!!!!!!!!!"

- MirzaAbdullahKhan

You can't take back what you've already put in.

"You can always add, but you cannot take away."

- El_Duende666

"I find people's problems usually are they're too scared to add rather than they add too much."

- FreeReflection25

"I see you also grew up white in the mid-west."

- Snatch_Pastry

Safety first!

"Not really a cooking tip, but a law of the kitchen: A falling knife has no handle."

- wooddog

"I'm always so proud of my reflexes for not kicking in when I fumble a knife."

"If I drop anything else, my stupid hands are all over themselves trying to catch it (and often failing). But with a knife the hardwired automatic reaction is jump back immediately. Fingers out of the way, feet out of the way, everything out of the way. Good lookin out, cerebellum!"

- sonyka

"Speaking of KICKING in. On first full time cooking job I had a knife spin and fall off the counter. My (stupid) reflex was to put my foot under it like a damn hacky sack to keep it from hitting the ground. Went through the shoe, somehow between my toes, into the sole somehow without cutting me. Lessons learned: (1) let it fall; (2) never set a knife down close to the edge or with the handle sticking out; (3) hacky sack is not nearly as cool as it could be."

- AdjNounNumbers

"Similarly, NEVER put out a grease or oil fire with water. Smother with a lid or dump baking soda in there (do not use flour, as it can combust in the air making things worse)."

- Metallic_Substance

How else will you know it tastes good?

"Taste the food."

- OAKRAIDER64

"Also don't be afraid to poke and prod at it. I feel like people think the process is sacred and you can't shape/flip/feel/touch things while you cook them. The more you are hands on, the more control you have."

"No, this does not include situations where you are trying to sear something. Ever try flipping a chicken thigh early? That's how you rip a chunk out of it and leave it glued to the pan until it's burnt."

- Kryzm

Here's one just for laughs.

"When you grab a pair of tongs, click them a few times to make sure they are tongs."

- Kolshdaddy

"People really overlook this one. You've gotta tong the tongs a minimum of 3 times to make sure they tong, or else it can ruin the whole dish."

- BigTimeBobbyB

If you're looking to get into cooking or to improve you technique, pay attention to these few tips.

Salt generously, add an acid to brighten things up, and don't forget to taste your food!

If all else fails, you can always order take out.

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cooking

People Describe The Most Inappropriate Thing They Ever Did As A Kid

Victoria_Borodinova/Pixaba

As part of the learning process, children often do embarrassing things before they learn a little more about the world and all the different implications therein. While the inappropriate moment is usually minor and ends in laugher some instances are truly mortifying.

One such instance involved a little sister who was around 6 at the time. It was the 90s and at the height of the youth-focused PSAs (think the frying egg representing your brain). One type was a safety PSA about stranger danger. The speaker would remind the children that if a stranger tried to take you anywhere to yell “Stop, you're not my mommy/daddy" to raise the alarm.

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