Interesting facts you might not of known.
In 1350, when bubonic plague struck England, the Scots took the opportunity to invade the country. But instead, the Scottish army caught the disease, was routed by the English and the fleeing army inadvertently spread the plague across Scotland.
At the start of WWI, Italy developed the Villar Perosa Double Machine Gun that could fire 1200-1500 rounds per minute, but they were unable to figure out a practical use for it until the end of the war.
Due to the high intelligence of the octopus, the U.K. has considered it an honorary vertebrate for the sake of animal cruelty laws and it is illegal in many countries to perform surgical procedures on an octopus without anesthesia.
Nigeria is the second highest consuming nation of champagne, only behind France. Yet 63% of their population lives on a dollar a day.
Mill workers in Manchester, England refused to touch slave-picked cotton during the U.S. Civil War. Lincoln wrote a letter of thanks, and relief shipments were sent to the workers. Today, a statue of Lincoln stands in Manchester’s Lincoln Square.
There is a fire in a Kyoto temple that has been perpetually burning for over 1200 years.
There’s an alternate ending to The Lion King, where Scar defeats Simba by throwing him off Pride Rock to his apparent death. A fire then consumes Scar who stands there, laughing manically, while he burns to death. It was deemed “too dark” for a Disney film.
Pringles are technically not potato chips but a slurry of rice, wheat, corn, and some potato flakes.
A benign mold is added to the casing on traditionally dried-cured Italian meats to act as a natural preservative and antioxidant so the meat doesn’t become “rancid.”
In 2008, a 480-pound Florida woman died after having spent the last 6 years of her life stuck in a couch and died attached to the couch as well. By the time of her death, her skin had literally become one with the fabric of the sofa.
Scientists in Berlin asked adults to play Super Mario 64 over a period of 2 months for 30 minutes a day. The group showed increases of grey matter, demonstrating “the direct causal link between video gaming and a volumetric brain increase.”
Jigsaw puzzles soared in popularity during the great depression, as they provided a cheap, long-lasting, recyclable form of entertainment.