16-20 Kickass Random Facts
16. Ethiopia sent troops to the Korean War as part of the UN Command. Known as the Kagnew Battalions, 3,158 men served, of which 121 were killed and 538 wounded. They were never defeated in battle and not a single soldier surrendered. They were also respected for never leaving their dead behind. – Source
17. The most skilled sniper in all of World War I was a Canadian Indigenous man, Francis Pegahmagabow. He had 378 confirmed kills, captured over 300 enemy soldiers, and spent his post-war life fighting for Indigenous rights. He remains the most decorated Indigenous soldier in Canadian history. – Source
18. Aspirin was trademarked by Bayer in 1897. Bayer, a German company, was forced to surrender the trademark in the Treaty of Versailles, causing aspirin to become a generic drug. – Source
19. Psychologist B.F. Skinner tried to train pigeons to serve as guides for bombing runs in WWII. After canceling the project, he successfully taught the pigeons to play ping pong instead. – Source
20. An Algerian Muslim saved over 500 Jews and Resistance fighters during WWII by providing false papers stating they were Muslim. – Source
21-25 Kickass Random Facts
21. Coca-Cola’s formula still includes an extract from the coca leaf, the source plant of cocaine, the original stimulant in addition to caffeine. Imported from Peru and Bolivia, the leaves are processed by a plant in New Jersey, the only plant authorized by the US federal government to do so. – Source
22. In 1990, 43 out of the 45 climbers attempting Lenin Peak were buried in an avalanche. The two survivors could hear their comrades shouting for help hours after the slide, but failed in any attempts to rescue them as the ice set like concrete immediately. – Source
23. PornHub Plowed New Jersey and Boston streets for free during winter storm Stella. – Source
24. Russian scientists managed to grow 32,000-year-old plants from seeds they found encased in ice in Siberia. – Source
25. A medieval French soldier climbed up a toilet into a besieged castle to let his army in. King John of England had specifically requested that the toilet be installed for personal use during church services. The castle’s fall led to the English loss of Normandy and the signing of the Magna Carta. – Source
