Here is 25 Kickass Random Facts List #57.
1-5 Kickass Random Facts
1. Stephen Hawking is the only person to ever portray themselves in the Star Trek universe. – Source
2. After the entire national Soviet hockey team was killed in an airplane crash in 1950, Stalin’s son Vasily, the manager of the team, covered up the disaster and replaced everyone on the team to avoid his father’s wrath. Stalin never noticed. – Source
3. In 2006, a woman filing for public assistance in the Washington state failed 4 DNA tests to prove maternity of her children. She was taken to court and risked losing custody. It was later discovered that she had absorbed her twin in the womb and her reproductive organs carried different DNA to other parts of her body. – Source
4. In 2005, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the application of Eminent Domain to kick homeowners off of their property, so private developers could build hotels, health clubs, and condos in New London, Connecticut. About eight years later, the abandoned property remains an overgrown, barren field. – Source
5. During World War 2, a Luftwaffe pilot refused to destroy a damaged B-17. The German pilot escorted the B-17 to the English Channel and then saluted the American pilot and returned home. About 40 years later, they were reunited and developed a deep friendship that lasted until their deaths. – Source
6-10 Kickass Random Facts
6. Erwin Rommel, a highly decorated German officer during WW2, humanely treated captured soldiers, ignored orders to kill Jews, civilians and conspired to assassinate Hitler. After Rommel’s death, soldiers on both sides paid respect to his grave and he is the only member of The Third Reich to have a museum dedicated to him. – Source
7. In 1990, Dr. Dre attacked a woman over an interview with Ice Cube. He picked her up by her hair, slammed her head repeatedly against a brick wall, all while his bodyguard held off the crowd with a gun. After trying to throw her down the stairs, he punched her in the back of the head. – Source
8. In 1916, Manfred von Richthofen was considered a below average pilot who crashed during his first flight. Two years and 80 aerial kills later upon his death, the British buried The Red Baron with full military honors out of respect for his skill as an aviator. – Source
9. The word “scientist” did not exist until 1833. Before that they were known as “natural philosophers.” – Source
10. Hitler’s plan for Moscow was to kill all residents and replace it with a lake. – Source
11-15 Kickass Random Facts
11. Modern roundabouts have 40% fewer vehicle collisions, 80% fewer injuries and 90% fewer serious injuries and fatalities compared with regular junctions. – Source
12. There is a rare chronic sleep disorder called Fatal Familial Insomnia, which renders the victim unable to sleep. Michael Corke, who was diagnosed with this illness, died a month after his 42nd birthday, by which time he had been completely sleep-deprived for six months. It has no known cure. – Source
13. During World War 2, Medal of Honor recipient Thomas Baker ordered his squad to leave him propped against a tree with a pistol and eight bullets when he was wounded. Later, American forces found the now-deceased Baker in the same spot, holding an empty pistol, with eight dead Japanese soldiers lying around him. – Source
14. In 2009, a woman filed lawsuit against PepsiCo after discovering that the crunchberries in a Cap’n Crunch cereal had not in fact been real fruit. The case was thrown out, with the judge remarking that to do otherwise would “ignore all concepts of personal responsibility and common sense.” – Source
15. Even decades later, the U.S. military is still tracking and arresting deserters from Vietnam. – Source
16-20 Kickass Random Facts
16. In 2014, Indonesia implemented a fishing and export ban on dead Manta Rays, each of which was sold for $40-$500 dollars, as they realized that Manta Ray tourism can bring in $1,000,000+ during a single Ray’s life. Indonesia now has 2.2 million square miles of protected ocean for the Manta Ray. – Source
17. The blue whale can produce the loudest sound of any animal. At 188 decibels, the noise can be detected over 800 kilometers away. – Source
18. The “Body Mass Index” (BMI) was never intended to be applied to individuals, but continues to be used as such because it is, “quicker, easier, and cheaper.” – Source
19. U.S. does not use bills over $100 because President Nixon wanted to make it harder to move large amounts of money across borders for drug trading. – Source
20. In the 1860’s, a “perpetual motion” machine was demonstrated at the Paris Exposition. Visitors were invited to try and stop the wheel, which, unbeknownst to them, was the very action needed to “charge” the wheel back up. – Source
21-25 Kickass Random Facts
21. A hippo sleeping underwater automatically rises to the surface and breathes without waking up and does this every ~4 minutes. – Source
22. There is a band called ‘NǽnøĉÿbbŒrğ VbëřřĦōlökäävsŦ’ (pronounced ‘Nanocyborg Uberholocaust’) originating from Antarctica. It was formed by two scientists who happened to have similar tastes in music. Their first album, ‘The Ultimate Fate of the Universe’, was recorded at the exact south pole. – Source
23. Elite US soldiers actually climbed 95 foot cliffs under Point Du Hoc to capture and destroy key German strongholds during the D-Day assault on June 6, 1944. They then held their position for two days suffering 65% casualties. – Source
24. Our modern idea of headphone plugs is >130yrs old. It was invented in 1878, and is thus possibly the oldest electrical connector standard still in use today. – Source
25. If Japan’s 2022 FIFA World Cup bid had been accepted, they would have developed and offered technologies that would have included holograms of the matches to be shown around the world in different stadiums, “translation earpieces” allowing foreigners to communicate. – Source
