15 Things The Universe Wants Us To Know
![15 Things The Universe Wants Us To Know](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/0/837840_320x180.jpg)
The story of my life starts when I was a boy, and my mother was a great witch. She could make anyone do anything just by speaking a spell, and I think she made her own father turn against her before he died. I'm not sure. I can't remember any of that. The important thing is what happened to my family, which I learned from some other kids in town. One day my mother disappeared from our house with no warning at all, just a note saying she had to go.
My father wasn't there either. He went missing right away—my friends swear they saw him on top of the old bridge by our house just like my brother said he saw. They say he climbed over it and never came back, but the police didn't find anything except his clothes. It was as if he'd been taken into the river with a fish hook. The only thing we have left is a list of facts found in his pocket. It says:
Lots of kids in the US had goiters until the ‘20s.
![70% of children in the US had goiters due to iodine deficiency up until the 1920s. lodized S a I t This salt supplies iodide, a necessary nutrient. The introduction of iodized salt was incredibly effective at eliminating the deficiency. Soon after in 1920, many countries around the globe began fortifying table salt with iodine. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/5/6/837856.jpg)
Iceland’s trees were cut down by the Vikings for livestock.
![The Vikings cut down all the trees in Iceland to make room for sheep. At the time of human settlement almost 1150 years ago, birch forest and woodland covered 25-40% of Iceland's land area. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/5/5/837855.jpg)
A jury contacted the dead to reach a verdict.
![Jurors in a 1994 murder trial used a Ouija Board to try and communicate with the victim. Registered 1234567890 GOOD BYE As the other jurors slept, a small group sat on the floor around a crude Ouija board they had made from a piece of paper and a hotel room wine glass. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/5/4/837854.jpg)
Carlin read his “Thomas The Tank Engine” narration to a stuffed animal.
![George Carlin spoke to a teddy bear when he voice acted for Thomas The Tank Engine. During his time as the narrator for the US version of the children's TV show, George Carlin spoke his lines to a teddy bear in the booth because he was nervous about performing without an audience. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/5/0/837850.jpg)
Eels and groupers hunt together.
![Giant moray eels hunt cooperatively with grouper. In the Red Sea, the grouper approaches an eel's hiding place and shakes its head rapidly to indicate that it wants to hunt. The eel recognizes the signal and accompanies it on the hunt, where they work in tandem. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/5/2/837852.jpg)
Having a stroke is a great way to quit smoking.
![After a stroke, some smokers were able to quit smoking with ease. Smokers whose insula got damaged after a stroke were able to quit smoking easily one day after the stroke, with no relapse and urges, suggesting that this brain region might play a role in nicotine addiction. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/8/837848.jpg)
Canines sometimes have to have their happy tails digitally removed from film.
![The wolves in The Chronicles of Narnia had to have their wagging tails edited out. In order to appear appropriately menacing, the wagging tails of the dogs and wolves in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe had to be replaced with CGI doggie butts. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/5/1/837851.jpg)
Dingoes were brought to Australia 4,000 years ago.
![Dingoes aren't native to Australia, they were brought there 4,000 years ago. Dingoes are an ancient breed of domestic dog that was introduced to Australia, probably by Asian seafarers, about 4,000 years ago. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/6/837846.jpg)
Hendrix and Young rolled up to Woodstock in a stolen truck.
![Jimi Hendrix and Neil Young stole a pickup truck in order to get to Woodstock. After their charter plane flew to the wrong airport, Hendrix, Young and lawyer Melvin Belli were supposed to be picked up by helicopter, but the roads were jammed and no one was at the airport. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/9/837849.jpg)
Van Gogh didn’t get his painting career going until the very end.
![Most of Van Gogh's paintings were created in the last two years of his life. Vincent Van Gogh first started painting when he was in his late twenties. It was only at the age of 27 in 1880 that he began attending art school. Most of his paintings date to just the last two years of his life. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/7/837847.jpg)
Gary Busey knows what’s waiting for him on the other side.
![Gary Busey claims to have seen heaven while in a coma. Busey once refused to perform a scene set in heaven for the film Quigley because he said the set design looked nothing like the real heaven he visited during a near-death experience while in a coma. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/5/837845.jpg)
South Korea is cloning a breed of super service dogs.
![South Korea clones service dogs that have already passed their training. Half of all service dogs don't pass their training, so South Korea came up with a way to boost the odds. By cloning the dogs that already passed, the animals have a much higher rate of completing training. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/5/3/837853.jpg)
Women can get things off their chest in NY.
![Since 1992, women have been legally allowed to walk around New York topless. This was kickstarted by a 1986 protest involving nine women who took off their tops and waited to be arrested. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/4/837844.jpg)
A dumb YouTube experiment killed a guy.
![A man died after asking his girlfriend to shoot him while he held an encyclopedia to his chest. DESERT EAGLE PISTOL MAGNUM RESEARCH INC. PILLAGER MN USA 4-1 The YouTuber, Pedro Ruiz, held the 1.5 inch book in front of his chest and told his girlfriend to fire a Desert Eagle handgun from just a foot away. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/3/837843.jpg)
The Silent Man is the UK’s most enigmatic criminal.
![A UK man keeps getting arrested for blocking traffic, and he remains silent every time. The Silent Man repeatedly gets arrested for standing on a certain road to block traffic. Не never speaks a word, not even to the court or his own lawyer. Every time he is released, he repeats the crime. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/4/2/837842.jpg)