15 Facts That Really Wet Our Whistles

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15 Facts That Really Wet Our Whistles

When we read this list of interesting facts, it's probably best to picture us as we were when we were kids, sitting in front of the TV, drinking juice boxes, and eating ice cream, watching a show like Kids Say The Darndest Things or Wild About Animals. We're sitting there on our little orange couch and the show is about to start and there's an advertisement that pops up. It's a commercial for some new product that makes its users appear stupendous. There's a young kid who says something like, “I just bought some new underwear from Stupendous Underwear, and my pants are now so big that I'm going to need a new car.” So imagine you're one of these kids. Imagine that you've never seen the show before and you've never heard of Stupendous Underwear. You've never seen an advertisement for Stupendous Underwear and you don't know what the show is about, but you've just finished eating your ice cream, and now you're settling down for the show to start.

A city in Michigan melts snow using underground tubes of hot water.

Holland, Michigan has tubing under the streets to melt snow. CRACKED COM The city has 168 miles of tubing coiled un- derneath its streets, circulating hot water in order to melt any snow on the ground.

MLive

Melvil Dewey was kicked out of the American Library Association for being a creep.

The guy that gave us the Dewey Decimal System was a creep. GRAGKED.COM Melvil Dewey, the inven- tor of the Dewey Decimal System, was kicked out of the American Library As- sociation for constant un- welcome advances to- wards women librarians.

American Library Magazine

Norwegians pay less tax to save for Christmas.

Norwegians pay less taxes in November so they have more money for Christmas. CRACKED.COM Norwegians only have to pay half of the tax they should be paying but they make up for it by paying more in other months.

FMP Global

A kid’s movie was replaced by a horror movie by accident in one US theater in 2007.

The opening ofThe Hills Have Eyes 2 played instead of The Last Mimzy in one movie theater. CRACKED.COM Audiences eager to watch the children's film in 2007 were instead assaulted by the horror movie which be- gins with a chained naked woman giving birth to a deformed baby.

NME

Vanilla is not found in most vanilla products.

Vanilla is the world's second most expensive spice. CRACKED.COM 99% of vanilla-flavored products on the market, from vanilla-flavored vod- ka to vanilla wafers and va- nilla pudding, don't actual- ly contain vanilla. Artificial vanilla essence is used in- stead.

NatGeo

There are no swallows in the Cave of Swallows.

The Cave of Swallows in Mexico is home to many birds, but not swallows. CRACKED.COM It is the largest cave shaft in the world, being almost 1,000 feet wide at the bot- tom and 1,100 feet deep.

Fiboni

The guy who sang the Pokemon theme didn’t expect it to become popular.

The singer of the original Pokémon Theme didn't know what it was about. CRACKED.COM Jason Paige considers the song to be a rela- tively minor part of his career, as he has worked with Michael Jackson, Billy Joel, and Frankie Valli.

Spin

There is a lost indigenious people of Japan.

The Ainu are the lost indigenous people of Japan. GRACKED COM The men, never shav- ing after a certain age, usually have full beards, and women undergo mouth tat- tooing to signify their coming to adulthood.

Tofugu

MIT gives out pirate certificates.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology offers a pirate certificate. MASSACHVSETTS INSTITVTE OF TECHNOLOGY CRACKED COM This honor is achieved by students who complete the archery, sailing, fencing, and pistol or rifle shooting courses. The department frequently holds pirate in- duction days.

Snopes

Guard geese are used sometimes instead of dogs.

Some police stations in China use geese instead of guard dogs to keep watch at night. CRACKED.COM Geese are very territorial and have better vision than humans. In ancient Rome, geese are credited by the historian Livy for giving the alarm when Gauls invaded.

NPR

Spain entered war with Peru and Chile over bat poop.

There was a war over bat poop in 1864. CRACKED COM Spain started a war with Peru and Chile in 1864 by taking over an Island for its strategic source of guano, which at that time was an important ingredient for gunpowder.

Lycos

Wi-Fi is a made up word that is more made up than most words.

'Wi-Fi' is a made up word that doesn't stand for anything. CRACKED.COM IEEE 802.11 didn't have much of a ring to it, and the industry association wanted a catchy name. They came up with wi-fi, and that's what's been used ever since.

Scientific American

The Edelweiss Pirates fought Nazis with a song in their heart.

A merry band of Nazi fighting pirates skipped through the German countryside. HIER WURDEN AM 25.10.1944 ELE UOM INS-REGIME ZUR ZWANGSARBEIT LACK DEUTSCHLAND VERSCHLEPPTE BURGER POLENTS UND DER UDSSR uno Au 10.11.1944 DREIZEHN DEUTSCHE-LITTER ІНПЕЛ JUGENDLICHE CRACKED COM The 'Edelweiss Pirates' were a youth group who fought Nazis playing guitars and singing Anti-Nazi folk songs. They sheltered escaped con- centration-camp prisoners and Allied soldiers in a pro- gram of armed resistance.

Bust

Tiny seahorses will permanently change their color after birth when they find a coral to hide in.

Pygmy Seahorses change color after they are born to match the first coral they find. CRACKED.COM The seahorses, which are only the size of a fingernail, are born a dull brown but - no matter the color of their parents - they will change to match the sea fan coral they attach themselves to for bet- ter camouflage.

PBS

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