20 Now-You-Know Facts That Really Tilled Our Fields
![20 Now-You-Know Facts That Really Tilled Our Fields](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/0/868450_320x180.jpg)
I enjoy this list of interesting facts so much, I feel it must be shared. There's nothing I like more than being able to inform someone about something they didn't know, or show them the hidden treasures in the world. And if someone finds it amusing, so much the better! I've had some fun in writing this list of facts, and I'm sure you will too. So please, read on. If you are still not entertained, I would recommend that you try to find some fun facts of your own, and write your own list! You'll be able to impress others with the things that you have discovered, and you will feel like you're a better person than all the people who don't know about those things. You can enjoy this list of interesting facts at any point in time, as well as anytime you're bored. If you're bored in class, just start reading the list out loud. If your teacher asks you a question, you can answer with this list, and they will be so impressed by your knowledge!
George Lucas convinced Fox to let him keep the rights to ‘Star Wars.’
![20th Century Fox was convinced that 'Star Wars' was going to be a flop. CRACKED.COM They agreed to George Lu- cas' proposition to forgo an additional $500,000 di- recting fee in return to keep licensing and mer- chandising rights of the movie for himself, which made him a billionaire.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/7/1/868471.jpg)
Africans had their hands cut off for not harvesting rubber fast enough.
![Severed hands became a currency during the Belgian colonization of Congo. CRACKED.COM Colonizers demanded sev- ered hands as punishment for failing to fulfill rubber collection quotas, but the quotas were unrealistic. Soldiers were paid bonus- es based on how many hands they collected.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/7/0/868470.jpg)
NBA Jam earned a billion dollars in arcades the first year of release.
![The NBA Jam arcade game outgrossed 'Jurassic Park' in 1993. I CRACKED.COM SHOT NBA Jam was America's highest-grossing arcade game of 1993. Individual ma- chines at the time were earn- ing up to $2400 per week, and the game grossed over $1 billion the first year.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/9/868469.jpg)
The Nirvana drummer made an album where he recorded all the instruments and vocals.
![David Grohl was the only band member of Foo Fighters when recording the first album. CRACKED.COM Не wrote and recorded all vocal, guitar, bass, and drum tracks himself. Many know Grohl as a frontman, but he actually played per- cussion in a small indie band before Foo Fighters, called Nirvana.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/7/2/868472.jpg)
Wearing a doctor’s coat makes you smarter.
![We embody associations we have with particular clothes. GRAGKED.COM People scored higher in a mental agility test while wearing a lab coat that they believed was a doc- tor's coat. The effect was not there when they be- lieved the same white coat was a painter's coat.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/5/868465.jpg)
A murderer did more time for bounced checks then the aforementioned murders.
![A former NFL player did more time for bad checks than murder. THE FACE OF THIS DOCUMENT HAS b TLUE BACKGROUND ON WHITE PAPERANO . VOID PANTOGRAPH WITH A BLUE SECURITY STRIP IN CENTER WELLS FARGO BANK N.A 11-24/1210 WELLS FARGO HOME EQUITY CASHIER'S CHECK 11001 NORTH BLACK CANYON HIGHWAY PHOENIX AZ adidas No. 0150482880 Date: 08/02/06 WELLS FARGO BANK Loan #: 20053097100155 For: 490397919 JOSE TRINIDAD AND DOREEN E LARA $12,000.42 Pay 12,000dols 42 cts Browly of Exactly - Twelve Thousand dollars and 42 cents Void if over $12,000.42 PAY ORDER CE not GRAGKED.COM 2015018 2880г C121000PLAC 4861 507788 Robert Rozier](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/6/868466.jpg)
Rosalind Franklin was the first lady of DNA.
![Rosalind Franklin is the unsung hero of DNA research. CRACKED.COM Her X-ray Crystallography allowed her colleagues Watson and Crick to асси- rately characterize the double helix. Many believe she should've shared in their Nobel prize.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/8/868468.jpg)
Huskies need to train like humans to be better runners.
![Huskies need to train to be better distance runners. CRACKED.COM While the average pet hus- ky can run between 10 to 20 miles a day, a well-con- ditioned race husky can run for 11 hours straight for 125 miles. They can repeat this distance for up to 10 days in a row.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/7/868467.jpg)
There was an epidemic of Toxic Shock Syndrome due to a long lasting tampon.
![A long lasting tampon released in 1975 caused an epidemic of Toxic Shock Syndrome. CRACKED.COM The P&G 'Rely' Tampon was super-absorbent and long-lasting, promising to even absorb the worry. This led to women leaving them in too long, making them the perfect environ- ment to culture bacteria.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/1/868461.jpg)
Cops in Colorado used an odor telescope to fine weed smokers.
![Denver cops used smell-oscopes to find weed smokers. CRACKED.COM Even though recreational marijuana was legal by 2013, there was still an ordinance against polluting the air with too much smoke. The Nasal Ranger Field Olfactometer used purified air to filter out less-offensive odors.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/2/868462.jpg)
McDonald’s Monopoly cheaters were exposed by an FBI sting operation.
![The FBI made up a production company to expose McDonald's Monopoly winners. PEEL HERE PEEL HERE $ $ our ©2005 Medonald's PUSO 28 CRACKED.COM The FBI went undercover to interview supposed win- ners for TV ads using the name Shamrock Produc- tions, and they drove a van with the byline Cause you're just lucky printed on the side.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/3/868463.jpg)
“Now You See Me” almost became “Now You Watch Me Drown.”
![Isla Fisher almost drowned while filming 'Now You See Me! CRACKED COM Fisher was running out of air while filming the piranha tank scene and tried to swim to the top for air, but her handcuffs got snagged. The crew thought it was part of the scene, which called for her to panic.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/4/868464.jpg)
A tropical fruit is covered in irritating acid until it’s ripe.
![The Delicious Monster fruit will cause severe irritation until it is 100% ripe. CRACKED COM The outer layer of Mon- stera Deliciosa has the presence of oxalic acid (rust cleaner) unless the fruit is ripe, at which point it's safe to eat and tastes like a mix of pineapple, ba- nana, and coconut.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/9/868459.jpg)
There is an anomaly over the South Atlantic that affects equipment in space.
![The Earth is misaligned with its magnetic field over the South Atlantic. GRAGKED.COM The South Atlantic Anomaly is a region of space where computers crash, astronauts lose part of their vision, and a space telescope was de- stroyed by a guidance com- puter fault.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/6/0/868460.jpg)
The White House used to be partially powered by solar energy.
![The Carter administration installed 32 solar panels on top of the White House in 1979. CRACKED.COM Carter said, In the year 2000 this solar water heater behind me, which is being dedicated today, will still be here supplying cheap, effi- cient energy. The Reagan administration immediately took them down in '86.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/7/868457.jpg)
An English village created a fake beach to fool tourists.
![Locals in Cornwall, England created an imaginary beach to deal with overcrowded beaches. CRACKED.COM Signposts were put up all over the county leading to the 'Best Beach in Corn- wall,' Porthemmet beach, but the signs actually di- verted tourists in the ор- posite direction from any of the coasts.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/8/868458.jpg)
Argentina’s dictatorship threw opponents from airplanes.
![People were shoved out of airplanes during Argentina's dictatorship. CRACKED.COM Opponents to the regime were drugged, flown out over the Atlantic, and pushed out of planes alive with weights attached to their feet so no bodies would be found as evidence.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/3/868453.jpg)
Pepperoni means “bell peppers” in Italy.
![Pepperoni is an American invention. CRACKED.COM It's similar to the spicy sa- lamis of southern Italy, but it also has elements char- acteristic of German sau- sages (smokiness, beef content, and fine grind). In Italian, peperoni just means bell peppers.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/5/868455.jpg)
Our eyes generate a light show when kept in complete darkness.
![Your brain/eyes will generate a light show if kept in darkness for long periods of time. CRACKED.COM The phenomenon, known as the Prisoner's Cinema, is reported by prisoners confined to dark cells and by others kept in dark- ness such as truck drivers and pilots.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/6/868456.jpg)
Nic Cage ate real cockroaches for “Vampire’s Kiss.”
![It was Nicholas Cage's idea to eat real cockroaches while filming Vampire's Kiss (1988). CRACKED.COM The script had called for Cage's character to suck a raw egg, but he felt that was too tame. Cage de- cided on cockroaches be- cause they are the thing he hates the most.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/4/5/4/868454.jpg)