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The World Beyond BetterMost => Anything Goes => Topic started by: David In Indy on September 05, 2009, 02:29:45 pm

Title: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: David In Indy on September 05, 2009, 02:29:45 pm
I thought it would be fun to start a thread about strange and weird facts. Whenever we hear or read an interesting fact about something, we can post it in here!

I'll start! :D

I was just watching the History Channel. Did you know the Bible is the best selling book in the world? 50 copies of the Bible are sold every single minute!

It is also the most shoplifted book. :o


Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on September 05, 2009, 05:15:24 pm
Quote from: David In Indy on September 05, 2009, 02:29:45 pm
I thought it would be fun to start a thread about strange and weird facts. Whenever we hear or read an interesting fact about something, we can post it in here!

I'll start! :D

I was just watching the History Channel. Did you know the Bible is the best selling book in the world? 50 copies of the Bible are sold every single minute!

It is also the most shoplifted book. :o

Yes I did, but the fact doesn't mean much as you can tell from the shoplifting rate.  ;D

My strange and weird fact that makes me smirk whenever I hear about an earthquake somewhere.

Charles Richter of the Richter scale fame - was a vegetarian, a nudist and quite a ladies man.  ;D

From the book A crack in the edge of the world
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: mariez on September 06, 2009, 10:37:26 pm
Great idea, David!   :D   Someone told me a while back that they knew someone who was allergic to water - so I googled to find out more, and found this:


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-520329/The-teenage-girl-allergic-WATER.html (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-520329/The-teenage-girl-allergic-WATER.html)

The teenage girl who is allergic to WATER

Teenager Ashleigh Morris can't go swimming, soak in a hot bath or enjoy a shower after a stressful day's work - she's allergic to water.

Even sweating brings the 19-year-old out in a painful rash.

Ashleigh, from Melbourne, Australia, is allergic to water of any temperature, a condition she's lived with since she was 14.

She suffers from an extremely rare skin disorder called Aquagenic Urticaria - so unusual that only a handful of cases are documented worldwide.

(continued at the link ....)

Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on September 07, 2009, 02:16:17 pm
Quote from: mariez on September 06, 2009, 10:37:26 pm
Great idea, David!   :D   Someone told me a while back that they knew someone who was allergic to water - so I googled to find out more, and found this:


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-520329/The-teenage-girl-allergic-WATER.html (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-520329/The-teenage-girl-allergic-WATER.html)

The teenage girl who is allergic to WATER

Teenager Ashleigh Morris can't go swimming, soak in a hot bath or enjoy a shower after a stressful day's work - she's allergic to water.

Even sweating brings the 19-year-old out in a painful rash.

Ashleigh, from Melbourne, Australia, is allergic to water of any temperature, a condition she's lived with since she was 14.

She suffers from an extremely rare skin disorder called Aquagenic Urticaria - so unusual that only a handful of cases are documented worldwide.

(continued at the link ....)

Poor girl!  I think the doctors are on the wrong track.  If they think it's histamine related, then why don't topical or oral anti-histamines work?

Sadly, I don't think her boyfriend is going to stick around much longer.  She probably doesn't smell that good any more, can't exercise, can't wash as completely as she needs to after certain acts and bodily functions and they can't get all sweaty together nor even kiss skin.
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: Jeff Wrangler on September 08, 2009, 02:56:21 pm
Quote from: delalluvia on September 05, 2009, 05:15:24 pm
From the book A crack in the edge of the world

Appropriate title since Richter was a nudist.
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on September 18, 2009, 01:32:05 pm

Strange and wonderfully weird fact - if raindrops are falling/being flung hard enough, they will spark when they hit - illuminate.

So says Erik Larson in his great book Isaac's Storm.  I haven't been able to confirm this, but I think I've seen this phenomenon myself, but thought it was just my imagination. 
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: Kelda on September 18, 2009, 03:04:49 pm
Quote from: David In Indy on September 05, 2009, 02:29:45 pm

It is also the most shoplifted book. :o


 :o :o :o :o :o indeed!!!!!
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on September 22, 2009, 06:14:27 pm
In 1893 Chicago held a World's Fair.  They wanted to out-do Paris' Eiffle Tower and thus the Fair's committee members accepted proposals from architects and engineers.

One young engineer supplied his plans for a massive structure that could actually move and was turned down.  He did not give up and spent $25,000 on drawings and additional specs and got investors interested.  But still the committee members turned him down.

He tried again, but this time with the head of the committee of the Midway.  He had the funds, the investors, and he was finally granted a concession to build his monstrosity.

Mr. George. W. G. Ferris got his wheel built.
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: southendmd on September 22, 2009, 07:03:14 pm
(http://www.fromparis.com/modules/imagebank_display_thb_pict.php?number=000033_02)

La Grande Roue, Paris
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on September 22, 2009, 08:11:06 pm
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v728/Jovieve/Ferris-wheel-1.jpg)

Original wheel from Chicago's World Fair
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: Kelda on September 23, 2009, 03:52:18 am
Quote from: southendmd on September 22, 2009, 07:03:14 pm
(http://www.fromparis.com/modules/imagebank_display_thb_pict.php?number=000033_02)

La Grande Roue, Paris

Awww... lovely - reminds me of the Amazing Race - they featured this in the second ever episode and very few could work out what le grande roue was!

*amazing race geekdom over*
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on September 29, 2009, 01:20:07 pm
Read this on IMDb about the movie Blackhawk Down.  Funny, being a superpower country and having one of the largest movie making industries in the world, we never worry about such things:

The production imported 100 Rangers, a dozen Humvees and 8 Black Hawks into Morocco for filming. This was considerably more firepower than anything else in the country and the Moroccan king was understandably uneasy about allowing such a large foreign military presence into his country. Ridley Scott joked that they could have taken over the country if they'd wanted to.
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: Jeff Wrangler on September 29, 2009, 03:08:57 pm
Quote from: delalluvia on September 29, 2009, 01:20:07 pm
Read this on IMDb about the movie Blackhawk Down.  Funny, being a superpower country and having one of the largest movie making industries in the world, we never worry about such things:

The production imported 100 Rangers, a dozen Humvees and 8 Black Hawks into Morocco for filming. This was considerably more firepower than anything else in the country and the Moroccan king was understandably uneasy about allowing such a large foreign military presence into his country. Ridley Scott joked that they could have taken over the country if they'd wanted to.


I bet the king wouldn't have found Scott's joke very funny.  :-\
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on September 29, 2009, 10:57:04 pm
Quote from: Jeff  Wrangler on September 29, 2009, 03:08:57 pm
I bet the king wouldn't have found Scott's joke very funny.  :-\

I bet he wouldn't have either.  I hope Scott & company were gracious to the king for letting them film there.  It took quite a bit of negotiations as I recall from the DVD.
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: Monika on September 30, 2009, 04:53:48 am
Quote from: southendmd on September 22, 2009, 07:03:14 pm
(http://www.fromparis.com/modules/imagebank_display_thb_pict.php?number=000033_02)

La Grande Roue, Paris
I love Paris! One of the most beautiful cities in the world, no doubt.
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: Lynne on September 30, 2009, 09:02:25 am
I love this thread!
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on October 02, 2009, 12:25:38 pm
Quote from: David In Indy on September 05, 2009, 02:29:45 pm
Did you know the Bible is the best selling book in the world?

And in light of this little nugget, do you know what the most banned book in the U.S. is?

In recent years, And Tango Makes Three - based on a true story and centering on gay penguins in New York's Central Park Zoo - has had the most ban requests.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8284509.stm
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on October 13, 2009, 12:28:46 am
The painting of the Mona Lisa hanging at the Louvre isn't the real Mona Lisa

But how's this for an even greater controversy: The Mona Lisa painting we all know is not the real Mona Lisa.

Which is not to say that it's a forgery, though since the painting was notoriously stolen from the Louvre in 1911 there is always the slight possibility that the painting hanging there now is a forgery. But there is another Mona Lisa painted by Leonardo DaVinci with claims to being the real Mona Lisa.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/29546/the_real_mona_lisa_it_may_not_be_hanging.html?cat=38
Title: Re: Strange and Weird Facts
Post by: delalluvia on October 17, 2009, 02:24:16 am
Weird story of the Chase Vaults - to this day, still unexplained  :o

Literally, people have investigated and re-investigated and still don't have an answer for what happened.

http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Meteor/9175/

(FYI -  Geocities is about to go kaput, don't know how much longer the above link will be active.)

http://www.ghost-story.co.uk/stories/thechasevault.html

Title: Where did the peace sign come from?
Post by: delalluvia on September 30, 2010, 09:39:44 pm
Never would have thunk it.  Who knew?

http://shine.yahoo.com/event/green/where-did-the-peace-sign-come-from-2392559/