Jason English
What’s Your All-Time Favorite Amazing Fact?
by Jason English - January 27, 2012 - 2:23 PM

bloghead_fridayhappyhour1.gif

On Fridays, I post a series of unrelated questions meant to spark conversation in the comments. Answer one, answer all, respond to someone else’s reply, whatever you want. On to this week’s topics of discussion…

1. Besides the thing about John Tyler’s grandsons still being alive, my favorite fact is that the 3 Musketeers was originally three smaller bars (vanilla, strawberry, chocolate). A couple years ago we tried to start a movement to bring it back, but that didn’t go anywhere. And now I’m hungry. While I go rummage around for a candy bar, you tell us about your all-time favorite fact.

2. If you had to add a non-traditional pet to your life — no cats, dogs, fish, birds, rabbits, hamsters, or anything you’ve ever owned before — what would you choose, and what would you name it?

3. What is the one niche subject you believe you know more about than anyone else reading this post?

Bonus! If you live in Birmingham, Ala., or Northern New Jersey and “website user testing” sounds like a blast, we want to speak to you! Just leave a note in your comment that you might be interested or email me and we may be in touch.

[Have a great weekend! See all the previous Friday Happy Hour transcripts.]

Click here to get a Risk-Free issue of mental_floss magazine
Comments (87)
  1. 1.Hard to say, because I love facts so much… but, I’m going with “Did you know most fruits are actually ovaries of their respective trees/bushes/vines?” SO… when you crunch down on an apple, you’re eating a tree ovary. Nice. :D

    2. I so want a bearded dragon! One of my professors in college had three, in a big dry aquarium in her office. And one of my students has one now… she brings him to school for science fair and stuff like that. As far as naming goes, I’m not sure–I think naming him after a famous dragon from literature or sci-fi would probably be the route I took. After all, I do have a cat named Padme.

    3. Probably not more than ANYONE who could possibly be reading this post, but two things I do know a ton about: a)human anatomy /diseases (because I’m a biology teacher, so it kinda lends itself to it and b) Holocaust studies (my minor in college)–my husband and one of my good friends are Jewish, so it seems like something I should know a lot about.

  2. 2. A Cheetah. Name it “I” and challenge people to races by saying “I bet I can beat you in a race.”

    3. Seinfeld.

  3. 1. One of my favorite facts is that the color of the twist-tie on a loaf of bread indicates how fresh it is. It’s color-coded to day of delivery. However, I don’t think the colors are universal anymore (different stores and different bread companies can kinda make their own), so it’s harder to tell. But that’s why they come in so many different colors!

    2. If it wouldn’t eat me, I’d love to have a lion. I’d name it Simba, of course.

    3. I know all sorts of random crap (I play on a pub trivia team, so it comes in handy!). But the one topic… hm… I guess I’d say movie release years. Sounds strange, but I have a weird talent for remember what year any given movie came out.

  4. 1 my favorite fact is that a quarter has 119 ridges.
    2 as for the pet I am not sure, but my aunt use to have a monkey and when we would go over. He always would play with me, by the way his name was Frankie.
    3. Well, I have been called a know it all, But really I am not.. But if I had to pick something????? It would not be spelling or grammer.
    Bonus I am in South Jersey does that count????

  5. 3 Pt II – I change my answer to “Friends”! I know ALL sorts of random stuff about that!!

  6. Favorite fact:

    The glide ratio of a 747 is about 18:1, far better than most small planes and nearly double that of hang gliders.

  7. 1. In America, we only have bison — the Asian buffalo and the African buffalo are the only true buffalo!

    2. Pig — Hello, have you seen the movie Babe?

    3. YA fiction maybe? (embarrassing)

  8. 1- I always remember the answer to questions like these hours later when I am sitting at home.

    2- Maybe a penguin, and I would name him James Bond.

    3- Road House. The topic comes up at least once a week at work. I might not know more than everyone, but definitely more than anyone should.

  9. I live in Philly but am willing to travel.

  10. 1. I don’t know if it’s my all-time favorite, but one of my favorites is that Henry VIII was married to his first wife (Katherine of Aragon) for almost twice as long as all of his other wives put together. He had to get a special dispensation from the Pope to marry her, because she had been married to his elder brother, who died. That’s why when he wanted to marry Anne Boleyn, the Pope would not grant him an annulment from Katherine, which led to Henry breaking with the Catholic Church and forming the Church of England. Also, he only beheaded two of his wives (Anne Boleyn (2) and Catherine Howard(5)). He divorced two (Katherine of Aragon (1) and Anne of Cleves (4)), Jane Seymour (3) died shortly after childbirth, and Katherine Parr (6) outlived him.
    2. A cow–fresh milk would be nice. I’d call her Daisy or Bessie, something traditional like that.
    3. The retirement and benefits systems for the State of Alaska, because that’s who I work for. Also maybe fish otoliths (ear bones). I’m no expert, but my husband is, and I’ve picked up quite a bit of his knowledge over the years.

  11. 1. Smokey the Bear’s original name was Hot-foot Teddy.

  12. 1. The odds are that every glass of water you drink contains at least one molecule of water which has passed through the bladder of Oliver Cromwell.

    2. A Llama, whom I would name Randy.

    3. 1970′s punk rock.

  13. 1. Given that I tend to be a fountain of useless facts among my friends, be it stuff from playing pub trivia or from this site, I’d have to say my favorite fact is that Rich Uncle Pennybags’ (Mr. Monopoly) real name is Milburn Pennybags

    3. Hockey

  14. 1. my favorite fact: Jimmy Carter was first president born in a hospital.

    2. pet: a goat. I’d try to give it a really proper name like Mr. Wallace or something. It would sound funnier when yelling at it to get the the roof.

    3. I know the lyrics to TV theme songs of the 70s and 80s

  15. 1. The southernmost point of Canada is farther south than the northernmost point of California.

    2. Platypus – Perry, of course!

    3. Gifted and Talented Education, primarily identification, programming, and social/emotional development of young children (10 and under).

  16. 1. Colin Powell can speak fluent Yiddish after working at a Bronx dress store.

    2. Goat.

    3. Show poultry

  17. 1. My favorite random fact is that cats can’t taste sweet flavors, as a result of carnivorous taste bud evolution.

    2. I would love a raccoon, with their adorable little hands. I would name him Muggsy, because he’d be a sweet little bandit.

    3. I probably know more about birds than most people I’ve ever met. I also have a penchant for archaic grammar rules and word origins. I know pretty much every episode of “The Simpsons” from start to end, but I get the feeling that there are many Mental Flossers with a similar love for that show ;)

  18. 1. The worst defeat the American Frontier Army ever suffered was NOT Custer’s Last Stand, but St. Clair’s Defeat in Ohio in 1791, in which almost 25% of the standing army at that time was killed or wounded.

    2. A wolf named Moh-woh-wah, the Shawnee word for wolf.

    3. Shawnee tribal history

  19. 1. Crows can remember individual faces for years. And if you’ve done a crow wrong, they will hold a grudge against you for the rest of your life (and enlist other crows to do the same).

  20. 1. My favorite fact to tell is that there’s no such thing as a bad fortune in a fortune cookie. Or, at least I’ve never seen one. (I once heard it was out of fears of people taking it too seriously and then killing themselves, but that might just be an urban legend.)

    2. My granddaughter wants an elephant or a sloth, depending on the day, but my non-trad pet would probably be an alligator. A neighbor down the street had 3 of them, who lived under his sofa. All of the kids in the neighborhood used to beg to go see them. Then Bob was hauled off by the Feds in the middle of the night (Drugs are bad, mkay?), and that ended that.

    3. Disney. Disneyland, Walt Disney the man, Walt Disney World, Disney movies, you name it. Yeah, there are a lot of hard-core Disnoids out there, and I am proudly one of them. :)

  21. 1) El Paso, Texas is closer to Los Angeles, CA than it is to Texarkana, Texas – by about 50 miles or so.

  22. 1. David Rice Atchison served as president for one day when James Buchanan refused to be inaugurated on a Sunday.
    2. I don’t like animals.
    3. I am a big fan of “The West Wing,” and could definitely beat at any trivia match about the show.

  23. 2. I would love a sugar glider! They are too cute. or an otter. :)

  24. 1. My favorite fact is that the Moon rotates such that the same side of the Moon is always facing Earth. No one knew what the “far side of the Moon” looked like until satellites were sent up in the 1950s.

  25. @Kevin–my friend once got a fortune cookie fortune which read “You just ate overpriced, greasy food.”

    I’m not sure if was a “bad” fortune, but it certainly was hilarious…

  26. An acre is 208 ft 8.5 inches on a side when in the form of a square

  27. I have learned lots of facts. very interesting

  28. 1. A full moon always comes up later than any other stage in the moon’s cycle. i like to think it’s because it’s bigger. snicker.

    2. i would love a sloth. his name would be George.

    3. i am a Buffy FREAK. i will throw down with the best of you…

  29. 1) George Washington’s Childhood Nickname was Randy.

    2) Chickens

    3)Olympic Collectables.

  30. 2) I’ve been trying to convince my fiance to let me get a tarantula, but I’ve been told that I’m only allowed one tank/terrarium pet at a time. I currently have a betta… but maybe someday. :P I’m pretty uncreative with names though, so I’d probably end up naming it Arachne if it’s female.

    3) Asian ball-jointed dolls. It’s a niche hobby as it is, and I’m involved in it enough that I think I could go toe-to-toe with most other collectors in an ABJD trivia contest. ;)

  31. I’m surprised by how many of these random facts I knew already (or maybe I shouldn’t be surprised considering how much I read mental floss).

    1. Not necessarily my favorite but the geographical facts reminded me that Reno, Nevada is further west than Los Angelos, California.
    2. Hedgehog, and I’d name him Tails (I feel Sonic would be too cliche)
    3. I know a lot of random stuff, but I’d say TV/movie quotes, especially Simpsons.

  32. 1. Buster Keaton was supposedly given his ‘Buster’ nickname at 18 months of age by Harry Houdini, after he saw Keaton take a fall down a long flight of stairs, unharmed.

  33. 1. The theme music from the ’50s horror film, “The Blob” was written by Burt Bacharach & Hal David. It only has one verse (not Grammy material). The musical team went on to write much bigger hits…
    2. Maybe a newt, which I’d have to call Gingrich or Fig.
    3. ’50s & ’60s pop tunes; also learning a lot about beer.

  34. 1. ?

    2. I always wanted an otter. I would name him Otto.

    3. I would guess I know more about stress-strain curves of metals than anyone on the site.

  35. 1. One of my favorite facts is there is no state named “Rhode Island.” The actual name of the smallest state is “State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.”

    2. I’m not really a pet person, but maybe I’d go with an iguana, so I could put him in a terrarium. I’d name him Quincy. (and mrsjetson, raccoons are not sweet little bandits, they are mean and nasty, even the babies, as anyone who has ever tried to trap one can tell you)

    3. Does being the local historian/genealogist count?

  36. 1- Brazil nuts are the only nuts that can be sexually transmitted.

    2- I’d rather like a sloth. Or a llama- called Tina, obviously.
    My friend’s parents run an animals for parties businees, so they have loads of weird and wonderful animals, like skunks, sugar gliders, and various lizards/bugs.

    3- Probably Oasis songs/albums/lyrics.

    @Kevin The best fortune I’ve ever recieved was one that just said ‘Go away’.

  37. 1. I feel like there are loads of things I would be able to recall if it weren’t for the questioning of my favorite one.

    2. An ocelot simply because it is an ocelot. I would name him Herman.

    3. My family genealogy! :) OR folk songs used in wind band music. I have this whole philosophy that by knowing the lyrics to the folk songs in pieces like Holst’s Second Suite, a wind band’s performance would shift drastically.

  38. 2. An otter named Slick

    3. Bowling. I doubt there is anyone here that can match my knowledge on the favorite sport of Fred Flintstone.

  39. @ Molly – I’m curious about how one “transmits” nuts :)

    1. Jello used to come in celery flavor.

    2. If I had a million dollars, I’d buy you an exotic pet – yup, like a llama or an emu.

    3. The use of Communicative Language Teaching in English instruction in East Asia.

  40. 3) If a bear has been eating human flesh, their scat will be white. From Search and Rescue training.

  41. 1. A favorite fact of mine is that for most people,no matter how hard you pinch the skin on your elbow with your fingers it doesn’t hurt (now how many of you try this after reading my comment?? tee hee)

    2. I would love to have a Koala bear and name it Teddy – ’cause they are soo darn cute!

    3. Unless you want to count the industry that I’m in (working with public and private companies being OK with securities commissions), I think everyone on here is very smart and there isn’t one niche I could say I know more about than anyone else…

  42. 1) KFC’s Colonel Sanders was a pallbearer at my great-grandfather’s funeral.

    2) Two pot-bellied pigs named Pratchett and Bryson.

    3) The British royal family, no question.

  43. 1. The capital of Uzbekistan is Tashkent.

    2. Either spelling or Civil War history

  44. 1. It is impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.

    2. A chimp named Bertram.

    3. I would say ’70′s TV trivia.

  45. 1. I love the fact that you have eaten at least 8 spiders while you sleep in your lifetime. I hate that fact but it’s the only one I ever remember.

    2. My whole life my family has always had strange animals for example: bearded dragons, pot-bellied pigs, emus, llamas, lizards, guinea pigs, ferrets, and desert tortoises. We’ve become quite a farm. Although after seeing the YouTube video about baby sloths taking a bath, I would have to go with a Sloth and name her Ivy. Or a ring-tailed lemur named Mikey would be great.

    3. I challenge Gubdude to a Tournament of Seinfeld. I am not even allowed to play the Scene It: Seinfeld addition. Although Friends comes at a close second. And Top Gun

  46. @Jonesy…I used to work with a Philipino (sp?) lady in the late 80′s who used to say the elbow skin felt like a man’s, um, sack.

    3. Sports trivia. Was on the Stump the Schwab in 2006 and got to the finals but he pummeled me.

  47. 3. And if children count, my son destroys in anything to do with The Office, he’s ridiculous. He’s 14.

  48. 1. None of Frank Sinatra’s four wives ever remarried.

    2. I’m getting two chickens soon, I’m still thinking of names for them (suggestions welcome!)

    3. Identifying Ikea furniture by name. Don’t worry, I judge me too.

  49. @Molly I think that’s because they are not technically a nut but a seed. That is how they are classified by botanists anyway.
    1. The John Tyler thing is my all time favorite fact!
    2. A pigmy elephant named Babish.
    3. Hmm… I pretty good a Friends Trivia, not sure if I would know more than any other reader. Harry Potter too, but again I don’t think it’s niche enough.
    A few people mentioned things that the BF would crush including West Wing (the dogs are named Bartlet and Leo), Bowling and, Sports. He also has a weird knack for knowing when a song was released.

  50. *That should say not a nut but a seed. Also I guess I am pretty good at identifying fragrances or perfumes I am familiar with.

  51. 1. I have two favorite all-time facts: (1) That the current national anthem of South Africa is actually the result of the merger of two proposed anthems, unified as a result from the order of Nelson Mandela. (2) Italian radio pioneer Guglielmo Marconi installed the radio installation at the Vatican.

    3. I know more about the Federal Communications Commission than anyone else reading this post.

  52. 1. I love that both Winston Churchill and FDR were dressed like girls during infancy (longer hair, dresses), even if that was the style back then.

    2. a mini donkey, named Burrito. :o)

    3. I’m pretty good at Gilmore Girls trivia.

  53. 1. favorite fact is tough- i’m a bit of a fountain of useless info. For instance – there are more plastic flamingoes in the us than real ones or the string on the box of animal crackers was so it could be an xmas ornament

    2. I would love to have a big cat type pet – a Bobcat named Steve would be ideal.

    3. I probably have the best working knowledge of NJ vaccine laws of all of your readers

    Bonus – i am in Morris county and would me more than happy to help out. This website gives me so damn much joy i kinda feel like i owe it to you

  54. @Manruss – I am in complete awe.

    @Molly – Wait, what? I am so lost.

    @Jonesy – No, but it does if you use your nails!

    Favorite fact (that I can think of right now): the hyoid bone evolved from the skeletal structure that supports the gills of fish, and in humans, it does not attach to any other bone.

    Alt pet…no idea. Maybe a hedgehog called Nanny Ogg?

    I would throw down against most people on bodywork (massage/energy healing), and lately people keep challenging me on astrology…and maybe herbal medicine (Western, not Chinese).

  55. I really enjoy/am perturbed by the fact that “Sweet Caroline” was written about a then-12-year-old Caroline Kennedy.

    I would like a teacup elephant. It would be named Penelope if it were a girl and Benjamin if it were a boy.

    I know WAY too much about the Duggar family (the people who have 19 kids, all of whom have names beginning with “J”). I would say that I’m not proud of it, but the way that I recite all 19 J’names in birth order whenever I get the chance says otherwise.

  56. 1- The names of the streets from the board game Monopoly came from real streets in Atlantic City.

    2- I’d want a koala. A friend of mine worked in a zoo so I got to hold one. He was an orphan but super affectionate. I’d just have to figure out how to deal with his nails. I’d call him Martin.

    P. S. I’m from Bergen County NJ.

    P. S.

  57. 3) The military career of Gaius Marius

  58. 1.) Georgia is the only state with no natural, non-man-made or man-caused, lakes. (Thank you, 8th grade Georgia History!)
    2.) Before I was born my parents, (my father was an elephant trainer for the local zoo)raised baby alligators for the zoo. The two babies, Pete and Re-Pete lived in a baby pool and later a waterbed.
    I’d have a pygmy elephant if I could. Too cute! I’d name him/her something nautical, as I have with all my pets.
    3.) I’m a font of useless knowledge, but I actually know a whole heck of a lot about Catholic and Anglican theology and history. No, I’m not a priest.

  59. 3. Either early-mid 19th cantury Texas history or the James Bond books, not so much the movies though.

  60. 2 — Well, my favorite non-traditional pet is hermit crabs, but you said no repeats, so… I guess a skunk. They’re apparently sweet.

  61. 1. food tastes best about 3am. it’s when your taste buds are most active.
    2. i would get a hippo and use it to guard my house. they’re quite territorial and aggressive. his name would be ruttiger.
    3. i’m not as good as i used to be but for awhile i had an encyclopedic knowledge of super bowl history from I-XXIII.

  62. 1. Yogi Berra holds the record for playing in the most World Series games – 75

    2. A goat

    3. WW II

  63. 1) Shortly before John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln, his brother, Edwin Booth, saved Robert Lincoln (Abe’s son) from being killed in a railroad accident. Robert Lincoln went on to be an eyewitness to the assassination of President Garfield, and present when President McKinley was assassinated (though he didn’t witness it). He also attended the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial as a guest of President Harding- who died in office soon afterward.
    2) A female anteater that I would call Auntie Mame.
    3) Trivia about US presidents.

  64. 1. Now that I’ve read them all, I can’t think of one!
    2. I get skeeved out by birds and reptiles, so my answer would be definitely not either of those. I would have to say a small frog, maybe.
    3. Identifying the voices in animated features – I’m a speech pathologist, so maybe that has something to do with it.

    And, I live in Passaic county, so anything I can do to help!

  65. 1. Vodka and whiskey come from the same root word in their respective native languages – water.

    2. A groundhog, and I would name it McGarry (cf. West Wing) – we already have 2 cats named Toby and Sam.

    3. James Bond movies.

  66. 1. Philo T. Farnsworth, considered to be the inventor of television, only made one appearance on television. He won $50 and a carton of Winstons for stumping the panel on I’ve Got a Secret.

    2. A cow and I’d name it Wilsons after the leather store

    3. IndyCar Racing

  67. 1- The width and the height of the St. Louis Arch are exactly the same: 630 ft.

    3- The rock band Rush.

  68. 1. The broad-breasted turkey is SO broad-breasted that they can’t mate, so your Thanksgiving bird is most likely the product of artificial insemination.

    2. I’d love to have a very small monkey. I’d name it something proper, like Mr. Farnsworth Crumplecoat. (Let me add that as much as I’d LOVE to have a monkey, I never will – poaching of monkeys is a terrible thing)

    3. Peruvian cooking.

  69. 1. It is statistically more likely to be killed while riding in a plane that crashes into your own house than to win the lottery.
    2. An otter named Sanchez
    3. The development of trench raiding in the First World War.

  70. @People who are confused
    Knew I should have explained!
    if you eat brazil nuts, and have sex with somebody who has a nut allergy, it will trigger their reaction. (unless you’re using a condom, obviously) This doesn’t happen with any oher nut.

  71. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4Ktn7YXoJQ

    Proof. About 1:30 in.

  72. 1. St. Peter’s Church in Woolton, Liverpool, where Lennon and McCartney first met in 1957, has in its graveyard a headstone for an Eleanor Rigby who died in 1939. McCartney says he had no knowledge of this when he wrote his song about a lonely woman who dies in a church.

  73. #3 houseplants

  74. 2. A sloth named Molasses (or Molly for short).

    3. Ashikaga Takauji and the Kenmu Restoration, or Japanese historiography in general. Kind of specific even for a niche subject, but hey.

  75. 1.Claude Rains daughter stuttered as a child and he insisted all members of the household sing instead of talk when communicating with her.
    2.A Bob-cat or Ocelot would be cool.Like the name Mr.Kringalein.
    3> I am no polyglot or etymologist,but I am fascinated by the derivations and meaning of words and names.

    Thank you Molly, for clearing that up.
    Also my daughter received 3 different fortune cookies with no fortunes,the slips of paper were blank.She was a little freaked out for a moment.

  76. 1. The only human character on the Flintstones that didn’t have a “Stone Age” name was Tuesday Wednesday (a takeoff of actress Tuesday Weld)

    2. Hugh Manatee

    3 Arena Football

  77. 1) The indent in the bottom of a wine bottle is called the punt; the dot on top of an i or a j a tittle; your belly wambles when you’re hungry; and the smell of the air after it rains is called petrichor.

    2) A Slow Loris called Seymour (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9f-6jygRJk)

    3) US Presidential trivia, Latin declensions, and syntactic delineation

  78. @ Brandy
    Are you suggesting that Georgia has no lakes at all? I’m pretty sure the masses of water I’ve visited all my life have been lakes.

  79. Yes I’ve lived in Georgia my entire life and have done a lot of boating on what I think are lakes. : /

  80. @jonesy: Koalas are not bears, but they are very cute!

  81. 3. Figure skating terminology.

  82. 1. A fact I like to let people know is that animals up for adoption are less likely to get homed if their coats are black.

    2. A rescued eagle or fox/dog hybrid. (I’m involved with rescue organizations) I love proper names like mister so and so or lady this and that.

    3. The book Master and Margarita I have 3 different translations. If I learn another language it will be Russian and the first book I will read will be this one.

  83. RE: LAKES IN GEORGIA
    I think she was saying that there are no natural lakes in Georgia

  84. Re: Lakes in Georgia

    I think maybe he/she worded this weird. It says no natural, non-manmade or man caused lakes. I read that as no lakes too. Though I have never visited Georgia I would have to assume that thier are lakes in Georgia.

  85. @Kathy who knows a lot about the British Royal Family–

    Is it true that Glenn Close was distantly related to Princess Diana? I always read this, and I have to say, I could see it… I just never met anyone who actually knew for sure.

  86. 1) Genghis Khan and Mahatma Gandhi were both vegetarians.
    2) Baby tiger and name him Huey or several fainting goats and give them the names of the top democrat & republican candidates.
    3) I have a cesspool of trivial knowledge…tough to narrow to one thing.

  87. Re: Georgia Lakes

    As a 16-year GA resident, there are lakes here, but no natural ones. The ones here were
    All created by man. There are, however, plenty of natural rivers and streams.

Comment

commenting policy