More computing power than Apollo 11 fits in a USB-C charger
Technology
A modern 30W USB-C power brick contains a microcontroller that vastly outperforms the Apollo Guidance Computer, which got humans to the Moon on ~64 KB of memory.
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Weird Facts
Octopuses have three hearts
Animals
Two pump blood through the gills, the third pumps it through the rest of the body — and when an octopus swims, the main heart stops beating, which is why they prefer crawling.
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Weird Facts
Mothman sightings began in 1966 West Virginia
Mythology
Reports of a winged figure with red eyes near Point Pleasant kicked off a media wave and later books and films.
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Weird Facts
Earthworms have multiple hearts
Animals
A common earthworm has five pairs of aortic arches that act like simple hearts to pump blood.
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Weird Facts
Venice fines visitors who feed pigeons
Strange Laws
The historic city imposes fines for tossing food to pigeons because of damage they cause to marble and monuments.
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Weird Facts
There is a town in Norway where the sun does not set for 76 days
Geography
Longyearbyen, on the Svalbard archipelago, experiences continuous daylight from late April to late August — and continuous darkness for about four months in winter.
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The liver can regenerate lost tissue
Human Body
A healthy liver can regrow from a remaining portion because liver cells divide readily after injury.
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The first YouTube video shows a man at the zoo
Internet
"Me at the zoo," uploaded by co-founder Jawed Karim in April 2005, was the platform's very first upload.
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The Olympic gold medal is mostly silver
Sports
Olympic gold medals have been required to contain only a small percentage of actual gold since the 1912 Stockholm Games.
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Vikings traveled to North America centuries before Columbus
History
Norse settlers established a brief Atlantic-coast settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows around 1000 CE.
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Weird Facts
The Tetris Effect refers to a real cognitive phenomenon
Video Games
Playing intense pattern games like Tetris for long sessions can cause people to see falling blocks when they close their eyes.
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Weird Facts
Post-it Notes came from a weak glue
History
A not-very-sticky adhesive found its perfect use as a removable note.
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Weird Facts
Bob Dylan went electric to crowd boos in 1965
Music
At the Newport Folk Festival, Dylan plugged in and shocked the folk crowd, marking a turning point in popular music history.
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Mr. Rogers swam every morning at the same weight
Famous People
Fred Rogers told friends he weighed himself daily and swam laps each morning for decades, keeping a steady routine.
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The first music video on MTV was Video Killed the Radio Star
Music
When MTV launched on August 1, 1981, the channel opened with the Buggles' single about technology replacing tradition.
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Weird Facts
Frozen's Let It Go redirected the entire film
Movies & TV
Disney rewrote Elsa's character arc after hearing the song's demo, turning her from villain into protagonist.
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Weird Facts
Leonardo da Vinci wrote in mirror script
Famous People
Much of da Vinci's notebook text was written right to left, readable only when reflected in a mirror.
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Weird Facts
Platypuses hunt by sensing electricity
Animals
A platypus closes its eyes and ears underwater and uses sensors in its bill to detect tiny electric signals from prey.
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Weird Facts
The placebo effect can trigger real body responses
Psychology
Belief and expectation can measurably influence symptoms, pain, and physiology.
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Weird Facts
Tardigrades can dry into a survival tun
Animals
Tardigrades can curl into a dehydrated tun state that helps them survive vacuum, radiation, and extreme cold.
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Weird Facts
Touchscreens can sense your finger's capacitance
Technology
Many phones detect touch by measuring changes in an electric field caused by your finger.
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Mongolia is extremely sparsely populated
Geography
Mongolia has one of the lowest population densities of any sovereign country.
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Weird Facts
Sea otters keep favorite rocks in loose skin pouches
Animals
Sea otters can store a tool rock in a fold of skin under the forearm while diving.
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Weird Facts
Cricket bats are made from willow
Sports
Most professional cricket bats are crafted from English or Kashmir willow, hand-shaped and pressed for performance.
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