Japan has installed special concrete tunnels under some of their train tracks to allow for turtles to cross the tracks. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/japanese-rail-workers-build-special-tunnels-to-save-turtles-from-train-deaths-a6757466.html
Esperanto is a constructed international auxiliary language based on a mix of English, German, French, and Spanish. It has just 16 rules and each letter has only one pronunciation. It was created in 1887 by the Polish doctor L. L. Zamenhof. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esperanto
A disgruntled businessman in Vermont, who was upset with the local officials for denying a building permit for his proposed business, got revenge by building a giant, illuminated middle finger statue on his property at a cost of ~$4,000. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2018/12/10/middle-finger-sculpture-westford-vermont
Artist Max Siedentopf is creating an installation called “Toto Forever” at an undisclosed location somewhere in the Namib Desert, Africa. The solar powered installation will consist of six speakers and an MP3 player with Toto’s Africa on repeat. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: http://maxsiedentopf.com/toto-forever
The red flag, when used by pirates, came to mean “no quarter given”, or no mercy would be shown and no life would be spared. Alternatively, a black flag meant that those who surrendered without a fight would be allowed to live. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://owlcation.com/humanities/Famous-Pirate-Flags
Astronauts in space need to sleep near fans so that when they exhale, there isn’t a CO2 cloud in front of their face causing them to potentially suffocate. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.quora.com/Do-astronauts-on-the-ISS-need-to-sleep-with-a-fan-on-or-in-some-way-have-moving-air-around-them
Mankind has probed nearly 14 billion miles outward from Earth via Voyager I, but has only drilled 7.5 miles into Earth itself. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.space.com/17688-voyager-1.html & https://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/01/tech/mantle-earth-drill-mission/
Sgriob is a Gaelic word meaning “an itching of the lip, superstitiously supposed to precede a feast, a drink of whiskey, or a kiss from a favorite.” – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://katexic.com/word/sgriob/
Every Rolls-Royce pinstripe is painted by Englishman Mark Court, a former village sign painter. It’s the last manufacturing step and needs to be perfect as the paint instantly bonds with the car body and cannot be erased. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://money.cnn.com/2015/04/30/autos/rolls-royce-stripe-painter/
In 1996, a man in Devon, England spent a year hooting at owls and logging their response only to find out his neighbor was unknowingly the ‘owl’ hooting back. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/twit-two-woo-over-the-garden-fence-1252339.html
In 2009, a four year old British boy and his father were searching a field in Hockley with his father’s metal detector and discovered a 16th century golden pendant estimated to be worth $4 million. – WTF Fun Facts
Robin Mathews won an Oscar for Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling for the 2013 movie Dallas Buyers Club which had a makeup budget of only $250 for the entire 28 days of production. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2014/02/dallas-buyers-club-makeup-oscar-nomination
The Woozle Effect occurs when repetition of false statements that lack any evidence misleads people into thinking or believing there is evidence, resulting in nonfacts becoming urban legends. – WTF Fun Facts
In 1959, USPS delivery of mail by rocket took place for the first and last time. The USS Barbero, a submarine, fired an unarmed cruise missile carrying ~3,000 pieces of mail as its payload. It took 22 minutes to arrive to Naval Auxiliary Air State in Mayport. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mail-delivery-rocket-never-took-180963557/
Italians wear red underwear on New Years eve to bring them good luck. It is a tradition dating back to medieval times when the men would wear a red drape to protect the family jewels from witches. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.redtedart.com/new-years-eve-traditions-red-knickers-italy/
The children’s book The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle was originally titled A Week with Willie Worm. – WTF Fun Facts
British artist Andy Goldsworthy arranges leaves, sticks, and stones, creating unbelievably magical land artworks. He creates transitory works of art that look almost as if they were formed naturally. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://otherworldproject.net/Man-Arranges-Leaves-Sticks-And-Stones-To-Create-Magical-Land-Artworks
Honey hunters in Mozambique use special calls to recruit the services of birds known as honeyguides. The birds lead the humans to bees’ nests and in return, they get the leftover beeswax. – WTF Fun Facts