In 1995, a 3-year-old boy named David Schiffler discovered a dinosaur egg shell while playing in the dirt at a rest stop in New Mexico. His father didn’t believe him at first, but it turned out to be a genuine 150-million-year-old dinosaur egg shell. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: 3-YEAR-OLD’S DIGGING UNEARTHS DINOSAUR EGG – Deseret News
In 2008, The Department of Developmental Biology at the Osaka Bioscience institute in Japan, discovered a new retinal protein and named it “Pikachurin.” – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://blogs.unimelb.edu.au/sciencecommunication/2014/09/22/pikachurin-i-choose-you/
Ancient Roman artisans crafted a glass chalice, known as the Lycurgus Cup, using nanoparticles of gold and silver so that it would appear different based on the type of liquid in the cup. On display, it appears jade green when lit from the front but blood-red when lit from behind. – WTF Fun Facts
A 2017 study found that moving high school start times back to 8:30am would result in an $83 billion annual gain to the US economy a decade after implementation as a result of higher academic performance of students, reduced car crash rates, and other factors. – WTF Fun Facts
An “okta” is a unit equal to 1/8 of the sky. Cloud conditions are measured in oktas, so the difference between “partly sunny” and “mostly cloudy” is just 1 okta. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/56820/whats-difference-between-mostly-sunny-and-partly-cloudy
In 1924, Russian scientist Alexander Bogdanov started blood transfusion experiments, hoping to achieve eternal youth. After 11 blood transfusions, he claimed to have improved his eyesight and stopped balding. He died after a transfusion with a student suffering from malaria and TB. – WTF Fun Facts
A 2020 study found being wealthy adds an average of 7-9 additional years of disability-free life expectancy over the poor in both the UK and US. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://academic.oup.com/biomedgerontology/article/75/5/906/5698372
The cremated remains of Clyde Tombaugh, the first person to get a glimpse of Pluto in 1930, was aboard the New Horizons spacecraft which passed by the dwarf planet in July 2015. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/cremated-ashes-pluto-space-probe-2018-10?r=US&IR=T
China has built the world’s largest single-dish radio observatory (FAST) at a cost of $171 million. The telescope, also known as the ‘Eye of Heaven’, took 5 years to build in a remote area in southwest China. Its 500m-wide dish is made up of ~4,400 individual, adjustable aluminum panels. – WTF Fun Facts
Deaf children or children born to deaf parents babble with their hands (manual babbling) instead of vocalized babbling. – WTF Fun Facts
The bystander effect is a phenomenon known in psychology where individuals do not help a person in need of help, because they think someone else will help the person. – WTF Fun Facts
Grizzly bears’ muscles don’t atrophy during hibernation because their muscles produce additional amino acids that stimulate muscle cell growth. – WTF Fun Facts
American Lydia Fairchild gave birth to three children whose DNA didn’t match her own. While filing for child support, she was charged with benefits fraud until her lawyer helped discover she was a chimera (carries two different sets of DNA). – WTF Fun Facts
A linguistic study found that winter workers in Antarctica started to develop a new accent. This is a result of them being isolated together and in regular contact with only each other for several months. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/linguists-hear-an-accent-begin/
The termite gut, which contains ~200 different microbes, is an exceptionally efficient bioreactor; it can produce up to 2 liters of hydrogen from a single sheet of paper. Further research is being done to see if it can be recreated as a renewable energy source. – WTF Fun Facts
Ancient Babylonians used a sexagesimal (base-60) positional number system instead of base-10. That’s why we have 60 seconds in a minute and 360 degrees in a circle. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylonian_cuneiform_numerals
At the time of birth, a baby’s brain has roughly 100 billion neurons, but it began with nearly twice as many as an embryo. Starting in the third trimester, the brain eliminates unnecessary neurons via a process known as apoptosis. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://sites.duke.edu/apep/module-5-alcohol-and-babies/explore-more/normal-brain-development/
Three students from Miami have developed a simple straw that can test whether or not your drink has been spiked. The “smart straw” changes color when it comes into contact with three of the most common “date rape drugs”. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.intelligentliving.co/three-young-girls-invent-straw-to-detect-date-rape-drugs/