The first fireworks were created as a result of the ancient Chinese’s quest for immortality. In early-ninth-century China, alchemy was practiced in order to produce a substance that would prolong life. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.livescience.com/65870-fireworks-immortality-search.html
The self-explanatory ‘new car smell’ is a result of the 200+ chemical compounds ( some of them toxic) found in cars being unstable and prone to off-gassing, or releasing chemical vapors, which leads to the odor we all know and love. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: http://www.bbc.com/autos/story/20160315-is-new-car-smell-bad-for-your-health
Wheelchair athletes with spinal injuries would intentionally injure the lower part of their body to increase their blood pressure which would enhance their performance. This practice is called ‘Boosting’ and has been banned by the International Paralympic Committee since 1994. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boosting_(doping)
Ruth Wakefield was the original creator of the chocolate-chip cookie. She sold the recipe for the Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cookie to Nestlé for one dollar and a lifetime supply of chocolate. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/06/25/the-inventor-of-the-chocolate-chip-cookie-sold-her-recipe-to-nestle-for-a-lifetime-supply-of-chocolate/
There is a group of sea wolves on Vancouver Island that can swim for miles and 90% of their diet is seafood. They primarily eat salmon but also forage on barnacles, lams, herring eggs, seals, and river otters. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/08/sea-oceans-wolves-animals-science/
The made-up name of Khaleesi from George R. R. Martin’s ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ novels only became popular after HBO’s release of Game of Thrones. In 2012, 146 babies were named Khaleesi in the US. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.vox.com/2014/4/9/5590250/game-of-thrones-has-changed-the-way-we-name-babies
Starting in 1948, a man wore giant 3-toed lead shoes and stomped around Florida beaches, leading locals to believe there was a giant penguin inhabiting the area. He did this randomly for the next 10 years. The prankster finally revealed himself and his shoes 40 years later. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: http://mentalfloss.com/article/52460/strange-states-floridas-giant-penguin
Thomas Jefferson helped popularize mac and cheese in America by serving it to his dinner guests during his Presidency. He even had his own recipe. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/macaroni
J.R.R. Tolkien was nominated by fellow author CS Lewis for the 1961 Nobel Prize in Literature, but was overlooked because the jury said the quality of his storytelling wasn’t good enough. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jan/05/jrr-tolkien-nobel-prize