The title is fairly self-explanatory; I decided to find out some unusual things that would stand me and anyone else in good stead when any conversation drifts towards awkward silence. They’re all fact based and fairly unusual. Outlandish trivia ahoy!
1. Gelotology is the study of laughter. Studying giggles and sniggers tends to be related to the idea that laughter is in fact the best medicine. All though many might rubbish such an idea there is plenty of strong evidence to show that having chuckle does improve health.
2. The most studied artefact in history is the Shroud Of Turin. This makes a lot of sense. It follows that there is a lot hanging on the details about this piece of cloth, its origin and crucially whether it was actually wrapped around Jesus. Testing of the shroud to try and put an age to it has suggested it actually dates from between 1250 to 1350AD; however the reason why the imprinted image of a man bearing a striking resemblance to Christ is fixed on it is still largely a mystery.
3. There is a car called the Stutz Bearcat. Apparently this is a well-known car?! It was a road going version of a racer and was first built in 1913. The coolest feature of this model? The monocle window, genius!
4. The length of the largest earthworm ever found is 22 feet. Holy long wriggly things Batman! At 22 feet it’s not far off four times longer than an average fellow is tall. Can you imagine the early bird that started pulling on that soil loving squirmer? It must have just kept coming and coming and coming…
5. 111,111,111 multiplied by 111,111,111 equals 12,345,678,987,654,321. There are plenty of people you will tell you that maths is at the centre of everything, it is the thing that holds the universe together. And you think, he might be right but I’m not entirely convinced. And then you read a fact like this, and you realise that you have no idea about anything and you’re really a tiny insignificant speck in something ginormous and incomprehensible!
6. The toothpick capital of the world is Strong in Maine. The town of Strong has a small population, less than 1500 at the last count, yet it is known for its services providing toothpicks to the world. This is because it was home to the Strong Woods Products Incorporated factory. How many toothpicks do you reckon it churned out? No more than that. 20 million every single day.
7. Pope John Paul II is an honorary Harlem Globetrotter. It seems unlikely, but there are a few honorary members, including Whoopi Goldberg and Henry Kissinger, however the former pontiff is certainly the most unusual. Apparently his induction to the team was done in front of a crowd of 50,000, so strange.
Willy Foster when not learning things he didn’t previously know is always ready to investigate the world of unusual gifts on behalf of Find Me A Gift – http://www.find-me-a-gift.co.uk