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It seems a strange one Hank yes.
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If you’re trying to tell the difference between a fossil and a rock, give it a lick.
Because it’s so porous, bone becomes slightly sticky when wet- so if your tongue sticks to the specimen, there’s a good chance it’s a fossil. . https://curiosity.com/topics/one-way-to-tell-between-a-rock-and-a-fossil-is-to-lick-it-curiosity/ |
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Vivian from Paper Mario 2004 is a transgender woman. It is openly stated in the Japanese version that she ‘appears to be a girl but is really a boy’ seeking acceptance from her sisters, who finally see her as female in the end.
The entire story was censored in America. . https://www.mariowiki.com/vivian#Gender |
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Epistaxiophobia- Fear of nosebleeds
Genophobia- Fear of sex. |
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The Central Branch of the public library in Kansas City, Missouri, has a parking garage that’s designed to look like a giant bookshelf.
The “shelf” displays 42 book titles, which were suggested by locals and voted upon by the library’s Board of Trustees. . https://www.kclibrary.org/library-history |
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Acarophobia- Fear of itching or of the insects that cause itching.
Radiophobia- Fear of radiation, x-rays. |
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Many of the elaborate background “sets” from the original Star Wars trilogy were actually just detailed oil paintings on panes of glass.
. https://gizmodo.com/the-amazing-matte-paintings-from-star-wars-and-their-cr-1680372651 |
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The word ‘Mamihlapinatapai’ is thought to be one of the most difficult words to translate. Derived from Yaghan, an indigenous language of Tierra del Fuego, it’s listed in The Guinness Book of World Records as the ‘most succinct word,’ and refers to “a look shared by two people, each wishing that the other would initiate something that they both want, but which neither wants to begin.
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Vitricophobia- Fear of step-father.
Ankylophobia- Fear of immobility of a joint. |
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Due to colder weather and fewer ponds, the country has no mosquito population …except for one that’s been in a jar of alcohol at the Icelandic Institute of Natural History since the 1980s, when a University of Iceland biologist caught it inside an aeroplane.
“I chased it around the cabin until I got it… It’s the only mosquito I’ve ever found in Iceland.” . https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/03/world/what-in-the-world/europes-mosquito-free-island-paradise-iceland.html |
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Personality traits like honesty and helpfulness can make you appear more physically attractive.
. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1475-6811.2007.00172.x |
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Insectophobia - Fear of insects
Medomalacuphobia- Fear of losing an erection. |
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‘Tsunami stones’ are ancient warnings written on stone tablets, some over 600 years old, that lie along the northeast coast of Japan.
After a tsunami struck Aneyoshi in 1933, residents moved uphill of a stone they placed that reads ‘Do not build your homes below this point!’, and when the devastating tsunami of 2011 hit, the entire village survived. . https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/century-old-warnings-against-tsunamis-dot-japans-coastline-180956448/ |
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The trees at Slope Point look like they’re being permanently blown over by strong gusts of wind - because they usually are.
The winds at the southern tip of New Zealand’s South Island are so fierce that the trees sheep farmers plant to protect their flocks end up growing sideways from getting blown over so often. . https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/slope-point |
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Xanthophobia- Fear of the colour yellow or the word yellow.
Vaccinophobia- Fear of vaccination. |
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There’s a theme park that puts kids to work. Instead of offering thrill rides, KidZania lets children experience being a responsible adult.
At locations in over 20 different countries, kids ages 4-14 can walk the paved streets of a kid city, work in a variety of jobs, and use their earnings to buy trinkets in the gift shop or rent electric versions of luxury cars. . https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/01/19/grow?irgwc=1&source=affiliate_impactpmx_12f6tote_desktop_VigLink&mbid=affiliate_impactpmx_12f6tote_desktop_VigLink |
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When The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was in development, Alfonso Ribiero (Carlton) told Will Smith, “Whatever this character is called, that’s what you’re going to be called for the rest of your life… so call your character ‘Will Smith.’”
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Dendrophobia- Fear of trees.
Mottephobia- Fear of moths. |
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Dinosaurs may have been just minutes away from surviving extinction.
Some researchers believe it wasn’t the size or scale of the asteroid that wiped them out, but the location of where it hit Earth. If it had landed just a few minutes earlier or later, it would have hit the Atlantic Ocean instead of the Yucatan Peninsula, and the dinosaurs might have survived. The asteroid unleashed mass devastation on the planet, including the largest Tsunami in earth’s history, scientists said. . https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/asteroid-hit-armageddon-bulls-eye-wipe-out-dinasours-scientists-believe-1621542 |
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Galeophobia or Gatophobia- Fear of cats.
Pagophobia- Fear of ice or frost. |
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Nikola Tesla once paid an overdue hotel bill with a ‘working model’ of his ‘death beam’. He warned the staff never to open it, describing it as a war-ending particle weapon that could stop invading armies and make warfare pointless.
After his death in 1943, someone finally pried the box open and found nothing but a bunch of harmless old electrical components. . https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/65857/time-nikola-tesla-paid-his-hotel-room-death-ray |
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Acousticophobia- Fear of noise.
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Ergasiophobia- 1) Fear of work or functioning. 2) Surgeon's fear of operating.
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If you want to get a better grade on a group project, find a common enemy.
Studies show that when you’re working on a group project, negative feelings about someone or something outside the group – like hatred of the teacher– brings the group together and leads to better work. However, negative feelings about something inside the group- like one person not doing their job- can tear it apart. . https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280087917_Positive_Is_Usually_Good_Negative_Is_Not_Always_Bad_The_Effects_of_Group_Affect_on_Social_Integration_and_Task_Performance |
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Getting dumped for someone else hurts more than any other kind of breakup. Known as comparative rejection, studies show it’s the most difficult type of break- up to cope with because it increases feelings of exclusion.
Also, if someone isn’t given a reason for a breakup, they are likely to assume there’s someone else – so if there isn’t, it’s nice to lessen the pain by letting them know . https://www.iflscience.com/brain/science-knows-exactly-what-type-of-breakup-hurts-most/ |
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Pneumatiphobia- Fear of spirits.
Satanophobia- Fear of Satan. |
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Body ‘detox’ or ‘cleanse’ products don’t work; it’s just a marketing tactic.
There is no scientific or medical evidence to support any of the claims made by juices, teas, shakes, ionic footpads, or other products that promise to remove toxins from the body. Aside from that, your body already has a built-in detox system, where your liver, kidneys, skin, and other natural defences do the job on their own. . https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/the-detox-scam-how-to-spot-it-and-how-to-avoid-it/ |
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There’s an octopus city off the coast of Australia. ‘Octlantis’ is home to about 15 octopuses who built their dens with beer bottles and leftover shells from their prey.
They’ve been observed living together, mating, forming gangs to keep intruders away, and even evicting each other from their dens, which suggests they may not be such solitary creatures after all. . https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10236244.2017.1369851?journalCode=gmfw20 |
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Cacophobia- Fear of ugliness.
Bibliophobia- Fear of books. |
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In Goodfellas, the ‘Am I a clown? Do I amuse you?’ scene, where Tommy DeVito (Joe Pesci) attacks Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) for calling him a ‘funny guy’, was Pesci’s idea.
He’d once worked at a restaurant where he got a nasty reply after telling a real-life mobster he was funny, so he suggested it to director Martin Scorsese, and they filmed it without a script to get genuine reactions from the cast. . https://www.businessinsider.com/goodfellas-joe-pesci-funny-how-scene-2015-5?r=US&IR=T |
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Albert Einstein once said his 2nd-best idea (after the theory of relativity) was soft-boiling an egg at the same time as he was cooking his soup, so he could get two meals and only have to wash one pot.
. http://oaks.nvg.org/einstein-anecdotes.html |
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Emetophobia- Fear of vomiting.
Dextrophobia- Fear of objects at the right side of the body. |
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Ambient-Mixer.com has a section dedicated to the background sounds of fictional worlds, so you can study to the sounds of the Gryffindor common room, read in Belle’s library, or browse the Internet while you’re being chased by a hoard of Dothraki.
. https://www.ambient-mixer.com/ |
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Aeronausiphobia- Fear of vomiting secondary to airsickness.
Hippophobia- Fear of horses. |
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Cheaters or Not?
In 2000, gamblers Michael Russo and James Grosjean were uncomfortably detained at a well-known casino. They’re suspected crime? Cheating. Their names were etched into the Griffins’ Book, a database of undesirables. The casino considered this just another day at the office, but Russo and Grosjean sued. They claimed that they had not been found with any cheating devices, they didn’t steal chips and they didn’t cause an uproar. They used their minds and their “style of play” to beat the casino, aka counting cards. They argued that the casino and Griffin Investigations illegally detained them and blacklisted them. The verdict? These two gamblers won the suit. Citing the large financial awards, Griffin Investigations filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2005. Moreover, the casino and other strip casinos have changed their policies about counting cards. And, no, casinos are net letting players count cards; they just can’t take you into the back room for an impromptu shakedown. The lesson here, lawsuits can indeed change the behavior of not only people but casinos too! |
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Imagine, sitting at home in your comfiest robe, sipping on a hot coffee and playing online slots. In this day and age, it’s possible. A Norwegian man named Peter began playing the progressive jackpot slot, Arabian Nights. The casino operator did not take his local Norwegian currency, so he exchanged it for Euros and began playing without taking notice of the exchange rate. Upon his completion of play, he contacted the help desk to find out how much 11.7 million Euros was worth in his Norwegian currency. They replied that it was worth 38 million Crones. Needless to say, Peter had become a millionaire without ever having to leave his house. Anything is really possible.
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Arsenal played a friendly against Dynamo Moscow in heavy fog in 1945 at White Hart Lane and despite the urging of players to suspend play due to the fog, the referee decided that play should continue.
The fog was so thick that the game turned into an absolute farce, with both sides playing by their own set of rules and suffering their own bad luck because of the inclement weather. Moscow at one point made a substitution but didn't take a player off, with fans watching the match believing that the Russian club had up to 15 players on the pitch at the one time. Arsenal also made the best of the conditions, with one of their players—who had earlier been sent off—sneaking back onto the pitch and playing the remainder of the game. However, they did suffer some bad luck, with their goalkeeper knocking himself out cold after running into the goalpost, which of course, he could not see due to the fog. A spectator reportedly took his place in goals and the match continued |
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Give Me That Vegetable!
Not too many of the stories to feature on this list take place in the past decade or so, but we have a special place here for the faithful fans at Stamford Bridge, home ground of Chelsea. You might not know it about the West London club, but Chelsea fans have been bringing celery to the Bridge for decades now—most likely in order to pay homage to their chant "Celery" (warning: inappropriate language). However, according to a club statement from 2007, the Blues have reminded fans that bringing celery to the ground is in fact outlawed and that any fan caught bringing the "dangerous" vegetable to the ground could face a lifetime ban from the Blues' home ground. Here's the story via The Guardian, with the statement from the club below: The throwing of anything at a football match, including celery, is a criminal offence for which you can be arrested and end up with a criminal record. In future, if anyone is found attempting to bring celery into Stamford Bridge they could be refused entry and anyone caught throwing celery will face a ban. The statement then goes on to direct fans to a hotline they could call to report others seen carrying celery, promising that "all calls will be treated in confidence." |
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Didaskaleinophobia- Fear of going to school.
Hormephobia- Fear of shock. |
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Nothing Like a Merseyside Derby
Nowadays, Everton and Liverpool form one of the strongest rivalries in the league, with the Merseyside derbies highlighting on every football fan's calendar. With Goodison Park (Everton's home ground) just around the corner from Anfield Road (Liverpool's home ground), the two clubs have grown in their hatred and disposition for the other—with the desire to beat their rival one of their biggest goals at the start of the season. However, what you might not have known about the two clubs is that before the rivalry had existed, Everton's home ground was in fact Anfield Road—the very ground that Liverpool now call their home and one of the tougher places to travel to in world football. According to Everton's official website, the land at Anfield Road was leased to the club during the late 1800s by the Orrell brothers, who were local brewers. The Toffees would play their first game at Anfield against Earlestown on September 27, 1884, and would play their first Football League match as a professional club on September 8, 1888. Liverpool, of course, would not be founded for another four years after that date. Everton would leave Anfield Road on January 25, 1892—opting to move to the north side of Stanley Park, to the ground and area now known as Goodison Park. Liverpool (who wanted to be called Everton Athletic at the time) would then claim Anfield Road as their home ground. So yes, Everton were in fact at Anfield before Liverpool. |