# Tell us an interesting random fact you stumbled across (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 13, 2020, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674 "2020-04-13T03:19:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 194
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2022, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3869 "2022-03-04T04:49:03Z")
[Volodymyr Zelensky provided the voice of the titular bear in the Ukranian dub of 2017’s _Paddington 2_.](https://nypost.com/2022/02/28/ukraines-president-zelensky-voiced-paddington-bear/) ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2022, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3870 "2022-03-05T00:17:04Z")
There is a “chicken church” in Indonesia. It was supposed to look like a dove…how’s that for a pullet surprise? It was intended for people of any religion or none at all… > **[Incredible images of a Chicken Church built in the Indonesian jungle](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3156330/Incredible-images-mysterious-abandoned-Chicken-Church-built-Indonesian-jungle-man-vision-God.html)** > > Hidden deep inside the Indonesian jungle is an enchanted 'church' which looks like a giant chicken - built by an eccentric Indonesian man who had a vision from God to build a 'prayer house'. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2022, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3871 "2022-03-05T06:22:27Z")
I have been to Yogyakarta, now I feel I missed two important sites. The other was Guning Merapi (Mount Merapi) which is a volcano; when I was there it was closed to the public due to it being actively erupting. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3872 "2022-03-06T04:36:13Z")
In 1922, a secret society aimed at countering the KKK formed. Were they victims of the Great Depression or the Klan? > **[Invisible Jungle Knights of the Tigers Eye - Newspapers.com](https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33818510/invisible-jungle-knights-of-the-tigers/)** > > Clipping found in Bisbee Daily Review in Bisbee, Arizona on Sep 24, 1922. Invisible Jungle Knights of the Tigers Eye ---
**Author:** ![billy-jack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@billy-jack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billy-jack)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3873 "2022-03-06T05:05:27Z")
The game of Ba’ is played in the town of Kirkwall in the Orkney Islands on Christmas Day and New Years Day each year. It is played on city streets, yards, or even potentially inside of homes or businesses that are not boarded up for the game. The boys game starts at promptly at 10 am and the mens game promptly at 1 pm and continues until they have a winner no matter how long it takes. There are two teams that are based on where the participant was born. It would be unusual for each team to have the same number of players as the other. There can be quite a difference. The goal of one team is to dunk the ball into the sea and the goal of the other is get the ball in some portion of the town. I think that originally, the goal of the other was to touch it to a wall at the edge of town away from the sea. Once either is done, the game is over. During the game, it may be difficult to tell who are spectators and who are players. Also during the game, it is rare for the spectators to get more than a very brief glimpse of the ball from the time it is thrown into the players until one player wins for his team. I’ve read that the winner of the men’s game then hosts an all night drinking party for all the members of both teams, but the beer is provided by a local grocery store these days. The maximum age for the boys Ba’ is 15, but there is apparently no minimum age and boys as young as 5 are said to participate. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/uiw3TbYvsBc/maxresdefault.jpg "Kevin Sinclair 2018 Mens New Years Day Ba") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiw3TbYvsBc) ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3874 "2022-03-06T10:53:50Z")
On 17 August, 1964 seven children were killed when the church bus they were riding in blew a tire and crossed over into oncoming traffic. Among those killed was Debbie Rogers, the daughter of Roy Rogers. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3875 "2022-03-06T11:50:11Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > But the REAL joke appears to be what’s going on in two on the video screen “panels”. While the “Doonesbury” , “Cathy”, “Ziggy”, “Garfield”, and “Pogo” screens look like random shots from the actual comics, the one from “Peanuts” features Snoopy and Charlie Brown, and in Charlie’s speech balloon we catch the end of his sentence “…we’ll put you to sleep.” Snoopy looks shocked. Pretty dark. > > Even more provocatively, “Nancy” is holding a submachine gun. No other explanation is given. In the top left, Hobbes appears to be mauling Calvin. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3876 "2022-03-06T14:26:31Z")
I just learned that “Peabody’s Improbable History” was influenced by “Through Space and Time with Ferdinand Feghoot.” Obviously. Note also that the cartoon features a non-human who travels through time with a young companion… ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3877 "2022-03-06T14:31:42Z")
> [@billy-jack](#): > > The game of Ba’ is played in the town of Kirkwall in the Orkney Islands on Christmas Day and New Years Day each year. Essentially the same game is played on Good Friday, Easter Tuesday and the Saturday following in my home town, Workington (head north 'til you reach the Scottish border, turn left, keep going 'til you reach the sea, and follow the coast round for twenty miles or so and you’re there.) The name is different, though: > **[Uppies and Downies](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uppies_and_Downies)** > > Uppies and Downies is a version of Hand Ba game, with roots in even earlier games, played in Workington, West Cumbria, England. The modern tradition began some time in the latter half of the 19th century, with the match played annually at Easter to raise money for local charities. > The object of the game is to "hail the ball" (throw it up in the air three times) at the opposing team's goal. The Downies' goal is a capstan on the Prince of Wales' dock, while the Uppies' is the gates of Workington ... I dispute the description of the “teams”: received wisdom was that Downies were originally fishermen and Uppies were miners (each with associated families, friends etc). Current teams are based on traditional allegiances. For anyone wondering _Cloffocks_ is a corruption of Cloth Works (the industry is long gone). From memory there are maybe half a dozen similar games still played in the UK. j ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3878 "2022-03-06T14:41:02Z")
Takanakuy…a tradition of fist fighting on Christmas Eve. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/mKjSyZhIIiw/maxresdefault.jpg "Takanakuy: Fistfighting in the Andes") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKjSyZhIIiw) [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takanakuy) says: > Locals claim to obtain several social benefits from the tradition. The public brawling offers an alternative method to resolve conflict and create a peaceful society.[[5]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takanakuy#cite_note-vice.com-5) ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3879 "2022-03-06T16:08:53Z")
As a long time fan of the band Genesis, I was aware of the fact that the band name did not appear on their first album. The reason being that Decca, the label they were signed to, had discovered that there was an American band with the same name at the time. However, I recently discovered that in the 70s there was an American band that started out with the name Genesis, but changed it when they discovered there was a British band with the same name. That band later became known as Van Halen. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3880 "2022-03-06T17:17:44Z")
Sounds like a bit out of _Spinal Tap_. ---
**Author:** ![Limmin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f04885/32.png) [@Limmin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Limmin)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3881 "2022-03-06T17:47:32Z")
> [@lobotomyboy63](#): > > how’s that for a pullet surprise? The phrase most commonly mistaken for “Pulitzer Prize,” right? ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3882 "2022-03-06T17:52:15Z")
Reminds me how wombats will get into a burrow and then plug the opening with their essentially armored butts. > ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3883 "2022-03-06T18:25:50Z")
I know, right? They should have just gone with “The New Genesis”. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3884 "2022-03-06T19:14:39Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Then how do hyenas tell one sex from the other? The hard way. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3885 "2022-03-06T20:53:29Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > The hard way ISWYDT ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3886 "2022-03-06T21:06:47Z")
Swindon is an English town of remarkably little interest, about seventy miles west of London. Perhaps the most interesting thing about it is a road junction called The Magic Roundabout. > **[Magic Roundabout (Swindon)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Roundabout_(Swindon))** > > The Magic Roundabout in Swindon, England, is a ring junction constructed in 1972 consisting of five mini-roundabouts arranged in a circle. Located near the County Ground, home of Swindon Town F.C., its name comes from the popular children's television series The Magic Roundabout. In 2009 it was voted the fourth-scariest junction in Britain. > The roundabout was constructed according to the design of Frank Blackmore, of the British Transport and Road Research Laboratory. Traffic flow around the ... That box tells you basically everything you need to know. This is not a fact that I just stumbled across - I have known of it for years, it’s part of the nation’s folklore. It is, however, a _junction_ that I stumbled across, without any warning, on Thursday. The Wiki page says it was voted #4 scary junction in Britain; I would have placed it higher. Here’s a 15 second YouTube video of it in action. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/s3Vd7dr33o8/hqdefault.jpg "The Magic Roundabout in Swindon, England.") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3Vd7dr33o8) That is exactly what it feels like. j ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3887 "2022-03-06T21:17:21Z")
What are 1 through 3?! ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2022, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/3888 "2022-03-06T21:17:35Z")
> [@Limmin](#): > > The phrase most commonly mistaken for “Pulitzer Prize,” right? An unexpected chicken…I couldn’t resist. Another random fact: > Kleenex® Tissue was originally designed in 1924 as a cold cream remover; hence, the “Kleen” portion of the word was coined to convey the cleansing purpose. I don’t know when people decided that blowing their nose into one was a good idea, but somebody’s got a centennial coming up! [https://www.kleenex.com/en-us/faq](https://www.kleenex.com/en-us/faq) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=193) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=195)