# 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:** 211
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2022, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4209 "2022-04-14T15:57:26Z")
Not a fact, but a cartoon I have to share Item in the lower left “Apply for an exciting career at Nerrex, Inc.” really cracked me up. If you don’t get it, you need to broaden your range of movies. [https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/4/14/2091753/-Cartoon-Super-Fun-Pak-Comix-feat-Air-Frankenstein-Science-Pets-and-more](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/4/14/2091753/-Cartoon-Super-Fun-Pak-Comix-feat-Air-Frankenstein-Science-Pets-and-more) ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2022, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4210 "2022-04-14T16:16:43Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Item in the lower left “Apply for an exciting career at Nerrex, Inc.” really cracked me up. > If you don’t get it, you need to broaden your range of movies. Okay, I’m whooshed. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2022, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4211 "2022-04-14T16:17:44Z")
Tortoise? What’s that? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2022, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4212 "2022-04-14T16:18:25Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Okay, I’m whooshed. Blade Runner, ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2022, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4213 "2022-04-15T00:28:00Z")
Despite being finished in 1936, parts of the cement in the Hoover Dam are still drying and curing. But that apparently is not a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2022, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4214 "2022-04-15T00:45:01Z")
I learned today that, when they perform maintenance work on an aircraft, the USAF maintainers are not allowed to use [portable impact drivers](https://www.dewalt.com/products/power-tools/impact-drivers-wrenches) for bolts/screws. They’re prohibited even if they just want to loosen and remove them. They have to use manual tools like ratchets and [speed wrenches](https://www.steritool.com/3/8-dr-12-300mm-stainless-steel-speed-wrench.aspx). I am not sure why. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2022, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4215 "2022-04-15T01:59:01Z")
How on earth did you learn that, without learning WHY?!? ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2022, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4216 "2022-04-15T12:32:53Z")
Just spitballing, but they aren’t allowed to use for tightening things because of the risk of over-tightening and damaging the fastener or the object it is attached to. They aren’t allowed for loosening because if the tool is near at hand, the risk of someone using it for tightening is too high. And if you didn’t tighten it with a power tool, it probably isn’t that hard to remove it manually. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2022, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4217 "2022-04-15T13:15:58Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > How on earth did you learn that, without learning WHY?!? I did ask. He shrugged his shoulders and said, “I dunno.” He said he watched a maintainer spend at least an hour removing a canopy using a speed wrench, and guessed it would have taken less than ten minutes with an impact driver. > [@Folacin](#): > > Just spitballing, but they aren’t allowed to use for tightening things because of the risk of over-tightening and damaging the fastener or the object it is attached to. > > They aren’t allowed for loosening because if the tool is near at hand, the risk of someone using it for tightening is too high. And if you didn’t tighten it with a power tool, it probably isn’t that hard to remove it manually. I agree that there’s a lot more risk when using an impact driver to tighten a bolt/screw vs. loosening it. So why not modify the impact driver so it can only be used to loosen bolts, i.e. so that it can only spin CCW? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2022, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4218 "2022-04-18T03:11:14Z")
Downtown Julie Brown of MTV fame won the World Disco Dancing Championship in 1979, when she was 16. ---
**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:** [April 18, 2022, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4219 "2022-04-18T13:33:22Z")
We’ve been wearing Tungsten Carbide rings for a few years. I’ve lost enough weight that my ring now easily slides off after washing my hands so I just ordered one a size smaller. This will be my third Tungsten Carbide ring, my first was similar to what you describe – black with a blue line through it – but the blue line was so narrow that it was barely noticeable. [Current ring is black with a turquoise inlay](https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F63YKZW) and the new one is [black & gold.](https://www.touchofmodern.com/sales/lock-clasp-a698e658-b809-4365-952a-4293cf436bb2/tungsten-carbide-polished-dome-ring-8mm-black-rose-gold) ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2022, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4220 "2022-04-18T19:03:46Z")
The flag we associate with the Confederacy (blue cross on a red field) is actually not their flag at all. That actually was their battle flag. The national standard had that same flag in its canton. It was on a flag of white, until people noticed it looked like a flag of surrender. So a red bar was added to the right side. Also, I have heard some people refer to the aforementioned flag as the ‘stars and bars’. The stars and bars predated this flag, and literally consisted of, well, a couple of stars and a couple of bars. Pop quiz on all this information tomorrow 😉 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2022, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4221 "2022-04-19T19:08:47Z")
The drive from Woonsocket, Rhode Island (birthplace of Norm Abram) to Woonsocket, South Dakota (birthplace of Eleanore McGovern, wife of George) takes 23 hours and 23 minutes. ---
**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:** [April 19, 2022, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4222 "2022-04-19T19:11:54Z")
At what average speed, using which route? ---
**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:** [April 19, 2022, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4223 "2022-04-19T19:31:46Z")
Erwan Fichou seems to be some sort of _enfant terrible_ photographer from France. One of his delightfully weird projects is Dogwool, in which (in his own words) > I photographed dogs and their masters wearing coats or sweaters carefully knitted from lovingly gathered dog hair. Well shoot, what’s not to like? [**Link to the Dogwool gallery**](http://www.erwanfichou.org/galerie-58) on Erwan Fichou’s website. Click on the small images for a larger picture. Aside #1: I came across this in the Horniman Museum, London. Wonderfully weird. As if someone had decided to have A Museum Of All Human Knowledge In Great Detail - housed in a not very big building. So most of human knowledge has been left out, but detail remains part of the mission statement. Aside #2: Dogwool - well, dog wool - is a thing: > **[Chiengora](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiengora)** > > Chiengora, also called "dog wool," is yarn or wool spun from dog hair. The word is a portmanteau of chien (the French word for dog) and angora and was coined by an American spinner, Annette Klick. Dog hair is up to 80% warmer than wool and is not elastic. > Spinning dog hair is not a new art form. Dog hair has been found in yarns dating back from pre-historic Scandinavia, and in textiles from the Navajo and Northwest Coast Native Americans of North America. It was the main fiber spun on the Northe... j ---
**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:** [April 19, 2022, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4224 "2022-04-19T19:54:03Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > Dogwool - well, dog wool - is a thing: Yep. One of my sisters was going to try spinning wool from fur shedded by our Husky mix, until she realized how much fur she’d need and how involved it would be. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2022, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4225 "2022-04-19T20:27:05Z")
So ‘Dracula’, was translated into Icelandic in the late 1800’s. It took a full hundred years before anyone discovered that the translator had just written his own kind of fanfic. Added new characters and entirely changed the story! ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2022, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4226 "2022-04-19T20:30:06Z")
I certainly find this next one interesting. I still use high school algebra. And haven’t been to any kind of a school in over twenty years. I mean, how else could you figure out how long a trip would be 🙂 ? Velocity is distance divided by time. Using simple high school algebra, we get time equals distance divided by velocity. So if you know how far you’ll be traveling (distance), simply divide by how fast you think you’ll be going (velocity). And _voilà_, you get time. This never ceases to fascinate me 🙂 . ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2022, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4227 "2022-04-19T21:36:46Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > The drive from Woonsocket, Rhode Island (birthplace of Norm Abram) to Woonsocket, South Dakota (birthplace of Eleanore McGovern, wife of George) takes 23 hours and 23 minutes. > [@Morgyn](#): > > At what average speed, using which route? Laden, or unladen? ---
**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:** [April 19, 2022, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/4228 "2022-04-19T22:08:22Z")
> [@Jim\_B](#): > > So if you know how far you’ll be traveling (distance), simply divide by how fast you think you’ll be going (velocity). My high school chemistry teacher turned us on to the beauty of multiplying by 1. Like if you have 2 lbs of hamburger… 2 lb x 16 oz/lb, the unit lb falls out (one’s in the numberator, another’s in the denominator) and you have 32 oz. 16 oz and a lb ar the same amount, so it’s like multiplying by one. So if gas costs 1.77 euros per liter, how many dollars is that per gallon? 1.77 euro/liter x dollar/0.93 euro x 3.785 liter/gallon=$7.20/gallon. I was curious to know how many people Nolan Ryan struck out. That number is 5714. Eddie Feigner? 141,517. [About Eddie 'The King" Feigner…](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Feigner) > On February 18, 1967, Feigner appeared in a celebrity charity softball game against many [Major League Baseball](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Baseball) players. In the game Feigner struck out [Willie Mays](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_Mays), [Willie McCovey](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_McCovey), [Brooks Robinson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooks_Robinson), [Roberto Clemente](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Clemente), [Maury Wills](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maury_Wills), and [Harmon Killebrew](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmon_Killebrew) all in a row.[[1]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Feigner#cite_note-1)[[2]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Feigner#cite_note-2) Pick up the action around 8:40 to see Willie Mays. Eddie throws him a devastating changeup for strike one and ultimately strikes out the legend with a between the legs pitch. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/L41A9zsLblA/hqdefault.jpg "1967 MLB vs Celebrities softball game") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L41A9zsLblA) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=210) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=212)