# 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:** 314
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2023, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6271 "2023-03-22T01:25:32Z")
I found out that Redbox, the kiosk disc rental company, is actually a subsidiary. That’s unsurprising. The surprising part is their parent company is Chicken Soup for the Soul. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2023, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6272 "2023-03-22T23:06:17Z")
@Saint_Cad, just from family experience, I think you are right. My Norwegian grandmother and others on that side of the family have Seasonal Affective Disorder, not just me. We all live in northerly states too, so that’s not helping us. I think I need to become a snowbird. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2023, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6273 "2023-03-23T00:49:07Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > @Saint_Cad, just from family experience, I think you are right. My Norwegian grandmother and others on that side of the family have Seasonal Affective Disorder, not just me But if you read the linked article about Greenland suicide rates, it’s pretty clear why the rate is so high. Winter-long dark dreariness is just one of many factors, all of which are much more more prominent. Lack of opportunity, poverty, and extremely high rates of alcoholism, plus an epidemic of copycat teen suicide (such as Palo Alto experienced not long ago). ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2023, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6274 "2023-03-23T06:10:37Z")
Australian Aboriginals also have an extremely high suicide rate, despite a notable lack of blond hair or long winter nights. ---
**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 23, 2023, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6275 "2023-03-23T14:37:47Z")
Uranus farts. > **[Uranus Expels a Huge Plasma Bubble 22,000 Times the Size of Earth During...](https://www.sciencetimes.com/articles/42697/20230306/uranus-expelled-huge-plasma-bubble-22-000-times-size-earth.htm)** > > Upon studying archives from the Voyager 2 craft, two planetary scientists were able to observe something that previous analysis missed. Read to learn more. ---
**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 23, 2023, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6276 "2023-03-23T15:49:30Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > But if you read the linked article about Greenland suicide rates, it’s pretty clear why the rate is so high. I’ve flown over Greenland. I wonder if the desolation around them is part of it too. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2023, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6277 "2023-03-23T19:11:37Z")
So TIL about August Willich > **[August Willich](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_Willich)** > > American Civil War > August Willich (November 19, 1810 – January 22, 1878), born Johann August Ernst von Willich, was a military officer in the Prussian Army and a leading early proponent of communism in Germany. In 1847 he discarded his title of nobility. He later emigrated to the United States and became a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. > Willich was born in Braunsberg, Province of East Prussia. His father, a captain of hussars during the Napoleonic Wars, died when Willi... He was a radical socialist who at one point challenged Karl Marx to a duel (because he thought Karl Marx was too conservative!) before moving to the US and rising to be a leading Union general in the civil war (during the battle of Shiloh he succesfully rallied his troops with the republican anthem La Marseilles). He then tried to join the German side in the Franco-Prussian war, but was denied because (unbeknownst to him) in the intervening decades the German nationalist movement had turned from a liberal/radical endeavor to a conservative one. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2023, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6278 "2023-03-23T19:25:32Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > I’ve flown over Greenland. I wonder if the desolation around them is part of it too. I believe almost all of the interior is uninhabited, by humans, or much of anything else. The upper right quadrant, called Northeast Greenland National Park encompasses more territory than, say Washington+Oregon+California or Texas+Colorado. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2023, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6279 "2023-03-23T20:47:46Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > it’s pretty clear why the rate is so high. Oh, I know about that. Tie in those problems with SAD and you have me this past winter. I came very, very close to suicide. But it is spring now and the sun is back and that is helping. Hopefully, by this upcoming November, I’ll have my shit together and a job to distract me from winter. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2023, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6280 "2023-03-24T08:17:17Z")
Long ago, I learned that the New York subway system used special incandescent bulbs with left-handed threads to discourage theft, because they wouldn’t fit into common light sockets with right-handed threads. Recently I learned they still make bulbs like that. A search showed me they’re still in use today in various circumstances, such as temporary lighting on construction projects. In fact, you can buy a two-pack for a mere $6.39:[Philips Incandescent Light Bulb (2 pack) (281709) 150 watt - 120/130 volt - A23 - Medium Screw (E26) Base - Frosted - Left Hand Thread](https://www.lightbulbs.com/product/philips-281709) “The base of this bulb has threads that run in the OPPOSITE direction of those on a regular bulb base.” So make sure you have matching sockets. ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2023, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6281 "2023-03-24T09:56:14Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Uranus farts. It _had_ to be Uranus, right ? Still, I’m glad that the Uranus Orbiter and Probe is happening. Uranus has been my favourite planet since I was a kid and I was disappointed at the lack of attention it had received until recently. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2023, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6282 "2023-03-24T14:37:33Z")
That’s very clever. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2023, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6283 "2023-03-24T15:20:29Z")
TIL that Anthony Bourdain had a cameo in a Uwe Boll movie. I wonder if he was just passing through and Boll grabbed him or something. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2023, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6284 "2023-03-24T15:54:04Z")
> [@rowrrbazzle](#): > > Recently I learned they still make bulbs like that. That would make an awesome gag gift. ---
**Author:** ![alovem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@alovem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alovem)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2023, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6285 "2023-03-25T09:59:13Z")
The other day, I got to wondering about the etymology of the expression “so long” (as a way to say goodbye). Seems odd, no matter how you slice it. This morning, I remembered to have a look online and came across an interesting entry in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. There are theories, but it appears to be of unknown origin: > **['So Long': A Common But Mysterious Goodbye](https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/so-long-origin)** > > Its origins are surprisingly murky. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2023, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6286 "2023-03-25T11:41:41Z")
Truly. I would probably destroy the socket trying to jam it in. ---
**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:** [March 25, 2023, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6287 "2023-03-25T21:36:55Z")
Of course if anyone in NYC owns a novelty lamp with a backwards socket, they now know where to get bulbs for it. 😛 ---
**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:** [March 25, 2023, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6288 "2023-03-25T21:46:10Z")
> [@alovem](#): > > The other day, I got to wondering about the etymology of the expression “so long” (as a way to say goodbye). In [The Prisoner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Village_(The_Prisoner)), citizens of The Village use the phrase “Be seeing you” as a farewell. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2023, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6289 "2023-03-25T22:51:19Z")
Same phrase in one of the John Wick movies. I believe John replied, “No you won’t.” I think it’s actually done in sign language. ---
**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:** [March 25, 2023, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/6290 "2023-03-25T22:59:04Z")
> [@smithsb](#): > > Same phrase in one of the John Wick movies. I believe John replied, “No you won’t.” I think it’s actually done in sign language. “Not if I see you first”. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/dmBw5vJE29A/maxresdefault.jpg "JOHN WICK 2 Movie Clip - Be Seeing You |FULL HD| Keanu Reeves Action Movie 2017") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmBw5vJE29A) That’s Ruby Rose (TV’s Batwoman), BTW. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=313) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=315)