# 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:** 465
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2024, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9293 "2024-04-05T23:42:09Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Just as long as he doesn’t leave them in the car, so your prayers get turned into Queen’s Greatest Hits. What does god need with a car? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2024, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9294 "2024-04-05T23:47:25Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > What does god need with a car? Cuz HE looks _cool_. [![](https://laprensa.org/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.laprensa.org%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2022-04%2F17519.jpg&w=828&q=75) ](https://laprensa.org/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcms.laprensa.org%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2022-04%2F17519.jpg&w=828&q=75) ---
**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 5, 2024, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9295 "2024-04-05T23:51:59Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > Why does God need an answering machine?” If I was god, I’d be out partying and stuff, not sitting at home by the phone, duh. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2024, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9296 "2024-04-06T00:05:26Z")
I dunno, but he has one. A Honda. As does his son, though Jesus didn’t like to talk about his: Jesus: “For I speak not of my own Accord, but of my father’s” (Jesus also owned a Plymouth, because he drove the moneychangers out of the temple in a Fury. Father and son three cars total–that we know of.) ---
**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:** [April 6, 2024, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9297 "2024-04-06T00:13:03Z")
[And then there’s the ride for the group’s third member.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_Spirit) ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2024, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9298 "2024-04-06T21:24:12Z")
Mammoth Mountain has a problem with toxic levels of CO2. On this date in 2006, three members of the ski patrol died when two of them fell into volcanic gases trapped beneath snow. A third died trying to rescue the first two. That was at a point source, but apparently there are many diffuse sources throughout the area. Small cabins and tents, when covered in snow, can accumulate dangerous amount of the gas. > **[Mammoth Mountain | Volcanic gas discharge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammoth_Mountain#Volcanic_gas_discharge)** > > Mammoth is outgassing large amounts of carbon dioxide out of its south flank, near Horseshoe Lake, causing mazuku in that area. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the ground ranges from 20 to 90 percent CO2. Measurements of the total discharge of carbon dioxide gas at the Horseshoe Lake tree-kill area range from 50 to 150 short tons (45 to 140 t) per day. This high concentration causes trees to die in six regions that total about 170 acres (0.69 km2) in size (see photo). > The tree-kills origi... > **[How Routine Turned to Tragedy at Mammoth](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-apr-09-me-mammoth9-story.html)** > > Rescuers who tried to save two ski patrollers who fell into a crevasse formed by a volcanic vent at Mammoth Mountain said Saturday that they found themselves confronted with a danger they did not expect. ---
**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:** [April 6, 2024, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9299 "2024-04-06T22:18:51Z")
I saw something online that said that Martin Luther King’s heart, when examined during his autopsy, was found to be at the condition of a man in his 60s, despite being only 39 years old. Curious, I managed to find the autopsy report online. His heart was unremarkable. But, I did learn 2 things. If MLK had survived the assassination attempt, he would have been a quadriplegic. The bullet severed his spinal cord. And, although described as a “well nourished” man, Dr. King was measured at only 5’ 9.5” and about 140 pounds (all that walking surely kept him trim). > **[king%20jr,%20martin%20luther\_report.pdf](https://www.autopsyfiles.org/reports/Celebs/king%20jr,%20martin%20luther_report.pdf)** > > 212.46 KB ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2024, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9300 "2024-04-07T00:45:59Z")
Every English/British monarch since James VI and I has been descended from James VI and I. Sophia of Hanover (the matriarch of the Hanoverian dynasty) was James’s granddaughter. From there it’s a straight line to Charles. ---
**Author:** ![LilXMo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lilxmo/32/4225_2.png) [@LilXMo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilXMo)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2024, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9301 "2024-04-07T18:23:38Z")
Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)), is a byproduct of human activities. Think welding on stainless steel, chrome plating, etc. it is a carcinogen, water soluble and hazardous to the environment (water contamination in Erin Brokovich lawsuit). Ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, is one material that can be used to neutralize Cr(VI) to Cr(III), a non toxic compound found naturally in our bodies and the environment. ---
**Author:** ![Mops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mops/32/16494_2.png) [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2024, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9302 "2024-04-08T09:52:25Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Just learned that there are more giant redwoods in Great Britain (~ 500,000) than in California (~80,000). It seems the Victorians really liked them and planted a lot of them. Now they are starting to outgrow every other tree in Britain, but they are still juveniles and not yet self-seeding: > [Hidden giants: how the UK’s 500,000 redwoods put California in the shade | Trees and forests | The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/mar/16/hidden-giants-how-the-uks-500000-redwoods-put-california-in-the-shade) > Then I wondered: where else could there be sequoyas? … There are more than 200 _Sequoiadendron giganteum_ left in the former kingdom of Württemberg (1/21 the size of California; now part of the state of Baden-Württemberg) - the remainder of about 5000-8000 seeds that sprouted. The King of Württemberg, a great nature lover, ordered a pound of seeds for 90 $ in 1864, unaware of giant redwood seeds being tiny - one pound is about 100,000 seeds. The royal tree nursery raised seedlings for distribution in forests and parks all over Württemberg The giant redwood trees are well known natural features called _Wellingtonien_ at the time and now popularly called _Mammutbäume_ and marked on maps. One congregation some 10 km from where I live displayed a regrettable lack of long term planning when planting their seedling at their 12th century church (click to see uncropped). [[Album] imgur.com ![](https://i.imgur.com/EEBJhuo.jpeg?fb "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/a/RcJOQzr) ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2024, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9303 "2024-04-08T21:17:51Z")
TIL in WW1 the Germans built an electric fence along the Belgian/Dutch border, to prevent any Belgian patriots going to France (via Netherlands and the UK) and rejoining the war. Estimates of deaths it caused range from 1,000 to 4,000. A large number were shot, as to even approach the fence was forbidden. [Wire of Death](https://owlcation.com/humanities/WWI-The-Dutch-Belgian-Wire-of-Death) ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2024, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9304 "2024-04-10T21:16:18Z")
In Turkmenistan, all cars must be painted white. In this video - you can see parking lots full of nothing but white cars. [I Traveled to the World’s Strangest Country - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkVOpLup6DM) ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2024, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9305 "2024-04-11T02:53:00Z")
A museum from 530 BC, in the state of Ur > **[Ennigaldi-Nanna's museum](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ennigaldi-Nanna's_museum)** > > Ennigaldi-Nanna's museum is the earliest known public museum. It dates to circa 530 BCE. The curator was Ennigaldi, the daughter of Nabonidus, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. It was in the state of Ur, in the modern-day Dhi Qar Governorate of Iraq, roughly 150 metres (490 ft) southeast of the famous Ziggurat of Ur. > The museum was discovered in 1925, when archaeologist Leonard Woolley excavated portions of the palace and temple complex at Ur. > He found dozens of artifacts, neatly arran... It is literally the Ur-museum ---
**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 11, 2024, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9306 "2024-04-11T12:30:59Z")
> [@Zyada](#): > > It is literally the Ur-museum ISWYD “Nabonidus” was the named Robert E. Howard ripped off as the name of the Red Priest in the un-named city where his story “Rogues in the House” is set. Judging from the story, Nabonidus had a collection of interesting things in his house – Lotus poison, an optical viewing system, a live proto-human anthropoid – to make a decent museum. > **[Rogues in the House](https://conan.fandom.com/wiki/Rogues_in_the_House)** > > "Rogues in the House" is a novelette by Robert E. Howard first published in Weird Tales 23 1 (January 1934). Conan is drawn into a feud between a priest and a nobleman in Corinthia, and ends up trapped in a house and hunted by a beast. 1.When the Red... ---
**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 13, 2024, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9307 "2024-04-13T20:46:37Z")
I guess I kinda knew that the BBC provided a news service to numerous countries in their own language, but I never bothered to find out which. Well, here’s the list: > **[News in your language - BBC News - BBC News](https://www.bbc.com/ws/languages)** > > A list of BBC World Service language services There are getting on for fifty languages. I looked this up because I stumbled across a BBC news article in Pidgin, and wasn’t quite sure what I was looking at. Here’s the Pidgin homepage: > **[Domot - BBC News Pidgin](https://www.bbc.com/pidgin)** > > We dey give una latest tori on top politics, environment, business, sports, entertainment, health, fashion and all di oda things wey dey happen for West and Central Africa come add di rest of di world join. For better informate plus explanation of... And a sample article: > **[Butter vs margarine: Expert chook mouth for butter versus margarine choice,...](https://www.bbc.com/pidgin/articles/cll4v6g9yz0o)** > > But even though research into margarine no plenti, Forouhi adds say foods wey get less saturated fat, and dey higher in polyunsaturated fats and wey no get trans fats na di best option. j ---
**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, 2024, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9308 "2024-04-14T03:06:00Z")
Preceding vascular plants as the predominant large treelike organisms on land were the [Prototaxites - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prototaxites), now believed to be large fungus organisms. ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9309 "2024-04-14T11:58:06Z")
isnt the largest living organism some kind of fungus that spread below the surface for more than 1000 miles somewhere in the usa? … and all the fruit (funghi?) that pop up share identic dna? ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9310 "2024-04-14T13:49:15Z")
There is a honey fungus in Oregon that is about 2,200 acres in area that would be the largest organism by area if it is actually connected, but that hasn’t been confirmed. The largest organism by biomass is a clonal group of quaking aspen in Pando, Utah. ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9311 "2024-04-14T14:57:01Z")
> [@fachverwirrt](#): > > quaking aspen thx, that was it (I just confused tall trees with small funghi - but who doesn’t 😉 ) … they share the same rhizomes and those are distributed over huge spaces under the surface … ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2024, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9312 "2024-04-14T16:33:53Z")
> [@fachverwirrt](#): > > The largest organism by biomass is a clonal group of quaking aspen in Pando, Utah. If “Pando” is the name of the location, it’s named after the organism. The stand of trees is itself named “Pando”, from the Latin for “I shake”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=464) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=466)