# 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:** 481
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2024, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9613 "2024-06-01T22:08:17Z")
Were the athletes on a team representing their country? ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2024, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9614 "2024-06-01T22:29:38Z")
> **[Alex Sink](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Sink)** > > Adelaide "Alex" Sink (born June 5, 1948) is an American former politician and financier. A member of the Democratic Party, Sink was the Chief Financial Officer for the state of Florida and treasurer on the board of trustees of the Florida State Board of Administration. She was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Florida and faced Republican nominee Rick Scott in the 2010 Florida gubernatorial election, losing to Scott by a 1% margin. Sink also ran as the Democratic nominee in the 2014 Sink was... “Her maternal great-grandfather was [Chang Bunker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang_and_Eng_Bunker), one of the famous conjoined “Siamese Twins”, [Chang and Eng Bunker](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang_and_Eng_Bunker).” ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2024, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9615 "2024-06-01T23:20:59Z")
Another etymology factoid from “Something Rhymes With Purple”: The word “miniature” is unrelated to words like “minimal” or “minuscule”; it comes from the Latin word “minium” meaning cinnabar or red lead (because monks would illuminate manuscripts using red ink). ---
**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:** [June 1, 2024, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9616 "2024-06-01T23:38:56Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Speaking of Jamie Farr, he was in the TV show “You Are There” about the Lost Battalion under his birth name Jameel Fahar. Thing is, it seems impossible to find that credit for him online. The name is Jameel “Farah”. He’s in _The Blackboard Jungle_ under that name. ---
**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:** [June 2, 2024, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9617 "2024-06-02T05:55:29Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > If you don’t believe me check out the Saturday Night Live curse. 17 members of the SNL cast have already died. I guarantee you the rest of them will die one day too. Do you remember the segment from SNL in which John Belushi, playing John Belushi as an old man, walked through the cemetary recounting how each of his colleagues from SNL had died, but he was still around because he could dance? There is a word to describe that sketch, just give me a minute, I will think of it. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2024, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9618 "2024-06-02T06:12:02Z")
I remember that skit very well. Belushi died almost exactly 4 years after the skit aired. Here it is. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/64LJXqyZCek/maxresdefault.jpg "Don't Look Back in Anger - Saturday Night Live") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64LJXqyZCek) ---
**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:** [June 3, 2024, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9619 "2024-06-03T12:54:58Z")
TIl that cheese rolling is a sport. USA! USA! > **[Meet Abby Lampe, two-time champion of the cheese-wheel-chasing race](https://www.npr.org/2024/06/02/nx-s1-4985047/meet-abby-lampe-two-time-champion-of-the-cheese-wheel-chasing-race)** > > Ouch! She did it again! North Carolinian Abby Lampe won the women's race at the Cooper's Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake in Gloucester, England, her second title. She talks with NPR's Ayesha Rascoe about her winning technique. ---
**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:** [June 3, 2024, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9620 "2024-06-03T13:03:04Z")
Ms. Lampe appears to be a champion at the human-rolling aspect of the sport. For the cheese-rolling itself, the shape of the cheese would be key. You want as much of the mass of the cheese as possible to be as close as possible to the center of rotation, with as little mass as possible near the rim. You can see this effect yourself by rolling a hollow hoop, a solid cylinder, a hollow ball, and a solid ball down a ramp: The solid ball will always reach the bottom first, followed by the solid cylinder, then the hollow ball, then the hollow hoop. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2024, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9621 "2024-06-03T13:14:15Z")
There’s an episode about it in this series. > **[Watch We Are the Champions | Netflix Official Site](https://www.netflix.com/title/81034679)** > > Explore an array of unique competitions, from the quirky to the bizarre, and meet their passionate communities in this docuseries. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2024, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9622 "2024-06-03T13:49:45Z")
The Mrs. and I watched this show called _The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher_ which is one of those typically British Victorian murder mystery shows following Detective Whicher who was the specialist brought in to solve the case of a child murdered in his home. He makes an accusation against a member of the family, can’t prove it, and gets fired/suspended/run out of town, etc. Loved the show, it’s worth a watch. Now, in recent days we watched _A Very British Murder_ which is a show about real murders hosted by a historian. She tells about a murder where a child was murdered in his home. Gee, the Mrs. says, that’s sounds a lot like the plot of Whicher, maybe that’s where they got the idea from. Historian then mentions the police brought in a celebrated detective to solve it… one Mr. Whicher, who accused a member of the family, couldn’t prove it, and got run out of town. Talk about pulled from the headlines! ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2024, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9623 "2024-06-03T14:15:41Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > TIl that cheese rolling is a sport. I lived close to the bottom of Cooper’s Hill for most of the three years I lived and worked near there from 1987 to 1990. I never saw the cheese rolling race during that time. I was always busy with something else. ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2024, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9624 "2024-06-03T20:50:10Z")
I learned about cheese rolling from watching The Amazing Race. The cheese episode was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2024, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9625 "2024-06-05T10:46:58Z")
From the people who brought you cheese rolling … > **[Man who won shin kicking world title on first try defends crown](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/shin-kicking-world-title-competition-b2557024.html)** > > A man who became the shin kicking world champion on his first try has successfully defended his title, having trained by hitting a hammer on his shins nearly every day for a year, and has set his sights on becoming the five-time champion of the 17th... ---
**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:** [June 5, 2024, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9626 "2024-06-05T10:52:35Z")
The old ferret-down-the-trousers game. > **[Ferret-legging](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferret-legging)** > > Ferret-legging was an endurance test or stunt in which ferrets were trapped in trousers worn by a participant. Also known as put 'em down and ferret-down-trousers, it seems to have been popular among coal miners in Yorkshire, England. Contestants put live ferrets inside their trousers; the winner is the one who is the last to release the animals. > Ferret-legging may have originated during the time when only the relatively wealthy in England were allowed to keep animals used for hunting, forcing p... ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2024, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9627 "2024-06-05T14:23:04Z")
TIL that John Wayne’s final ever role was in Star Wars: > **[John Wayne's Final Ever Role Was In... Star Wars?! (Yes, Really)](https://screenrant.com/jstar-wars-new-hope-john-wayne-final-role/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email)** > > John Wayne is in Star Wars? It was actually just his heavily distorted voice, the voice was used without his knowledge and he was never credited, but a role is a role. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2024, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9628 "2024-06-05T14:50:53Z")
Good thing they didn’t ask for permission. The Duke would never have approved of his voice being used for traitorous spy. ---
**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:** [June 5, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9629 "2024-06-05T15:15:14Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > The old ferret-down-the-trousers game. How does that line go, “_… it will not be seen in him there_” ---
**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:** [June 6, 2024, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9630 "2024-06-06T13:13:44Z")
Think of how interesting it would be if they were legitimate! > **[Gosford Glyphs](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gosford_Glyphs)** > > The Gosford Glyphs, also known as Kariong Hieroglyphs, are a group of approximately 300 Egyptian-style hieroglyphs located in Kariong, Australia. They are found in an area known for its Aboriginal petroglyphs, between Gosford and Woy Woy, New South Wales, within the Brisbane Water National Park. > The glyphs have been dismissed as a hoax by authorities and academics after their discovery in the 1970s, but there are still attempts to prove the false belief that they were carved by the ancient Egyp... ---
**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:** [June 6, 2024, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9631 "2024-06-06T15:00:04Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > TIL that John Wayne’s final ever role was in Star Wars: Well, if just using someone’s voice counts, then it might not be his final ever, because some other movie could do the same thing. But final for now, sure. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2024, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/9632 "2024-06-06T15:21:43Z")
I thought the same, but then it ocurred to me that they may mean to say the last use of someone’s voice while they are still alive. Sounds a bit hair-splittery, but then it would definitely be the last one. And nowadays, with AI and CGI and so on, who knows what counts? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=480) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=482)