# 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:** 58
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1143 "2020-12-28T03:34:32Z")
> [@lobotomyboy63](#): > > Santa…nailed to a cross. This exists. I have seen it with my own eyes. It was a blowmoulded plastic decoration on the wall of an office in Toronto. ---
**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:** [December 28, 2020, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1144 "2020-12-28T15:21:26Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > This exists. I have seen it with my own eyes. It was a blowmoulded plastic decoration on the wall of an office in Toronto. Interesting. I wonder if it’s like the leg lamp (Christmas Story) nightlights—did it really exist back in the day or did the story/movie make it popular enough to prompt someone to cash in on it later? Or possibly the plastic decoration has been around awhile and as the story got passed around, it somehow ended up with a Japanese twist. Speaking of Japan, ever hear of the Phone of the Wind? People use it to (symbolically) call those who died in the tsunami. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1OVPaGRszU) ---
**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:** [December 28, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1145 "2020-12-28T15:38:37Z")
> [@lobotomyboy63](#): > > I wonder if it’s like the leg lamp (Christmas Story) nightlights—did it really exist back in the day or did the story/movie make it popular enough to prompt someone to cash in on it later? [Looks like the Leg Lamp was brought to reality first for a PBS production, and then a little later the movie in it’s most familiar form.](https://www.achristmasstoryhouse.com/a-christmas-story-movie-facts/the-leg-lamp/) Depending on when Christmas Story is supposed to take place, like maybe the mid-50s or later, it certainly looks like something that could have existed at the time had anyone thought of it. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2020, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1146 "2020-12-28T16:32:16Z")
> [@lobotomyboy63](#): > > Speaking of Japan, ever hear of the Phone of the Wind? People use it to (symbolically) call those who died in the tsunami. I heard a podcast about it, some folks had agreed to have their phone calls recorded (and translated) and it was quite poignant and memorable. ---
**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:** [December 28, 2020, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1147 "2020-12-28T21:17:06Z")
I just learned that there is a town named **Onancock** , Virginia. Really > **[Onancock, Virginia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onancock,_Virginia)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Onancock (/oʊˈnænkɒk/ oh-NAN-kok) is a town in Accomack County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,263 at the 2010 census. > According to a nearby Virginia state highway marker, Onancock was founded in 1680. A courthouse was established some years after, and militia barracks established during the Revolution. > Some thirteen months after Cornwallis' October 1781 surrender at Yorktown, Commodore Zedechiah Whaley sought aid from Onancock ... Before your inner eight year old runs amok, I should point out that the name is supposed to derive from Algonkian for “Foggy Place”. [https://blog.esvatourism.org/2018/08/07/eastern-shore-town-names/#:~:text=Onancock%3A%20This%20bayside%20town%20in,the%20Shore%2C%20comes%20from%20Algonquin](https://blog.esvatourism.org/2018/08/07/eastern-shore-town-names/#:~:text=Onancock%3A%20This%20bayside%20town%20in,the%20Shore%2C%20comes%20from%20Algonquin). But it’s almost impossible not to be reminded of this > **[Onan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onan)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Onan\[a\] was a figure detailed in the Book of Genesis chapter 38, as the second son of Judah and Shuah, and the brother of Er and Shelah. After being commanded by Judah to procreate with the late Er's wife Tamar, he instead "spilled his seed on the ground whenever he went in" because "the offspring would not be his", and was thus put to death by Yahweh. This act is detailed as retribution for being "displeasing in the sight of Lord". > The story of... ---
**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:** [December 28, 2020, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1148 "2020-12-28T21:51:40Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > But it’s almost impossible not to be reminded of this You could’ve tried harder ! ---
**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:** [December 28, 2020, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1149 "2020-12-28T22:10:55Z")
> [@pjd](#): > > You could’ve tried harder ! Sorry. I just couldn’t help myself. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1150 "2020-12-29T00:38:13Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Before your inner eight year old runs amok, I should point out that the name is supposed to derive from Algonkian for “Foggy Place”. There seem to be a lot of whatever-cock named things around that part of the country. I guess cock = place. ---
**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:** [December 29, 2020, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1151 "2020-12-29T14:52:29Z")
Japan are going to launch wooden satellites. Apparently. It’s not 1st April. > **[Japan to create first wooden satellites that completely burn up on re-entry...](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/japan-wooden-satellite-space-junk-b1779829.html)** > > The satellite would burn up without releasing harmful substances when it comes back to Earth ---
**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:** [December 29, 2020, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1152 "2020-12-29T15:00:47Z")
> [@pjd](#): > > Japan are going to launch wooden satellites. > Apparently. It would be cool if they wrapped all the system hardware and the payload in traditional artful Japanese packaging [https://www.amazon.com/How-Wrap-Five-Eggs-Traditional/dp/1590306198](https://www.amazon.com/How-Wrap-Five-Eggs-Traditional/dp/1590306198) ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1153 "2020-12-29T21:27:44Z")
> [@pjd](#): > > without releasing harmful substances That reduces my respect for the news source to zero, right there. Wood releases harmful substances when burned: generally, more so than iron. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1154 "2020-12-29T21:36:24Z")
nm… ---
**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:** [December 29, 2020, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1155 "2020-12-29T21:45:46Z")
Do they make satellites out of iron? I kinda thought they used lighter materials including plastics. I also had this idea that satellites that cost millions of dollars to build and even more millions to launch weren’t just empty shells that would burn up on re-entry. Maybe it’s insane, but I imagined they put a bunch of electronic equipment for data collection and communications in them and maybe they carried solar cells for power and things like that. But what do I know? I’m sure Japan knows what they’re doing. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2020, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1156 "2020-12-29T22:04:37Z")
It’s quite likely that the Japanese satellite uses lead-free surface coatings, and possible that they made a statement to that effect: it’s even possible that other people may be making satellites that are not lead-free (I haven’t followed satellite technology). And natural wood seems to be a fun alternative to other composite plastic structures and skins. And if readers of “The Independent” are stupid enough to believe that wood burns without releasing harmful substances, I can’t even blame the PR department. But it reduces my respect for “The Independent” to undetectable levels. ---
**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:** [December 30, 2020, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1157 "2020-12-30T01:41:29Z")
In WWI, a cat was executed for treason. > Felix the cat wasn’t so lucky. During the famous [Christmas Truce of 1914](https://time.com/3643889/christmas-truce-1914/), Felix went back and forth between Allied and German troops, carrying friendly messages tucked in his collar. > > A French general decided not to take chances and had the cat shot for treason. > > That story found its way into the film _Joyeux Noel_ (2005) and an anti-war poem. [https://www.petful.com/behaviors/cats-world-war/](https://www.petful.com/behaviors/cats-world-war/) ---
**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:** [December 30, 2020, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1158 "2020-12-30T15:50:56Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > ’m really curious. A single cigarette, all at once? Or did she stub it out and re-light it over the course of the day? If the former … when? First thing in the morning, or after day is done? After sex? ---
**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:** [December 30, 2020, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1159 "2020-12-30T16:01:16Z")
Yeah, some portion of a satellite is structural material for holding all of the other parts together, and I suppose you could make that portion out of wood, instead of the more usual aluminum… but that’s going to be a very small portion, because weight is money, and you’ve got other parts that you can’t economize on because they’re the reason for the satellite’s existence. ---
**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:** [December 30, 2020, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1160 "2020-12-30T20:45:23Z")
or maybe they’ve developed some wood with semiconductor properties. ---
**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:** [December 30, 2020, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1161 "2020-12-30T20:55:59Z")
The past tense of _Pay_ is _Paid_ or _Payed_? Well, it depends what you mean. In the most common use - transactional, if you will - _Paid_ is correct and _Payed_ is an error. However: > If the verb _pay_ is used in a nautical sense, the correct form is _payed_ . At which one might reasonably wonder, _What nautical sense?_ [This article](https://www.grammarly.com/blog/paid-payed/) addresses the question (as do quite a few other sites you can find online) and comes with the handy reminder: > The sailor was paid well because he payed the joints of the ship. Meaning, on this occasion, to caulk or tar. The article lists 2 other nautical uses, one about steering ships (bemused smiley), and one common enough for me to get wrong: _I payed out the rope_… j ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2020, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/1162 "2020-12-30T23:36:38Z")
Today I learned that the young of a llama is called a _cria_. Link: > **[Llama | Crias](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llama#Crias)** > > A cria (from Spanish for "baby") is the name for a baby llama, alpaca, vicuña, or guanaco. Crias are typically born with all the females of the herd gathering around, in an attempt to protect against the male llamas and potential predators. Llamas give birth standing. Birth is usually quick and problem-free, over in less than 30 minutes. Most births take place between 8 am and noon, during the warmer daylight hours. This may increase cria survival by reducing fatalities due to hypothermia during ... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=57) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=59)