# Tell us an interesting random fact you stumbled across (Part 2) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 25, 2024, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785 "2024-07-25T15:06:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 35
**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:** [October 21, 2024, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/681 "2024-10-21T15:35:48Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Was that the guy she divorced twice? Never heard of that. Perhaps related to the following: > [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > Also, while Mariska was technically Mickey’s daughter, the DNA is a separate matter, as she was separated from Mickey at the time and in Europe at the time Mariska would have been conceived. Rumors are that Nelson Sardelli is the bio-dad. Mansfield was pregnant when her Mexican divorce from Hargitay was completed, but not approved by California where they were still considered married. Mariska was born subsequent to that and later California recognized the divorce. That allowed Jayne to avoid a scandal as an unwed mother when Mariska was born. There are a lot of stories and rumors about Jayne Mansfield. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2024, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/682 "2024-10-21T16:17:56Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > a scandal as an unwed mother Ah, those were the days. The stupid, stupid days. ---
**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:** [October 21, 2024, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/683 "2024-10-21T18:55:33Z")
According to Wikipedia, Mansfield was not decapitated in the accident that killed her. That’s a widely disseminated urban legend. It apparently started because a photo of the accident scene included an object that looks like a human head, but isn’t. ---
**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:** [October 21, 2024, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/684 "2024-10-21T19:02:37Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > It apparently started because a photo of the accident scene included an object that looks like a human head, but isn’t. It was her wig. How did they know Jayne Mansfield had dandruff? They found her Head and Shoulders in the back seat. ---
**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:** [October 21, 2024, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/685 "2024-10-21T19:07:17Z")
Mansfield sounds like a proto-Anna Nicole Smith. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2024, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/686 "2024-10-21T19:11:52Z")
After Mansfield died, regulations were enacted that mandated steel guards on the back of semi-trailers. > The underride guard, the “Mansfield Bar,” hangs from the back of a semi-trailer to protect these vehicles from accidents. Without the underride guard, an adult in a car would only have the windscreen to protect their head in a collision where the bottom of the trailer is close to head level. It was put into practice following the accident on June 29, 1967, that claimed Jayne Mansfield’s life [What Are Mansfield Bars? (jdpower.com)](https://www.jdpower.com/cars/shopping-guides/what-are-mansfield-bars) ---
**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:** [October 21, 2024, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/687 "2024-10-21T19:51:21Z")
I recall when that happened. I was 11 or 12 I think. Never saw a picture but the decapitation story was all over the news. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2024, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/688 "2024-10-21T22:17:50Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > According to Wikipedia, Mansfield was not decapitated in the accident that killed her. That’s a widely disseminated urban legend. It apparently started because a photo of the accident scene included an object that looks like a human head, but isn’t. The accident led to the requirement that trucks have a metal bar at their back so a car can’t go under it and into the windshield, which is how Mansfield was killed. The device is seen on all big trucks these days. It’s called a Mansfield bar. Mariska Hargatay was in the back seat during the accident. She was unharmed and was too young to remember it. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2024, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/689 "2024-10-21T23:00:28Z")
There’s a new record largest known prime: 2^136279841-1. Matt Parker made a [video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsyGRDrDfbI) about it. It has 41million digits. A guy from Nvidia found it using GPUs. (I remember the meter [stamps](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_B._Gillies) from Illinois back in the day bragging about a new Mersenne prime 2^11213-1. Just a tad smaller.) ---
**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:** [October 22, 2024, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/690 "2024-10-22T00:02:58Z")
Dang it! Now I have to change my encryption key. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2024, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/691 "2024-10-22T01:13:13Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The device is seen on all big trucks these days. It’s called a Mansfield bar. Um, yes, already noted a scant two posts above yours. > [@Railer13](#): > > After Mansfield died, regulations were enacted that mandated steel guards on the back of semi-trailers. > > > The underride guard, the “Mansfield Bar,” hangs from the back of a semi-trailer to protect these vehicles from accidents. Without the underride guard, an adult in a car would only have the windscreen to protect their head in a collision where the bottom of the trailer is close to head level. It was put into practice following the accident on June 29, 1967, that claimed Jayne Mansfield’s life > > [What Are Mansfield Bars? (jdpower.com)](https://www.jdpower.com/cars/shopping-guides/what-are-mansfield-bars) ---
**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:** [October 22, 2024, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/692 "2024-10-22T02:27:10Z")
Interesting trivium, Jayne Mansfield’s death led to the creation of [the Mansfield Bar](https://postcardhistory.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/mansfield-bar.jpg) so that cars front ends cannot slide under a truck leading to an accident similar to hers. Even more surprising, the name is not a coincidence! I was really named after her even though she did not invent it. ---
**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:** [October 22, 2024, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/693 "2024-10-22T02:38:55Z")
You know they really should have done something after that accident to make sure that nothing like that ever happened again ---
**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:** [October 22, 2024, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/694 "2024-10-22T02:50:19Z")
But actually it was named after Mike Mansfield, from when he sat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Not at all true, but why not stir the shit? ---
**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:** [October 22, 2024, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/695 "2024-10-22T04:33:21Z")
There was a strip club in my hometown called The Mansfield Bar. The dancers there were all, um, well-endowed. ---
**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:** [October 22, 2024, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/696 "2024-10-22T07:57:34Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > The dancers there were all, um, well-endowed. And they danced limbo under the eponymous bar. ---
**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:** [October 22, 2024, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/697 "2024-10-22T13:00:31Z")
Kamala Harris was (acting) President from 10:10 am to 11:35 am on November 19, 2021, while President Joe Biden was having a colonoscopy. VP Richard Nixon was (acting) President for six weeks from September 24, 1955 - after President Dwight Eisenhower suffered a heart attack. (there are a number of “What If” scenarios on the Web if Eisenhower had resigned at this point). ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2024, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/698 "2024-10-22T14:27:35Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > There was a strip club in my hometown called The Mansfield Bar. The dancers there were all, um, well-endowed. Did they dance to “Rio” by Duran Duran? I recently learn that the music for the song “[Smile](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smile_(Charlie_Chaplin_song))” (as sung most notably by Nat King Cole and very recently by Lady Gaga) was written by Charlie Chaplin himself for the film _Modern Times_. The words were added later by someone else. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2024, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/699 "2024-10-22T14:44:01Z")
Time is Australia is weird Australia uses half-time zones. Western Australia is UTC + 8, the two central states are UTC + 9:30, and the eastern states are UTC + 10:00. Also Western Australia does not use daylight savings time, so right now the states of Western Australia and South Australia (which share a long border) are two and half hours apart. There are also a few towns and villages that use a 45 minutes offset, which is just getting ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2024, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785/700 "2024-10-22T15:03:44Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Isaac Asimov wrote an essay about this, “The 3-D Molecule”, collected in _The Left Hand of the Electron_. Speaking of Isaac Asimov, he’s the only author to have books in all 10 sections of the Dewey Decimal system. Section 100 has books by others, to which he wrote forewords; the other sections have books he authored. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785.md?page=34) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-2/1004785.md?page=36)