# What dumb little joke made a fact stick in your head? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 28, 2013, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088 "2013-06-28T03:42:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/4bbf92/32.png) [@Heart\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heart_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/21 "2013-06-28T15:53:14Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > {nitpik} 3.141 **5** 9 That’s what I was about to say! You might be better off using [a](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12190003&postcount=25) [pi](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12193450&postcount=52) [poem](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12196146&postcount=69). [But](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12190042&postcount=26) [be](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12209407&postcount=82) [careful](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12209295&postcount=81)… ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/22 "2013-06-28T15:53:33Z")
I remember how to spell principal (as opposed to principle) because the principal is your pal. ---
**Author:** ![RickG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rickg/32/5174_2.png) [@RickG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickG)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/23 "2013-06-28T15:53:47Z")
A useful reminder that not all distributions are normal: The overwhelming majority of people have greater than the average number of legs. Think about it. ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/24 "2013-06-28T15:55:01Z")
[If you put an _a_ in “definitely,” you’re definitely an a-hole.](http://theoatmeal.com/comics/misspelling) ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/25 "2013-06-28T16:07:38Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > Well, now I feel stupid after reading #2, but whenever I can’t remember how to spell ‘weird’, I think “i before e- we live in a weird society”. “I” before “E”, Except after “C”, Or when sound is long “A” As in “neighbor” or “weigh” None of which helps a bit with weird words like “counterfeit.” ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/26 "2013-06-28T16:51:40Z")
I can sing both the Animaniacs song “Countries of the World” and “The 50 US states and their capitals”. Still learning the “Presidents of the US” song though ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/27 "2013-06-28T17:02:57Z")
4th grade teacher - “There is a rat in separate”. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/28 "2013-06-28T17:11:33Z")
Not a joke, but I learned the order of the planets (as did many of us) with the sentence My Very Enchanting Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas. The sentence doesn’t account for Planet X, though. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/29 "2013-06-28T17:17:36Z")
“Fifty Nifty United States” whenever I have to alphabetize a list of states or make sure that I’ve named them all. ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/30 "2013-06-28T17:20:14Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > “Fifty Nifty United States” whenever I have to alphabetize a list of states or make sure that I’ve named them all. Me, too, although I’m not sure that need has ever actually come up. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/31 "2013-06-28T17:27:19Z")
My HS Chemistry teacher taught me that “Most European People Bake Potatoes Hot Hot in October, November, December” Methane, Ethane, Propane, Butane, Pentane, Hexane, Heptane, Octane, Nonane, Decane. 35+ years later, I have no idea why I still remember this. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/32 "2013-06-28T18:13:04Z")
> [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](#): > > Not a joke, but I learned the order of the planets (as did many of us) with the sentence My Very Enchanting Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas. The sentence doesn’t account for Planet X, though. And I didn’t remember them until Stephen Colbert made a comment about the Pluto disenplanetization: “My Very Educated Mother Just Said, ‘Uh-oh! No Pluto!’” ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/33 "2013-06-28T18:22:03Z")
As long as we’re on mnemonics, I will add “King Philip Can Order Fairly Good Suppers”–Kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species. Also, my kindergarten teacher was incredibly helpful when she told us all “The hand you _write_ with is your _right_ hand!!” Except for the only lefty in your class, lady. Thanks a lot. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/34 "2013-06-28T18:34:15Z")
What’s new? Frequency x wavelength. [nu=freq x wavelength also hits off of whats new? an animal in africa{gnu}] \ ---
**Author:** ![jayrey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/47e85d/32.png) [@jayrey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayrey)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/35 "2013-06-28T18:55:55Z")
[quote=“Draelin, post:33, topic:662088”] As long as we’re on mnemonics, I will add “King Philip Can Order Fairly Good Suppers”–Kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species. My anatomy and physiology prof taugt us: “Kittens Playing Checkers on Frogs Going Swimming.” It’s so nonsensical that you’d think I’d have forgotten it but it was accompanied by a hilarious handdrawn image (the kittens and the frogs looked suspiciously similar) that it has stuck with me. On a more obscure note, no one knows the origin of the order of the letters used to mark the points on a dressage arena. Beginning at the bottom of the court, in the middle of the short side and proceeding clockwise: A, K, E, H, C, M, B, F. We remember the order by All King Edward’s Horses Can Make Big Fools. Now that’s not something you’ll learn everyday! ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/36 "2013-06-28T18:59:57Z")
Oh, and something we came up with in my high-school music theory class for the circle of fifths: Cool Girls Don’t Ask Excited Boys For Cookies. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/37 "2013-06-28T19:40:47Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > I can sing both the Animaniacs song “Countries of the World” and “The 50 US states and their capitals”. Still learning the “Presidents of the US” song though I learned their Presidents song while studying for Jeopardy. Of course I got the only Jeopardy game in, like, ever where there weren’t any presidents. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/38 "2013-06-28T19:50:33Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Not “jokes” exactly, but like many people my age, I can easily recite the preamble of the Constitution because that Schoolhouse Rock song stuck it in my head (“We the people, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice and insure domestic tranquiliteeeeeeeeeee…”). Yep, me too! I wish I could say that I could remember the circulatory facts from Potsie’s “Pump Your Blood” song from “Happy Days,” but all I’ve retained is the (very earwormy) chorus after all these years. ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/39 "2013-06-28T20:41:55Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > Yep, me too! > > I wish I could say that I could remember the circulatory facts from Potsie’s “Pump Your Blood” song from “Happy Days,” but all I’ve retained is the (very earwormy) chorus after all these years. [Here it is!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIXcWE0bTwY) ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2013, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088/40 "2013-06-28T20:44:48Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > [Here it is!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIXcWE0bTwY) Haha! Thanks…I think! 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dumb-little-joke-made-a-fact-stick-in-your-head/662088.md?page=3)