“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”
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Another fact finding mission has been undertaken on your behalf and here are this week’s results.
The usual random mixture, so hopefully something interesting will be in there for you.
Enjoy.
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Cashews are actually a fleshy fruit.
The nut that we eat is the seed that
grows on the outside of the fruit.
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There have been 14 vice presidents who have
become President of the United States.
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Thamsanqa Jantjie, the embarrassing sign language interpreter
at the Mandela Memorial who doesn’t know any sign language,
is also alleged to be a murderer.
He was among a group of people who accosted two men found
with a stolen television and burned them to death
by setting fire to tires placed around their necks.
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Outside North and South America,
the only alligators found in the wild are in China.
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Thomas Edison was a great inventor,
but not so good at putting his inventions into practical business use.
For example, despite having the contract to supply cement
for the original Yankee Stadium,
the Edison Portland Cement Company went bust
because it insisted on producing concrete everything,
including cabinets, pianos, and even entire houses!
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Gureng-gureng, Gabi-Gabi, Waga-Waga, Wemba-Wemba, and Yitha-Yitha
are all names of native Australian languages.
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Some Americans disagreed with the United States’ initial refusal
to enter WWI and so they joined the French Foreign Legion
or the British or Canadian armies.
A group of U.S. pilots formed the Lafayette Escadrille,
which was part of the French air force and became
one of the top fighting units on the Western Front.
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The horse race normally called the Belmont Stakes
also goes by name of the Run for the Carnations.
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Golf legend Jack Nicklaus didn’t earn his nickname,
the Golden Bear,
because of his size, his demeanor, or his hair.
It was the name of his high school mascot.
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The term “Continental breakfast” was coined to
differentiate itself from an English breakfast.
The fried eggs, bacon, and beans of an English morning
are quite distinct from the dainty pastries, coffee, and juice
offered throughout the rest of Europe.
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Beowulf is the longest Old English manuscript in existence
and contains about a tenth of all known Anglo-Saxon poetry.
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After Leonardo da Vinci’s death,
King Francis I of France hung the Mona Lisa in his bathroom.
(There’s critics everywhere!)
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One type of hummingbird weighs less than a penny.
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The letter “J” was the last letter added to the English Alphabet.
Before that, the letter “L” was used in its place.
“U” was the second to last letter added,
and was usually replaced by V.
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Norman Mailer coined the word “factoid” in his 1973 biography Marilyn,
BUT it wasn’t just another word for “trivia”
– he actually meant something that seems like a fact but isn’t actually factual
– and that’s a fact….. or a factoid…. or…. er.
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fasab 