35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group

You know what they say: knowledge is power.

Learning is crucial to our existence – think of it as sustenance for the mind rather than the body. It helps us develop new abilities, perspectives, and values; it gives us a feeling of accomplishment and unveils endless opportunities; it boosts our confidence and allows us to engage in the most random conversations.

Some might argue that with the development of the good old internet, basking in new things doesn't feel as necessary perhaps as it would have before – however, now that knowledge is at everyone's fingertips, why not learn a fact or two to impress a couple of your pals?

“What is your go-to fact that blows people’s minds?” – this netizen turned to one of Reddit’s favorite communities asking members to share their go-to facts that never fail to impress others. The thread has managed to receive over 12K upvotes, as well as 9K worth of comments and mouth-opening statements.

More info: Reddit

This post may include affiliate links.

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group I just learned this: there are more castles in Germany than McDonalds in the U.S.

itijara , IMBiblio Report

Final score:

300points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

That is a cool fact.

76points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group When it's so quiet you can hear snow falling, you're actually hearing the static discharge of the snowflake hitting the ground. It gathers the electricity while it's falling to Earth.

KeithCSchatz , James Mann Report

Final score:

285points

POST

Alias Delfs 2 years ago

Whoa

35points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group A graveyard is connected to a church while a cemetery is not.

FirstBankofAngmar , Jörg Weingrill Report

Final score:

274points

POST

StrangeOne 2 years ago

I didn't know there was a difference.

117points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Oxford University existed 250 years before the Aztecs existed. Oxford University first opened in 1096, the Aztec period was from 1345-1521. Oxford University is second only to the University of Bologna for continuous operation.

WhozTheDaddy , Chris Rycroft Report

Final score:

239points

POST

Cubbypotato 2 years ago

Holy BANANAS

45points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Greenland sharks can become up to 400 years old and don’t reach sexual maturity until they’re 150

AggravatingDriver559 , Hemming1952 Report

Final score:

223points

POST

Jihana 2 years ago

And they are poisonous. That's why the Icelanders of old let the meat rot ("ferment") in the ground for a few months and then let it air dry. It does not taste as bad as it sounds, but it's still disgusting.

82points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Sharks have been around longer than the rings of Saturn.

Edit: It's an easy Google. The rings of Saturn formed no more that 100 million years ago, we know what they are made of, how fast they move, and the rate of decay. Sharks have been around for about 450 million years. We have fossilized records of this.

itsmyfrigginusername , leah Report

Final score:

211points

POST

Emerald Ocean 2 years ago

This is why we need to protect sharks. We can and still are learning so much from them.

75points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group that sahara desert used to be under the ocean, and you can still find seashells in the sand there

breadcrumb1996 , cattan2011 Report

Final score:

207points

POST

Deborah Harris 2 years ago (edited)

Isn't sand made out of the minerals of shells anyway?

36points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Neptune was originally discovered as apparently inexplicable changes in the orbital path of Uranus. Because a man named Le Verrier observing these alterations decided that there must be an orderly reason for it, he calculated where another planet would have to be to cause Uranus to act like that, and still keep the laws of gravitation discovered by Sir Isaac newton. He then sent his calculations to Royal Observatory in Berlin, and the prediction was within 1° of its actual position.

JaywrightCat , Kabsik Park Report

Final score:

202points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

Uranus was moving inexplicably? Also Uranus has rings around it.

25points

View More Replies...

View more comments

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group The beginning of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony sounds like this: "di-di-di-dah".

That is the Morse code representation of the letter V: (...-)

V is the Roman numeral for five.

Purely coincidence, as the Fifth was written 40 years before Morse code was invented.

dittybopper_05H , Thomas Quine Report

Final score:

199points

POST

Ms. Human Being 2 years ago

Coincidence…I think not

54points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#10

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group The Goonies go underground on the exact same day (Saturday, Oct. 26, 1985) as Marty travels back in time to 1955.

misterfriend , Warner Bros. Report

Final score:

181points

POST

Susan Teter 2 years ago

Yeah....the 80's were AWESOME!!!

61points

View more comments

#11

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group All the Botox in the world, literally every gram, is produced in a factory in Westport, County Mayo, Ireland.

RedditIsAShitehole , Rodolphe Breard Report

Final score:

170points

POST

Frances M 2 years ago

And viagra comes from Cork, Ireland

49points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#12

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group you know when you get up too fast and feel dizzy? squeezing/stiffening your buttocks together stops the dizziness.

eggypotato- , Masa Israel Journey Report

Final score:

169points

POST

Deborah Harris 2 years ago (edited)

As all BP readers try it out immediately :D

182points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#13

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group There are more trees on planet earth (~3 trillion) than there are stars in our galaxy (~800 billion).

Note it says our galaxy (the milky way), not the entire universe. Still I find the sheer number of trees on our planet impressive

Dependent-Status-880 , Rich Kenington Report

Final score:

166points

POST

StrangeOne 2 years ago

Who counted all the trees?

79points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#14

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Whales are closer to artiodactyls (even toed hoofed animals) than they are to seals or manatees.

Whales are *essentially* just wet deer with extra steps.

magcargoman , Jose Antonio Navas Report

Final score:

163points

POST

Bunzilla 2 years ago

Check out pictures of the Kutchicetus. It was a whale ancestor, and it's pretty weird to look at and then imagine it somehow turning into a whale. Heck, it's just pretty weird looking period. Further back and even less whale-looking was the Pakicetus.

37points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#15

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Ancient Egypt and mammoths existed at the same time.

Sir_Scizor20 , Chris Hunkeler Report

Final score:

159points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

In the historically accurate film 10,000 BC, the Egyptians used mammoths to move the huge blocks needed for the construction of the pyramids. The film is cheesy as hell but I love it.

54points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#16

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Tamales are one of the oldest dishes on earth still commonly eaten today.

BitPoet , kinwart Report

Final score:

157points

POST

Bored Person 2 years ago

Someone please explain to me what tamales are

46points

Puppy prints ️ 2 years ago

A tamale, in Spanish tamal, is a traditional Mesoamerican dish made of masa, a dough made from nixtamalized corn, which is steamed in a corn husk or banana leaf. The wrapping can either be discarded prior to eating or used as a plate https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamale

59points

Load More Replies...

Rodney Bowie 2 years ago

Well, if you ever see an older lady on the side of the road selling tamales out of a truck...BUY THOSE TAMALES!!

39points

BasedWang12.3 2 years ago

they are amazing. Thats what they are

18points

Peeka_Mimi 2 years ago

I am Chicana and Navajo. Tamales are steamed masa (corn flour with various spices) with fillings like red chile and shredded pork or shredded chicken and green chiles such as jalapeños and pablano. The entire thing is then steamed in a corn husk or banana leafs. They're delicious.

17points

Duesvolent90 2 years ago

Delightful as hell. I could put down a million of them in a sitting

9points

Deborah Harris 2 years ago

Same I've never tried them x

6points

Stephanie Did It 2 years ago (edited)

In plain language, you make a dough called masa from a type of cornmeal. You spread it onto a dry flattened corn husk. Onto that, you add a thin layer of cooked meat such as beef or pork cooked tender with spices. Now roll the whole thing up with the husk on the outside and either fold the ends under (as shown above) or tie them with small strips of corn husk. Then steam those babies in a BIG pot for a while. Now you and all the family and friends that pitched in this hours-long endeavor pitch in and eat all you can! EDIT: Take the husk off first.The rest you wrap in foil by the dozen and sell. And sell they will!

5points

Rabbit-Of-ill-Portent️ 2 years ago

Beautiful deliciousness (I saw you already got excellent explanations of them so yeah)

2points

Heather Menard 2 years ago

They are delicious

2points

Scott Rackley 2 years ago

Goodness and light

2points

DubstepBlade 2 years ago

Tamales are corn things stuffed in a corn husk that you can add different flavors to. They’re so goood

2points

Wendy Hamilton 2 years ago

Google it.

1point

Alex Thorburn 2 years ago

Amazing

0points

Jus 2 years ago

I was hoping the leaf is in fact an edible pastry, corn bread or something. But it's a steamed pulp in a leaf

0points

4848532 2 years ago

Oh lord.

0points

grafxgal60073 2 years ago

Corn husk lined with corn meal dough (masa harina), then a filling of shredded meat (usually chicken or pork) and cheese. It's then rolled up tight and steamed. Very labor intensive, but so so delicious.

5points

JustanotherPanda 2 years ago

Tamales! I love them! Often make them myself.

4points

Erica Ventura 2 years ago

The fillings can be stewed pork with red chiles, shredded chicken with green Chiles, sometimes sweet with sweet corn and pineapple. And the best ones come from the lady who sells them out of a cooler on Sunday morning in the parking lot by the gas station!

3points

Crazy Dog Lady 2 years ago

Ive decided my feet look like tamales and I really need my favorite pandas to know that.

2points

TheEndIsNigh🇨🇦and🇬🇧in🇺🇲 2 years ago

Oooh, these are delicious! 😋 Last visit to my partner's mum's, flew almost 5,000 miles to see her, and the first thing she says when she sees us is "Have you brought any tamales?" 😆 Apparently we are now required by law to either bring tamales (or ship them) to our families in Canada & England respectively. 😄

2points

third molar 2 years ago

Wonder what other oldest dishes we eat today

2points

Pyewacket 2 years ago

Turtle soup is the oldest recorded recipe ever found

2points

Load More Replies...

Mark Berry 2 years ago

Staying power!

2points

Alabiz Monty 2 years ago

amazing

2points

Abner_Mality 2 years ago

In Asian cultures there is something very similar, Zongzi... Sticky rice dumplings with savory chopped pork in the middle wrapped in banana leaf and steamed, delicious as are Tamales! Cool to see ancient riffs on the same theme.

1point

GoldfishCrackers 2 years ago

I miss the tamale cart that was always near our home before we moved across the country. Sigh.

1point

Anne McKinney 2 years ago

Tamales. DELICIOUS!! That's enough of this post. I gotta go eat.

0points

Jeffrey Diehl Premium 2 years ago

Not my grandmother's fruitcake?

0points

Emma Whittaker 2 years ago

Is it a bit like a Bao bun but more cornbread like ? That's how I'm imaging it.

0points

Philenzortia 2 years ago

And they are not only Mexican. Reading the comments most of them are referring to Mexican tamales but we have different versions all around South and Central America.

0points

Manuel Delgado 2 years ago

Pruebe sus ricos y deliciosos tamales oaxaqueños...

0points

Mrs S 2 years ago

I.love.tamales!!!!!

0points

MediumPimpin 2 years ago

The more shady-looking the restaurant is, the better they are.

0points

Cathy N. Martin 2 years ago

Just had some tamales and papoosas the other day

0points

Whitefox 2 years ago

Annnd now I want tamales!!

0points

OokiiStaR 2 years ago

And the most delicious. At least according to me.

0points

ℙ𝕦𝕣𝕣.𝕞𝕒𝕚𝕕 2 years ago

When I was about 6 years old, I remember my mother 'making' tamales from a can. I definitely did not like them. Tamales made at a real Mexican restaurant are a different story. There is absolutely no comparison.

0points

Oreo Tookie 2 years ago

Tamales take all day to make, and then minutes for your family to eat!

0points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#17

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group As an Italian in the us it’s that Pepperoni actually would mean peppers in Italy and has absolutely nothing to do with thinly sliced meat.

Only-Possibility-114 , MattCC716 Report

Final score:

155points

POST

Stevie 2 years ago

In Germany "pepperoni" is like a really spicy pepper

53points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#18

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group George Washington died in 1799.

Dinosaurs were discovered in 1824.

George Washington didn't know dinosaurs existed.

DrySoap__ , David Kryzaniak Report

Final score:

154points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

Not quite right. Fossils have been known about for many many years. Some people collected them. Nobody seriously thought to classify them. Up until 1824. When fossil studying got serious.

60points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#19

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Giraffes have the same number of neck bones as humans.

KingKimoi , virtualsphere Report

Final score:

133points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

And the same as a mouse. (the furry kind, not the computer kind.)

77points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#20

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group In Volkswagen’s official Parts catalog, one of the official Volkswagen parts, with its own part number (199 398 500 A), is a currywurst sausage they serve to their staff in Wolfsburg, Germany.

199 398 500 B is ketchup.

Brotherbeam , RoadOver Report

Final score:

133points

POST

BasedWang12.3 2 years ago

"The product has been described as the most produced of any of Volkswagen's parts, some 6.81 million sausages being manufactured in 2018. In many recent years the company has produced more sausages than cars."

35points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#21

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group When airline pilots are trained to fly a new type of jet, the first time they fly it is with paying passengers on board. All the training and testing is done in a simulator.

Of course they have a lot of flight time in other airplanes and there is a specially qualified training captain in command. However my first jet takeoff was LAX-DEN with 68 unsuspecting passengers.

usmcmech , alex lang Report

Final score:

126points

POST

Kenny Kulbiski 2 years ago

Aha! I think I was on that plane.

22points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#22

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group The Earth is traveling through space at 2.1 million km/h (1.3 million mph) relative to the cosmic background radiation. Which means by the time you finished reading this, you've travelled roughly 8,700km (5,420 mi) through space.

AngryBuddha01 , TheMuuj Report

Final score:

125points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

But how does that work when we live on a flat Earth and the Moon is a projection created by the Illuminati?

108points

View More Replies...

View more comments

See Also on Bored Panda

Dutch Swimmer Goes Viral For Super Revealing Trunks During 2024 Olympics: “Is This Legal?”

Thrill-Seeking Diver Jumps Down Extreme Waterslide, Ignoring The Strict Ban For Women

#23

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group You can see your nose all the time.

It is always within your field of view, unless you force your eyeballs to roll up as far as they go.

Your brain filters it out of your perception to save resources, but if you pay explicit attentio to it (as you may be doing now), it becomes obviously visible.

Do not despair, tho.. after a brief time, you forget about it and it "disappears" again.

RandomStuffGenerator , AbbyD11 Report

Final score:

124points

POST

$cagsy 2 years ago

What else is my brain hiding from me? Could be a whole 'nother dimension out there that we aren't seeing because our brains don't think we're ready. Could be fairies and stuff. Even I don't know if I'm ready for fairies but it's the principle.

110points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#24

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group The earth's crust (which is too deep for humans to drill through, much deeper than the deepest ocean) compared to the rest of the planet is similar to the skin of an apple compared to the rest of the apple.

Relevant-Charity9689 , jon collier Report

Final score:

122points

POST

Cubbypotato 2 years ago

I heard this when I was little and did not understand it. I always got scared if my dad or older brothers were digging in the yard hoping they would not fall into lava.

54points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#25

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Black apples exist.

We tend to think of apples as being red, though there are, of course, some popular green and yellow varieties. But did you know there are also black apples? Called Black Diamond apples, they're found in Tibet and are from the Hua Niu family of apples, also known as Chinese Red Delicious. Aside from the black outer color—actually an extremely dark shade of purple—these apples look just like other Red Delicious apples, down to the white flesh inside.

Ok_Zucchini_4303 , Forest Starr and Kim Starr Report

Final score:

119points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

How do they taste though?

56points

View More Replies...

View more comments

See Also on Bored Panda

Woman Put A Water Fountain With A Camera In Her Yard, Here Are 24 Photos Of Regular Visitors (New Pics)

“Ma’am I Live Here”: Woman Refuses To Back Out Of Driveway, Learns A Lesson The Hard Way

#26

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group The gene for six fingers is dominant, five fingers recessive.

D0fus , andrea castelli Report

Final score:

113points

POST

Jihana 2 years ago

Does Inigo Montoya know this?

106points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#27

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Almost 100% of the matter that composes plants comes from the air, not the ground.

teabagalomaniac , Herry Lawford Report

Final score:

113points

POST

Frances M 2 years ago

Water and minerals come from the ground but the carbon and other elements come from the air, that’s why a 1,000 ton tree is a bigger carbon sink per square meter of land then anything else. But the biggest land based carbon sinks are actually grass land and bog land because they turn that CO2 into soil through composting, think peat lands…

32points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#28

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group Moose are naturally attacked by orcas.

BernieceTAnderson , Bryce Bradford Report

Final score:

111points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

Moose like to swim, and can swim between islands looking for food. Then comes the Orca! CHOMP!

60points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#29

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group German Chocolate Cake was invented in New York by it’s baker Samuel German who wanted to do his version of a Black Forest Cake

signaturefox2013 , Mikel Ortega Report

Final score:

108points

POST

Ace 2 years ago

Everyone knows what Black Forest Gateau is, who's ever heard of something called "German cake"?

38points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#30

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group "OMG" usage can be traced back to 1917.

GoGreenOnEm , Ben Chun Report

Final score:

106points

POST

Taibhse Sealgair 2 years ago

Even more surprising is that it was first found in a letter that the British admiral John Arbuthnot Fisher a British statesman named Winston Churchill.

4points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#31

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group A tablespoon of oil can calm about half an acre of water. It spreads out to form a layer 1-molecule thick on top of the water. That's why oil spills are so harmful and destructive. The largest oil spill (BP) was about 61,488,636,185 tablespoons, or about 68,000 miles of damage.

deqb , GPT Environmental Report

Final score:

97points

POST

Curly potato 2 years ago

I doubt anyone here will know what I'm talking about, but they did this experiment on the show Duck Quacks Don't Echo. Worth watching, it's very entertaining! Besides, you can't get any funnier than Lee Mack :D

30points

View More Replies...

View more comments

See Also on Bored Panda

50 Of The Most Incredible Shots That Were Submitted To The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards

French Diver’s “Jewels” In Tight Swimming Trunks Become Talk Of The Town At Olympics

#32

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group In the US, the dash lines on highways are generally 10 feet long, not 2-3 like most people assume.

Color09 , Doug Kerr Report

Final score:

94points

POST

Nathaniel 2 years ago

They should start painting them in metre lengths. The colonies WILL learn to use metric.

47points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#33

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group There are more ways to arrange a deck of cards than there are atoms on earth.

stocksNcrpt , Erwan Martin Report

Final score:

93points

POST

Curly potato 2 years ago

Those look a little like dixit cards. By the way, I highly recommend dixit to anyone who hasn't played :)

23points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#34

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group In a group of 23 random people, the probability of two of them sharing a birthday is over 50%.

pizzaninjatx , Dark Dwarf Report

Final score:

91points

POST

Amanda Jayne 2 years ago

I married someone with the same date of birth as me. It was not a good reason

35points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#35

35 Random Jaw-Dropping Facts, As Shared In This Online Group In the 1920s, Hawa‘ian music was the biggest selling category of sheet music.

lapsteelguitar , Franklin Park Library Report

Final score:

88points

POST

Hatchet 2 years ago

It's not sheet, it's good !

47points

View More Replies...

View more comments

Continue reading with Bored Panda Premium

Unlimited content

Ad-free browsing

Dark mode

#36

A single gram of uranium contains over 20 billion calories.

EDIT: Uranium is also a toxic chemical, meaning that ingestion of uranium can cause kidney damage from its chemical properties much sooner than its radioactive properties which would cause cancers of the bone or liver.

Cody86772601 Report

Final score:

33points