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No matter how many all-nighters you pull devouring volume after volume of dust-laden encyclopedias, it will never be enough. Because learning is a process, and there’s no end visible on the horizon.
But most of us are just fine with one or two "did you know that?" facts always ready to be served at a dinner table. Except they get old fast and nobody wants to listen to another “banana is a berry,” like, ever.
Luckily, one Reddit user who goes by u/RyanBlitzpatrick did everyone a favor and asked people on r/AskReddit “What's a fact that just blows your mind?” 3.6K upvotes and 3.5K comments later, the results are in and you’d better get your notebook ready, 'cause these are some of the hand-picked knowledge bites that may honestly surprise you.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
When you dream, one part of your brain is making up the story, and another part is experiencing those events and is genuinely surprised by all the twists in the plot.
#2
2006, which doesn’t feel THAT long ago, saw the death of two colossally old tortoises. The first, Harriet, was reportedly collected by Charles Darwin when he visited the Galápagos on the HMS Beagle. She belonged to Steve Irwin at the time of her death. Charles Darwin and Steve Irwin shared a “pet.” Estimated to have lived 176 years.
The second, Adwaita, was born before the United States declared its independence from England. Think of it: just 14 years ago, there was a land creature alive that was older than our country. Just incredible.
#3
November 2, 2000 was the last time all humans were on the planet together. Since then at least one person has remained on the international space station
I wish it was as easy to remember these facts as it was to scroll through. In reality, we do learn things every day, but not much of that information sticks with us.
But memory is a very complex function. It turns out, much of it is generated not only through recollection, but also through the emotions that are attached to it. Shahram Heshmat, a professor emeritus at the University of Illinois at Springfield, believes that “emotion affects all the phases of memory formation.”
For example, “Attention guides our focus to select what’s most relevant for our lives and is normally associated with novelty.” And nothing focuses the mind more than a surprise which escalates emotional intensity.
#4
Martin Luther King, Jr. and Anne Frank were born in the same year.
Also, that same year, Betty White was already 7 years old.
#5
The oldest living tree in the world methuselah is 4851 years old
#6
That the Oxford Univeristy is older than the Aztec Empire
Another interesting thing which escalates long-term memory is not the recollection of a fact itself, but rather the so-called mood memory. Prof. Heshmat explains that “Our current emotional state facilitates recall of experiences that had a similar emotional tone.”
For example, being in a bad mood primes us to think of and remember unpleasant moments.Having said that, most of the things we forget easily have to do with our inability to put them in our long-term memory.
#7
The sound made by the Krakatoa volcanic eruption in 1883 was so loud it ruptured eardrums of people 40 miles away, travelled around the world four times, and was clearly heard 3,000 miles away.
That's like you standing in New York and hearing a sound from San Francisc
#8
If time travel were possible, you would need a time-and-space-machine to survive the trip, otherwise when you travelled back in time, the planet would be at a different point in its rotation around the sun and our solar system would be at a different point in space as it rotates, which means you'd travel back in time and be in an empty part of space
#9
The International Space station is closer to the earth than San Francisco is to L.A
Meanwhile, forcing yourself to memorize things is likely not to be very effective because our brains are not capable of making sense of dense information quickly and forming strong associations.
It's better to use super simple tricks such as visualization (imagine what you are trying to remember), repetition (boring but effective), and learning the opposite things (create associations in your head).
And never underestimate the power of understanding that which you’re learning, because you'll never be able to remember something you can’t explain yourself.
#10
Arctic foxes can survive temperatures as low as -70 degrees Celsius
#11
If an underwater bubble is collapsed by loud sound, light is produced and no one knows why
Chyppa Homer 4 years ago
Good. So next power outage I'm gonna fart in the tub and yell at it :D
#12
Some people don’t have an inner monologue, like they literally don’t have a voice in their head.
Lynda Momalo 4 years ago
I can't even imagine. Those must be the people who fall asleep easily!
#13
A woman once jumped off the 86th floor of the Empire State Building but the wind pushed her back and she fell on a ledge on the 85th floor. She survived.
#14
The fact that nobody knows that if we all see colours the same way
Dorothy Parker 4 years ago
I think about that. It's more than just how you identify a color. There are colors in the aqua family I see as blue and my husband sees as green.
#15
That there are people in the world who don't like music. Not one specific type, but music as a whole.
That both blows my mind and disturbs me
Madison Feehan 4 years ago
Hope I don't run into any of these people, because we wouldn't be vibin'!
GirlFriday 4 years ago
There is music that actually triggers anger in the listener, too. It is called Christmas music and it makes me violent.
earringnut 4 years ago
Not only can people be tone deaf, they can be note deaf. That beautiful piano concerto we all hear sounds like random noise and is extremely disconcerting to them.
Samantha Lomb 4 years ago
I'm one. I mostly find it noisy or just ignore it. The only music collection I have is for my classroom lessons and I can go months or years without voluntarily turning on music. Visual arts are far more interesting to me.
Quinn Parker 4 years ago
I don't have inner voices and music triggers extremely emotional responses for me. I'm no scientist but it might be the opposite.
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Stannous Flouride 4 years ago
I could live without it. I don't dislike it but I'll go months with only hearing it in the background of TV shows or movies and just don't miss it.
Lily Mae Kitty 4 years ago
I met someone like that once. we had a first and only date b/c he seemed like he wasn't quite right to me.
Eglė Bukauskaitė 4 years ago
Persoanlly i find it fascinating, how we have music easily accessible for us in a reach of a hand, and just 120 years ago - it was a luxury only for the wealthy.
Dee Hunter 4 years ago
Music on a medium I guess? Because everyone can just start singing - that's basically how folk music works.
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Billy The Kid 4 years ago
How can you not love music?!!! I enjoy music more than any other entertainment. Im an easy listener, but the one kind of music i cant stand is that rap c**p. Especially that pubic enemy! They used to annoy me a lot back in the days.
Rabbit Carrot 4 years ago
That was me until I was a teenager. I had sensory issues though to do with my hearing. I still have terrible hearing and can’t stand certain music (not just to do with taste but the actual rhythm and beat of the notes and chords of the instruments etc).
Demi Zwaan 4 years ago
I listen to it to distract me from my tinitus. There are songs I like. But I would never miss it if it stopped existing. Before my tinitus I hadn’t listened to music in years.
F. S. Leinad 4 years ago
My brother is like this. Any music consumes all of his attention to the point that, unless he actively blocks it out, (which he has gotten exceptionally good at doing) he goes completely unresponsive, and doesn't even have enough spare attention to remember anything. He is in control enough that he never gets to that point, but he still really hates it, and it can be quite a bummer for our for the most part music-loving family.
Crucin Flaviu 4 years ago
Sucks to be them lol....music and art are humanities greatest invensions!
Christina SchweitzerGrigoriou 4 years ago
I do not like music until I do. I do not enjoy random music; it actually disturbs me. I have to be in the Mood for it and then it's pretty much only Baroque or old Greek stuff.
Dianna Siever 4 years ago
This was my step dad. He was a wonderful man and he sat through recitals and the like quietly and without complaint. He just never elected to listen to music, or whistled.
Lori Whitwam 3 years ago
I don't anymore. I used to. But for me, it's for my depression and anxiety...music triggers feelings, emotions, memories, and I have too many of those as it is, so I don't listen to music at all anymore.
Jeff Christensen 3 years ago
"The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils; The motions of his spirit are dull as night, And his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted." Presumably Shakespeare was not aware of this condition.
Nina Khmielnitzky 3 years ago
I don't like the music played loud by drivers on my street. It's always shitty music.
Jenny Faulls-Gash 3 years ago
hyperacute sound = a painful experience just imagine the dial on your ears dialed up
Lynn Morello 4 years ago
I can understand that, my husband will switch the radio on, sometimes it is OK, other times it drives me nuts,, and it is not the same songs each time, sometimes it is just the fact that it is music. Yet I have times where I am listening to music and turn it up loud and be singing away with it.
O Vince Long 4 years ago
I like several different types of "music" but my ears are very sensitive to "Loud" music, can't stand it!
Aileen Grist 4 years ago
I don't 'hear' orchestras or multi instruments. I hear individual instruments all playing different notes. I need words to concentrate on to shut it out
Fatima Anna 4 years ago
Oh I thought I'm the only one who can't stand that noise called music. Once some guy said " Its like loving ..music. Who doesn't like music? Everybody does right?" To me it sounded like "everybody loves blue cheese, right?"
Prabhash Mishra 4 years ago
Maybe those were the first people who made music as haram in a certain sect, thousand years ago.
Wade Hunter 4 years ago
ME !!! i never owned a stereo , walkman, ipod, etc. i dont hate music ...other then when shopping at x-mas, lol
Wade Hunter 4 years ago
ME!! never owned a stereo , just dont listen to it. dont hate it....other then shopping a x-mas , lol
Nick Oursler 4 years ago
i dont like music not all of it just as a whole. most the time i have no desire for it. also it effects me like alchol effects others emotionally prolly why i dont like it
Emiel Mostert 4 years ago
I know that some fundamentalistic Christians don't. They don't know what they miss, probably blinded by the 'light'.
MiniMaus 4 years ago
I think they are not allowed to 'listen' to any music at all. Not that they don't like it.
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Bryan Bridges 4 years ago
I met someone who is like this, and we lived in the same community for a number of months. He was a really nice guy, but it was a point of contention, because I was always either playing or listening to music.
Uisgea Beatha 4 years ago
Alexander Graham Bell hated music; it gave him violent headaches. Lots of deafness in his family. He was trying to invent a hearing aid and accidentally came up with the telephone.
Luisa Vasconcelos 4 years ago
Só shocking as People that dont like sweets, including chocolate.
Chris Pope 4 years ago
We hear an internal monologue. I have explained to others that music to me is the same as rolling down a window in a car. No noticeable emotional response, no 'enjoyment', and complete detestment of concerts. I have no conceivable desire to spend hundreds of dollars to literally stand for hours with nothing to do.
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Steve Cruz 4 years ago
As we've learned over the past four years, and especially during the pandemic, there are also people who are allergic to facts and evidence.
Weird Gaming Emo 4 years ago
You dont like rock, punk, emo, or metal music we cant be friends. Or if your a fan of Justin bieber or Jonas Brothers
#16
I still can’t get over the fact that teddy roosevelt got shot and continued to give a three hour speech
#17
Ant biologists still don't know the maximum life span of most ant queens. They just live too long to keep track, and they're not too easy to keep in captivity. The longest one on record is like 30 years old, and there could easily be species that live longer than that
#18
There is a termite colony in the Amazon Rain Forest that is the size of Great Britain and is almost 4,000 years old. There are also hundreds of millions of termite mounds
#19
The U.S government has an official for a Zombie apocalypse. CONPLAN 8888 also known as Counter-Zombie Dominance was written in 2011. And just in case you think it's weird bureaucratic humor, the first line reads, 'This plan was not actually designed as a joke.'
#20
There are more trees on Earth then there are stars in the Milky Way galaxy.
Confirmed by NASA.
#21
A neutron star is so dense that a teaspoon of material from one would weigh around 10 million tons
#22
If the timeline of the universe (up to now) was compressed into a year starting on new year's day, Homo sapiens would appear at 11:54 pm on December 31st
#23
Mitochondria is only passed down by mother so there's a concept of mitochondrial eve, all humans today have their mitochondrial dna derived from her
Dorothy Parker 4 years ago
Hold onto your hats if you're a white supremacist. The place or origin is believed to be East Africa.
#24
Strawberries aren’t berries.
But bananas are
#25
The Fermi Paradox.
With the number of potentially habitable Earth-like planets in our galaxy alone, it’s very strange that we haven’t detected alien signals of any kind so far.
There’s lots of theories as to why that is, but my favorite is called the great silenceDark Forest (which sounds way cooler). Basically everyone else out there is being quiet and not transmitting because they know of some danger that we are unaware of, and they don’t want it to find them. Gives me chills.
Edit: It’s interesting that most of the replies here, joking or serious, correspond to legitimate theories on the Fermi Paradox.
#26
That the biggest bacteria species known, Thiomargarita namibiensis, can have a maximum diameter of 0.7 millimeters, which is big enough for you to see it without a microscope.
That's insane if you consider that your average bacteria species has a diameter of 0.001 millimeters.
#27
How a computer does what it does. Blows my mind how 1's and 0's can do so much. Maybe I'm uneducated, but still mind blowing
#29
The way the human brain works. These cells that are powered by tiny jolts of electricity are collectively having conscious thoughts, coming up with morals and empathy and every human behavior
#30
That Neutrinos have mass and every second of every day about a billion of them are going through every square inch of your body - but the space between your atoms is so huge there's pretty much a 0% chance they will ever hit you
What do you think ?
Dynein 4 years ago
I already wrote this in a comment above, but I'm kinda worried it'll get lost in all the other comments and never be read... The most mind-blowing fact I can think of is from university (animal physiology lecture, topic visual sense). There's a small experiment that shows you how crazy much your visual input is curated before it ever reaches your consciousness, in a way not other experiment ever made that clear to me: Take a flashlight, point it sideways at your eye (as in, hold it by the side of your head and point it at the nose so you eye is hit sideways), then wave it about. Then sit in stunned silence. The sensory cells don't actually detect light as such, but a CHANGE from dark to light, so cells behind blood vessels never report anything. Until you wave a light about from sideways, that is... (my other favorite weird fact from that lecture is that "penis fencing" is an actual zoological term. Flatworm mating.)
Esca Sav 4 years ago
I tried it out, it's so weird O-o. There's another cool thing worth mentioning is that everything we see is in the past. It takes time for light to travel from our eye to an object and then back while also processing the image so even if that time is minimal, we only see what has already been. Same with sound. When someone speaks, it takes time for the sound the travel so we never really hear a person speak in the present, but what they said in the past. AND this includes interactions. There is a concept of space-time where each person, wherever they are standing, is their own form of "present." When I am speaking and looking at someone right in front of them, I am actually communicating with their past selves, not the present. The only way for us to be in the same "present" is when we hug :3 (amongst other touchy interactions)
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MrTree1779 4 years ago
There are 7.5 Billion humans on earth. -- But there are 24 Billion CHICKENS. -- This is a magnitude larger than all other birds on Earth, combined. -- This is also enough for every two people to own 7 chickens.
Jack O'reilly 4 years ago
The total weight of ants in the world adds up to the total weight of humans...
Steve Ewing 4 years ago
How long did it take you to count those suckers Jack?
Load More Replies...
Richard Davis 4 years ago
I’m amazed the math works this way. If you wrapped a belt around the equator, how much length would you need to add so the belt would be 12 inches off the ground for you to crawl underneath? The answer is 6 feet would need to be added, yes just 6 feet. 25,000 miles around and only 6 feet make that big a difference.
MrTree1779 4 years ago
The Universe is 10 ^ 26 meters in diameter. Atoms are 10 ^ -15 meters in diameter. -- Quarks are 10 ^ -19 meters. Humans are just a bit closer to the size of atoms and their components, than we are to the size of the Universe. -- We're really not that consequential after all, but we do kinda straddle the middle point between atoms and the Universe, size-wise.
somnomania 4 years ago
i'm disappointed the factoid about nintendo's origins in the 1800s isn't on here, for shame, boredpanda
Dynein 4 years ago
I already wrote this in a comment above, but I'm kinda worried it'll get lost in all the other comments and never be read... The most mind-blowing fact I can think of is from university (animal physiology lecture, topic visual sense). There's a small experiment that shows you how crazy much your visual input is curated before it ever reaches your consciousness, in a way not other experiment ever made that clear to me: Take a flashlight, point it sideways at your eye (as in, hold it by the side of your head and point it at the nose so you eye is hit sideways), then wave it about. Then sit in stunned silence. The sensory cells don't actually detect light as such, but a CHANGE from dark to light, so cells behind blood vessels never report anything. Until you wave a light about from sideways, that is... (my other favorite weird fact from that lecture is that "penis fencing" is an actual zoological term. Flatworm mating.)
Esca Sav 4 years ago
I tried it out, it's so weird O-o. There's another cool thing worth mentioning is that everything we see is in the past. It takes time for light to travel from our eye to an object and then back while also processing the image so even if that time is minimal, we only see what has already been. Same with sound. When someone speaks, it takes time for the sound the travel so we never really hear a person speak in the present, but what they said in the past. AND this includes interactions. There is a concept of space-time where each person, wherever they are standing, is their own form of "present." When I am speaking and looking at someone right in front of them, I am actually communicating with their past selves, not the present. The only way for us to be in the same "present" is when we hug :3 (amongst other touchy interactions)
Load More Replies... MrTree1779 4 years ago
There are 7.5 Billion humans on earth. -- But there are 24 Billion CHICKENS. -- This is a magnitude larger than all other birds on Earth, combined. -- This is also enough for every two people to own 7 chickens.
Jack O'reilly 4 years ago
The total weight of ants in the world adds up to the total weight of humans...
Steve Ewing 4 years ago
How long did it take you to count those suckers Jack?
Load More Replies... Richard Davis 4 years ago
I’m amazed the math works this way. If you wrapped a belt around the equator, how much length would you need to add so the belt would be 12 inches off the ground for you to crawl underneath? The answer is 6 feet would need to be added, yes just 6 feet. 25,000 miles around and only 6 feet make that big a difference.
MrTree1779 4 years ago
The Universe is 10 ^ 26 meters in diameter. Atoms are 10 ^ -15 meters in diameter. -- Quarks are 10 ^ -19 meters. Humans are just a bit closer to the size of atoms and their components, than we are to the size of the Universe. -- We're really not that consequential after all, but we do kinda straddle the middle point between atoms and the Universe, size-wise.
somnomania 4 years ago
i'm disappointed the factoid about nintendo's origins in the 1800s isn't on here, for shame, boredpanda
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