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Whether it happens around the office coffee machine, the BBQ party's grill, or at the bar, running out of things to say is a real possibility when you're having small talk. And depending on the level of your social anxiety, the uncomfortable silence that follows can be pretty deafening. So in order not to end up in such a situation, let's take a look at the Facebook group 'Unique Facts.' From intricate personal stories to fascinating trivia about the animal kingdom, and beyond, these posts will definitely give you some random ideas on how to save your next failing conversation.

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The popularity of this group, together with the Instagram account 'Facts', Facebook page 'Now You Know' and countless others illustrate that people still love trivia.

And while nobody can claim to have invented "knowing random stuff for fun," the trend gained a lot of ground in the '70s.

The original Jeopardy! daytime game show premiered in 1964 and the nighttime syndicated version started airing in 1974, around the time pub trivia began to take off. While these events probably evolved organically, the first formalized version came about in 1976, when Sharon Burns and Tom Porter peddled quizzes to pubs in southern England.

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At first, the plan was to just give bars a way to get people in on slow nights, but the concept became a huge hit. In the US, groups like Pub Trivia USA and America’s Pub Quiz organize city- and state-wide competitions, often with serious cash prizes.

“We don’t want people to walk into a bar and feel like they can't contribute for a round,” Cullen Shaw, co-founder of the NYC Trivia League, told GQ about what makes for a good trivia night.

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"If there’s a really difficult 17th-century poetry question, maybe there’s one person in the bar that knows that, but a sports question comes up after that and they let someone else answer. That's what’s fun about team trivia," Shaw explained.

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Then again, you don't even need to be on a team to participate—or even leave your home. Hundreds of thousands of people log on to various apps to play every day.

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The draw toward trivia seems to be rooted in our natural curiosity and desire for challenge. "We are a competitive people," said Shaw. "We like games; in general, humankind has gravitated toward them."

People also enjoy alcohol and socializing, so a combination of all three—plus the bragging rights that come with answering a tough question that nobody else did—creates an activity with lasting appeal.

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Pyla
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As my anthropology prof said, we are all out of Africa

Tom Hardeveld
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you. There's nothin' that a hundred men or more could ever do. I bless the rains down in Africa. Gonna take some time to do the things we never had, ooh-hoo

Vermonta
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's a fascinating read. As they left Africa the skin got lighter so they could absorb more sunlight. They met up with neanderthals and denisovans to create the people we are today.

Vernice Aure
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The migration happened in wave. The Neanderthals and Denisovans were from earlier waves.

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El Dee
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Humans then mixed with Neanderthals, Denisovans etc. This means that only people who's ancestry is only from sub-Saharan Africa are 100% human. Europeans, for example, have perhaps a 4% Neanderthal. This doesn't matter at all, of course. Although it may be upsetting for white supremacists to hear - lol!

The Darkest Timeline
Community Member
3 weeks ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

White supremacists will rationalize it by saying things like, “We just evolved into a superior race.” Because bigotry is like conspiracy theories: self-sealing.

Comment Deleted
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The look I got when I told my racist Russian coworker this. I thought his head was going to explode. Called me a liar and a moron for believing it. I said you do not believe that but you believe some magic man in the sky created the universe and human race.

Nimitz
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"The Cradle of Humankind is a paleoanthropological site that is located about 50 km northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa, in the Gauteng province. Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999, the site is home to the largest known concentration of human ancestral remains anywhere in the world."

axle f
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Fact. Also, there isn't any such thing as white skin. compare it to a sheet of paper been bleached white. *that's* the color white. we all shades of brown, every last one of us. Denial? poor unfortunate fool you, I guess..

Marmee Noir
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'll have you know I'm a pale blue colour, like my celtic brethren. But people generally say "white" lol

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Ansi
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I would blame my stupid ancestors for moving from a warm place to somewhere you can freeze to death 4 months of the year if you don't have shelter and warm clothes. So maybe not liking that your ancestors were kind of daft? 😀 But I have to say, the lack of venomous and poisonous things make up for it.

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Incognito11
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The flow through the America's is innacurate. South American indigenous peoples do not share the same ancestry as North American indigenous peoples. South Amercian indigenous share ancestry with the peoples around what is now Oceania. They got there by sea not through North America.

Lee Gilliland
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And I let the MAGHATs hang themselves on this - EVERYONE'S ALL DESCENDED FROM BLACK ANCESTORS. Deal with it.

Ruth F
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And I bet the black "MAGHATS" are freaking out over it. Anyway it's medium brown, not black. The !Kung are most likely to be the closest to our common human ancestor.

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Jill Rhodry
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love telling racists that Africans are technically more human than whites😂😂😂

David
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So you're saying the US is not actually run by rich old white men? /J

Zaineb Bookwala
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What do those numbers on the map stand for? Just kya written there.

Corvus
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Because it didn't have the firepower to defend itself. You can't exploit someone who kicks you out of their land ;)

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Ruth F
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There are much older migrations that are missing from this map. MUCH older.

Linda Robinett
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So I am African American in one sense. Though I personally am mostly English but all my English ancestors are also African.

Bryan Wright
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sadly that doesn't stop certain elements castigating their paler cousins for seemingly "having it all".

EJN
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Go ahead and say it. What it means for everyone is that your ancient ancestor was black (negroid subtype) regardless of what human racial subtype you are now. This is true even for White Supremacists who refuse to admit it.

moeless
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And there is no such thing as a "native American." First arriving traveler is as close as anyone gets.

StrangeTrout
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's why the phrase "pure blooded" always makes me laugh. Stupid little people.

williamszita
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How could you not like it?? ....To think my ancestors travelled across the globe to unknown lands in my case settling in Ireland and Scotland so I could pop up in England! Fascinating!

Flbeachbum
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

we are all racist against someone at sometime for something.Skin colors really have little to do with this in the big scope of life.

Wiki Ta
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wonder what does the racists say when they hear this fact

Cammy Mack
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Not that I don't like it, in fact I love the thought! But these people that live for 80 or 90 years and pretend that they know the entire history of everything, without question, is complete bull s h I t

Martin
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is one for the racists who yell, "Go back to where you came from" as they'll also need to do the same thing.

Lesbitarian Lady
Community Member
Premium
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Please put this on big signs along the highways of the world, I want the white supremacists to read it 🙏🏼 PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE

Alex Kennedy
Community Member
3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is not necessarily true— it is one among competing theories of origin location. It is a good theory, but there are others possible.

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Plus, playing trivia games also gives your brain a workout, as it requires you to recall facts, make connections, and think critically under pressure.

"[Trivia questions] can engage your brain and reward/dopamine responses," said Alan D. Castel, Ph.D., a professor of cognitive psychology at the University of California.

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"Some research has shown that people are in fact willing to gamble, and even subject themselves to electric shocks to satisfy their curiosity for trivial knowledge that carries no apparent value, and may share neural mechanisms with that of hunger for food—showing the almost primal power of curiosity," Castel added.

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Note: this post originally had 82 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.