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The
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Fascinating World of Trivia
Trivial or not, it’s undeniable that knowledge is power. The pursuit of information can unlock doors to new understanding, fresh perspectives, and a more nuanced understanding of the world we inhabit. Little nuggets of information that seem unremarkable at first glance might be the missing piece in a larger puzzle, or lead to a lifelong obsession. Here are some fascinating tidbits of knowledge that will make your brain do somersaults.
Did you know that a group of owls is called a parliament? Or that there’s a word for the fear of long words? It’s called hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia. While this is a mouthful in itself, it’s completely understandable to anyone who has trouble with tongue twisters. Speaking of them, did you know that there are letters in the English language that are never pronounced? ‘K’ is silent in words like ‘knight,’ ‘know,’ and ‘knead,’ while the ‘h’ in ‘ghost’ and ‘ghoul’ is also imperceptible.
On a more somber note, did you know that the African elephant is the largest terrestrial animal on the planet and the biggest and heaviest brain on land belongs to the sperm whale? And while we’re on the topic of creatures, did you know that goldfish can learn to recognize faces, and bees can recognize human faces with the same accuracy as those of other bees? Talking about the brainteasers, a study found that the accuracy rate for a sudden insight during a challenging word association game is the same whether you are completely focused or distracted.
But it’s not just the natural world that’s full of surprises. The man-made one is just as thrilling. For instance, the word ‘nerd’ was first coined in the Dr. Seuss book ‘If I Ran The Zoo,’ and the inventor of the modern bra was a young woman named Mary Phelps Jacobs. And while we’re on inventions, the adhesive on Post-It notes was invented by accident. Spencer Silver was trying to create a super-strong adhesive but failed; instead, his colleague Arthur Fry used the ‘low-tack’ adhesive to create a bookmark that wouldn’t slip off and the Post-It note was born.
Finally, did you know that the shortest war ever recorded was fought between Britain and Zanzibar in 1896? It lasted for just 38 minutes before Zanzibar surrendered. But even more incredible is the fact that the Great Wall of China wasn’t built in one go; construction began in the 7th century and went on until the 19th century, with repairs and modifications over the centuries. It’s been estimated that the Great Wall, which was built to protect China from invaders, is over 13,000 miles long.
There you have it, just a few crumbs from the vast expanse of trivia that’s out there. Who knows what else is waiting to be discovered? So go out and explore, be curious, and keep adding to the vast store of knowledge that’s out there. It’s what makes life interesting.
