15 Tumblr Posts That Might Give You a Big Chuckle

Tumblr can be many things – sweet, insightful, aggressive, on-point – including funny, but these 15 posts took hilarity to the next level!

15. This is actually a horror story in disguise.

https://carry-on-my-wayward-butt.tumblr.com/post/186339172976

14. And also money for Netflix.

https://shaelit.tumblr.com/post/185983146979/all-our-generation-wants-is-a-small-apartment-and

13. *sips tea*

https://gluten-free-pussy.tumblr.com/post/182858563153/hervacationh0me-alsuper2-lezcatnoir

12. I mean friendship is nice and all.

https://saisai-chan.tumblr.com/post/186511863034/im-going-to-defeat-you-with-the-power-of

11. Truer words.

https://sabotabby.tumblr.com/post/180944940561/im-sad-i-wasnt-born-in-the-era-of-bitch-do

10. Big feelings.

https://imaginmation.tumblr.com/post/182324163856/large-emotion

9. No wrong answers.

Human form of duolingo owl from tumblr

8. Prove her wrong.

https://frawgs.tumblr.com/post/179016851446/and-then-god-was-like-lets-not-give-this-bitch-a

7. They are cute sometimes.

https://rockboci.tumblr.com/post/182330745173

6. Clever girl.

https://flightcub.tumblr.com/post/155369348877/my-three-favorite-things-are-the-oxford-comma

5. It’s funny AND it makes you want to weep.

https://jethroq.tumblr.com/post/116467066732/heavenboundghost-when-did-lmao-become

4. Never give up on a Tumblr post.

https://giggle.tumblr.com/post/186060830243

3. Now that you think about it…

https://carry-on-my-wayward-butt.tumblr.com/post/178360981101

2. Dumb animated kitty.

https://jennyfromthesock.tumblr.com/post/97605364873

1. Nailed it.

https://meganphntmgrl.tumblr.com/post/183344040700/not-gonna-say-this-again-a-cyborg-is-something

Did you lol in real life, too?

Twinsies!

The post 15 Tumblr Posts That Might Give You a Big Chuckle appeared first on UberFacts.

5 of the Most Costly Computer Failures in History

It’s utterly terrifying to think of what would happen if there was a major computer-related disaster and the entire world’s records were wiped out in one second.

I guess we never really know what dangers lurk out there in the world of cybercrime, hacking, etc., but it’s scary to think about it, considering how much we rely on computers for everything.

Let’s look at five major computer failures in history and what ended up happening.

1. The Dhahran Patriot Missile Interception

Photo Credit: US Army

During the first Gulf War in the early 1990s, the Patriot Missile became an iconic fixture. The Patriots were able to shoot down other missiles and aircraft.

One Patriot system in Saudi Arabia had its internal clock drift by 0.34 seconds because it had been operational for 100 hours. Israelis had advised the Americans to periodically reboot the system’s computers, but it was not done. The results turned out to be fatal.

On February 25, 1991, Iraqi forces launched a Scud missile. The Patriot system originally detected it but because of the slight time drift, it looked in the wrong place and did not attempt to intercept the Scud. The missile hit American barracks in Saudi Arabia and 28 American soldiers were killed.

2. WannaCry

Photo Credit: Public Domain

A worldwide ransomware cyberattack was launched in May 2017 affecting Windows-based computers. The encrypted data put out by the virus infected over 200,000 computers in 15 countries.

The WannaCry attack demanded ransom from those affected, asking for between $300 and $600 per computer. If people paid the ransom, their data was returned safely. WannaCry also badly infected the UK’s National Health System. It’s estimated that the attack caused $4 billion worldwide, and it is believed that North Korea was to blame.

3. Spectre

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Spectre, discovered in 2018, is a vulnerability present in almost all current computer systems. This is how it works: it tricks a program into accessing memory while actually allowing someone to read data and possibly retrieve sensitive information.

It’s highly likely that Spectre will not disappear for a long time, and it might even be affecting your system right now.

4. ILOVEYOU

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

On May 5, 2000, millions of people around the world received an email with “ILOVEYOU” in the subject line. There was a file attached to each email called “LOVE-LETTER-FOR-YOU.TXT.vbs,” and, in classic fashion, millions of people opened the file.

When opened, the virus overwrote files on the computer and sent copies of itself to every address in a person’s Microsoft Outlook contacts, so you can imagine how quickly it spread. The attack ended up costing $15 billion to remove from computer systems after it infected 50 million computers in just ten days.

5. The Boeing 737 MAX

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

This one you may have heard of, since it’s been in the news recently.

The Boeing 737 MAX was rushed into production, and, like all planes, it needed to keep its fuel costs as low as possible. But the 737 MAX needed larger engines that could not be mounted on the wings like usual, which meant the engines were moved closer to the body.

Because it would be expensive to retrain pilots to deal with the changes, Boeing used a computerized system called MCAS that automatically pushed the nose of the aircraft down when an excessive angle was detected. They also neglected to inform pilots about the MCAS system.

This technology led to two catastrophic incidents: a Lion Air flight crashed in October 2018 and an Ethiopian Airlines flight crashed in March 2019 that killed a total of 346 people. The 737-MAX is now grounded worldwide, costing airlines and Boeing millions, if not billions of dollars.

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An Aquarium’s Naughty Penguin of the Month Award Winners Have Committed Some Hilarious Crimes

These penguins are definitely up to no good.

The National Aquarium of New Zealand has taken drastic measures in an attempt to get their penguin population to shape up – they’ve started a running list of the naughtiest penguins of the bunch and post them on Facebook.

No public shaming would be complete without a list of crimes, but let’s face it – telling the world that the water birds are pushing each other from the pier, stealing food, or just bugging the crap out of each other isn’t going to improve their behavior.

Honestly though…do you really want it to?

Below are 10 of my favorite penguins, so bad they’re actually the best.

10. Don’t get in the way of a hungry lady!

? PENGUIN OF THE MONTH – FEBRUARY ?It's a mother/daughter duo this month!Good Penguin of the Month – PepperShe's…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Wednesday, February 6, 2019

9. He’s definitely not winning boyfriend of the month, either.

GOOD PENGUIN: DoraDora was such a trooper at our regular health checks this month. She waddled straight over to the…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Wednesday, August 7, 2019

8. I mean he was fine.

Here we go *Penguin of the Month*Naughty Penguin – Flip abandoned her boyfriend and their baby for an entire week!!!!!Good Penguin – Mr Mac ate during a public encounter ( normally snobs them)

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Tuesday, January 8, 2019

7. I mean maybe he’s just trying to keep everyone on their toes?

? PENGUIN OF THE MONTH TIME! ?Good Penguin: ELMOElmo, our oldest resident, has been waddling out of her burrow to eat….

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Sunday, July 7, 2019

6. There’s nothing to be ashamed of, Mo.

Here we go everybody our Naughty and Good Penguins for the month of December!Naughty Penguin- Mo… for hiding in the…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Wednesday, December 12, 2018

7. Okay so Mo might be my Patronus.

? Penguin of the Month – June 2019 ?NAUGHTY – MoMo has been a lay-about over the last few weeks! Has sleep ins, and…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Sunday, June 9, 2019

4. Apparently no one likes getting weighed.

“This is it” You have all been waiting for the penguin update!Naughty Penguin Flip… managed to evade the keepers on…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Monday, July 2, 2018

3. He’s just having a bit of harmless fun.

? Penguin of the Month – May 2019 ?NAUGHTY – DaveDave just can’t get it together and stay off the naughty list! We…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Sunday, May 5, 2019

2. Dave again!

? NAUGHTY & GOOD PENGUIN OF THE MONTH – MARCH 2019 ?NAUGHTY (kind of!): Because Dave has been partially hand raised,…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Tuesday, March 5, 2019

1. Variety is the spice of life.

? PENGUIN OF THE MONTH – APRIL 2019 ?NAUGHTY – Martin Martin is new to our Penguin Cove (rescued after a predator…

Posted by National Aquarium of New Zealand on Wednesday, April 3, 2019

 

Just more proof that the penguins are the best animal in the zoo.

Or anywhere, really.

The post An Aquarium’s Naughty Penguin of the Month Award Winners Have Committed Some Hilarious Crimes appeared first on UberFacts.

15 Apartment Dwellers Share the Weirdest Thing They’ve Heard Through the Walls

You can overhear a lot of crazy sh*t through walls that are a bit too thin: funny things, inappropriate things, embarrassing things, perhaps even illegal things.

And let me tell you, these 15 Redditors have pretty much heard it all.

15. I’m grateful I forgot that book.

In college, I lived in a crappy apartment nearby the school, that was mostly populated by students. Halfway to class one day, I realized I forgot a book and had to rush back to my apartment to get it. As I was running up the stairs (which shared a wall with the stairs in the next door apartment, which mirrored my own) I could have sworn I heard someone yelling. I ignored it and ran to my room to grab my book. As I clambered downstairs, again I heard yelling, and I paused to listen. I heard some unintelligible moaning, and eventually heard the words “help me,” weakly groaned from the stairs next door. I rushed out and tried their door, but it was locked. I totally forgot about my class and ran to the apartment management office, hoping that someone was there. A manager was, thank goodness, and after I explained the situation, she grabbed her master keys and we booked it back to my neighbor’s place. She opened the door and the poor guy was laying in the stairwell (it was one of the ones that goes up halfway to the second floor, then turns 90 degrees for the rest of the way), clearly having fallen. I called 911 while the manager ran over to the guy. Ambulance came and picked him up, and I later learned that he had fallen down the stairs after passing into a brief diabetic coma. I guess he hadn’t eaten in some time; I don’t know too much about how diabetes works. Anyhow, to this day, I feel grateful that I forgot that book. That poor guy could have died, slumped halfway down the stairs with his face in the carpet.

Edited to add: also, relevant to the thread, I was grateful for the thin walls. Just for that though. Thin walls suck.

Edited again to add: Thanks stranger – baby’s first Reddit gold!

14. Geniuses.

My upstairs neighbors taking turns zapping each other with a stun gun, hitting the floor, groaning in pain, and then laughing like Beavis and Butthead.

13. I’ve felt it.

I’ve heard and felt the neighbors upstairs having sex.

And apparently they like to rearrange the furniture at least twice a week.

12. That’s one ballsy argument.

Heard the couple next door arguing. The wife was furious because she realized he had been cheating on her after she found out she had chlamydia. He tried to convince her that she must have been the unfaithful one. She still lives there. He doesn’t.

11. Going crazy on a piano.

an argument about money while I was doing the dishes. It ended with a slammed door and one of them on a piano, hitting the keys like a maniac. Some people read, some people go get something to eat, some people exercise.. this motherfucker relieves stress by going crazy on a piano. lol

10. Always a gamble.

my old neighbour was a cam girl and I could hear absolutely everything she said in every single session for a good 4 months. pretty much learned the names of her clients. I work from home and it was always a gamble whenever I had to meet with someone virtually.

9. We vacuum together.

I can hear when my neighbors vacuum. Our building tends to vaccuum together as a result. I hear my upstairs neighbor and go “oh hey i should vaccuum havent done that in awhile and its already noisy”. Then my downstairs neighbor and my left hand neighbor start vacuuming. It’s kinda hilarious. My right hand neighbor doesn’t vaccuum with us but does sing opera while doing dishes.

8. I never should have said anything.

I actually manage an apartment complex where my office is surrounded by a one bedroom unit. The building is old and the walls are thin. The tenant that used to live in the unit was a quiet man but would frequently sing beautiful opera music. His voice was amazing and I loved it every time I heard him sing!

Then one time I saw him in the halls and made the mistake of asking if he was the one who sang these beautiful opera songs. His face turned red but he confirmed that it was him. I told him that I always enjoyed it when I heard him sing and that it would always brighten my day.

Never should have said anything because I never heard him sing again.

7. Oh my god.

“William! We do not hit!”

His mom was visiting. He was 30.

6. Three kids later.

“Yeah girl, you know you want this dick”

My college roommate. 3 kids later it’s apparent she did, in fact, want it.

5. Losers.

I once heard a former roommate laughing with his then girlfriend about how they’re fucking me over on money. Turned out they were taking my utility portion and buying various games and alcohol.

Instead of confronting them, I confirmed what they said with the utilities company (they hadn’t paid the bill is 2 months) and I moved all my stuff out that day while they were at work. For good measure, I took myself off the lease and told them about the GF that had been there 6 months.

4. Just me and my rabbit.

Years ago I had an upstairs neighbor. At 2am, every night, I would hear something sprint across the entire apartment. I realized three things, it was very fast, it took small strides, and it never deviated from its path. One day, I saw my neighbor outside and I said, “I dont know how you have energy at 2am?” He responded with, “Dude, I’ve been working the midnight to 8am shift for 15 years. Doesnt bother me at all”.

That night, I watched him leave his house, drive off, and waited two hours. At exactly 2am, I heard what sounded like two feet hit the floor in his bedroom, and the marathon started.

A few weeks later, I see him outside. I tell him what I hear at night and he says, “That’s strange, no one has my keys, it’s just me and my rabbit up there.”

3. Jeez, Jessica.

I once heard an argument that went a little like this:

“Stop treating me like I’m stupid!”

“You asked if Seahorses were mammals, Jessica!”

“THEY GIVE LIVE BIRTH.”

2. Solid argument.

“Fuck you, man! If you don’t like spaghetti, then you don’t like me!”

1. We could never figure out what that was all about.

In our old apartment our upstairs neighbor had extremely loud, theatrically enthusiastic sex in the middle of the day. The puzzle was that he would stop in the middle and we’d hear him walk to where the bathroom is, stay there for a minute or two and then walk back and resume in the bedroom. It was the same pattern every time. We could never figure out what that was all about. Any ideas welcomed.

I’m remembering why I’m happy to be in a house!

The post 15 Apartment Dwellers Share the Weirdest Thing They’ve Heard Through the Walls appeared first on UberFacts.

You Should Probably Know What These Text Abbreviations Are by Now

A lot of us have been in this situation before: you get a text from a friend or family member and there’s an abbreviation in there that you’ve never seen before. You panic because you don’t want to look clueless or uncool and you act like you know what they’re talking about. Then the conversation takes a strange turn because you just couldn’t be honest and everyone’s day is ruined.

Okay, that may be a little dramatic, but you know what I mean.

I have many moments like this with my 12-year-old niece when I should just own up to the fact that I don’t know what the hell she’s talking about and I need her help because apparently I’m already a senior citizen. But I can’t lose face, so I play this dangerous little game.

So, let’s run down the must-know list of text abbreviations that you really should know by now.

Ready? Go!

1. TFW

“That feel/feeling when…” Okay, I have to admit I didn’t really know about this one until now. We are NOT off to a good start.

2. NBD

“No big deal.” A classic! Believe it or not, people actually used to SAY this to each other when human beings still spoke before smartphones were invented.

3. FOMO

“Fear of missing out.” This describes your friends who can’t miss any of the action. Ever. Even if it’s your Aunt Esther’s 90th birthday party.

4. ICYMI

“In case you missed it.” Simple. Elegant. To the point.

5. FWIW

“For what it’s worth.” Whatever follows this abbreviation might not be something you want to hear.

6. TBH

“To be honest.” Another timeless classic.

7. FTW

“For the win.” I thought this meant “f*ck the world” forever, but now I stand corrected.

8. IDK

“I don’t know.” But you should know this one, okay?

9. SMH

“Shaking my head.” As in, “you’re not gonna believe this and I’m very perplexed.”

10. TLDR

A staple on Reddit, this means “Too long, didn’t read.” Everyone’s in such a hurry these days…

11. IIRC

“If I recall correctly.” Full disclosure: I don’t think I’ve ever actually seen this one out in the wild before.”

12. IRL

“In real life.” A must-have in your texting arsenal.

13. SLAY

“Crushing it” or “killing it.” So not exactly an abbreviation, but important nonetheless.

14. Vaguebooking

Another one that’s not an abbreviation, but you need to know, okay? This term sums up when someone posts something random or vague on social media because they’re obviously looking for likes, comments, and attention. A good example would be “Please pray for me at this tough moment” with absolutely no context at all.

15. LMK

“Let me know.” A huge one! LMK when I should be there. LMK what time dinner is. Etc.

16. OMW

“On my way.” You’re always in a hurry, so you’re always gonna need it.

The post You Should Probably Know What These Text Abbreviations Are by Now appeared first on UberFacts.

This Is How You Can Tell If Someone Blocked You on Facebook

Most of us don’t have the time or interest to go checking (or caring) who might have decided they no longer want to see what we have to say on Facebook.

View this post on Instagram

La forma de comunicarnos ha cambiado ? Estamos inundados de información día tras día, esto nos hace complicado hacer llegar nuestras oferta de productos y servicios a nuestro publico objetivo ? Existen distintos tipos de redes sociales ➡ Horizontales albergan todo tipo de usuarios sin una temática claramente definida. Facebook o WhatsApp son ejemplos de las redes sociales más importantes de esta categoría. ⬇ Verticales se especializan en algún campo, actividad o temática. Pueden ser profesionales o referidas a algún tema en concreto como puede ser moda o música. Ejemplos de esta categoría son Pinterest, SoundCloud o LinkedIn Ya sabes que Red Social usar para llegar a tu publico objetivo? Foto: @mauriciostradaphotography #avanza2creativos #agenciadigital #marketingdigital #marketingtips #marketingonline #branding #socialmedia #redessociales #rrss #felizlunes #instagram #facebook #twitter #linkedin #venezolanosenmadrid #venezolanosenespaña #emprendedores #emprendimientovenezolano

A post shared by Avanza 2 Creativos (@avanza2creativos) on

That said, most of us also have moments of morbid curiosity that we’ll occasionally give into. And maybe we want to know if that one interaction (or something more personal) caused a “friend” (or relative, natch) to not only unfriend us on Facebook, but to completely block us from their timeline.

Here are some tips and tricks for those inevitable moments!

Scroll Through Your Friend List

View this post on Instagram

Current mood: ? #blockedonfacebook #mature

A post shared by Danielle Meadors (@dani_sherri_c) on

If one of your former “friends” has blocked or unfriended you, they’ll no longer been on the list.

Do A General Search

If you type a name into the search bar and, when you click on a name, it shows that you’re friends, then the two of you are still in good standing.

If it shows the option to “Add Friend,” then you’ve been Unfriended. You can tell if you’ve been fully blocked by clicking on their name and seeing whether or not you’re able to see their public posts.

If you can’t, things are as bad as you think.

You’ve Definitely Been Blocked When…

Someone you know has an active profile doesn’t show up in the search results at all.

Your options are getting a friend to do the stalking for you or – crazy – talk to them about what happened in person, if that’s the sort of relationship you used to have.


There you go – but like I said, try not to get too wrapped up in what people think of you online.

There there be monsters, my friends.

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Take a Look at Iceland’s First Dead Glacier Captured in Satellite Images

This is scary and sad at the same time.

The Okjökull glacier was dead, declared Oddur Sigurðsson, a geologist in the Icelandic Meteorological Office back in 2014.

By then, the glacier had mostly disappeared.

Fast forward five years and Sigurðsson and other scientists are hiking to the old summit to place a plaque commemorating it upon the volcano it once dominated. It is officially the first glacier lost to climate change.

These dramatic satellite images show the tragic change of the glacier between 1986 and 2019.

 

The Okjökull glacier is only one of Iceland’s receding glaciers, many of which are also changing at dramatic rates. According to Sigurðsson, glacier conditions all around the world are on the decline due to the impending climate crisis.

He has been documenting the vanishing of approximately 56 out of the 300ish smaller glaciers in the northern part of Iceland.

Here is the image of the Okjökull glacier in September, 1986.

Photo Credit: NASA Earth Observatory

Here is the image of the glacier taken August, 2019.

Photo Credit: NASA Earth Observatory

Every continent, except for Australia which does not have glaciers, is experiencing the loss of glaciers, some slow, others much quicker.

Alex Gardner, a NASA glaciologist, told Mashable, “We’re not trying to figure out whether the glaciers will melt in the future. We’re just trying to find out how much and how fast.”

Since 2001, 18 of the 19 warmest years on record have occurred. The warm temperatures have thinned the rivers of ice that create the glaciers.

Photo Credit: Vojife

Sigurðsson calculated that in 1890 the Okjökull glacier occupied 16 square kilometers, or 6 square mile. By 1945, it was dwindling, and it eventually died in 2014. Now, only small amounts of snow and ice exist along the slope.

Assuming warming trends continue along with unchanged rates of carbon emissions – which seems to be our trajectory unless something dramatic happens in the global political landscape – Iceland will see a decline in its glaciers of 40 percent by the end of the century.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, all of Iceland’s ice masses could disappear by 2200, if not sooner.

In the meantime, Sigurðsson is taking on the sad task of tracking all the living glaciers, especially those in retreat.

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Experts from Harvard Share Tips for the Perfect Cover Letter

Picture this scenario: You’ve just received your college degree and are chomping at the bit to get into a job that features your skills. You’ve done everything right. Great grades, solid references, a sparkling new resume, and a boatload of internships to prove your experience.

You’re scanning open positions online and come across your dream job! You upload your resume and fill out the application marking your interest. But before you click “submit” there is a section to upload a cover letter. Uh oh. 

You quickly draft a letter to the HR manager regurgitating your resume. Good enough, right? Wrong.

According to Inc.com, there are over 250 applicants vying for that job, but only about 2% of those score an interview. So how do you stand out among the competition?

Your cover letter.

Photo Credit: Pexels, Lukas

A cover letter sets you apart. It lets the employer understand your personality, writing skills and why you are better than the competition.

What to include in your cover letter

Linda Spencer, Assistant Director of the Office of Career Services at Harvard answers the all-important question:

  1. Why are you a great fit for that specific company?
  2. How would you add value back into the organization if hired for that specific role? What impact could you make?

She also touches on an astounding statistic that “…the average employer takes up only about 7 seconds [to review resumes]. So they are not reading these resumes, they’re skimming these resumes. They need to know right off the bat how you are adding value.”

If you are looking to get to the top of the stack, a cover letter will help. Here’s what you need to include.

Address the letter to an actual person

With job sites like Linkedin, you should be able to seek out the hiring manager. And sometimes the job description lists the person performing the interviews, such as a Human Resources individual. Take that opportunity to personalize that letter to a specific audience (if you get it wrong, it’s not the end of the world).

State your purpose for the letter

An opener such as: “I am writing to express my interest in the [ENTER Position Title] within your organization.

Be clear as to why they are receiving your resume. You may also include where you found the job—via their website or a job board.

Do not summarize your resume!

Your cover letter should enhance your resume, not rehash it into paragraph form. This is your chance to shine and show a little of your personality and enthusiasm.

“If you have relevant school or work experience, be sure to point it out with one or two key examples,” Harvard’s Career Services Manual states. “Emphasize skills or abilities that relate to the job. Be sure to do this in a confident manner and keep in mind that the reader will also view your letter as an example of your writing skills.”

Use action words and the words “You” or “Your organization” rather than “I”

Remember, the employer wants to know what you can do for their company! Show them in your cover letter (don’t tell them).  If you use the word “I”, it tells the company what you hope to gain from them, not the other way around.

Companies are interested in finding the best employee and that top echelon of candidates express what they can to add value to the job.

And skip the overused words like “hard-working, results-driven, team player.” Chances are the hiring manager has seen these a million times. Give them action. Show them how you are a team player. What projects have you done in which you proved you are a results-driven candidate?

Closing statement

In the end, show your enthusiasm for being in consideration for the role. Thank them for their time and tell them you are looking forward to discussing your candidacy further. This shows them you are excited and appreciative.

Consistency

Lastly, consistency is key. Your font type, size, etc should match your resume. These two very important documents complement each other and should match across the board.

Here is an excellent example of a cover letter breakdown to help you score that dream job!

Photo Credit: Harvard

Now get out there and apply!

The post Experts from Harvard Share Tips for the Perfect Cover Letter appeared first on UberFacts.

5 Fan Theories About Harry Potter That Hit the Nail on the Head

Surprisingly, there was a time when the mysteries in Harry Potter were actually mysteries, and those of us reading (and then watching) along had to actually guess what was what and who was who.

Needless to say, in the end most of us were wrong.

But thanks to hindsight and the fact that J.K. Rowling is pretty available for questions (and sometimes answers) on Twitter, we know that these 5 people’s mystery-solving games were totally on point.

5. Magic is genetic. Usually.

Let’s take a little historical tour of J.K. Rowling’s comments on how one might or might not come to expect a Hogwarts letter on their 11th birthday, shall we?

In 1999, she said that “Nobody knows where magic comes from. It is like any other talent. Sometimes it seems to be inherited, but others are the only ones in their family who have the ability.”

Fans, however, picked up on the obsession some wizards had with “pure blood families,” leaving them to speculate that there had to be some genetic component to the talent.

Then, in 2012, Rowling addressed the issue of Squibs (non-magical people born to magical parents), stating that they’re rare in her world because “magic is a dominant and resilient gene.”

One biology major wrote a six-page paper on how magical ability could be attributed to “a single autosomal dominant gene if it is caused by an expansion of trinucleotide repeats with non-Mendelian ratios of inheritance,” and she’s joined by Duke University professor Eric Spana, who explained Muggle-borns like Lily and Hermione by way of de novo mutations (a genetic lottery).

4. There was more to Harry’s Invisibility Cloak that he knew at first.

Harry loved his invisibility cloak from the start, given that it was a hand-me-down from his deceased father, but at first he – and fans – had no reason to suspect that “exceedingly rare” meant “one-of-a-kind.”

But fans began suspecting there was more to the mysterious garment long before Ron recognized it as a Ignotus Peverell’s Cloak of Invisibility – and one of the Deathly Hallows – in the final book.

3. Harry and Ginny had a good reason for not naming their children after Remus Lupin.

Harry and Ginny’s children’s names honored a number of late and living loved ones, but fans immediately noticed that Remus Lupin was missing. Most were upset, but a few deep thinkers believed that perhaps they were saving Lupin’s name for someone else.

A fact Rowling affirmed, saying on Twitter that “Harry left Remus’s name for Teddy to use for his own son.”

2. The romantic relationship between Grindelwald and Dumbledore.

While most fans’ “ships” (relationships) don’t ever come to fruition on the page or on screen, the teen romance between Grindelwald and Dumbledore didn’t disappoint.

In 2007, Rowling revealed that Dumbledore was both gay and “in love with Grindelwald,” a plot point that has made an appearance-ish in the latest Fantastic Beasts movie.

Oh happy day!

1. That Harry would both die AND live.

One of the most enduring questions of the series became this: would Harry earn the title of The Boy Who Lived a second time, or would he die in order to save the world from Voldemort’s rebirth? The prophecy that stated “either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives” certainly made sacrifice seem unavoidable, but some fans guessed early on that there might be a third option.

Harry does die and cross into the afterlife, but he also returns. The best of both worlds? Maybe!

 

We nailed it guys, good work all around.

The post 5 Fan Theories About Harry Potter That Hit the Nail on the Head appeared first on UberFacts.

These Photos Warn Tourists to Stop Riding Elephants in Thailand

Hundreds of thousands of Westerners visit Thailand each year, and one of the “must-try” activities is riding a majestic elephant. But tourists are now being urged to stop, thanks to the revelation of some truly heartbreaking photos.

A Twitter user posted several photos of elephants in Thailand being cruelly mistreated. Their keepers, called mahouts, keep them in line by hitting them with sharp metal hooks, often hard enough to draw blood. Their heads are covered in old wounds.

Around 3000 elephants are currently used for entertainment across Asia, and 77 percent are treated inhumanely, according to the World Animal Protection. Elephants are often ripped from their mothers prematurely, violently broken into submission, then subjected to a lifetime of abuse and isolation.

While Thai government agencies are working to end animal cruelty, officials also urge visitors to boycott businesses that treat their animals this way.

“We never support tourists riding the elephants,” a spokesperson for the Tourism Authority of Thailand told Yahoo! News. “Please don’t ride the elephants and don’t support this business.”

Photo Credit: iStock

There are about 3500 wild elephants in Thailand and about 4500 domesticated elephants. The domesticated elephants are classified as “working animals,” just like livestock. Animal advocates are working to change this classification in order to offer more protections to elephants.

If tourists want to enjoy these beautiful animals, one option is to visit a wild elephant sanctuary. There, tourists can observe and pet the animals, but cannot ride them.

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