In Norway, people use the term “texas” as slang for “crazy”. It doesn’t refer to a person, but a chaotic atmosphere or state of mind, so saying a party “was totally crazy!” in Norwegian would be “det var helt texas!”, which literally means “it was texas!”
A brain injury sustained…
A brain injury sustained during a mugging turned a man who used to think “math is stupid” into a mathematical savant with a form of synaesthesia that lets him see the world in fractals.
Arnold Schwarzenegger wasn’t allowed…
Arnold Schwarzenegger wasn’t allowed to dub his own role in Terminator in German, as his accent is considered very rural by German/Austrian standards and it would be too ridiculous to have a death machine from the future come back in time and sound like a hillbilly.
64% of Americans believe schizophrenia…
64% of Americans believe schizophrenia involves a split personality. A person with schizophrenia doesn’t have two different personalities. Instead, he has false ideas/delusions or has lost touch with reality. Multiple personality disorder is unrelated.
US Presidents are prohibited…
US Presidents are prohibited by the Secret Service from going to the top of the Gateway Arch in St Louis, MO.
In 2005 graffiti artist David Choe…
In 2005 graffiti artist David Choe was offered $60K to paint multiple murals at Facebook headquarters. He chose to take his compensation in stock which was eventually worth more than $200 million.
After retiring from NASA, Buzz Aldrin, first…
After retiring from NASA, Buzz Aldrin, second man on the moon, fell into a deep depression and ended up working as a used car salesman.
When Archduke Franz Ferdinand was…
When Archduke Franz Ferdinand was murdered in his car – triggering the start of World War One – the number plate of his and his wife’s car read “AIII 118”. 11/11/18 was the date when the armistice was finally signed.
The term “scientist” was coined…
The term “scientist” was coined in the 1830s to describe Mary Somerville. A woman. Because the usual term “man of science” didn’t apply and she wasn’t just a physicist, geologist, or chemist – she was all three.
Beethoven overcame deafness by biting…
Beethoven overcame deafness by biting a metal rod attached to his piano to hear his work. It’s called bone conduction, and can also be used to help divers talk and hear underwater, and is also used by elephants to communicate.