Random facts you have only recently discovered

[fandabbyfannyflutters]

I found out only yesterday you are not allowed to take photos of the Eiffel Tower at night...mind totally blown

Your headrest in the car is removable so the metal inserts can be used to smash window if you’re trapped.

If you mouth "elephant juice" in the mirror or to a person it looks exactly the same as i love you

Try doing it with 'Van Gogh.

Re the planets and where they are this is something that drives me mad in Sci Fi when they say a planet is a week away, well it might be today but it won't always be.

That's why it was so important to get the voyager probes launched when they were, the planets and moons were sort of lined up so several could be flown by.

There’s been the same amount of water on the planet forever. It’s just distributed differently.

Lauren83

If there is room you should be able to move after take off. I'm disabled so not allowed to take off or land at an exit or an aisle seat.

I forgot the thing I learned about sea otters, sometimes a male will kidnap a pup while the mother is diving for food, she then has to give up her food to get her cub back.

The Cleopatra one has blown my mind. I knew the relevant facts, but had not thought about them in that way.

Rather than 'elephant juice' looking like you're saying 'i love you', the version I know is 'elephant poo'. I say that I know it, but only because DD (8) told me a few months ago.

This one may be an urban myth, but it suddenly dawned on me that the phrase 'going through something with a fine-tooth comb' originated from using a comb to look for lice. This realisation was triggered by yet another de-nitting session on DD.

I think (and a quick google confirms) you're spot on, it's from literal 'fine tooth combing'. I'd guess 'nit picking' has related origins.

Just overheard some drunk students on a train platform say that bees can become alcoholics! Apparently, the alcoholism rate in humans and bees is exactly the same.

Today I learned that 'swingers' have pineapple-shaped door-knockers as a discreet signal to others!

And, re the planets: Pluto isn't a planet now. It's a dwarf planet - and not even the largest dwarf planet in our solar system. Eris is slightly larger. The other dwarf planets are Haumea, Makemake and Ceres. And Haumea is oval - it spins so fast, its shape is distorted! (My 3 yo grandson told me these facts, but I checked and they're all true - he's obsessed with space).

only female wasps and bees can sting

ducks are rapists and have scarey penises

the pattern on a tiger is also on its skin

That the Travelodge logo is a picture of someone asleep not mountains and a hill.

@FlamedToACrisp I'm now going to be looking out for houses with pineapple door knockers...!

Didn't know that about Hootennany. Not that I ever watch it but it's still a bit of a cop out it's not live.

Fleas have caused more human deaths than all the major wars that have ever been fought.
The key thing doesn't work on Subaru cars, think it's because of the double locking system
Which reminds me!
90% of Subarus ever built are still on the road

Baby otters float because the mummy otter grooms them and fluffs up their fur so it traps air and acts like a lifejacket. Then she can go off diving for food and they'll bob about happily.

(Unless they're kidnapped per sashh's post I presume!)

TonOfLead - how does “elephant poo” work?? Too many syllables.

“Colourful” works far better.

Lauren83 that’s because of oxygen masks available - they have 1 extra mask per row (layout depends on aircraft - some have 4 masks for every 3 seats). To get around that you’d have to pay for the toddler’s seat, carry him on lap for take off and landing, but he can then use seat to play rest of the time.
It’s good of your airline to have a map of the right seats to book online at least. I remember having to wait for the airline to allocate our seats when travelling with an infant.

Dorothy didn't get to keep Toto and ended up in a mental institution...

That smacking your lips means smacking them against each other, not with your hand! I thought it was an odd thing to do!
Only learned this when I had a baby and people said he was smacking his lips. I’d only ever read it before!

In the Netherlands it's considered extremely rude and inappropriate to say that you are hungry

Gosh I must remember that - I am always hungry though haven't been to the Netherlands for decades.

Arthur, I think that's probably a fan theory—there are lots more Oz books, and Toto is mentioned in all of them.

The land where the Houses of Parliament stands was originally an island in the Tyburn

Maybe it's to cool the car down inside before getting in on a hot day, just guessing but that is the only reason I could think of.

Vests for babies have envelope openings so you can take them off both ways! Could have done with knowing that a few years ago

Im guessing you are new to MN,, this has been posted about once a week since about1739 on here

In the Netherlands it's considered extremely rude and inappropriate to say that you are hungry

For the older generation, yes. When you are among a younger generation it's fine. But say you are hungry around boomers or older you might get a lecture how in the hunger winter uncle Jan rode his bicycle for three days to a farm to get a sack of potatoes and saved the family from starvation so you don't know what hunger is. Or that granny and grandad only weighed 30 kg when they were liberated from the nazi camps. Or something similar. Now I do respect the efforts of uncle Jan (or whoever) but feeling hungry still sucks. Just don't tell the older generation.

Baby otters float because the mummy otter grooms them and fluffs up their fur so it traps air and acts like a lifejacket. Then she can go off diving for food and they'll bob about happily.

That is so cute! I love otters.

It's impossible to lick your own elbow
Not sure why anyone would want to, but anyway.
And you can't sneeze with your eyes open