Random facts about the world
From bizarre facts to weird science to unbelievable tales from the annals of history, here’s a trove of weird facts that most people don’t know.
1) Japan is threatened by underpopulation:
While most countries like India and America face the threat of overpopulation, the country of Japan has shown a rapid decline in their population. Not only is Japan expected to enter a long period of population decline, but also its inhabitants are ageing out of the workforce.
2) The world’s largest waterfall is underwater:
Yes, there are waterfalls under the ocean. At the Denmark Strait, the cold water from the Nordic Sea is denser than the Irminger Sea’s warm water, making it drop almost two miles down at 123 million cubic feet per second.
3) Antimatter should have annihilated all matter after the big bang:
According to theory, the big bang should have created matter and antimatter in equal amounts. When matter and antimatter meet, they annihilate, leaving nothing but energy behind. So in principle, none of us should exist. Physicists are hard at work trying to explain this asymmetry.
4) Women can give birth after they die:
It's very rare, but it has been known to happen. Called "coffin birth," it's a phenomenon that occurs when a pregnant woman delivers a child spontaneously after her death—due to gases built up in the abdominal area, putting pressure on the mother's uterus and forcing the baby out of the birth passageway.
5) High heels were first designed for men:
Another reason to not give in to toxic masculinity. At the end of the 16th century, Persian-inspired style was all the rage in Europe, and heels were seen as being virile and masculine—and a great way to boost your height a few inches.
6) Women have more pain receptors than men:
According to a report published in October's Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, women have more nerve receptors, which cause them to feel pain more intensely than men. But women also have a higher tolerance for pain as compared to men.
7) Half your hand strength is in your pinkie:
The pinkie seems unassuming, but it's crucial for your hand strength—helping the thumb to pinch and giving more power to the ring, middle, and index fingers. Losing your pinkie would easily mean losing 50 percent of your hand strength.
8) Chewing Gum is banned in Singapore:
If you’re in Singapore hoping to buy some chewing gum, you’re out of luck. The tendency to stick the remains of the gum in any place was viewed by the authorities as a palpable attack on Singapore's ambition to be perfect, and hence a law was put into place which banned chewing gum in Singapore.