26Marine Corps
Although both the Navy and the Marine Corps are regarded as separate branches of the military, the Marine Corps is technically a part of the U.S. Navy, ever since Congress placed the Marines under the Navy in 1834.
27. The First Battle of Bull Run was watched by a large number of spectators who packed picnic baskets and followed the Union to watch the battle. They ultimately got in the way and hampered the retreat of the Union Army. One congressman was even captured by the Confederates.
28. Eastern Grey Squirrels were purposefully introduced to American city parks in the early 19th century as a form of entertainment and for those who lived in cities to get more exposure to nature.
29. The Jerrycan was invented in 1937 in Germany. At the start of World War 2, UK used leaky, flimsy tin containers called “flimsies,” but soon started stockpiling any German jerry cans they could lay their hands on. Later in the war, Allies started copying the German design.
30. Hemingway cats carry the polydactyl gene and can produce six-toed kittens.
31Sham Surgeries
Sham surgeries are fake surgical interventions. It is a placebo surgery where someone is told they have received a surgery, when in fact they only have a small skin incision while being sedated. In one study, those in the placebo group reported the same shoulder pain relief as those getting the actual shoulder surgery.
32. According to Greek Mythology, the Titan Cronus, who, fearing that he would be overthrown by his children, devoured them upon birth. His fear came true when Zeus, his youngest son, took over his throne.
33. During the Romanian Revolution, when dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu was captured, he was secretly wearing a clip that was meant to transmit his position to his security force. Unbeknownst to him, the signals were blocked by the armored vehicle he and his wife were in. Help never came, and they were executed.
34. The woodlouse is a common crustacean that goes back 100 million years and has over 50 different common names used around the world.
35. Tennessee Senator Luke Lea entered the Netherlands with fake passports and firearms in 1919 in an unauthorized attempt to kidnap the recently exiled Kaiser Wilhelm II. Suspicious of the strange men entering his estate, the Kaiser refused to meet them. The Senator fled, stealing a bronze ashtray.
