Mind Blowing Facts That Are Guaranteed To Always Get A Rise Out of People

Everyone loves a good fun fact. It’s what puts the water in the water cooler talk. It’s what takes an otherwise dormant conversation that’s suffering under the weight of crippling awkward silence, and transforms it into an enlightening, interesting dialogue. Maintaining a sense of curiosity and being open to learning new things is crucial to keeping a healthy relationship with this whole here life thing. Fun facts and their instrumental value are here to help keep that curiosity well nourished.

1. Your Eyes Are Holding Far More Than Their Given Credit For

An image of someone staring at the sun with their eye open.
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So, get this. For each grain of sand that rests on every beach on the planet, there are also 10,000 stars in the viewable universe. Yet. Here’s the catch. There are also more atoms in your eye than there are stars in the viewable universe. If you didn’t see that one coming, you’re not alone.

2. A Sole Tiger Killed Around 200 People

A close-up image of a tiger with green eyes.
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The Champawat Tiger was not playing around. In fact, the Champwat Tiger was a literal human-devouring monster. Like the monster that would be hiding in your closet or under your bed in your worst childhood nightmares. So, give thanks on this day that you’re not having to deal with that 19th century terror.

3. We Actually Don’t Know What “Wet” Is

An image of water droplets over a white background.
101cats/istockphoto

Yeah, let that one digest for a second. As it turns out, humans have no actual receptors to specifically detect when something’s “wet.” Instead, the whole “wet” detection is realized from other stimuli. This is why sometimes you’ll touch something and then find yourself utterly puzzled over whether that thing was wet or just cold.

4. Sharks Are Older Than Trees

An image of a shark swimming around.
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Yeah, this one’s never going to get old. Well, definitely not older than sharks. Honestly, sharks deserve more than just a week. We should consider paying homage to the 450 million year old legends with a month or something. And just picturing a planet where sharks were cruising around deep blue seas while no trees were there to appreciate the show isn’t exactly the most settling scenery for your mind.

5. The Medical Term For A Phobia Of Long Words Is Out Of A Dr. Seuss Book

An image of numerous letters over a white background.
kamisoka/istockphoto

Okay, so obviously there are more phobias out there than we’ll ever even begin to scratch the surface of. With that being said though. There is indeed a phobia or intense fear of long words. The deeply troubling fact? This phobia/intense fear is properly referred to as Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia. Say that 10 times really fast. If you did? You’ve probably conquered fear itself.