The world is undeniably a beautiful and amazing place… filled with a bunch of bizarre, hilarious, and downright interesting facts. Here’s our favorite list of science fun facts that you should know.

1

A guy named Joshua Norton went insane in San Francisco in the 1860s, and proclaimed himself Emperor of the United States Of America (and Protector of Mexico!). Everyone in San Francisco and the surrounding area just humored him, accepted the currency he printed for himself, gave him a uniform, and generally let him do his thing. When he died some 20 years later, 30,000 people showed up to his funeral.

Even more fun facts: His tombstone does actually read: NORTON I EMPEROR OF THE UNITED STATES AND PROTECTOR OF MEXICO

When he was arrested for vagrancy and lunacy, local newspapers were not pleased.

In what can only be described as the most dastardly of errors, Joshua A. Norton was arrested today. He is being held on the ludicrous charge of “Lunacy.” Known and loved by all true San Franciscan’s as Emperor Norton, this kindly Monarch of Montgomery Street is less a lunatic than those who have engineered these trumped up charges. As they will learn, His Majesty’s loyal subjects are fully apprised of this outrage.

He was released with apologies, and thereafter city police would salute him when they passed.

2

There are more airplanes in the oceans than submarines in the sky.



3

Hold up your hands and clap them together. Wait one second, then do it again. If you could plot the distance between the first clap and the second clap, it would be more than 800 kilometers.

This is because the Earth is moving around the sun, the sun is moving around the center of the galaxy, the galaxy is moving through the Virgo Supercluster, and the Virgo Supercluster is barreling through the universe. When you add up all the velocities and compare the result to the cosmic microwave background (which is the closest thing we have to a universal frame of reference), it comes out to about 800 kilometers per second. In the time it took you to read this, you’ve traveled farther than you’ll ever walk in your life.



4

Cows have best friends. They have their own social circles and form little cow cliques when they graze. Then they become depressed when for some reason they haven’t seen Marsha around for a few days and it seems unusual but she’s probably okay and not turned into a delicious T-bone or anything.

Cows are tremendously curious and will gaze at you for ages. If they can get up to you they will rub against you, and the bolder ones will try to eat your clothes. And I don’t mean this disparagingly, simply factually: they are really, really, really stupid creatures. Plain simple. It’s the way it is. Always remember that in your dealings with them. They don’t want to hurt you. They don’t really want anything. But they might hurt you, sometimes by accident. Does happen. And dogs. They don’t like dogs. They will trample lovely friendly dogs to death, and be doe-eyed and benignly cud-chewing five minutes later. More advice learned the hard way: don’t be round the back when they lift a tail up. And if they’re standing on concrete that stuff splashes a long way.



5

x% of y = y% of x y(x/100) = x(y/100) yx/100 = xy/100. So, in order to calculate a percentage in your head it might be easier to turn it around. Example What is 2% of 50? It’s the same thing as 50% of 2.