Wikipedia:Did you know/Statistics/Monthly DYK pageview leaders/2012
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This DYK STATS/Archive 2012 page is an archive of the monthly DYKSTATS leaders for each month in 2011, recognizing the DYK entries that have received the most page views while being featured on DYK.
On an important note: Please do not see this list as a competition, but rather a celebration of some of the most effective DYK hooks.
- 2012 DYK page view leaders by month (over 5,000 views)
January 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Kemna concentration camp | ![]() |
38,567 | 4,820 | ... that torture at Kemna concentration camp (memorial pictured), one of the first Nazi concentration camps, was so brutal that the Nazis held hearings on it? |
Gerp's mouse lemur | ![]() |
25,495 | 3,186 | ... that Gerp's mouse lemur is a newly discovered mouse lemur species from Madagascar, and is only known from an area smaller than the size of Puerto Rico? |
Arfa Karim | 24,087 | 3,010 | ... that in 2004, Arfa Karim became the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional at the age of nine years? | |
Bunkers in Albania | 21,784 | 2,723 | ... that over 700,000 bunkers were built in Communist-era Albania, most of which now have little use other than as a place to lose one's virginity? | |
United States free speech exceptions | 19,800 | 2,475 | ... that there are eight exceptions to the freedom of speech in the United States? | |
Redstone Coke Oven Historic District | ![]() |
17,436 | 2,179 | ... that hippies once lived in the old coke ovens (pictured) outside Redstone, Colorado? |
1111 Lincoln Road | 17,300 | 2,165 | ... that a parking garage in Miami Beach was described as having a "stunning" design and has hosted weddings, wine tastings, and dinner parties? | |
Baluarte Bridge | ![]() |
17,076 | 2,134 | ... that the newly inaugurated Baluarte Bridge in Mexico (pictured) is the highest cable-stayed bridge in the world? |
Carrier Strike Group Seven | 15,600 | 1,950 | ... that Carrier Strike Group Seven (logo pictured) was disestablished effective 30 December 2011? | |
Jerry Hardin | 15,600 | 1,950 | ... that Deep Throat's daughter is Monk's wife? | |
Kaneyoshi Muto | ![]() |
15,300 | 1,912 | ... that Japanese flying ace Kaneyoshi Muto (pictured) was compared to the legendary swordsman Miyamoto Musashi? |
Norwegian butter crisis | 12,900 | 1,612 | ... that in response to the Norwegian butter crisis, Danish people have donated thousands of packs to butter-starved Norwegians? | |
Vicinage Clause | 12,547 | 1,568 | ... that the Vicinage Clause of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution may allow for the commission of the "perfect crime" in Yellowstone National Park? | |
Neoglyphea | 11,800 | 1,475 | ... that until the discovery in 1975 of the "living fossil" Neoglyphea inopinata (pictured), glypheoid crustaceans were thought to have been extinct since the Eocene? | |
SS Sirio | 11,708 | 1,463 | ... that after the shipwreck of the Italian SS Sirio, in which more than 100 passengers died, the captain was the first to abandon ship, and died "of a broken heart" within a year? | |
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary | ![]() |
11,300 | 1,412 | ... that the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary (pictured) is the largest Catholic church in Russia? |
Original Child Bomb | 10,978 | 1,372 | ... that the 2005 film Original Child Bomb included footage previously labeled top secret by the US government? | |
Russian submarine K-114 Tula | ![]() |
10,400 | 1,300 | ... that the Russian nuclear-powered submarine K-114 Tula (pictured) launched the R-29RMU Sineva missile for a record 11,547 km (7,175 mi) in 2008? |
Carapus mourlani Bohadschia argus |
6,043+ 4,028= 10,071 |
1,258 | ... that 15 star pearlfish were found living inside a single leopard sea cucumber? | |
Karlino oil eruption | 10,043 | 1,255 | ... that the Karlino oil eruption put an end to the dreams of Poland becoming a "second Kuwait"? | |
Phoenix United Mine | ![]() |
9,870 | 1,233 | ... that the Phoenix United Mine (pictured) is one of only two places in the world where you can walk on Cornish path moss? |
Wah-Wah (George Harrison song) | 9,800 | 1,225 | ... that George Harrison wrote the song "Wah-Wah" in response to his frustration with Beatles bandmates John Lennon and Paul McCartney? | |
Varda Viaduct | ![]() |
9,700 | 1,212 | ... that Varda Viaduct (pictured), a 98 m (322 ft) high railway viaduct in the Taurus Mountains, will be a shooting location of the next James Bond movie Skyfall? |
MV Spiegelgracht | 9,501 | 1,187 | ... that the cargo ship MV Spiegelgracht ferries luxury yachts from Europe to the Caribbean and back every year, allowing their owners to cruise in both summer and winter? | |
M8 (rocket) | 9,469 | 1,183 | ... that the United States manufactured over 2,500,000 M8 barrage rockets during World War II? | |
Eccentric flint (archaeology) | ![]() |
9,400 | 1,175 | ... that Mayan eccentrics (pictured) were often buried under monuments and buildings? |
Nanictidopidae | ![]() |
9,400 | 1,175 | ... that a group of Late Permian mammal relatives called Nanictidopidae (restoration pictured) may have eaten fruit because their small teeth were unsuitable for grinding most plant material? |
Harriet Low | ![]() |
9,316 | 1,164 | ... that Harriet Low (pictured) caused a diplomatic incident when she entered the banned port of Canton dressed as a boy? |
Terma (The X-Files) | 9,258 | 1,157 | ... that production of The X-Files episode "Terma" involved an oil plume 300 feet (91 m) high? | |
St Mary's Priory Church, Monmouth | 9,093 | 1,136 | ... that a gravestone in St Mary's Priory Church in Monmouth says "Here lies John Renie" in 46,000 different ways? | |
Psilocybe aztecorum | 8,993 | 1,124 | ... that the "children of the water" were considered to be the "flesh of the gods"? | |
Women to drive movement | ![]() |
8,923 | 1,115 | ... that the Arab Spring has revved up the Saudi Arabian "Women to drive movement" (poster pictured)? |
Death By Cube | 8,856 | 1,107 | ... that the Xbox Live Arcade game Death By Cube was one of the bloodiest games to appear at the 2009 Tokyo Game Show? | |
GRB 101225A | 8,800 | 733 | ... that one of the two theories about the Christmas gamma ray burst places it just 10,000 light years from Earth, but the other theory indicates a distance of 5.5 billion light years? | |
Birthday Cake (song) | 8,800 | 733 | ... that Rihanna's "Birthday Cake", said to resemble a real-life quickie, lasts just 78 seconds? | |
Temple of Kwan Tai | ![]() |
8,400 | 1,050 | ... that the Temple of Kwan Tai in Mendocino, California (pictured) was founded by a survivor from a fleet of seven Chinese junks, two of which landed on the California coast in 1854? |
Battle of Cottonwood | ![]() |
8,216 | 1,027 | ... that Chief Joseph (pictured) and his warriors defeated the U.S. Army in 1877 at the Battle of Cottonwood as the Nez Perce began their 1,400 mile (2,300 km) fighting retreat? |
Panicum repens | 8,174 | 1,021 | ... that torpedograss has been called "one of the world's worst weeds"? | |
Dearborn River High Bridge | ![]() |
7,418+ 791 = 8,109 |
1012 | ... that the Dearborn River High Bridge (pictured), near Augusta, Montana, is the last standing pin-connected Pratt half-deck truss bridge left in the United States? |
The X-Files Mythology, Volume 2 – Black Oil | 8,039 | 1,004 | ... that a gulag used to mine black oil in The X-Files was inspired by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn? | |
Lagan Canal | ![]() |
8,000 | 1,000 | ... that the Lagan Canal (pictured) was once one of the most successful canals in Ireland but closed in the 1950s after succumbing to competition from road and rail transport? |
Russian submarine K-84 Ekaterinburg | 8,000 | 1,000 | ... that the Russian ballistic missile submarine K-84 Ekaterinburg was the first submarine to attempt to launch all her missiles while submerged? | |
Kuphus | 7,998 | 1,000 | ... that the giant tube worm is not a worm at all? | |
Barbados v Grenada (1994) | 7,997 | 1,000 | ... that a football match was won by scoring an own goal on purpose? | |
Egyptian mythology Eye of Ra |
1,000 + 6,900 = 7,900 |
988 | ... that in Egyptian mythology, the Eye of Ra slaughtered masses of people, got drunk, ran away from her owner, and was brought back by her husband? | |
Uggie | 7,770 | 971 | ... that one critic thought that The Artist's dog actor Uggie outperformed J. Edgar's Leonardo DiCaprio? | |
Holothuria thomasi | 7,732 | 966 | ... that the tiger's tail uses its tentacles to push detritus, sand and gravel into its mouth? | |
Japanese aircraft carrier Shōhō | 7,700 | 962 | ... that the light aircraft carrier Shōhō, sunk on 7 May 1942 during the Battle of the Coral Sea, was the first Japanese aircraft carrier to be sunk during World War II? | |
American Star Bicycle | ![]() |
7,601 | 950 | ... that an American Star Bicycle was ridden down the United States Capitol steps in 1885 (pictured) to demonstrate its enhanced stability? |
Holothuria tubulosa | 7,382 | 900 | ... that the tubular sea cucumber (pictured) spawns at the time of the full moon? | |
Hallaton Helmet | 7,265 | 908 | ... that the Hallaton Helmet may have been owned by a Briton who fought alongside the Romans during their conquest of Britain in AD 43? | |
Preferred walking speed | 7,200 | 900 | ... that people's preferred walking speed is correlated with their country's per capita GDP and purchasing power parity? | |
Eagle River Timber Bridge Lake Shore Drive Bridge (Michigan) |
4,300 + 2,900 = 7,200 | 900 | ... that the Lake Shore Drive Bridge in Eagle River, Michigan, has been restricted to pedestrian use since the opening of the Eagle River Timber Bridge (pictured) in 1990? | |
Operation Sandwedge | 7,150 | 893 | ... that the Watergate scandal might have been avoided had G. Gordon Liddy followed Operation Sandwedge? | |
Rock Me Tonite | 7,000 | 875 | ... that the 400 people interviewed for an oral history of MTV's early years could not agree on what was the best video, but they all agreed Billy Squier's "Rock Me Tonite" was the worst? | |
Q.U.B.E. | 6,946 | 868 | ... that Q.U.B.E., an indie puzzle video game, was developed by Toxic Games without having a single programmer on its team? | |
1877 U. S. Patent Office fire | ![]() |
6,900 | 862 | ... that despite the devastation of the second U.S. Patent Office fire (pictured), in a supposedly fireproof building, not one patent was lost? |
Exercise Summer Pulse | 6,837 | 854 | ... that Exercise Summer Pulse was a worldwide surge deployment of seven carrier strike groups to test the United States Navy's new Fleet Response Plan? | |
Production babies | 6,815 | 851 | ... that production babies, children born to the crew during the making of an animated film, were first listed in the end credits of Toy Story (1995)? | |
Barbados v Grenada (1994) | 6,809 | 864 | ... that a football match was won by scoring an own goal on purpose?" | |
Hikari Minami Riho |
3,617+ 3,085= 6,702 |
837 | ... that Hikari and Riho became professional wrestlers in 2006 when they were 11 and 9 years old, respectively? | |
Chicken Hawks Al Piechota Pretzel Pezzullo |
2,800+ 1,800+ 2,100= 6,700 |
837 | ... that Chicken Hawks, a Pie, and a Pretzel have all played in Major League Baseball? | |
Emaciation | ![]() |
6,677 | 834 | ... that emaciation (pictured) is referred to as "shosha roga" in India, where more than 200 million people are affected by malnutrition? |
Marthe Cnockaert | 6,637 | 829 | ... that during World War I, Marthe Cnockaert was recruited as a spy by both Germany and Britain, and she arranged for her German recruiter to be killed? | |
Halim Perdanakusuma | 6,529 | 816 | ... that National Hero of Indonesia Halim Perdanakusuma flew 44 bombing raids against Nazi Germany? | |
Andrew Geller | 6,500 | 812 | ... that architect Andrew Geller designed quirky, eye-grabbing vacation homes on Long Island that he gave nicknames including the Box Kite, Milk Carton and Reclining Picasso? | |
Monday (The X-Files) | 6,500 | 812 | ... that "Monday" was ranked among UGO Networks' 100 Greatest Moments in Time Travel? | |
John Alan Coey | 6,490 | 811 | ... that because he believed the American government had been infiltrated by communists, one young US Marine discharged himself from the officer training program and joined the Rhodesian Security Forces instead? | |
Eighth Army Ranger Company | 6,257 | 782 | ... that the Eighth Army Ranger Company lost 80 percent of its strength and only had 10 men still standing after the Battle of Ch'ongch'on River in the Korean War? | |
Pattimura | ![]() |
6,236 | 779 | ... that Pattimura, who was stirred to rebellion in part by the advent of paper money, is featured on the 1,000 rupiah bill (pictured)? |
True North (Once Upon a Time) | ![]() |
6,235 | 779 | ... that Emma Caulfield (pictured) was cast in a Once Upon a Time episode because the producers "couldn't think of anyone better to trap two children in a house and try to eat them"? |
HMS Holland 5 | 6,137 | 767 | ... that the experimental Holland 5 was one of the first two submarines to be accepted into Royal Navy service, but was already considered obsolete? | |
Yaroslav Blanter | 6,100 | 763 | ... that according to the Russian edition of Esquire magazine, Russian physicist and TU Delft professor Yaroslav Blanter deleted thousands of pages from Wikipedia? | |
Minicraft | 6,000 | 750 | ... that Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson made the video game Minicraft in under 48 hours for the Ludum Dare competition? | |
Brunei Civil War | 5,949 | 743 | ... that the Brunei Civil War was triggered by a cockfight? | |
Pseudechis collettii | 5,914 | 739 | ... that the bite of the colourful Collett's snake can lead to rhabdomyolysis and kidney failure? | |
John Joseph Scanlan (soldier) | ![]() |
5,818 | 727 | ... that John Joseph Scanlan (pictured) was appointed the governor of Hobart Gaol while he was a prisoner? |
James H. Horne | ![]() |
5,800 | 725 | ... that James H. Horne (pictured), the first head coach of the men's basketball team at Indiana University, accidentally killed a man with a twelve-pound hammer? |
Kaddish (album) | 5,800 | 725 | ... that Brian Eno described Kaddish, an album that reflects on the Holocaust, as "the most frightening record I have ever heard"? | |
Tanjung Priok massacre | 5,800 | 725 | ... that a key event leading up to the 1984 Tanjung Priok massacre in Jakarta was a Christian entering a mosque without removing his shoes? | |
Amrit | ![]() |
5,729 | 716 | ... that the Phoenician ruins (temple pictured) of the ancient city of Amrit, near Tartus in Syria, are preserved in their entirety without extensive remodeling by later generations? |
Aeroflot accidents and incidents in the 1970s | 5,705 | 713 | ... that one of Aeroflot's worst accidents occurred in August 1979 , when two Tupolev Tu-134s collided over Dniprodzerzhynsk in the Ukrainian SSR, claiming 178 lives? | |
Joseph and Potiphar's Wife (etching) | 5,700 | 712 | ... that Rembrandt's Joseph and Potiphar's Wife is considered "unprecedented in its erotic candor"? | |
Polly Bemis House | 5,700 | 712 | ... that the home of a former enslaved Chinese teenager became a National Registered Historic Place known as Polly Bemis House in Idaho, US? | |
Croatian European Union membership referendum, 2012 | 5,677 | 709 | ... that the Croatian EU accession referendum is the first referendum held in Croatia (EU and Croatian flags pictured) since its independence? | |
Dian HP | 5,600 | 700 | ... that as a toddler, composer Dian HP refused to eat unless she was sitting next to the family piano? | |
Well-Manicured Man | 5,600 | 700 | ... that the Well-Manicured Man served as the "voice of reason" amongst The X-Files' antagonists? | |
Sim Bhullar | 5,598 | 699 | ... that Sim Bhullar, a 7-foot-5-inch (2.26 m) Indo-Canadian college basketball player at New Mexico State University, has been said to be "poised to become the world's first prominent men's basketball player of Indian descent"? | |
Affair of the Sausages | 5,544 | 693 | ... that the Reformation spread to Switzerland following a dispute about sausages? | |
Histoires ou contes du temps passé | ![]() |
5,422 | 677 | ... that Mother Goose Tales, or Histoires ou contes du temps passé, (title page pictured), published by Charles Perrault in 1697, was written for an audience of aristocratic adults? |
Roia Zamani | 5,400 | 675 | ... that a female taekwondo fighter, who wore a headscarf under her helmet, won the sole medal for Afghanistan at the 2002 Asian Games after the fall of the Taliban? | |
Stanisław Jaros | 5,397 | 674 | ... that Stanisław Jaros was executed in 1963 for trying to kill Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and Polish Communist leader Władysław Gomułka? | |
Ratonero Valenciano | ![]() |
5,300 | 662 | ... that the Ratonero Valenciano (pictured) was only recognized by the Spanish Kennel Club in 2004, despite having existed since the 16th century? |
Kill zone | 5,300 | 662 | ... that in a successful military ambush, every enemy soldier in the kill zone might be killed in less than one minute? | |
Banna'i | 5,300 | 662 | ... that the medieval Islamic brickwork technique of banna'i was used to cover whole buildings with names of Allah, Muhammad and Ali? | |
Millepora alcicornis | ![]() |
5,200 | 650 | ... that if the sea ginger coral (pictured) detects a sea fan growing nearby, it will send out "attack" branches to eventually smother it? |
John Acland (politician) Charles George Tripp |
![]() |
4,116 + 1,033 = 5,149 | 643 | ... that J.B.A. Acland (pictured) and his friend George Tripp were the first settlers in Canterbury to establish sheep farms in the high country? |
Abraham Lincoln's patent | 5,100 | 425 | ... that Abraham Lincoln was the only U.S. president to have a registered patent to an invention? |
February 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Found (Rossetti) | ![]() |
19,729 | 2,466 | ... that Rossetti's Found, a painting about prostitution, featured a white calf (detail pictured)? |
Howard Marks | 19,581 | 2,447 | ... that international cannabis smuggler Howard Marks (pictured) took on the alias of "Mr. Nice" after he bought a passport from convicted murderer Donald Nice? | |
Operation Alsos | ![]() |
19,169 | 2,396 | ... that during World War II, the multi-national Alsos Mission captured and dismantled a German experimental nuclear reactor (pictured)? |
HMS Telemachus (P321) | ![]() |
18,871 | 2,358 | ... that in June 1956, the British submarine HMS Telemachus (pictured) briefly went missing during a hydrographic survey off the coast of the Australian Antarctic Territory? |
A Free Ride | 17,947 | 2,188 | ... that A Free Ride is considered to be the earliest surviving American hardcore pornographic film? | |
Battle of Grunwald (painting) | 17,856 | 2,232 | ... that the masterpiece painting Battle of Grunwald by Jan Matejko was among the most wanted artifacts that Nazi Germany planned to destroy? | |
Daria Khaltourina | ![]() |
15,398 | 1,924 | ... that according to Russian sociologist Daria Khaltourina (pictured), Protestantism positively influenced the capitalist development of social systems through the promotion of literacy and Bible reading? |
Rowenna Davis | ![]() |
15,070 | 1,883 | ... that a hacker tried to hold journalist Rowenna Davis' (pictured) email account for ransom? |
Brookesia micra | ![]() |
14,293 | 1,786 | ... that Brookesia micra (pictured on a match head) is the smallest known chameleon? |
Am Abend | 14,226 | 1,778 | ... that Am Abend, a 1910 German film, was one of the earliest pornographic films? | |
Zuihō class aircraft carrier | 13,699 | 1,712 | ... that the Zuihō class aircraft carriers were originally built as submarine tenders which could be converted into light aircraft carriers or fleet oilers? | |
William Hiseland | ![]() |
13,413 | 1,676 | ... that William Hiseland (pictured), the last survivor of the Battle of Edgehill, also fought at Malplaquet sixty-seven years later? |
Zaian War | ![]() |
13,180 | 1,647 | ... that French general Hubert Lyautey (pictured) described his defensive tactics in the Zaian War as analogous to hollowing out a lobster? |
Gjest Baardsen Ole Høiland Lars Hætta |
![]() |
7,252+ 2,845+ 2,867= 12,964 |
1,620 | ... that among long-term prisoners held at Akershus Fortress in the 19th century were Norwegian career criminals Gjest Baardsen (pictured) and Ole Høiland, and Sami rebel Lars Hætta? |
Bolo (1982 video game) | 12,405 | 1,550 | ... that the 1982 Apple II game Bolo was praised in 2010 for its "surprisingly nice AI enemies"? | |
Nick Swardson | ![]() |
11,933 | 1,492 | ... that comedian Nick Swardson (pictured) first performed stand-up comedy at the age of 18 "as a goof" and was selected to perform at the US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado just 2 years later? |
Ibuki class cruiser | ![]() |
11,717 | 1,464 | ... that the second ship of the Japanese Ibuki class of heavy cruisers (pictured) was scrapped less than a month after she was laid down in order to clear her slipway for an aircraft carrier? |
Kaproni Bulgarski KB-11 Fazan | 11,627 | 1,453 | ... that the prototype of the Kaproni Bulgarski KB-11 Fazan, a Bulgarian Army liaison aircraft of World War II, was nicknamed "Quasimodo"? | |
C&O desk | 10,634 | 1,329 | ... that in the Oval office, George H. W. Bush used the C&O desk instead of the Resolute desk during his presidential term? | |
Photo Bits | 10,414 | 1,301 | ... that Photo Bits, a soft porn magazine published from 1898 to 1914, was the first pin-up magazine in the United Kingdom? | |
Wu Ying | 10,186 | 1,273 | ... that Wu Ying, named China's sixth richest woman at the age of 25, has been sentenced to death for financial fraud? | |
Hostess CupCake | ![]() |
10,009 | 1,251 | ... that Hostess Brands has claimed that the Hostess CupCake (pictured) was "the first snack cake ever introduced to the market," but that claim has been disputed by rival Tastykake? |
Eucalyptus botryoides | 9,649 | 1,206 | ... that the bangalay (pictured) can live for 600 years and its base can reach six metres (20 ft) in diameter? | |
Neutral Buoyancy Simulator | ![]() |
9,426 | 1,178 | ... that funding for the Neutral Buoyancy Simulator (pictured) prompted a Government Accountability Office reprimand in the United States? |
Samut Prakan radiation accident | 9,394 | 1,174 | ... that the Samut Prakan radiation accident resulted from old teletherapy heads left lying around in a car park? | |
Jineth Bedoya Lima | 9,130 | 1,141 | ... that Jineth Bedoya Lima was abducted, tortured, and raped following her reporting on Colombian paramilitary groups? | |
Murder of Jacqueline Thomas | 9,042 | 1,130 | ... that following a cold case review, police arrested a suspect for the 1961 murder of Jacqueline Thomas 46 years after the crime was committed? | |
Swoon of the Virgin | ![]() |
9,023 | 1,127 | ... that art showing a fainting Virgin Mary (example illustrated) became less common in the 16th century, after attacks by theologians? |
Honda Super Cub | ![]() |
8,914 | 1,114 | ... that the "You meet the nicest people on a Honda" ad campaign established Honda's brand image in the US and helped the Super Cub (pictured) become the top-selling motor vehicle in history? |
MV Delta Mariner | ![]() |
8,907 | 1,113 | ... that the cargo ship MV Delta Mariner (pictured), which struck a bridge over the Tennessee River in January 2012, transports rocket parts from the manufacturer in Alabama to Cape Canaveral? |
SS Port Nicholson (1918) | 8,823 | 1,102 | ... that the wreck of the SS Port Nicholson, a British merchant ship sunk in 1942 by U-87, (pictured) is reported to contain £2 billion worth of precious metals? | |
Alison Quinn | ![]() |
8,777 | 1,097 | ... that Australian former Paralympian Alison Quinn (pictured) was brought to gymnastics as a child in the hope that it would improve her coordination and symmetry? |
Smilax bona-nox | 8,612 | 1,076 | ... that the Muscogee people rubbed moistened tramp's trouble on their faces to enhance their youthfulness? | |
Cleaning symbiosis | ![]() |
8,569 | 1,071 | ... that in 420 BC, Herodotus claimed Nile crocodiles had a cleaning symbiosis with a bird (pictured)? |
Johnny Basham | ![]() |
8,541 | 1,067 | ... that European welterweight champion Johnny Basham (pictured) faced a manslaughter charge after killing an opponent in a boxing match? |
Battle of Himara | 8,541 | 1,067 | ... that Benito Mussolini admitted that one of the causes of the Italian defeat at the Battle of Himara was the high morale of the Greek troops? | |
R-29RMU2 Layner | 8,415 | 1,051 | ... that the Russian R-29RMU2 Layner submarine-launched ballistic missile is claimed to be the best missile of its type in the world? | |
Black Act | 8,351 | 1,043 | ... that the Black Act introduced the death penalty for over 50 criminal offences, including being found in a forest while disguised? | |
Megaphragma mymaripenne | 8,254 | 1,032 | ... that adult Megaphragma mymaripenne wasps are only 200 micrometres long, similar in size to single-celled organisms? | |
Monna Rosa Mnemosyne (Rossetti) Veronica Veronese |
![]() |
2,533+ 2,242+ 3,435= 8,210 |
1,026 | ... that six Rossetti paintings, including Monna Rosa, Mnemosyne, and Veronica Veronese (detail pictured), were all displayed together in the drawing room of Frederick Leyland, who called them "stunners"? |
Gemma Beadsworth | ![]() |
8,143 | 1,017 | ... that Gemma Beadsworth (pictured) and her brother Jamie both represented Australia in water polo at the 2008 Summer Olympics? |
Most wanted list | 8,057 | 1,007 | ... that there is no official list of the world's most wanted criminal fugitives? | |
Sinan Reis | ![]() |
7,867 | 983 | ... that Sinan Reis, a Sephardi Jewish pirate and Barbary corsair whose family was expelled from Spain in 1492, helped Ottoman admiral Hayreddin Barbarossa defeat the Spanish at the 1538 Battle of Preveza (pictured)? |
Mildred Lewis Rutherford | 7,774 | 971 | ... that Mildred Lewis Rutherford thought that the only problem with slavery was the burden it placed on white slaveholders? | |
Albert Kirchner | 7,610 | 951 | ... that Albert Kirchner, who made many pornographic films, was the first filmmaker to direct a film about the life of Christ? | |
Elan SCX | 7,247 | 905 | ... that the first parabolic ski, the Elan SCX, was initially dismissed as a fad but today is considered a major design breakthrough? | |
Zombie strip | 7,146 | 893 | ... that Blondie, B.C., and Hägar the Horrible are all zombies? | |
Crassadoma | ![]() |
7,135 | 891 | ... that the rock scallop (pictured) has an orange mantle and blue eyes? |
Copenhagen (horse) | ![]() |
6,950 | 868 | ... that the Duke of Wellington was almost kicked in the head by his war horse Copenhagen (pictured) after riding the horse for 17 straight hours during the Battle of Waterloo? |
Destruction of Stocking Frames, etc. Act 1812 Protection of Stocking Frames, etc. Act 1788 |
5,672+ 1,270= 6,942 |
867 | ... that in 1812, the British government temporarily made the crime of machine-breaking punishable by death despite Parliament having rejected the same suggestion in 1788? | |
Caesar (dog) | 6,825 | 853 | ... that Caesar led the funeral procession of King Edward VII, ahead of nine kings and a number of other heads of state? | |
Sillero | ![]() |
6,770 | 846 | ... that silleros (pictured) carried European travelers across the Quindío pass in the Colombian Andes in wickerwork chairs mounted on their backs? |
Abraham Lincoln's Lyceum address | ![]() |
6,740 | 842 | ... that during his 1838 Lyceum address, Abraham Lincoln (pictured) warned of a tyrant overtaking the United States from within? |
Reiterdenkmal, Windhoek | ![]() |
6,691 | 836 | ... that it is claimed that the Reiterdenkmal (pictured), an equestrian monument in the centre of Windhoek, Namibia, is the only monument in the world where an ordinary soldier is placed on horseback? |
Daisy Burrell | ![]() |
6,687 | 835 | ... that Daisy Burrell (pictured) was talent-spotted for The Valley of Fear while playing Cinderella? |
Port Washington Light | ![]() |
6,629 | 828 | ... that the Port Washington Light (pictured) was restored with the assistance of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg? |
A Scandal in Belgravia | 7,913-1,400 = 6,513 | 814 | ... that although "A Scandal in Belgravia", the first episode of the second series of Sherlock, was well-received by reviewers, the BBC got complaints for showing its nude scene too early in the evening? | |
Laila Sari | 6,402 | 800 | ... that 76-year-old Muslim rocker Laila Sari performs in a headscarf? | |
Gustav III of Sweden's coffee experiment | 6,398 | 799 | ... that King Gustav III of Sweden, in an experiment, commuted the death sentences of a pair of twins on the condition that one drank 3 pots of coffee, and the other tea, every day for the rest of their lives? | |
USNS Montford Point | 6,299 | 787 | ... that the USNS Montford Point, a Mobile Landing Platform, will be a pier at sea for the United States Navy once it enters service in 2015? | |
Sclerodactyla briareus | 6,297 | 787 | ... that the hairy sea cucumber can eject its internal organs to confuse and deter predators? | |
Ekso Bionics | 6,254 | 781 | ... that Ekso Bionics develop intelligent exoskeletons that can be strapped on as wearable robots, and can enhance the strength, mobility, and endurance of soldiers and paraplegics? | |
1989 Helena train wreck | 6,208 | 776 | ... that the Helena train wreck of 1989 occurred during a record cold snap that ranked No. 4 on the NOAA's list of Montana's Top Weather/Water/Climate events of the 20th century? | |
Pollicipes polymerus | ![]() |
6,055 | 756 | ... that the gooseneck barnacle Pollicipes polymerus (several pictured) will become sterile if there are no others within 20 cm (8 in)? |
Great Mosque of Central Java | 6,013 | 751 | ... that the Great Mosque of Central Java (pictured) has six hydraulic umbrellas to represent the six tenets of iman? | |
Adolf Carl Noé | ![]() |
5,985 | 748 | ... that Adolf Carl Noé challenged disbelief in the possibility of North American coal balls (example pictured) by presenting a wheelbarrow full of them? |
Lagunas de Montebello National Park | ![]() |
5,964 | 745 | ... that in Mexico's Lagunas de Montebello National Park (pictured) there are ancient Maya ruins next to 59 lakes whose colors range from emerald and turquoise to purple and reddish black? |
Road with Cypress and Star | ![]() |
5,726 | 715 | ... that Vincent van Gogh's Road with Cypress and Star (pictured) is said to reflect his increasing awareness of his upcoming death? |
Natalya Timakova | 5,658 | 707 | ... that Russian Presidential press attaché Natalya Timakova, rated the third most powerful woman in Russian politics in 2011, allowed Wikipedia to use materials from the Presidential website Kremlin.ru? | |
Akaflieg Darmstadt D-28 Windspiel | 5,636 | 704 | ... that the Darmstadt Windspiel, a German sailplane which set a 1934 world distance record, was silk covered and weighed less than its pilots? | |
Detachment of wall paintings | 5,578 | 696 | ... that Caligula, "enflamed with lust", tried to detach wall paintings of Atalanta and Helen of Troy? | |
Malahat (schooner) | 5,575 | 696 | ... that the Malahat, a 246-foot (75 m) sailing ship, delivered more illegal liquor during Prohibition than any other rum-runner? | |
Probošt's mechanical Christmas crib | 4,915 + 678 - 24 = 5,569 | 696 | ... that 8 million visitors to Expo 67 in Montreal saw Probošt's mechanical Christmas crib, a unique Czech nativity scene? | |
Mariánská Týnice | ![]() |
5,547 | 693 | ... that the large Baroque pilgrimage church complex in Mariánská Týnice (pictured) served its religious purpose for only eight years? |
Culcita novaeguineae | 4,932 + 614 = 5,546 | 693 | ... that juvenile cushion stars look so different from their seniors that they were thought to belong to a species in a different biological family? | |
Dustforce | 5,503 | 687 | ... that the video game Dustforce won the $100,000 Independent Game Developers prize at the 2010 GDC Online conference? | |
Out Where the Buses Don't Run | 5,496 | 687 | ... that the ending to Miami Vice's "Out Where the Buses Don't Run" "set a new standard for TV direction"? | |
Jane Levy | 5,454 | 682 | ... that Suburgatory star Jane Levy was named on Forbes 2011 list of 30 under 30 who are "reinventing the world"? | |
Aeroflot accidents and incidents in the 1980s | 5,400 | 675 | ... that the deadliest accident Aeroflot experienced in the 1980s occurred in July 1985 , when a Tupolev Tu-154B-2 stalled en route and crashed near Uchkuduk, Uzbek SSR, killing all 200 people aboard? | |
Kareeboomvloer massacre | 5,366 | 670 | ... that during trial proceedings of the Kareeboomvloer massacre, a prison official was requested to explain the meaning of life? | |
Twin pyramid complex | ![]() |
5,334 | 666 | ... that a new twin pyramid complex (east pyramid pictured) was built at the Maya city of Tikal every twenty years to celebrate the end of a Maya calendrical cycle? |
Blanche Lazzell | ![]() |
5,323 | 665 | ... that the woodcuts of modernist printmaker Blanche Lazzell (pictured) were influenced by ukiyo-e? |
Whisker (horse) | ![]() |
5,277 | 659 | ... that the 1815 Derby winner Whisker (pictured) was said to be "as near perfection as a horse could be"? |
Burning of Francis McIntosh | 5,271 | 658 | ... that the only state legislator in Missouri or Illinois to condemn the burning of Francis McIntosh in 1836 was Abraham Lincoln? | |
Sima de las Cotorras | 5,269 | 658 | ... that 70 metres (230 ft) down Sima de las Cotorras, a giant sinkhole inhabited by thousands of parakeets, there are rock paintings on the sheer cliff wall painted 5–10 thousand years ago? | |
Carnot wall | 5,253 | 656 | ... that Littlehampton Fort was the first in Britain to be built with a Carnot wall? | |
Robert Kirk (folklorist) | 5,069 | 633 | ... that according to legend, Robert Kirk was taken to fairyland for revealing the secrets of the Good People? | |
Nick Castellanos | ![]() |
5,068 | 633 | ... that Nick Castellanos (pictured) received a $3.45 million signing bonus from the Detroit Tigers, the highest ever for a player not drafted in the first round in the Major League Baseball Draft? |
March 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Disappearance of Rebecca Coriam | 30,657 | 3,832 | ... that the disappearance of Rebecca Coriam from the Disney Wonder (pictured) one year ago today was the first such incident in the history of Disney Cruise Line? | |
David B. Bleak | ![]() |
29,847 | 3,730 | ... that combat medic David B. Bleak (pictured) was awarded the Medal of Honor in the Korean War after killing five Chinese soldiers, four using only his hands? |
Wreck of the RMS Titanic | ![]() |
28,526 | 3,565 | ... that proposals to raise the wreck of the RMS Titanic (pictured) have included filling it with ping-pong balls, injecting it with 180,000 tons of Vaseline or turning it into an iceberg? |
We Can Do It! | ![]() |
20,540 | 2,568 | ... that the wartime poster "We Can Do It!" (pictured) was parodied using Marge Simpson? |
National Masturbation Day | 18,466 | 2,308 | ... that National Masturbation Day, an annual event celebrated in the US in May, was first observed in 1995? | |
Lost Nigger Gold Mine | 18,452 | 2,306 | ... that the legendary Lost Nigger Gold Mine, first discovered in 1887, was still being searched for in 1930? | |
Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr. | 17,992 | 2,249 | ... that in spite of being shot eight times, Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr. ordered his men to tie him to a tree so he could keep fighting, action for which he received the Medal of Honor? | |
Trumpington bed burial Bed burial |
12,792+ 4,690= 17,482 |
2,185 | ... that a 7th-century grave in Cambridge discovered in 2011 held the remains of an Anglo-Saxon teenage girl who was lying on a bed, with a gold and garnet cross on her breast? | |
Montecristo | 16,035 | 2,004 | ... that the Italian island of Montecristo, although 10.39 km2 (4.01 sq mi) in area, is almost deserted, having only two stable inhabitants? | |
Engaña Tunnel | ![]() |
14,986 | 1,873 | ... that the Engaña Tunnel (pictured) was once the longest railway tunnel in Spain, but was never used? |
The Banner Saga | ![]() |
14,326 | 1,790 | ... that the art style (pictured) of The Banner Saga, a forthcoming tactical role-playing video game about Vikings, is inspired by a 1959 Disney film? |
Kugelbake | ![]() |
13,208 | 1,651 | ... that Kugelbake is the name of a series of tall wooden structures (current structure pictured) built at the mouth of the River Elbe for more than 300 years to aid mariners? |
Petre P. Carp | ![]() |
12,965 | 1,620 | ... that, in summer 1917, a plan existed to make septuagenarian Petre P. Carp (cartoon pictured) the dictator of German-occupied Romania? |
Lloyd L. Gaines | 12,792 | 1,599 | ... that Thurgood Marshall said of Lloyd L. Gaines: "I have never lost the pain of having so many people spend so much time and money on him, just to have him disappear" 73 years ago today? | |
Paintings by Adolf Hitler | 12,532 | 1,566 | ... that most of the paintings by Adolf Hitler, which he painted in his youth and sold to a glazier's store during his Vienna years, were bought by Jewish customers? | |
Le Sommeil | ![]() |
11,888 | 1,486 | ... that Gustave Courbet's 1866 painting Le Sommeil (pictured), depicting a lesbian relationship, was inspired by Charles Baudelaire's poem "Delphine et Hippolyte"? |
Runic insignia of the Schutzstaffel | 11,807 | 1,475 | ... that the runic insignia of the Schutzstaffel, like the sig-runes worn on SS uniforms, stood for Nazi values but were actually inspired by the neopagan occultism of mystic Guido von List? | |
Princess Irene of the Netherlands | 11,499 | 1916 | ... that the conversion to Catholicism of Princess Irene of the Netherlands (pictured with two of her sisters) and her marriage to Prince Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma caused a constitutional crisis for her country? | |
Nudes-A-Poppin' | 11,390 | 1,423 | ... that Nudes-A-Poppin' is billed as "The World's Largest Outdoor Nude Beauty Pageant"? | |
Monmouth cap | ![]() |
11,380 | 1,422 | ... that according to Shakespeare, Henry V, who was born in Monmouth, approved of Welshmen wearing leeks in their Monmouth caps (pictured)? |
Augustus Brine | ![]() |
11,245 | 1,405 | ... that Augustus Brine's portrait (pictured) was painted by John Singleton Copley when Brine was a thirteen-year-old midshipman? |
Imme R100 | ![]() |
10,759 | 1,344 | ... that the single-sided swingarm of the 1949 Imme R100 (pictured) was also the motorcycle's exhaust pipe? |
Pencil test (South Africa) | 9,010+1,676=10,686 | 1,336 | ... that Sandra Laing was legally declared "coloured" largely on the basis of a pencil test, despite being born of two "white" parents? | |
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal | ![]() |
10,173 | 1,271 | ... that the restaurant Dinner by Heston Blumenthal serves fruit made of meat (pictured)? |
A (yacht) | 10,000 | 1,250 | ... that the Philippe Starck-designed A has been described as both "the most extraordinary yacht launched in recent memory" and "one of the ghastliest megayachts ever created"? | |
Teuthowenia megalops | ![]() |
9,963 | 1,245 | ... that the Atlantic cranch squid (pictured) has been nicknamed "Eddie McBlobbles" for its defensive behavior of inflating itself into a ball with its head and tail inside out? |
HMS Amethyst (1873) | ![]() |
9,935 | 1,241 | ... that HMS Amethyst (pictured) was the only British wooden sailing ship to fight an armoured opponent after she engaged Peruvian Huáscar? |
Feeder of lice | 9,923 | 1,240 | ... that Polish mathematician Stefan Banach and poet Zbigniew Herbert survived the Holocaust working as feeders of lice? | |
Holly Lincoln-Smith | ![]() |
9,882 | 1,235 | ... that as a 12-year-old, Australian water polo player Holly Lincoln-Smith (pictured) saved the life of another swimmer in the middle of a race, then went on to finish 27th out of 40? |
Scroogle | 9,611 | 1,201 | ... that in 2007 it was reported that Scroogle was becoming the preferred search engine of Internet civil libertarians? | |
Mundo Perdido, Tikal | ![]() |
9,405 | 1,175 | ... that the Lost World (pictured) at the ancient Maya city of Tikal was the first architectural complex to be built at the city? |
Mexican ironwood carvings | 9,175 | 1,146 | ... that Mexican ironwood carvings (example pictured) didn't become popular in other countries until University of Arizona students began buying them in the late 1960s? | |
December 1992 nor'easter | ![]() |
9,164 | 1,145 | ... that a nor'easter in December 1992 (satellite image pictured) washed over 20 whales onshore along Cape Cod, killing seven of them? |
Cash mob | 9,022 | 1,127 | ... that, since 2011, cash mobs have supported businesses in more than 32 U.S. states and in Canada? | |
Amish doll | ![]() |
8,595 | 1,074 | ... that Amish dolls (pictured) are left faceless, possibly to emphasize that "all are alike in the eyes of God"? |
Go Topless Day | 8,461 | 1,057 | ... that women are encouraged to go topless in public and men are told to cover their chest by wearing bras or bikinis on Go Topless Day, an event to promote the right to go bare-chested for women? | |
Untitled Tom Cruise project | 8,370 | 1,046 | ... that Universal Pictures bought filming rights for the untitled Tom Cruise project from Disney after the latter refused to produce a PG-13 rated film? | |
Orcadian Basin | ![]() |
8,271 | 1,033 | ... that the Devonian Orcadian Basin once contained a lake estimated to be hundreds of kilometres across, forming distinctive sediments (pictured) in which a diverse fauna of fossil fish has been found? |
Humboldt Box | ![]() |
8,193 | 1,024 | ... that the Humboldt Box (pictured) is a new, futuristic five-story museum in Berlin that is slated to be dismantled in a few years? |
Lifeboats of the RMS Titanic | 8,190 | 1,023 | ... that the occupants of the lifeboats of the RMS Titanic included a musical toy pig, two mysterious "orphans" and a Pekingese dog called Sun Yat Sen? | |
Teigan Van Roosmalen | ![]() |
8,181 | 1,022 | ... that Australian Paralympic swimmer Teigan Van Roosmalen (pictured) is legally blind and deaf? |
Battle of Burton Bridge (1322) | ![]() |
8,073 | 1,009 | ... that after his death, caused by the Battle of Burton Bridge (site pictured) on 10 March 1322, Roger d'Amory's corpse was "executed" by King Edward II? |
Illinois Central Railroad No. 790 | ![]() |
8,004 | 1,334 | ... that retired steam locomotive Illinois Central Railroad No. 790 (pictured) was frequently put back into service during floods because any amount of water made the diesel-electric locomotives short out? |
Lucilia bufonivora Common toad |
![]() |
6,336+ 1,660= 7,996 |
999 | ... that larvae of the toadfly make their way through the nostrils of the common toad (affected toad pictured) and eat its flesh? |
Don't Let Me Wait Too Long | 7,785 | 973 | ... that "Don't Let Me Wait Too Long" was ex-Beatle George Harrison's "single-that-never-was"? | |
HMS Bellerophon (1786) | 7,750 | 968 | ... that in 1815 Napoleon surrendered to Captain Frederick Lewis Maitland of HMS Bellerophon, the ship that had "dogged his steps for more than twenty years", ending the Napoleonic Wars? | |
Water Willow (Rossetti) | ![]() |
7,638 | 954 | ... that Rossetti was "really mortally sorry" to have sold Water Willow (pictured), an 1871 portrait of Jane Morris with Kelmscott Manor in the background? |
Ian Molyneux | 7,634 | 954 | ... that Ian Molyneux, who was awarded a posthumous George Medal for trying to disarm a murderous sailor on a nuclear submarine, had previously started and run an under-12 rugby league team? | |
Rebecca Rippon Kate Gynther Melissa Rippon |
![]() |
2,414+ 2,052+ 3,164= 7,630 |
953 | ... that Australian Stingers Rebecca Rippon, Kate Gynther and Melissa Rippon (pictured) had hopes of being the first set of Australian siblings to all compete in three consecutive Olympic Games? |
Ictis | ![]() |
7,619 | 952 | ... that the island of Ictis, reported by Diodorus as a centre of the ancient tin trade, has uncertainly been identified with St Michael's Mount (pictured) in Cornwall? |
Branch House | 7,576 | 947 | ... that when architect John Russell Pope designed Branch House (pictured) in 1916, the 28,000 sq ft (2,600 m2) private residence included designated storage rooms for carpets, china, paintings – and suits of armor? | |
October Baby | 7,400 | ... that the 2011 film October Baby was based on the experiences of abortion survivor Gianna Jessen? | ||
Marjorie Gestring | 7,385 | 923 | ... that at the age of 13 years and 268 days, Marjorie Gestring was the youngest competitor to win an Olympic gold medal? | |
Aqsunqur Mosque | ![]() |
7,357 | 919 | ... that Aqsunqur Mosque (pictured) gained the name "Blue Mosque" following its decoration with blue tiles over 300 years after the mosque's construction in 1347? |
List of Sturgeon class submarines | 7,309 | 913 | ... that, until the Los Angeles class, the Sturgeon class was the most-produced class of nuclear-powered warships? | |
Liparis fabricii | ![]() |
7,176 | 897 | ... that the gelatinous seasnail (pictured) is actually a fish? |
Great Dismal Swamp maroons | ![]() |
7,127 | 891 | ... that thousands of former slaves, the Great Dismal Swamp maroons (pictured), settled in the marshlands of Virginia and North Carolina from the early 1700s to 1865? |
Prince Antasari | ![]() |
7,103 | 887 | ... that Prince Antasari (pictured), who led a war against Dutch colonists for over three years, was ultimately defeated by smallpox? |
Gilles (stock character) | ![]() |
6,948 | 868 | ... that the Gilles who was long identified as the subject of Watteau's poignant portrait (pictured) was a lewd and credulous clown who starred in The Shit Merchant? |
Throne of Maximian | 6,865 | 858 | ... that the Throne of Maximian has scenes from the Book of Genesis carved into it? | |
Young v. Facebook, Inc. | 6,801 | 850 | ... that in Young v. Facebook, Inc., Judge Jeremy Fogel found that Facebook was not a physical place for the purpose of the Americans with Disabilities Act, despite its having "posts" and "walls"? | |
Bombing of the Bezuidenhout | 6,670 | 833 | ... that on 3 March 1945 the Royal Air Force accidentally bombed a residential neighbourhood in The Hague, Netherlands, killing 511 people? | |
Ecnomiohyla rabborum | ![]() |
6,596 | 824 | ... that the tadpoles of the critically endangered Rabbs' fringe-limbed treefrog (pictured) literally eat the skin off their fathers' backs? |
Cybele class mine destructor vessel | 6,472 | 809 | ... that the Cybele-class mine destructor vessels were designed to sweep mines by being towed through minefields? | |
Nozomi Ōhashi | ![]() |
6,392 | 799 | ... that child actress Nozomi Ōhashi (pictured), who sang the theme song for the 2008 film Ponyo, started acting when she was just three years old? |
R Force | 6,364 | 795 | ... that the 'R' in the World War II British deception unit R Force was meant to make the Germans believe it was a reconnaissance unit? | |
Rudolf Eickemeyer, Jr. | ![]() |
5,799 + 530 = 6,329 | 791 | ... that among the best-known works by photographer Rudolf Eickemeyer are portraits of Evelyn Nesbit (example pictured)? |
Take This Lollipop | 6,186 | 773 | ... that the interactive horror film Take This Lollipop was created to warn about placing too much personal information on the internet? | |
Morgraig Castle | ![]() |
6,170 | 771 | ... that there is no evidence that the 13th-century Morgraig Castle (pictured) in Wales was ever completed or occupied? |
Amphibious Battle of Gela | 6,159 | 769 | ... that proximity fuzed anti-aircraft ammunition was used by ships in the European Theatre of World War II for the first time during the amphibious Battle of Gela in July 1943? | |
Isshin-ji | 6,115 | 764 | ... that the 2007 statue of Amida at Isshin-ji is formed from the remains of 163,254 people? | |
Giulietta Guicciardi | ![]() |
6,052 | 756 | ... that Ludwig van Beethoven dedicated his second piano sonata quasi una fantasia, widely known as the Moonlight Sonata, to his pupil, Countess Giulietta Guicciardi (possible portrait pictured)? |
Stratiotosuchus | ![]() |
5,866 | 733 | ... that the hypercarnivorous crocodyliform Stratiotosuchus (pictured) from the Late Cretaceous of Brazil occupied the niche of top predator in the absence of theropod dinosaurs? |
John Marley (geologist) | 5,839 | 729 | ... that according to legend, geologist John Marley discovered the Cleveland Ironstone by tripping on a rabbit hole? | |
Janja Kantakouzenos | 5,800 | 725 | ... that Janja Kantakouzenos was executed together with his two brothers, four sons, and twelve grandchildren? | |
Great Wheal Fortune | 5,769 | 721 | ... that a lone miner is said to have extracted two sacks of wolframite each day from the waste tips of the disused Great Wheal Fortune mine in Cornwall? | |
Edward Hawker | 5,731 | 716 | ... that in 1786, Prince William Henry, a naval officer and future king, entered Edward Hawker onto his ship's books when Hawker was just four years old? | |
Esther Hill | ![]() |
5,635 | 704 | ... that in 1925, Esther Hill (pictured) became the first woman to be registered as an architect in Canada? |
Friedrich Schiller's skull | ![]() |
5,561 | 695 | ... that the skull thought for almost 200 years to belong to the revered poet Friedrich Schiller (pictured) was shown to be someone else's in 2008? |
Elderberry Wine (Elton John song) | 5,551 | 693 | ... that a couplet from Elton John's song "Elderberry Wine" has been called the worst of lyricist Bernie Taupin's career? | |
History of the Jews in Mauritius | 5,492 | 686 | ... that about 40 Jews live in Mauritius as of 2006? | |
Living in the Material World (song) | 5,487 | 685 | ... that George Harrison's 1973 solo song "Living in the Material World" includes all his former Beatles bandmates Paul McCartney, John Lennon and Ringo Starr? | |
Francis Verney | 5,477 | 684 | ... that English adventurer Sir Francis Verney spent two years in the Sicilian slave galleys before being rescued by an English Jesuit priest? | |
Malcolm X (1972 film) | 5,422 | 677 | ... that Malcolm X was nominated for an Academy Award in 1973? | |
Corema conradii | 5,420 | 677 | ... that patches of broom crowberry in New Jersey began to sprout seedlings again after an F-16 set them on fire? | |
Kwakiutl (statue) | 5,416 | 677 | ... that the statue Kwakiutl, currently on display in a public park greenhouse in Brampton, Ontario, was originally set to be sited at local municipal offices before his exposed genitals caused controversy? |
April 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Anthony Davis (basketball) | 76,984 (94,410- (19,472+ 15,379)/2) |
9,623 | ... that 2012 National Player of the Year Anthony Davis (pictured) was unknown locally and nationally through his junior year of high school basketball? | |
Super Hornio Brothers | 37,093 | 4,636 | ... that Nintendo owns the rights to a pornographic film? | |
Prostitution among animals | ![]() |
24,651 | 3,081 | ... that various studies show prostitution exists among animals such as Adélie Penguins (pictured), chimpanzees, and crab-eating macaques? |
Ralph Dewey | 21,867 | 2,733 | ... that Ralph Dewey (pictured) blows up animals for Jesus? | |
Ryou-Un Maru | ![]() |
21,694 | 2,799 | ... that the Japanese squid fishing vessel Ryou-Un Maru (pictured) was sunk by gunfire from a United States Coast Guard cutter? |
Salty and Roselle | 20,611 | ... that two guide dogs, Salty and Roselle, were awarded the Dickin Medal for gallantry after leading their blind owners out of the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks? | ||
World Naked Gardening Day | 17,935 | 1,195 | ... that World Naked Gardening Day, celebrated in May to promote nude gardening, was first observed in 2005? | |
Calu Rivero | 15,815 + 1,737 = 17,552 | ... that Argentine celebrity Calu Rivero (pictured) was the first actress from Catamarca Province to appear in national television, thus being named Illustrious Citizen of Recreo, her hometown? | ||
Samson Isberg Murder of Knut Grøte |
9,620+ 6,196= 15,816 |
1,977 | ... that Samson Isberg's last beheadings were attended by about 5,000 spectators? | |
Isochrone map | ![]() |
13,589 | 1,698 | ... that isochrone maps (pictured) have been used since 1972 or earlier, and that since 2009 online versions have been used by house hunters wishing to evaluate residential areas? |
Dynasphere | 13,192 | 879 | ... that the Dynasphere monowheel was criticized for its poor braking and steering capabilities, as well as its gerbiling tendencies? | |
Anal people | 12,948 | 1,618 | ... that if you want to talk to the anal it helps to speak their language? | |
Osgood Castle | 12,470 | ... that Osgood Castle (pictured), in Redstone, Colorado, was the first real property seized by the Internal Revenue Service to be auctioned online? | ||
Bubble Houses (Hobe Sound, Florida) | 12,133 | 1,277 | ... that according to Life, Florida's Bubble Houses (one pictured) are hurricane-proof, despite being built using an inflatable balloon? | |
John Rainwater | 12,003 | 1,500 | ... that a University of Washington fake mathematician created as a student prank became the author of several well-received papers in research journals? | |
The Yama Yama Man | 11,767 | 1,470 | ... that The Yama Yama Man may be hiding behind a chair, "ready to spring out at you unaware"? | |
Araki Fabulous Willy | 11,756 | 1,469 | ... that in 2007, the owners of a hairy Fabulous Willy were criticised for being homosexual? | |
The Virgin with the Hot Pants | 11,719 | ... that the 1920s film The Virgin with the Hot Pants was the first known pornographic film to use animation? | ||
Croscat | ![]() |
11,483 | 1,435 | ... that the Croscat (pictured), the youngest volcano in the Iberian Peninsula, was quarried until 1991 and its internal structure is exposed as a result? |
United States v. Approximately 64,695 Pounds of Shark Fins | 11,359 | 1,419 | ... that the United States once fought 32 tons of shark fins, and the fins won? | |
Luba Crater Scientific Reserve | ![]() |
11,351 | 1,418 | ... that the Luba Crater Scientific Reserve (pictured) may have the largest population of drills in the world? |
Ratirahasya | 11,203 | 1,400 | ... that Ratirahasya, a medieval Indian sex manual, classifies sexual intercourse into nine different types on the basis of the size of genitals? | |
Peter pepper | 11,180 | 1,397 | ... that red hot penises can be pickled, but it is recommended one not eat them? | |
Trypauchen vagina | 10,506 | 1,313 | ... that T. vagina have eyes hidden behind their skin? | |
Soft & Cuddly | 10,490 | 699 | ... that the protagonist of the game Soft & Cuddly must reassemble his mother's dismembered body? | |
Rice stink bug | ![]() |
10,175 | 1,272 | ... that the rice stink bug (pictured), a major pest of rice kernels, can possibly be ignored when found on standing corn? |
MSC Fabiola | 9,897 | 1,237 | ... that the MSC Fabiola is the largest container ship to dock in North America? | |
TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time | 9,606 | 1,200 | ... that both the 1997 and 2009 versions of TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time included episodes that were only aired two months prior? | |
Eston railway station | ![]() |
9,494 | 1,186 | ... that the opening of Eston railway station (pictured in 1902) enabled passengers to travel from Middlesbrough, England, to California in only 15 minutes? |
? (film) | 9,102 | 1,137 | ... ? | |
Kjærlighetskarusellen | ![]() |
9,039 | 1,129 | ... that in 2009, the urinal known as "The Carousel of Love" (pictured), a well known place for gay cruising, was declared a Norwegian Cultural Heritage Site? |
Atretochoana | 8,919 | 743 | ... that Atretochoana eiselti, the largest tetrapod to lack lungs, was until late 2011 known only from two museum specimens whose origin was unknown? | |
Janet Fish | 8,837 | 1,104 | ... that a fish in a fishbowl is in a fish? | |
Bob Simpson (journalist) | 8,514 | 1,064 | ... that Mr Grumpy was once bombed by the Americans? | |
Abbott's Booby | 8,427 | 1,053 | ... that if an Abbott's Booby (juvenile pictured) falls to the ground, it will starve unless it can catch the wind and take off again? | |
Short No.1 biplane | 8,395 | 1,049 | ... that the propellers of the Short No.1 biplane rotated in the same direction because their designer wished to avoid patent infringement? | |
William Bell (photographer) | ![]() |
8,210 | ... that William Bell photographed the wounds (example pictured) and diseases of American Civil War soldiers for the Army Medical Museum? | |
4.5-Inch Beach Barrage Rocket | 8,113 | 1,014 | ... that the United States Navy used Old Faithful to prepare enemy beaches for amphibious assault? | |
Agincourt Square, Monmouth | ![]() |
8,081 | 1,010 | ... that there were so many pubs in Monmouth's market place that they said "A gin court here, a gin court there, No wonder they call it Agincourt Square" (sign pictured)? |
Jodie Bowering | ![]() |
8,004 | 1,000 | ... that Queensland teacher Jodie Bowering (pictured) is also an Australian Olympic bronze medalist in softball? |
Fred (baboon) | 7,972 | 996 | ... that a gang leader was executed by lethal injection for the crimes of assaulting tourists and breaking into their cars to steal food? | |
Valerie Aurora | ![]() |
7,953 | 994 | ... that Ada Initiative co-founder Valerie Aurora (pictured) chose Anita as her middle name, after the computer scientist Anita Borg? |
Billfish | File:Blue marlin (Makaira nigricans) NOAA.jpg | 7,873 | 984 | ... that the largest of all billfishes, the Atlantic blue marlin (pictured), weighs up to 820 kilograms (1800 pounds) and has been classified as a vulnerable species? |
Margaret Bechstein Hays | ![]() |
7,504 | 938 | ...that RMS Titanic survivor Margaret Bechstein Hays not only saved her Pomeranian dog from the wreck, she also looked after the Titanic Orphans (pictured)? |
Noel Agazarian | 7,466 | 933 | ... that British World War II fighter ace Noel Agazarian was rejected by Trinity College, Oxford, allegedly because its President objected to his ethnicity? | |
Lyon-class battleship | 7,465 | 933 | ... that all four Lyon-class battleships were cancelled on account of World War I? | |
Easter egg tree | ![]() |
7,102 | 887 | ...that the Easter egg tree (pictured) in Saalfeld, Thuringia, was decorated with 10,000 Easter eggs in 2012? |
A.C.O.D. | 7,062 | 883 | ...that Jessica Alba got a tattoo of a bow on her tailbone for her role in A.C.O.D.? | |
Pavlo Kurtik Pavlo-Kurtik |
3,229+ 3,754= 6,983 |
873 | ... that Pavlo Kurtik had a little of Pavlo-Kurtik? | |
Santa Claus (horse) | 6,939 | 867 | ... that Santa Claus was a stud? | |
Cicuta bulbifera | 6,309 + 562 = 6,871 | ... that according to some sources, bulb-bearing water-hemlock is one of the most poisonous leafy plants native to North America? | ||
Victoire Conroy | 6,870 | 858 | ... that while Victoire Conroy was among the few companions allowed to associate with the young Queen Victoria, the queen disliked her? | |
Private Dicks: Men Exposed | 6,856 | 857 | ... that the 1999 documentary Private Dicks: Men Exposed, in which men were interviewed about their penises, was described by Ken Tucker as "quite literally touching"? | |
Herbert Haddock | 6,830 | 854 | ... that the first captain of the Titanic was Captain Haddock? | |
Leonardo Gigli | 6,792 | 849 | ... that people have cut off arms and legs because of Gigli? | |
Eihei-ji | ![]() |
6,750 | 843 | ... that Steve Jobs wanted to study Zen in Japan at Eihei-ji (pictured)? |
1819 Rann of Kutch earthquake | 5,487 + 1,184 = 6,671 | 685 | ... that an 80-km-long, 6-m-high mound formed by the 1819 Rann of Kutch earthquake was known as the Dam of God? | |
San Francisco plague of 1900–1904 | 6,598 | 825 | ... that California governor Henry Gage publicly denied there was a San Francisco plague of 1900–1904? | |
"Hill Street Station" | 5,409 + 1,025 = 6,434 | 804 | ... that "Hill Street Station", the first episode of Hill Street Blues, suffered "confusion and conflict in its marketing" to the point that it was considered a surprise the show survived to be aired? | |
Peter Armstrong (priest) | 6,419 | 802 | ... that a Roman Catholic priest got five Super Bowl rings with the 49ers? | |
Ralph Curtis Desmond Uniacke |
3,725+ 2,688= 6,413 |
801 | ... that World War I British flying aces Ralph Curtis and Desmond Uniacke battled Hermann Göring, future head of the Luftwaffe? | |
Raab Doppelraab | 6,257 | 782 | ... that test pilot Hanna Reitsch described the Raab Doppelraab as "a dream of an aircraft"? | |
Rhodesiana | ![]() |
6,189 | 773 | ... that many things related to Rhodesia, both physical and immaterial (examples pictured), can be considered Rhodesiana? |
Svalbard Satellite Station | 5,976 | 747 | ... that in 2007 and 2008, two American satellites were hacked using commands sent via the Svalbard Satellite Station? | |
Turtle-back tombs | 5,949 | ... that while Chinese emperors had stone tortoises guard their tombs, some of their subjects in Fujian were laid to rest under plaster tortoises (example pictured)? | ||
Swissair Flight 316 | 4,985 + 954 = 5,939 | ... that after a crash involving plutonium and diamonds, the pilots of Swissair Flight 316 were charged with manslaughter? | ||
Helen Jonas-Rosenzweig | 5,903 | 738 | ... that Helen Jonas-Rosenzweig Holocaust survivor and one of the Schindlerjuden, appeared in a documentary with the daughter of Amon Goeth, her Nazi tormentor? | |
Beacon-class gunvessel | 5,838 | 729 | ... that the composite hull of the Beacon-class gunvessels was described by Admiral G. A. Ballard as built "along the lines of an extremely elongated packing crate"? | |
Jackie Hudson | 5,725 | 716 | ... that Sister Jackie Hudson served six months in prison for painting "Christ lives, Disarm" on the side of a bunker? | |
Immensee (film) | 5,121 + 492 = 5,613 | ... that one man loved the 1943 film Immensee so much that in 1975 he bought the estate where it was filmed? | ||
Eddie's House | 5,594 | 699 | ... that Frank Lloyd Wright designed a dog house—and even its roof leaks? | |
United States lightship LV-117 | ![]() |
5,593 | 699 | ... that seven men died when LV-117 (pictured), the Nantucket lightship, was rammed and sunk on 14 May 1934 by RMS Olympic, sister ship of the lost Titanic? |
Fisher v. University of Texas | 4,290 + 1,173 = 5,463 | ... that in the upcoming US Supreme Court case of Fisher v. University of Texas, a white woman argues that the university discriminated against her based on race? | ||
Camille du Gast | 5,433 | ... that French sporting pioneer Camille du Gast was falsely accused of having posed nude for La Femme au Masque, but did not win the legal action she filed against her accuser? | ||
The Sugar Girls | 4,763 + 573 = 5,336 | 667 | ... that the female factory workers featured in the book The Sugar Girls would stuff their turbans with underwear to make them look more fashionable? | |
Jacobus Deketh | ![]() |
5,335 | 667 | ... ... that Jacobus Deketh (pictured) was a captain of a 36-gun frigate in the Frisian Admiralty? |
Seamanite | 5,254 | 657 | ... that seamanite is known from only four locations, with three in Michigan and one in Australia? | |
Miss Baker | 5,184 | 648 | ... that a Baker went into outer space with sea urchin sperm, later receiving a rubber duck and many bananas for her efforts? | |
Fleet class USV | 5,124 | 641 | ... that the Fleet class USVs are the first unmanned vessels to receive U.S. Navy hull numbers? | |
Maja e Thatë | ![]() |
5,110 | 638 | ... that on the southern slopes of Maja e Thatë (pictured) lies the Cave of Haxhia, a Nature Monument of Albania, explored by Polish speleologists? |
Humor styles | 5,069 | 633 | ... that individuals who report high levels of affiliative humor are more likely to initiate friendships? | |
Pandemonium architecture | 5,022 | 627 | ... that the pandemonium in a pandemonium architecture simply represents the cumulative yelling of the "demons" within the system? |
May 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Compton–Belkovich Thorium Anomaly | 59,267 | 7,408 | ... that the Compton–Belkovich Thorium Anomaly is a thorium-rich hotspot on the back of the moon? | |
Cat Daddy | ![]() |
25,686 | 3211 | ... that a bikini-clad rendition of the "Cat Daddy" dance by the reigning Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover model Kate Upton (pictured) was temporarily banned from YouTube? |
Drowning Girl | ![]() |
21,058 + 2,499 = 23,557 | 2945 | ... that Roy Lichtenstein's Drowning Girl was adapted from Hokusai's The Great Wave off Kanagawa (pictured)? |
John W. Wilcox, Jr. | ![]() |
20,289 + 2,140 = 22,429 | 2,804 | ... that U.S. Navy rear admiral John W. Wilcox, Jr. (pictured) was lost overboard from the deck of his flagship during World War II? |
Sisera's mother | ![]() |
20,223 + 2,153 = 22,376 | 2,797 | ... that Sisera's mother (pictured), a biblical character, has been described as evil and sexually depraved? |
Lego tire | ![]() |
(9,387 + 12,234) + (208 + 49) = 21,878 | 2,735 | ... that The Lego Group produced 381 million tires (example pictured) in 2011, making it the largest tire manufacturer in the world? |
Jadwiga Apostoł | ![]() |
19,429 | ... that school teacher and conspirator Jadwiga Apostoł (pictured) survived three German camps, including Auschwitz, and was jailed in Stalinist Poland on trumped-up charges soon after her return? | |
Gaetano Faillace | ![]() |
16,758 + 1,584 = 18,342 | 2,293 | ... that Japanese censors were horrified by Gaetano Faillace's photograph (left) of General Douglas MacArthur and Emperor Hirohito? |
Patterns in nature | ![]() |
13,773 + 3,408 = 17,181 | 2,148 | ... that patterns in nature like the spirals of Aloe (pictured) are explained by mathematics, physics, chemistry, and natural selection all at once? |
Stefanie Rabatsch | 15,181 + 1,849 = 17,030 | ... that Adolf Hitler was so hopelessly in love with Stefanie Isak when he was a teenager that he planned to kill both her and himself in the Danube? | ||
Donkey Xote Giulia Marletta |
![]() |
6,961 + 8,325 = 15,286 | 1,911 | ... that the donkey character Rucio in the 2007 children's film Donkey Xote, executive-produced by Giulia Marletta (pictured), was made to look like "Donkey" from Shrek? |
Gligor Sokolović | ![]() |
13,518 + 1,394 = 14,912 | 1,864 | ... that Gligor Sokolović (pictured) was killed by his Young Turk guards while drinking from a fountain? |
1080 (skateboarding) | 12,375 | ... that 12-year-old Tom Schaar is the only person to ever complete a 1080, described as "the holy grail of all skateboard tricks”? | ||
Angampora | ![]() |
12,014 | 1,501 | ... that Angampora (pictured), a martial art native to Sri Lanka which incorporates pressure point attacks, was banned by the British who gained control of the island in the early 19th century? |
1st SAS Brigade | 11,719 | 1,465 | ... that the 1st SAS Brigade, a World War II military unit, never actually existed? | |
Mont Aiguille | ![]() |
10,788 | 1,349 | ... that in the medieval period, Mont Aiguille (pictured) was traditionally called "Mount Inaccessible", and typically depicted as an "inverted pyramid" or "mushroom"? |
Rose turret | 10,452 | 1,307 | ... that Air Marshal Arthur Harris regarded the Rose turret (pictured) as being the only improvement made to the defensive armament of the RAF's heavy bombers between 1942 and the end of World War II? | |
Sleeping Girl I Can See the Whole Room...and There's Nobody in It! Ohhh...Alright... |
3,172 + 4,131 + 3,144 = 10,447 | 1,306 | ... that Ohhh...Alright..., I Can See the Whole Room...and There's Nobody in It!, and Sleeping Girl set records for highest priced Roy Lichtenstein work sales at $42.6, $43.2, and $44.8 million, respectively? | |
Hermaphrodite (Nadar) | 8,320 + 1,848 = 10,168 | 1,271 | ... that a nine-image series by Nadar may be the first medical photographic documentation of an intersex person? | |
A-35 anti-ballistic missile system | ![]() |
9,857 | 1,232 | . .. that the Soviet A-35 anti-ballistic missile system had a radar nicknamed the Dog House (pictured)? |
Girl with Ball | 9,343 | 1,129 | ... that Roy Lichtenstein's pop art painting Girl with Ball, which was based on a newspaper ad that was still running more than 20 years later, was first sold to Philip Johnson? | |
British Wreck Commissioner's inquiry into the sinking of the RMS Titanic | ![]() |
9,160 | 1,145 | ... that the British inquiry into the sinking of the RMS Titanic was criticised as a "whitewash" after Lord Mersey (pictured) found that the disaster had not been caused by negligence? |
Whaam! | 7,291 + 1,378 = 8,669 | 1,084 | ... that Roy Lichtenstein considered the discordant panels of his diptych painting Whaam! humorous? | |
Phil Nevin 1992 Major League Baseball Draft |
![]() |
(4,232 + 1,828) + (1,733 + 740) = 8,533 | 1,067 | ... that after future all-star Phil Nevin was taken first overall in the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft, Houston Astros' scout Hal Newhouser quit, protesting that the club should have taken Derek Jeter (pictured) instead? |
Duke Xiang of Qi Wen Jiang Duke Huan of Lu |
(4,087 + 509) + (2,792 + 406) + (633 + 98) = 8,525 | 1,066 | ... that Duke Xiang, ruler of the ancient state of Qi, had an incestuous relationship with his sister Wen Jiang and had her husband Duke Huan of Lu murdered? | |
Bathroom sex | 8,455 | 1,057 | ... that in the United States, sex in public bathrooms is more frequent in bars than in restaurants? | |
Civil War Unknowns Monument | 8,331 | 1,041 | ... that over two thousand skulls, legs, ribs and other body parts of unidentified soldiers were sorted and interred in various compartments under the Civil War Unknowns Monument (pictured) in Arlington, Virginia? | |
Toe Nash | 6,316+ 1,708 = 8,024 | 1,003 | ... that baseball executives thought that Toe Nash was a hoax, similar to Sidd Finch? | |
The Football Battalion | 7,066 + 897 = 7,963 | 995 | ... that the British Army fielded a battalion of professional footballers in the World War I Battle of the Somme? | |
Stanisław Klimecki | ![]() |
7,993 | ... that Stanisław Klimecki (pictured) served as the President of Kraków only for a few weeks before being fired and arrested by the Gestapo in September 1939, which led to his 1942 execution? | |
Human–animal breastfeeding | ![]() |
7,953 | 994 | ... that human–animal breastfeeding – women breastfeeding young animals, or animals breastfeeding human children, such as goats (pictured) – has been practised throughout history? |
Lady Gaga on Twitter Justin Bieber on Twitter |
![]() |
5,190 + 2,631 = 7,821 | 978 | ... that @ladygaga (pictured) and @justinbieber are, respectively, the first and second most-followed celebrities on Twitter? |
Tadeusz Lehr-Spławiński | ![]() |
7,690 | ... that Tadeusz Lehr-Spławiński (pictured) was released from Sachsenhausen concentration camp with a group of Kraków academics due to protest by prominent Italians including Mussolini and the Vatican? | |
Olmec colossal heads | ![]() |
7,617 | ... that of the 17 confirmed Olmec colossal heads of Mexico (example pictured), the largest is estimated to weigh 40 tons? | |
Katskhi pillar | 6,617 + 714 = 7,331 | 916 | ... that the Katskhi pillar is a 40-metre (130 ft) high natural monolith in Georgia, with remnants of early medieval hermitages atop it? | |
Tatra Confederation | ![]() |
6,354 + 838 = 7,192 | ... ... that the subversive newsletter made for German occupation authorities (pictured) by the Polish underground Tatra Confederation was so good the Germans thought it was produced internally? | |
Big Painting No. 6 Torpedo...Los! |
3,505 + 3,582 = 7,087 | 886 | ... that Big Painting No. 6 set a record for highest auction price for a painting by a living artist and Torpedo...Los! set a record for price for a Roy Lichtenstein work? | |
Niñopa | 7,053 | 910 | ... that the Mexico City borough of Xochimilco has a child that is over 400 years old? | |
James Scaramanga | 6,307 + 720 = 7,027 | 878 | ... that James Bond creator Ian Fleming named his villain in The Man with the Golden Gun after the first cousin of WWI flying ace James Scaramanga? | |
Twitter bomb | 6,879 | ... that Twitter bombs have been used in Internet activism by people as diverse as Barack Obama and members of Anonymous? | ||
Sea Odyssey: Giant Spectacular | 5,735 + 615 = 6,350 | 794 | ... that during Liverpool's Sea Odyssey, the city was visited by a 9-metre-tall little girl, her 15-metre uncle, and her dog, Xolo? | |
Martha Wise | 6,137 | 767 | ... that Martha Wise said she poisoned seventeen family members with arsenic, killing three, because she was irresistibly drawn to funerals and there weren't enough in her town? | |
Shigaite | ![]() |
5,940 + 172 = 6,112 | 764 | ... that the mineral shigaite (hexagonal crystal pictured) is named for the Japanese Prefecture where it was discovered in 1985? |
As I Opened Fire | 6,098 | 762 | ... that As I Opened Fire was part of the culmination of the dramatic war-comic works of Roy Lichtenstein? | |
Asterias forbesi Orchitophrya stellarum |
![]() |
2,734 + 3,333 = 6,067 | 758 | ... that the male Forbes sea star (underside pictured) is sometimes castrated by Orchitophrya stellarum, a parasite which feeds on its gonads? |
Crocodylus thorbjarnarsoni | 6,036 | 755 | ... that the extinct Crocodylus thorbjarnarsoni from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Kenya was the largest true crocodile and may have eaten early human ancestors? | |
The Pearl and the Wave | ![]() |
5,998 | 749 | ... that Baudry's painting The Pearl and the Wave (pictured) was bought by French Empress consort Eugénie de Montijo for 20,000 francs? |
Letters of Transit | 5,995 | 749 | ... that the futuristic Fringe episode "Letters of Transit" contained references to The Prisoner and Star Wars? | |
Inch by Inch (film) | 5,211 + 746 = 5,957 | 745 | ... that one reviewer called the subway scene of the gay pornographic film Inch by Inch a blend of "realism and 'classical cinema'"? | |
Orfordness Beacon | ![]() |
5,770 | 721 | ... that the pioneering Orfordness Beacon radio navigation system (pictured) could be used with nothing more than a radio receiver and clock? |
Limaria fragilis | ![]() |
5,083 + 600 = 5,683 | 710 | ... that the fragile file clam (pictured) uses its tentacles as oars when it swims? |
Duke Jing of Qin | 5,517 | ... that 186 victims of human sacrifice were discovered in the 2,500-year-old tomb of Duke Jing of Qin, an ancestor of the First Emperor of China? | ||
Coins 'N Things | 5,510 | ... that a coin-collecting shop has become the largest supplier of gold to the U.S. Treasury? | ||
Cypress dome | 5,375 | 672 | ... that Cypress domes are the most common swamp habitat in Florida? | |
Dial (soap) | 5,350 | 764 | ... that Dial soap was originally created and marketed by the Armour and Company meat-packing firm? | |
LVMH Tower | 5,320 | ... that the LVMH Tower in New York has a 30-foot-high glass "Magic Room" at the top made possible by folding the facade in an unusual interpretation of setback requirements? | ||
Anma | 5,227 | 653 | ... that Helen Keller interceded with the US government on behalf of Japanese anma practitioners? | |
The Poznań | 5,203 | 650 | ... that The Poznań was copied by Manchester City football fans after their team played Polish team Lech Poznań? | |
Andrew Freedman Home | ![]() |
5,196 | 650 | ... that the Andrew Freedman Home (pictured) served as a retirement home for "aged and indigent persons of both sexes", who had formerly been of "good circumstances"? |
Lady June | 5,060 | 632 | ... that an obituary in The Independent called Lady June "a great British eccentric and cosmic prankster"? | |
Polenlager | ![]() |
5,016 | 622 | ... that children as young as eight were forced to work in a stone quarry in a Polenlager (pictured) during the Nazi occupation of Polish Silesia? |
June 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Diaboleite | ![]() |
20,538 - (5+163)/2 = 20,454 | 2,556 | ... that the mineral diaboleite (pictured) was so named out of desperation? |
Liberdade class underwater glider | ![]() |
14,671 - (6+157)/2 = 14,590 | 1,824 | ... that the US Navy has been developing autonomous underwater gliders (example pictured) to track submarines and marine mammals? |
Barony and Castle of Kilbirnie | ![]() |
11,230 + 1,153 - (26+111)/2 = 12,315 | 1,539 | ... that Kilbirnie Castle (ruins pictured) in North Ayrshire includes a 15th-century keep with walls that are 7 to 8 feet (2.1–2.4 m) thick? |
Mandaeans | 10,742 | 1,343 | ... that the number of Mandaeans in Iraq has fallen by more than 90% since the 2003 invasion due to religious persecution? | |
Weldy Walker | ![]() |
10,348 - (31+98)/2 = 10,284 | 1,286 | ... that an 1888 letter written by Weldy Walker (pictured), the second African American in Major League Baseball, was called "perhaps the most passionate cry for justice ever voiced by a Negro athlete"? |
M16 (rocket) | 10,053 - (19+110)/2 = 9,989 | 1,249 | ... that the M16 rocket was used in only a single engagement of the Second World War? | |
Church of St Helen, Treeton | ![]() |
9,756 - (11+108)/2 = 9,697 | 1,212 | ... that when three men wearing gloves, masks and balaclavas were found on the roof of a church (pictured) missing £100,000 worth of lead, they were let off because police said they "might be there just for the view"? |
Long Point (Cape Cod) | ![]() |
8,076 + 1,440 - (75+140)/2 = 9,409 | 1,176 | ... that when Cape Cod's village of Long Point, Massachusetts (pictured) became a ghost town, its residents took their houses with them – by floating them across the harbor? |
Centripetal Spring Armchair | ![]() |
9,350 - (13+151)/2 = 9,268 | 1,159 | ... that the Centripetal Spring Armchair of 1849 (pictured), one of the first modern office chairs, was unsuccessful outside the US because it was considered immorally comfortable? |
Manfred von Richthofen (general) | 8,028 + 971 = 8,999 | 1,124 | ... that General Manfred von Richthofen, like the air ace who was named after him and was his great-nephew, was awarded the "Blue Max" for his service in World War I? | |
Mademoiselle Parisot | ![]() |
8,707 - (9+67)/2 = 8,669 | 1,084 | ... that the racehorse Parisot, winner of the 1796 Epsom Oaks, was named after French ballet dancer Mademoiselle Parisot (pictured), whose performance created a stir in London that year? |
PZL SM-4 Łątka | 8,462 - (11+72)/2 = 8,421 | 1,053 | ... that the PZL SM-4 Łątkanever flew as its engine was not approved for use in flight? | |
Church of Saint Oswald, King and Martyr, Oswaldkirk | ![]() |
8,452 - (10+115)/2 = 8,390 | 1,049 | ... that St. Oswald's church, Oswaldkirk (pictured), hosted the first sermon of the future Archbishop of Canterbury and chaplain to Charles II, John Tillotson? |
1907 Sydney bathing costume protests | 8,378 - (28+153)/2 = 8,288 | 1,036 | ... that the 1907 Sydney bathing costume protests were a response by men wearing women's clothing to proposed regulations on beach dress? | |
Glove Cycle | 8,164 - (22+72)/2 = 8,117 | 1,015 | ... that in the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Porter subway station there are gloves attached to the escalator and embedded in the floor? | |
Triangulum Australe | 6,960 + 788 - (43+65)/2 = 7,694 | 962 | ... that the Southern Triangle can't be seen from Europe? | |
Street House Anglo-Saxon cemetery | ![]() |
6,609 + 1,104 - (16+71)/2 = 7,670 | 959 | ... that an Anglo-Saxon princess (reconstruction pictured) was buried on a bed with her jewellery in the Street House Anglo-Saxon cemetery? |
Bob Ely | 6,811 + 781 - (51+52)/2 = 7,541 | 943 | ... that U.S. 2012 presidential candidate Bob Ely refers to himself as a "jerk" and lists 24 reasons to not vote for him? | |
Elizabeth Potts | 7,613 - (6+208)/2 = 7,506 | 938.3 | ... that Elizabeth Potts was the only woman ever legally executed in Nevada? | |
Copșa Mică works | ![]() |
6,748 + 782 - (17+38)/2 = 7,502 | 937.8 | ... that two factories (one pictured) in Copşa Mică, Romania, together made it one of the most polluted towns in Eastern Europe by the early 1990s? |
Carrick, Tasmania | ![]() |
6,732 + 731 - (42+36)/2 = 7,424 | 928 | ... that centenarian Sammy Cox (pictured) of Carrick, Tasmania, may not have been as old as he claimed? |
Richard Owen (geologist) | 6,627 + 805 - (16+19)/2 = 7,414 | 927 | ... that geologist Richard Owen died of accidental poisoning after his grocer mistook a bottle of embalming fluid for mineral water? | |
Lactarius deterrimus | ![]() |
7,209 | 879 | ... that eating Lactarius deterrimus (pictured) causes red urine? |
Encyclopedia Fuckme and the Case of the Vanishing Entree | 7,196 | ... that Encyclopedia Fuckme And The Case Of The Vanishing Entree was praised by the The A.V. Club for its sexual writing? | ||
NeverSeconds | 7,165 - (158+146)/2 = 7,013 | 877 | ... that nine-year-old Martha Payne was told by her local council to stop reporting on her school dinners in her blog NeverSeconds after the national media reported on it? | |
Queenie Newall | ![]() |
6,985 - (7+61)/2 = 6,951 | 869 | ... that at 53 years and 275 days, Queenie Newall(pictured) is the oldest female athlete to have won a gold medal at an Olympic Games? |
Bobfergusonite | 5,879 + 714 - (7+30)/2 = 6,575 | 822 | ... that the mineral bobfergusonite has been found only in Canada and Argentina? | |
Transit of Venus, 1639 | 4,619 + 2,495 - (520+696)/2 = 6,506 | 813 | ... that the transit of Venus of 1639 was predicted by self-taught astronomer Jeremiah Horrocks, and the only recorded observations of it were by him and his friend William Crabtree? | |
Baldin Collection | ![]() |
6,473 - (37+108)/2 = 6,401 | 800 | ... that the disputed Baldin Collection, including Cypresses in Starry Night by van Gogh (pictured), was looted from Germany during World War II and is today held by Russia? |
You're Gonna Get Your Fucking Head Kicked In | 6,190 - (115+203)/2 = 6,031 | 754 |
... that You're Gonna Get Your Fucking Head Kicked In is chanted at opponents of pro wrestler Bryan Danielson? | |
Gigolo FRH | 6,016 - (11+42)/2 = 5,990 | 749 | ... that a German Gigolo has won four gold and two silver medals at the Summer Olympics? | |
Johnny Gee | 5,966 | ... that pitcher Johnny Gee, sometimes known as the "$75,000 Lemon", was the tallest person ever to play Major League Baseball until Randy Johnson debuted in 1988? | ||
Zawieszenie dzwonu Zygmunta | 5,474 + 525 - (36+39)/2 = 5,962 | 745 | ... that Jan Matejko's painting The Hanging of the Sigismund Bell received a golden medal in the Paris World's Fair of 1878? | |
Yantar-2K | 5,187 + 578 = 5,765 | 720 | ... that Soviet spy satellite Yantar-2K had two film return capsules which could land on the ground or on water? | |
The Wedding Dance | ![]() |
5,879 - (185+110)/2 = 5,732 | 717 | ... that in The Wedding Dance (pictured), a 1566 oil painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, the movements of the people show that they are acting inappropriately or in an epitome of rustic buffoonery? |
Sydney Cumbers | 5,726 - (6+35)/2 = 5,706 | 713 | ... that Sydney Cumbers was nicknamed "Long John Silver" because he wore an eyepatch to conceal his missing eye that he lost when he was a child? | |
Emerson Newton-John | 4,958 + 758 - (37+109)/2 = 5,643 | 705 | ... that the open-wheel racing career of Emerson Newton-John was put on hold for over a decade by the September 11 attacks? | |
Sonne (navigation) | 3,791 + 1,737 - (14+93)/2 = 5,475 | 684 | ... that the German Sonne radio navigation system proved so useful to the British during WWII that they provided spare parts to keep them running? | |
Matt Cain's perfect game | ![]() |
4,619 + 840 = 5,459 | 682 | ... that Matt Cain (pictured) threw more pitches in his perfect game than any other perfect game pitcher before him? |
Panicum abscissum | 5,432 - (13+45)/2 = 5,403 | 675 | ... that cutthroat grass is primarily found in only two counties in central Florida? | |
Andrews Tavern (Spotsylvania County, Virginia) | ![]() |
4,919 + 465 - (25+15)/2 = 5,364 | 671 | ... that during his ownership of Andrews Tavern (pictured), Samuel Andrews served as postmaster for the governments of both the Confederate States of America and the United States? |
Dyott Bomber | 4,711 + 658 - (7+29)/2 = 5,351 | 669 | ... that the design of the Dyott Bomber was modified from an aircraft intended for the exploration of South Africa? | |
Ernst Damzog | 5,211 | 651 | ... that SS-Standartenführer Ernst Damzog personally selected staff for the killing centre in Chełmno (Kulmhof) in Reichsgau Wartheland and supervised its daily operation from 1941? | |
Coach's Daughter | 3,084 + 1,398 - (38+74)/2 + 499 + 250 - (4+9)/2 = 5,169 | 667 | ... that audience laughter during a scene in the Cheers episode "Coach's Daughter" between Coach and his daughter Lisa was muted out in the final cut? | |
Monmouth Regimental Museum | ![]() |
5,174 - (6+51)/2 = 5,146 | 643 | ... that the Monmouth Regimental Museum displays a variety of objects, including a mediaeval "crock pot" and a baby gas mask (pictured)? |
Church of Saint Mary, Whitby | ![]() |
4,625 + 487 - (15+28)/2 = 5,091 | 636 | ... that St Mary's Church, Whitby (pictured) was the setting for a scene from Bram Stoker's Dracula? |
Full Service: My Adventures in Hollywood and the Secret Sex Lives of the Stars | 4,282 + 827 - (23+105)/2 = 5,045 | 631 | ... that in his 2012 book, Scotty Bowers reveals Full Service: My Adventures in Hollywood and the Secret Sex Lives of the Stars? | |
Mermaid (Roy Lichtenstein) | 4,549 + 479 - (54+52)/2 = 4,975 | 622 | ... that Mermaid in Miami Beach was Roy Lichtenstein's first commissioned public art? |
July 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Davis Tarwater | ![]() |
12,887 + 2,751 = 15,638 | 1,955 | ... that after the US Olympic Trials swimmer Davis Tarwater (pictured) announced his retirement and headed home before realizing he had qualified for the 2012 Olympics? |
Night of the Long Knives (1962) | ![]() |
13,707 + 1,724 = 15,431 | 1,929 | ... that fifty years ago today, Harold Macmillan (pictured) dismissed seven members of his Cabinet, an event known as the Night of the Long Knives? |
Silvina Moschini | 15,299 | 1,912 | ... that internet entrepreneur Silvina Moschini (pictured) believes Wikipedia should allow advertising as a way of funding improved academic content? | |
Isamu Kashiide | ![]() |
13,778 | 1,722 | ... that Japanese fighter pilot Isamu Kashiide (pictured) shook the hand of a crewmember of one of the Boeing B-29 Superfortresses that he shot down? |
Pascoite | ![]() |
13,486 - (8 + 106)/2 = 13,429 | 1,678 | ... that after a mine tunnel was dug near Cerro de Pasco, Peru, the first known specimen of pascoite (example pictured) formed on the walls? |
Ernst Moritz Hess | 12,935 | 1,529 | ... that Ernst Moritz Hess, a German of Jewish descent, was granted protection from Nazi persecution at the wishes of Adolf Hitler, who had served under his command in World War I? | |
Billy Cooper (trumpeter) | 12,033 | 1,505 | ... that Billy Cooper (pictured) was thrown out of The Gabba and arrested for playing the Neighbours theme tune? | |
Georgina Geikie | 11,348 | 1,419 | ... that 2012 Olympic shooter Georgina Geikie is nicknamed "Britain's Lara Croft"? | |
Grouville Hoard | 10,890 | 1,361 | ... that a huge hoard of Iron Age and Roman coins was found in Jersey in June 2012 after two metal detectorists spent a few hours a year for 30 years searching for a suspected hoard? | |
Antinomian Controversy | ![]() |
10,854 | 1,357 | ...that during the Antinomian Controversy Anne Hutchinson (pictured) withstood two separate trials without counsel before being banished from Massachusetts? |
Sérandite | ![]() |
10,030 - (56 + 4) / 2 = 10,000 | 1,250 | ... that sérandite (pictured) was discovered in Guinea, described in a French journal, and the type material resides in Washington, D.C.? |
Dock Ellis | 7,546 + 1,519 = 9,065 | 1,133 | ... that Dock Ellis pitched a no-hitter while under the influence of LSD? | |
Battle of Collecchio Collecchio |
8,003 + 809 = 8,812 | 1,101 | ... that during World War II, Brazilians fought Germans at Collecchio in Italy? | |
Oddjob's hat | 8,581 | 1,073 | ... that Oddjob's hat sold for £62,000? | |
Ombla | 8,567 | 1,070 | ... that the Ombla River near Dubrovnik, Croatia, is claimed to be the shortest river in the world, flowing approximately 30 metres (98 feet) before emptying into the Adriatic Sea? | |
Dave Shannon | ![]() |
8,508 | 1,063 | ... that at age twenty, Flight Lieutenant Dave Shannon (pictured) was the youngest pilot to take part in the "Dambuster" raid of May 1943? |
Red carpet fashion in 2000 | 8,186 | 1,023 | ... that one of the most talked about red carpet gowns of 2000 was worn by a Spice Girl, its designer, and Matt Stone, as well as by Jennifer Lopez? | |
Rum ration | 8,182 | 1,022 | ... that the rum ration was abolished because the Royal Navy's leadership was concerned that it made sailors less capable? | |
Laufen Hut Fritzerkogel Alpine route |
![]() |
4,256 + 2,919 + 822 = 7,997 | 999 | ... that climbers have a choice of two alpine routes to reach the Fritzerkogel, a solitary mountain of the Tennengebirge, from the Laufen Hut (pictured)? |
Maternal sensitivity | 7,808 | 976 | ... that children of maternally sensitive mothers scored higher in math and phoneme knowledge than those who had a history of lower maternal sensitivity? | |
Dorota Krzysztofek | 7,585 | ... that Polish model Dorota Krzysztofek challenged her 2008 conviction for sunbathing topless and won her case in the appeals court? | ||
Embassy of France, Berlin | 7,552 | 944 | ... that the French Embassy in Berlin opened in 2002 has struck many, including the Mayor of Mitte, as resembling a barricade with gun slits? | |
Bankersmith, Texas | 7,230 | 904 | ... that a restaurateur purchased a ghost town so that he could re-name it to Bikinis, Texas? | |
Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei | ![]() |
6,492 + 727 = 7,219 | 902 | ... that the airline Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei, which operated LZ 129 Hindenburg (pictured), was re-established under the same name in 2001 and today flies Zeppelin NTs in passenger service? |
General MacArthur's escape from the Philippines | ![]() |
6,585 | 823 | ... that General MacArthur's escape from the Philippines was in a PT boat captained by Lieutenant John D. Bulkeley (pictured)? |
Dorothy Baker (madam) | ![]() |
6,561 | 820 | ... that a female state legislator proposed making Dorothy's Rooms (bathroom pictured), the last brothel in Helena, Montana, a historical landmark? |
Forced abortion of Feng Jianmei | 6,511 | 814 | ... that more than one million comments about Feng Jianmei's forced abortion had been registered within four days of family members uploading a picture of her dead child to Sina Weibo? | |
Lord's Pavilion | ![]() |
6,416 | 802 | ... that until 1999, Queen Elizabeth II was the only woman allowed into the Lord's Pavilion (pictured)? |
Gamos | ![]() |
6,400 +74 = 6,474 | 809 | ... that Gamos (pictured) was called "the mare of many headaches" in the years after she won the 1870 Epsom Oaks? |
Levin Major Lewis | 6,369 | 796 | ... that Confederate Army Colonel Levin Major Lewis was hit by a spent musket ball that stuck in his forehead at the Battle of Lone Jack in Missouri during the American Civil War?" | |
List of memorials and monuments at Arlington National Cemetery | 6,131 | 766 | ... that that several memorials and monuments of Arlington National Cemetery in the U.S. have been removed or destroyed? | |
Bultfonteinite | ![]() |
5,978 - (37 + 4) / 2 = 5,957 | 744 | ... that while bultfonteinite (pictured) was discovered as early as 1903, the mineral wasn't described until 1932? |
Spon Street | ![]() |
5,926 | 740 | ... that Spon Street (Spon Gate pictured) survived the air raid that obliterated much of Coventry City Centre and is now a Conservation Area? |
The Track | 5,882 | 735 | ... that The Track was dusty? | |
Malayisation | 5,188 | 649 | ... that Malayisation has occurred in five Southeast Asian countries? | |
Corona Australis | ![]() |
5,131 | 631 | ... that the constellation of Corona Australis contains one of the closest star-forming regions (pictured) to the solar system? |
Fiery Gizzard Trail | ![]() |
5,129 | 641 | ... that you might swim with a mink on the Fiery Gizzard Trail in Tennessee? |
St Mary's Church, Abbeytown | ![]() |
5,120 | ... that St Mary's Church, Abbeytown, in Cumbria (west end pictured) was damaged by fire in 1604, and again in 2006? | |
Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention The Swerve: How the World Became Modern George F. Kennan: An American Life Water by the Spoonful |
5,031 [1] [2] [3] | 629 | ... that Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention, The Swerve: How the World Became Modern, George F. Kennan: An American Life and Water by the Spoonful won 2012 Pulitzer Prizes for History, Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction, Biography or Autobiography and Drama, respectively? | |
Tarbuttite | 5,057 - (12 + 61) / 2 = 5,020 | 627 | ... that tarbuttite (pictured) was named for the director of a company? | |
Jewish Military Museum | 5,001 | 625 | ... that the Jewish Military Museum was founded partly to counter the idea that British Jews have avoided serving in the armed forces? |
August 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Philip Hindes | 59,004 + 20,518 = 79,522 | 9,940 * | ... that track cyclist Philip Hindes was born in Germany and did not take up cycling until 2008, but has been selected to represent Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics? | |
Antonija Mišura | ![]() |
32,282 | 4,035 | ... that according to Bleacher Report, Antonija Mišura (pictured) was the most beautiful female competitor at the 2012 Olympics? |
List of United States Presidents by net worth | 10,613 + 5,176 = 15,789 | 1,973 | ... that Harry Truman was the poorest U.S. President since 1929? | |
Statue of Oliver Cromwell, Westminster | ![]() |
15,008 | 1,876 | ... that in 2004, a group of Members of Parliament proposed melting down the statue of Oliver Cromwell (pictured) which had stood outside the Houses of Parliament for 105 years? |
Finger (gesture) | ![]() |
15,160 - (2,649 + 1,580 / 2) = 13,045 | 1,631 | ... that the Connecticut Supreme Court found that giving the finger (pictured) was offensive, but not obscene? |
Los Angeles Motordrome | ![]() |
11,481 + 1,228 = 12,709 | 1,589 | ... that the wooden racing surface of the Los Angeles Motordrome (pictured) was treated with crushed sea shells to improve traction? |
Friedrich Eckenfelder | ![]() |
11,193 + 1,218 = 12,411 | 1,551 | ... that German painter Friedrich Eckenfelder (self-portrait pictured) received an order from the Nazi headquarters to paint a portrait of Hitler? |
M&M Boys | ![]() |
10,928 + 1,117 = 12,045 | 1,506 | ... that the M&M Boys (pictured) hold the single-season Major League Baseball record for most combined home runs by teammates with 115? |
Mongolian shamanism yellow shamanism black shamanism Sagaan Ubgen ongon Dayan Deerh tngri |
![]() |
3,504 + 993 + 1,120 + 2,209 + 1,179 + 673 + 1,401 = 11,079 |
1,385 | ... that Mongolian shamanism (which comes in yellow and black) reveres a white old man (pictured) besides ongod such as Dayan Deerh and 99 or possibly 102 tngri? |
Heslington Brain | 9,501 + 1,343 = 10,844 | 1,355 | ... that a 2,600-year-old human brain, thought to be one of the oldest ever found, was discovered on the site of the University of York's new campus? | |
Great Northern War plague outbreak | ![]() |
10,505 | 1,313 | ... that a beak-shaped mask (pictured) did not save plague doctor Majus' life in the Great Northern War plague outbreak? |
Margarita Luti | ![]() |
9,303+955-1/3*(43+61)/2 = 10,240 | 1,280 | ... that Flaubert wrote of Raphael's mistress-model (pictured), "Fornarina. She was a beautiful woman. That is all you need to know"? |
Makoto Ogawa (pilot) | 9,840 | 1,230 | ... that among pilots of his air group, Japanese ace Makoto Ogawa downed the highest number of Boeing B-29 Superfortresses? | |
Archaeoindris | ![]() |
9,377 | 1,172 | ... that Archaeoindris (pictured), a recently extinct giant lemur from Madagascar, was the largest known lemur, comparable in size to a male gorilla? |
Robert L. Eichelberger | ![]() |
9,375 | 1,171 | ... that General Robert L. Eichelberger (pictured) was ordered to take Buna, or not come back alive? |
Speeches and debates of Ronald Reagan | 9,071 | ... that Time magazine ranked Ronald Reagan's speech (pictured) at the Berlin Wall in the top 10 greatest speeches? | ||
Thomas Dover | 8,950 (8,147 + 803) | ... that Doctor Quicksilver took a break from his lucrative medical career to sail the seas, capture ships, and raid South America? | ||
John Henry Pepper | 8,651 | ... that Professor Pepper could make ghosts appear but could not make it rain despite the use of swivel guns, rockets, and a land mine? | ||
Implosion of Radio Network House | ![]() |
8,513 | ... that the right to push the button for the implosion of Radio Network House (pictured) received the third-highest views ever on New Zealand auction website TradeMe? | |
Isaac B. Desha | 7,631 + 772 = 8,403 | 1,050 | ... that Isaac B. Desha was twice convicted of murder and sentenced to hang before being pardoned by his father, Kentucky Governor Joseph Desha? | |
Portrait of Anne Hathaway | 8,167 | ... that a purported portrait of Anne Hathaway, dated 1708, may be the only surviving depiction of her? | ||
2012 Kermadec Islands eruption and pumice raft | ![]() |
8,153 | 1,019 | ... that an undersea volcanic eruption (pictured) which produced a pumice raft covering approximately 10,000 square miles (26,000 km2), was not discovered until several weeks had passed? |
Samantha Reid (synchronized swimmer) | 7.918 | ... that 2012 Olympic synchronized swimmer Samantha Reid is a "Mermaid"? | ||
2000 Summer Olympics torch relay | 7,811 | ... that the Olympic Flame once burned at 2,000 degrees Celsius to ensure that it stayed alight under water? | ||
Apology (horse) | ![]() |
7,366 | 921 | ... that the mare Apology's (pictured) win in the St. Leger Stakes led to a scandal in the Church of England? |
Devilled kidneys | 7,269 | 908 | ... that devilled kidneys, a breakfast dish from the 19th century, are now being served as street food? | |
Loyn Bridge | 6,442 + 645 = 7,089 | 886 | ... that Loyn Bridge in Lancashire has been described as being surprisingly impressive for a route that has little significance nowadays? | |
Annie Martin | 7,063 | 882 | ... that prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics, Annie Martin (pictured) was the only active Canadian beach volleyballer who had competed at an Olympic Games? | |
NML Cygni | 7,266 - (437 + 464)/2 = 6,815* | 852 | ... that the red supergiant NML Cygni is the largest star currently known, at about 1,650 times the Sun's diameter? | |
Derek Derenalagi | 6,803 | 850 | ... that former soldier Derek Derenalagi was pronounced dead in 2007, but is slated to compete in the discus for Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Paralympics? | |
Equidissection | ![]() |
6,790 | 849 | ... that when a square is cut into triangles of equal area (pictured), the number of triangles is always even? |
Ralph Hanan | ![]() |
6,721 | 840 | ... that Ralph Hanan (pictured) abolished the death penalty in New Zealand by voting against the legislation that he himself introduced into Parliament? |
Tacoma Speedway | ![]() |
6,631 | ... that Tacoma Speedway (pictured) had a dangerous reputation among drivers because of flying gravel and splinters? | |
2012 Olympics gold post boxes in the United Kingdom | ![]() |
6,627 | 828 | ... that Royal Mail painted a post box gold (example pictured) to commemorate each gold medallist for Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics?? |
Okno-S | 5,354 + 1,011 = 6,365 | 796 | ... that it is not publicly known where exactly Okno-S is? | |
Kallima paralekta | ![]() |
5,589 + 762 = 6,351 | 794 | ... that the butterfly Kallima paralekta (pictured) is highly conspicuous in flight, but can instantly turn invisible upon landing? |
Félix Hernández's perfect game | ![]() |
5,615 + 1,005 - ((509 + 213) / 2) = 6,259 | 782 | ... that on August 15, 2012, Félix Hernández (pictured) threw the 23rd perfect game in Major League Baseball history? |
Auto polo | ![]() |
6,210 | 776 | ... that auto polo (pictured) was promoted by a Kansas car salesman to sell Model Ts? |
Eilish McColgan | 6,195 | 774 | ... ... that 2012 British Olympic steeplechaser Eilish McColgan is coached by her mother, Liz, a former world 10,000 metres champion? | |
Lendink | 5,386 + 721 = 6,107 | 763 | ... that after hundreds of legal threats, Lendink was shut down? | |
Twin Peaks (restaurant chain) | 6,078 | 760 | ... that Twin Peaks, a restaurant chain promising "scenic views" of scantily clad waitresses, was sued by Hooters for stealing trade secrets? | |
L. A. Ring | ![]() |
5,960 | ... that Danish painter L. A. Ring won the bronze medal at the 1900 World's Fair in Paris for his painting In the Garden Doorway, The Artists Wife (pictured)? | |
Sarah Attar | 5,952 * | 744 * | ... that California student Sarah Attar is one of Saudi Arabia's first female athletes at the Olympics, and is due to compete at the 2012 Games in an event she hasn't competed in since high school? | |
Menachem Cohen (scholar) | 5,089 + 826 = 5,915 | 739 | ... that 84-year-old Menachem Cohen has finished a 30-year quest to correct approximately 1,500 mistakes in the Old Testament? | |
Conroy Virtus | 5,819 | 727 | ... that the Conroy Virtus, intended to carry the Space Shuttle orbiter, would have used two B-52 bomber fuselages in its construction? | |
Harley-Davidson Model W | ![]() |
5,810 | 726 | ... that the flat-twin in the 1919–1923 Model W (pictured) was Harley-Davidson's first flathead engine? |
Ennis Archaeological Site | 5,242 + 500 = 5,742 | 718 | ... that more than 7,000 years of artifacts have been found at the Ennis Archaeological Site in Indiana? | |
Tilly Fleischer | ![]() |
5,623 | 702 | ... that at the 1936 Summer Olympics, Tilly Fleischer (pictured) became the first German woman to win a gold medal? |
Ottla Kafka | 5,499 | 687 | ... that Ottla Kafka, the youngest and dearest sister of Franz Kafka, died in the Holocaust because she divorced her Catholic husband? | |
MT explosive motorboat | 5,497 | 687 | ... that the pilot of the MT explosive motorboat was intended to deliberately jump overboard as part of his job? | |
Queenston Formation | ![]() |
5,391 | 674 | that the Queenston Formation (outcrop pictured) is used by the ceramic industry in the Canadian province of Ontario and for natural gas production in the U.S. state of New York? |
Fort Gates Ferry | 4,828 + 499 = 5,327 | 666 | ... that the Fort Gates Ferry has been featured in both a commercial with Paul Newman and in the "world's worst commute"? | |
Manganvesuvianite | ![]() |
5,147 | 643 | ... that while manganese-bearing vesuvianite has been studied since 1883, manganvesuvianite (pictured) was not described until 2002? |
Islamic Center of Murfreesboro | 4,485 + 610 = 5,095 | 637 | ... that opponents of the new mosque of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro tried to block its construction by arguing in court that Islam was not a religion? |
September 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Pleuni Touw De Stille Kracht (television series) |
![]() |
24,877 + 11,928 = 36,805 |
4,600 | ... that Pleuni Touw (pictured) had the first nude scene in Dutch television on 1974's The Hidden Force? |
Altes Stadthaus, Bonn | 26,812 | 3,251 | ... that the Altes Stadthaus in Bonn was built for French occupation forces after World War I? | |
The World's 100 Most Threatened Species | 18,354 + 2,592 = 20,946 | 2,618 | ... that The World's 100 Most Threatened Species includes one (pictured) with only five surviving mature individuals? | |
Alcatraz Gang | ![]() |
17,376 | 2,172 | ... that the Alcatraz Gang (member pictured) was a group of eleven American POWs singled out for extra harsh treatment by their North Vietnamese captors because of their fierce resistance to captivity? |
Jumbo Jet (Six Flags Great Adventure) Jumbo Jet (Morey's Piers) |
![]() |
8,484 + 8,408 = 16,892 |
2,112 | ... that of the two roller coasters in New Jersey named "Jumbo Jet"—one closed without a single rider, and another was sold for two rail cars of ketchup to a Soviet amusement park (pictured)? |
Prince Rupert's cube | ![]() |
16,586 | 2,073 | ... that Prince Rupert's cube, named for Prince Rupert of the Rhine, can pass through a square hole drilled into a smaller cube (pictured)? |
Oksana Masters | ![]() |
15,122 | 1,890 | ... that adaptive rower Oksana Masters (pictured) posed for ESPN The Magazine's "Body Issue" and won the first ever U.S. Paralympic medal in trunk and arms mixed double sculls? |
Jordan Anderson | ![]() |
13,905 | 1,738 | ... that when African-American former slave Jordan Anderson (pictured) was asked to come back and work for his old master, he replied with a deadpan letter asking for 52 years' back pay as proof of good faith? |
52-Hertz whale | 11,789 | 1,473 | ... that the 52-Hertz whale is known only by its unique sound (listen), the only one of its kind ever recorded, and has been called the loneliest whale in the world? | |
Black Hole of Baku | 10,688 | 1,336 | ... that in 1920, British Commander (and later Admiral of the Fleet) Bruce Fraser was imprisoned in the Black Hole of Baku? | |
Haesindang Park phallic architecture |
![]() |
5,537 + 4,460 = 10,097 | 1262 | ... that Haesindang Park, on the eastern coast of South Korea, is also known as "Penis Park", due to its statues representative of phallic architecture (pictured)? |
Chris Bond (wheelchair rugby) | ![]() |
9,864 | 1,233 | ... that 2012 Paralympian Chris Bond (pictured) is missing both legs below his knees, his left wrist and his right four fingers as a result of a severe infection from a flesh-eating disease? |
Ruisreikäleipä | ![]() |
9,860 | 1,232 | ... that ruisreikäleipä (pictured) is a Finnish rye hole loaf which was stored for all the Nordic winter's length and is still a main component of the Finnish diet? |
Duvensee paddle | ![]() |
8,346 + 843 = 9,189 | 1,148 | ... that the Duvensee paddle (pictured) on display at the Archaeological Museum Hamburg is the world's second oldest known paddle? |
Shrub (drink) | 8,994 | 1,124 | ... that serving shrubs has recently become a trend in bars across the United States, Canada, and London? | |
The Clink (restaurant) | 8,816 | 1,102 | ... that before entering The Clink restaurant, diners must hand over any mobile phones or sharp objects? | |
Operation Mardonius | 7,833 + 830 = 8,663 | 1,082 | ... that during Operation Mardonius in 1943 SOE agents used magnetic limpet mines (pictured) to sink ships at Oslo harbour? | |
The Fat Duck | ![]() |
8,349 | 1,044 | ... that Heston Blumenthal's restaurant The Fat Duck in Bray, England, serves dishes such as egg and bacon ice cream, and snail porridge (pictured)? |
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary Alcatraz Island |
3,388 + 4,294 = 7,682 | 960 | ... that before the Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary began operations in 1934 there was a citadel on Alcatraz Island? | |
Tomb of Bibi Jawindi | ![]() |
7,495 | 936 | ... that the Tomb of Bibi Jawindi (pictured) is considered the most ornate of the five monuments in Uch? |
Hydrophis donaldi | 7,833 + 830 = 7,213 | 901 | ... that the rough-scaled sea snake is highly venomous and every scale on its body is adorned with a spine? | |
Teen Age Message | ![]() |
7,186 | 898 | ... that the Teen Age Message was sent by Russian scientists from the Eupatoria radio telescope (pictured), and was humanity's first musical Active SETI broadcast? |
Karl Schneider (activist) | 7,122 | 890 | ... that in response to "Heil Hitler", Karl Schneider said he regretfully could not cure Adolf Hitler, as he was an ophthalmologist, not a neurologist? | |
Paramelaconite | ![]() |
7,002 | 875 | ... that when the mineral paramelaconite (pictured) was first described, it was not recognized as a valid species? |
Jim Bottomley | ![]() |
6,204 + 613 = 6,817 | 852 | ... that Jim Bottomley (pictured) set the Major League Baseball single-game record for runs batted in during the 1924 season, a record that still stands? |
Kevin Madden | 6,614 | 827 | ... ... that 2012 U.S. Presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign spokesman Kevin Madden was listed second of the "50 Most Beautiful" in Washington, D.C. in 2006, according to The Hill newspaper? | |
Siam during World War I | 6,442 | 805 | ... that Siam's token participation in World War I paved the way for the country's full independence? | |
Independence Pass (Colorado) | ![]() |
6,054 | 756 | ... that at 12,095 feet (3,687 m) in elevation, Colorado's Independence Pass (pictured) is the highest paved crossing of the Continental Divide in the United States? |
H2NO | 6,039 | 754 | ... that Olive Garden successfully participated in Coca-Cola's H2NO program, which sought to steer customers away from tap water in favor of buying soft drinks and bottled water? | |
Trogloraptor | ![]() |
5,814 | 726 | ... that the recently discovered Trogloraptor of Oregon is the namesake and sole member of an ancient family of cave-dwelling spiders with hook-like feet (pictured)? |
Tsankov Kamak dam | ![]() |
5,649 | 706 | ... that Tsankov Kamak dam (pictured) is the first double-curvature arch dam in cupola shape in Bulgaria? |
Faizrakhmanist | 5,600 | 700 | ... that the Faizrakhmanist sect, including 27 children, was discovered to be living underground in catacomb-like chambers in Kazan in Tatarstan? | |
Ascent of the A-Word: Assholism, the First Sixty Years | 5,548 | 693 | ... that in his new book Ascent of the A-Word: Assholism, the First Sixty Years, linguist Geoffrey Nunberg traces the origin of the insult "asshole" to the soldiers of World War II? | |
Larry O. Spencer | ![]() |
4,724 + 602 = 5,326 | 666 | ... that when he was a lieutenant colonel, General Larry O. Spencer (pictured) was the first Air Force officer to serve as assistant chief of staff at the White House Military Office? |
Ennis Archaeological Site | 5,242 | 655 | ... that more than 7,000 years of artifacts have been found at the Ennis Archaeological Site in Indiana? |
October 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Purdue University Reactor Number One | ![]() |
19,578 + 4403 = 23,981 | 2,998 | ... that Indiana's only nuclear reactor (pictured) has the energy output of a toaster? |
Téviec | ![]() |
19,929 | 2,491 | ... that the "Ladies of Téviec" (pictured) were murdered in the Stone Age, their bodies decorated with shell jewellery and buried in a midden under a roof of antlers? |
BunaB | 13,144 + 1,622 = 14,766 | 1,845 | ... that Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon both were given BunaBs? | |
Cecil Vandepeer Clarke | ![]() |
14,197 | 1,775 | ... that Cecil Vandepeer Clarke (pictured) invented military equipment including a limpet mine, an underground tank, a spigot gun, an exploding trouser sausage, and a rocket propelled bridge? |
Constance Stokes Girl in Red Tights |
3,051 + 10,045 = 13,096 | 1,637 | ... that Constance Stokes got the idea for her painting Girl in Red Tights when she walked in on a model who was getting undressed? | |
Bamburgh Sword | 13,040 | 1,630 | ... that the Anglo-Saxon Bamburgh Sword is thought to be unique due to the number of strands of iron used to create the blade? | |
Betelguese, a Trip Through Hell | 11,249 + 1,302 = 12,551 | 1,569 | ... that Colonel Roosevelt missed a trip through hell while on a trip to Africa? | |
Keret House | 12,519 - (240 + 582)/2 = 12,108 | 1,514 | ... that Keret House is the world's narrowest house? | |
Finnish transport vessel Wilhelm Carpelan | 6,406 + 4,853 = 11,259 | 1,407 | ... that Stephen Elop, the CEO of Nokia, was once told that the Wilhelm Carpelan, the small green vessel moored in front of the company's head office in Finland, was a "Motorola spy ship"? | |
Twinkle Toes | ![]() |
11,037 | 1,379 | ... that Twinkle Toes (pictured), used in Christchurch to demolish tall buildings following the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes, is the largest excavator in the Southern Hemisphere? |
Gladys Deacon | 11,013 | 1,377 | ... that the Duchess of Marlborough kept a revolver in her bedroom in Blenheim Palace to prevent her husband from entering? | |
Hassan II Mosque | File:The tallest minaret of the world (210m) - Hassan II Mosque.jpg | 9,694 + 1,660 - (279 + 473)/2 = 10,978 | 1,372 | ... that the minaret (pictured) of Hassan II Mosque, the world's tallest at 210 m (689 ft), is fitted at the top with an electronic laser directing rays towards Mecca? |
Caltech–MIT rivalry | ![]() |
10,893 | 1,362 | ... that a 1.7-ton, 130-year-old cannon (pictured) was stolen and transported 3000 miles from Pasadena to Cambridge as part of the Caltech–MIT rivalry? |
White Coke | 12,131 - (48 + 2,737)/2 = 10,738 | 1,343 | ... that when Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov ordered White Coke, President Truman quickly obliged? | |
Cortinarius iodes | ![]() |
10,347 | 1,294 | ... that kissing the spotted cort mushroom (pictured) may help in its identification? |
Ferdinand the Holy Prince | ![]() |
10,026 | 1,253 | ... that Prince Henry the Navigator handed over his brother Ferdinand the Holy Prince (pictured) as a hostage, and preferred to let him die in captivity rather than fulfill the treaty he had signed? |
Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal | 9,098 + 1,170 - (430 + 319)/2 = 9,893 | 1,237 | ... that the made-for-TV film Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal was inspired by the true story of five unruly high-school cheerleaders? | |
Operation Barras | 9,888 - (145 + 276)/2 = 9,677 | 1,210 | ... that, during preparations for Operation Barras, soldiers trained on a scale model of the village they were to assault? | |
One Day in History | ![]() |
9,640 | 1,205 | ... that the British Library (pictured) has records of what 46,000 people did on 17 October 2006? |
Bagel head | 9,792 - (87 + 307)/2 = 9,595 | 1,199 | ... that the bagel head is a type of extreme body modification? | |
Gamleborg | ![]() |
8,432 | 1,054 | ... that Gamleborg (fortress ruins pictured) represents Bornholm's oldest defence works? |
Mail bag Mail pouch Mail sack Mail satchel Catcher pouch Pony Express mochila Portmanteau (mail) |
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1,670 + 655 + 569 + 882 + 847 + 1,557 + 2,210 = 8,390 | 1,049 | ... that throughout U.S. history, different types of mail bags have been called mail pouch, mail sack, mail satchel, catcher pouch, mochila saddle mailbag (pictured), and portmanteau depending on form, function, place and time? |
Chedipe | 8,229 | 1,027 | ... that vampire prostitutes are believed to enter a man's house naked in the night and suck his blood through his toes? | |
J. Edgar Hoover Building | ![]() |
8,173 | 1,021 | ... that the J. Edgar Hoover Building (pictured), the FBI's headquarters since the 1970s, is now "aging" and "deteriorating", and the FBI is considering renovating it or having a new headquarters built elsewhere? |
View of the World from 9th Avenue | 8,071 | 1,009 | ... that Saul Steinberg's famous New Yorker cover, View of the World from 9th Avenue, was named the fourth greatest magazine cover in a 40-year survey? | |
Royal Palace of Ugarit | ![]() |
7,933 | 992 | ... that the Royal Palace (gate pictured) of ancient Ugarit in Syria had fortification walls whose base sloped outward 45 degrees? |
Death of June Anne Devaney | 7,825 | 978 | ... that police fingerprinted over 45,000 men to find the killer of June Anne Devaney, the first time mass fingerprinting had been used to solve a crime? | |
Montebello Genocide Memorial | ![]() |
6,965 + 789 = 7,754 | 969 | ... that the Montebello Genocide Memorial (pictured) was opened in 1968 and is the largest Armenian Genocide memorial in the United States? |
September 2012 Camp Bastion raid | 6,615 + 1,070 = 7,685 | 961 | ... that the September 2012 Camp Bastion raid was described as the worst loss of U.S. air-power in a single incident since the Vietnam War? | |
Brow Monument and Brow Monument Trail | ![]() |
7,663 | 958 | ... that Brow Monument and Brow Monument Trail (geo disc pictured) still has a survey marker placed by John Wesley Powell in 1872? |
U 47 – Kapitänleutnant Prien | 6,711 + 833 = 7,544 | 943 | ... that the German war film U 47 – Kapitänleutnant Prien portrayed the combat career of the U-boat captain Günther Prien, commander of German submarine U-47? | |
Hairstyles in the 1950s | ![]() |
6,682 | 835 | ... that "short bangs" was a very popular hairstyle in the 1950s, favored by women such as First Lady Mamie Eisenhower (pictured)? |
Ramped Cargo Lighter | 5,602 + 950 = 6,552 | 819 | ... that although the Ramped Cargo Lighter was used extensively in World War II, afterwards many were surplus to requirements and sunk by their own side? | |
Rogelio Bernal Andreo | ![]() |
6,526 | 816 | ... that Rogelio Bernal Andreo was the first amateur astronomer to win the Discover Bad Astronomy image of the year with his image "Orion, from Head to Toe" (pictured)? |
Doubleday myth | 5,719 + 631 = 6,350 | 794 | ... that Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig has expressed support for the Doubleday myth, which states that American Civil War officer Abner Doubleday invented baseball? | |
Pono (audio format) | 5,484 + 852 = 6,336 | 792 | ... that Neil Young's new audio format takes its name from the Hawaiian word for righteousness? | |
Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park, monuments, Bawaman, Jama, Kevada, Lila Gumbaj, Nagina, Kalika Mata Temple, Pavagadh Hill | 402+ 598+ 354+ 257+ 207+ 806+ 426+ 204+ 2,982= 6,236 | 779 | ... that the Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park contains dozens of monuments, including the Bawaman, Jama (pictured), Kevada, Lila Gumbaj, and Nagina mosques, as well as the Kalika Mata Temple atop Pavagadh Hill? | |
Vignoles Bridge Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Coventry |
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3,771 + 2,343 = 6,114 | 764 | ... that Vignoles Bridge (pictured), one of the 10 Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Coventry, originally spanned the Oxford Canal before being moved to its current location over the River Sherbourne in 1969? |
Statue of Ebih-Il | ![]() |
6,102 | 763 | ... that the lapis lazuli inlays used in the 25th-century BC Statue of Ebih-Il (pictured), discovered in ancient Mari in Syria, were imported from as far east as Afghanistan? |
Islam: The Untold Story | 5,316 + 803 - (128 + 111)/2 = 5,999 | 750 | ... that Channel 4 cancelled a public screening of Islam: The Untold Story because of security concerns? | |
Berlin Victory Parade of 1945 New York City Victory Parade of 1946 |
3,798 + 2,183 = 5,981 | 748 | ... that the 82nd Airborne Division participated in two end-of-World War II victory parades, the Berlin Victory Parade of 1945 and the New York City Victory Parade of 1946? | |
Skyfall (song) | 5,951 | 743 | ... that Adele's theme for the James Bond film Skyfall went to number one in the UK's iTunes online store less than ten hours after it was released? | |
Mah Laqa Bai | ![]() |
5,924 | 741 | ... that the two-centuries-old tomb of Mah Laqa Bai (pictured), a Nizam-era Urdu poetess and courtesan, was renovated in 2011 using funds from the Consulate General of the United States in Hyderabad? |
Saccharum officinarum Saccharum barberi Saccharum edule |
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2,800 + 963 + 2,057 = 5,820 | 728 | ... that sugar is extracted from the stems of Saccharum officinarum (pictured) and Saccharum barberi, but it is the flower heads of Saccharum edule that are eaten? |
Hopi time controversy | 5,112 + 689 = 5,801 | 725 | ... that the linguist Ekkehart Malotki refuted the common myth that the Hopi have no concept of time? | |
Fuck Off (song) | 5,779 - (11 + 58)/2 = 5,744 | 718 | ... that The Backstreet Boys had a song called "Fuck Off"? | |
Seaview SVII | ![]() |
5,779 - (34 + 61)/2 = 5,731 | 716 | ... that the camera used to create Google Street View images (example pictured) of the Great Barrier Reef is controlled by a Samsung Galaxy Tab? |
Wojciech Stattler | ![]() |
5,203 + 524 = 5,727 | 716 | ... that Wojciech Stattler (pictured) introduced live model studies as well as nude art models to the School of Fine Arts in Kraków? |
Khalid Nabi Cemetery | 5,689 | 711 | ... that Khalid Nabi Cemetery in Iran is a notable example of phallic architecture and a major tourist attraction? | |
Churel | 5,605 | 701 | ... that women who die in childbirth or pregnancy are believed to return as undead vampires and suck blood of their male relatives? | |
Louden Machinery Company | 5,600 | ... that Louden Machinery Co. designed more than 25,000 barns (catalog pictured) as well as monorail devices used in manufacturing the first atomic bomb and at a B-29 bomber plant? | ||
Chao Mae Tuptim | 5,587 | 698 | ... that Chao Mae Tuptim in Bangkok is a site crammed full of wooden circumcised penis statues which are said to endow good fortune and fertility on anybody coming into contact with them? | |
Loring Air Force Base Double Cantilever Hangar | 5,573 | 696 | ... that the Loring Air Force Base Double Cantilever Hangar was capable of storing five B-36 Peacemaker or six B-52 Stratofortress aircraft? | |
Hsiao Li Lindsay, Baroness Lindsay of Birker | 5,521 | 690 | ... that Lady Lindsay of Birker, the first Chinese-born peeress, smuggled supplies and taught English to communist guerrillas fighting the Japanese occupation? | |
Capture of Bacharach | ![]() |
5,515 | 689 | ... that the German town of Bacharach was captured by Spanish forces led by Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba (pictured) on this day in 1620? |
HMS Shannon (1906) | 5,510 | 689 | ... that the crew of the armoured cruiser HMS Shannon attempted to rescue survivors from HMS Natal after Natal's magazines exploded on 30 December 1915? | |
Blessed sword and hat | 4,683 + 820 = 5,503 | 688 | ... that popes awarded blessed swords and hats to defenders of Christendom, including at least 12 emperors, 10 kings of France, 7 kings of Poland, 6 kings of Spain, and the nation of Switzerland? | |
Market Gate of Miletus | 4,895 + 572 = 5,467 | 683 | ... that the Market Gate of Miletus was damaged from above and destroyed from below? | |
C/2012 S1 | 9,152 - (5,185 + 2,231)/2 = 5,444 | 681 | ... that when the newly discovered comet C/2012 S1 reaches its perihelion on 28 November 2013, it may appear brighter than the full moon? | |
Gyromitra caroliniana | 5,365 | 671 | ... that Carolina false morels should not be eaten because they may contain a compound that, when digested, breaks down into a rocket fuel propellant? | |
Hericium abietis | ![]() |
4,577 + 768 = 5,345 | 668 | ... that the edible bear's head fungus (pictured) once grew to a mass of about 100 lb (45 kg)? |
Achilles on Skyros | ![]() |
4,816 + 500 = 5,316 | 665 | ... that the Classical story of Achilles on Skyros was the basis for a lost play by Euripides, a painting (pictured) by Nicolas Poussin, and operas by Domenico Scarlatti and George Frideric Handel? |
Ramaria araiospora Ramaria rasilispora Clavulinopsis umbrinella Tremellodendropsis tuberosa Ramaria stricta Ramaria abietina Ramaria fennica Ramaria acrisiccescens |
326 + 253 + 228 + 307 + 340 + 468 + 473 + 2,874 = 5,269 | 659 | ... that coral fungi can be red, yellow, beige, ashen, upright, green-staining, bitter, or blah? | |
Jacob the Liar (1975 film) | 4,642 + 431 = 5,073 | 634 | ... that Jacob the Liar was the first East German film to be entered into the Berlin International Film Festival and the only one to win a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film? | |
St Albans Hoard | 5,005 | 626 | ... that the St Albans Hoard, one of the largest hoards of Roman gold coins ever found in Britain, was discovered by a man using his new metal detector for the first time? | |
SMS Niobe (1849) | ![]() |
4,431 + 571 = 5,002 | 625 | ... that the figurehead of the German wooden frigate SMS Niobe (pictured) survives in the Naval Academy at Mürwik? |
November 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Door to Hell | ![]() |
26,298 | 3,287 | ... that the Door to Hell (pictured) has been blazing since 1971? |
Loring Air Force Base Alert crew Mole hole Christmas tree (aviation) Loring Air Force Base Alert Area Elephant walk (aviation) Minimum Interval Takeoff |
4,153 + 1,571 + 5,169 + 3,942 + 750 + 5,779 + 3,133 = 24,497 | 3,062 | ... that Loring AFB alert crews would scramble from a mole hole, run to awaiting jets on a christmas tree (both within the alert area), and perform an elephant walk and a MITO, all within fifteen minutes? | |
Tauredunum event | ![]() |
20,952 | 2,619 | ... that Geneva in Switzerland (pictured) was devastated by a tsunami despite being 275 km (171 mi) from the sea, and may still be at risk? |
Maria Bal | ![]() |
17,008 + 2,163 = 19,171 | ... that baroness Maria Bal (Angel of Death, pictured) served as the live model for a series of symbolic portraits of women as well as nude studies and mythological beings by Jacek Malczewski? | |
John Harvard statue | ![]() |
15,314 + 1,922 = 17,236 | 2,155 | ... that the John Harvard statue (pictured) at Harvard University is not of John Harvard? |
MTB 345 | 14,168 + 1,576 = 15,744 | 1,989 | ... that the Norwegian-British crew of MTB 345 were tortured and executed as a result of Adolf Hitler's Commando Order? | |
Great Colonnade at Apamea | ![]() |
13,928 + 1,381 = 15,309 | 1,914 | ... that the porticoes of the Great Colonnade at Apamea (pictured) were paved with mosaics along the full 2-kilometre (1.2 mi) stretch of the avenue? |
Yang Kyoungjong | 14,752 | 1,844 | ... that Yang Kyoungjong was a Korean soldier who was drafted into the Japanese, Soviet and German armies, and captured by US soldiers in Normandy on D-Day? | |
Parable of the sunfish | 13,821 | 1,728 | ... that Ezra Pound believed that no man is equipped for modern thinking until he has understood the "Parable of the sunfish"? | |
Apollo 11 and Apollo 17 lunar sample displays | ![]() |
3,987 + 898 + 1,333 + 453 + 572 + 225 + 167 + 558 + 217 + 389 + 219 + 227 + 262 + 197 + 306 + 200 + 127 + 179 + 166 + 184 + 914 + 147 + 156 + 136 + 190 + 163 + 209 + 142 + 167 + 257 = 13,347 | 2,225 | ... that samples of moon rock and lunar dust soil from the Apollo 11 and Apollo 17 missions, mounted on wooden plaque displays especially for Brazil, Canada, Cyprus, Honduras, Ireland, Malta, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Romania, Spain, and Sweden, plus the states of Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii (pictured), Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, and West Virginia, were later reported missing by many of the recipients? |
Charles V Wall | ![]() |
12,879 | 1,610 | ... that the Charles V Wall (pictured) was built by Spain to keep the Barbary pirates out of Gibraltar, but ended up being used by the British to keep the Spanish out? |
Anna Schäffer | ![]() |
13,011 - (111 + 179)/2 = 12,866 | 1,608 | ... that over 15,000 miracles have been attributed to the newly canonized Saint Anna Schäffer (pictured) since 1929? |
Civil Rights Congress Martinsville Seven Second inauguration of Harry S. Truman We Charge Genocide |
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(1,968 + 290) + (4,151 + 437) + (789 + 139) + (4,279 + 364) = 12,417 | 1,552 | ... that an American civil rights group ran campaigns for Black prisoners (example pictured), told the world about the Martinsville Seven, protested a presidential inauguration, and accused the US of genocide at the UN? |
Operation Bertram | ![]() |
12,363 | 1,545 | ... that Operation Bertram deceived Rommel about the timing and location of the El Alamein attack, using camouflage (pictured) and dummies? |
Glasgow effect | 12,276 | 1,535 | ... that the mysterious Glasgow effect refers to the low life expectancy of Glaswegians, which epidemiologists say deprivation alone does not explain? | |
Eagle eyes | ![]() |
9,649 + 3,573 - (1,048 + 866)/2 = 12,265 | 1,533 | ... that colour vision with resolution and clarity are the most prominent features of eagles' eyes (pictured), and hence the epithet given to sharp-sighted people is "eagle-eyed”? |
Pyramid Mound | ![]() |
12,045 | 1,506 | ... that Pyramid Mound (pictured) in the U.S. state of Indiana really isn't a mound? |
Mo Sanders | 10,700 + 1,269 = 11,969 | 1,496 | ... that Quadzilla can leap fourteen people in a single bound? | |
Naylor TF 1700 | ![]() |
10,047 + 1,217 = 11,264 | 1,408 | ... that Margaret Thatcher allowed herself to be photographed driving a Naylor TF 1700 (pictured) sports car as part of an effort to boost small British manufacturers? |
The dog ate my homework | 9,732 + 1,267 = 10,999 | 1,375 | ... that the earliest known variant of "The dog ate my homework" as an excuse dates to 1905? | |
North Preston's Finest | 9,179 + 1,802 = 10,981 | 1,372 | ... that North Preston's Finest is a gang of pimps based just northeast of Metropolitan Halifax in Nova Scotia, Canada? | |
Naraka (Hinduism) | ![]() |
10,741 | 1,330 | ... that as per Hindu beliefs, people who have sex with animals are tortured in Hell after death (pictured)? |
Great Colonnade at Palmyra | 9,093 + 1,075 = 10,168 | 1,271 | ... that the three sections of the Great Colonnade at Palmyra in Syria were connected by a tetrapylon (pictured) and a monumental arch? | |
Cam Newton (safety) | 9,420 + 740 = 10,160 | 1,270 | ... that someone named Cam Newton has retired after just two seasons in the NFL? | |
Ocean Tower | 9,907 | 1,238 | ... that the unfinished Ocean Tower was the tallest reinforced concrete structure to be imploded? | |
Ellen Southard | ![]() |
8,870 + 887 = 9,757 | 1,220 | ... that the loss of the full-rigged ship Ellen Southard (ship's wreckage pictured) off Liverpool in 1875 led to a change in U.S. law permitting the awarding of Lifesaving Medals to non-Americans? |
Gibraltar 2 | 7,799 + 1,418 = 9,217 | 1,152 | ... that the Gibraltar 2 skull (pictured), found in 1926, is that of a four-year-old Neanderthal girl dubbed the Devil's Tower Child? | |
History of Marrakesh | 8,006 + 1,084 = 9,090 | 1,136 | ... that Marrakesh was founded because homesick Saharan warriors did not like living in cities? | |
Florida v. Jardines Florida v. Harris |
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5,610 + 3,181 = 8,791 | 1,099 | ... that 28 U.S. states have asked the Supreme Court to allow police dogs (example pictured) to sniff at the front door of any house – without a search warrant or probable cause – despite assertions of unreliability? |
Delhi Bridge Bell Road Bridge |
4,415 + 4,159 = 8,574 | 1,072 | ... that the Delhi Bridge is open to traffic even though it was destroyed by a tornado, whereas the Bell Road Bridge was hit by a drunk driver and is sitting on an overgrown river bank? | |
Princess Royal's Battery | 7,398 + 937 = 8,335 | 1,042 | ... that Spain attempted to silence Princess Royal's Battery during the 1727 siege by excavating a mine below it, to be loaded with explosives? | |
Knifefish (robot) | 8,084 | 1,011 | ... that the Knifefish robot is intended to replace the U.S. Navy's trained minesweeping dolphins? | |
Yumiko Hotta | 7,985 | 958 | ... that Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist Yumiko Hotta (pictured) has won the WWWA World Championship three times? | |
Spectropia | 7,922 | 980 | ... that reading Spectropia will cause the reader to see spectres floating on the wall? | |
O'Hara's Battery | 7,818 | 977 | ... that the 9.2 inch naval gun at O'Hara's Battery, Gibraltar, was capable of firing shells from Europe to Africa? | |
Mike Redmond | ![]() |
5,911 + 1,712 = 7,623 | 953 | ... that new Miami Marlins manager Mike Redmond (pictured) took batting practice wearing only batting gloves, socks, and shoes when his team fell into a slump in 2003? |
Year of Africa | ![]() |
6,453 + 1,136 = 7,589 | 959 | ... that during the tumultuous Year of Africa, seventeen countries gained independence, South Africans began armed resistance to apartheid, and Patrice Lumumba (pictured) gained and lost his freedom? |
Indre Viskontas | ![]() |
7,568 | 946 | ... that San Francisco Conservatory of Music faculty member Indre Viskontas (pictured) has performed research into the neurological basis of memory, reasoning, and self-identity? |
Alcohol enema | 7,564 | 946 | ... that an alcoholic Texas man, who had difficulty ingesting alcohol due to a painful throat ailment, died in 2004 after receiving an alcohol enema of two large bottles of sherry from his wife? | |
Ya`fūr | ![]() |
7,439 | 930 | ... that according to an Islamic tradition regarded as fabricated, Ya`fūr was a talking donkey owned by the Prophet Muhammad that was descended from Jesus's donkey (pictured)? |
Zenbook | 6,410 + 835 = 7,245 | 915 | ... that the concentric circles on the lid of a Zenbook are designed to look like ripples in water? | |
Ninth Siege of Gibraltar | 7,304 | 913 | ... that by the end of the Ninth Siege of Gibraltar the defending soldiers had resorted to eating leather from their garments and plants growing on the garrison walls? | |
Martin Luther King, Jr., Records Collection Act | 6,323 + 881 = 7,204 | 901 | ... that Cynthia McKinney, John Kerry, and Hillary Clinton tried to release sealed FBI files on the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.? | |
Chief Little Raven | ![]() |
6,219 + 837 = 7,156 | 895 | ... that Little Raven (pictured), a principal chief of the Southern Arapaho Indians, learned to smoke cigars and eat meat with utensils while he lived in Denver with white people? |
Technologies in 2001: A Space Odyssey | 5,937 + 801 = 6,738 | 842 | ... that over fifty organizations helped director Stanley Kubrick to imagine the technologies in 2001: A Space Odyssey? | |
Chonga | 6,712 | 839 | ... that the Chonga has become a Miami icon, influencing fashion in South Florida and beyond? | |
Beatrice Kerr | ![]() |
6,682 | 835 | ... that while performing as "Australia's Champion Lady Swimmer and Diver", Beatrice Kerr (pictured) saved two Blackpool boys from drowning? |
Court Street Bridge (Hackensack River) | 5,964 + 716 = 6,680 | 835 | ... that the USS Ling, a World War II submarine, is trapped in silt just upstream of the Court Street Bridge? | |
Balamku | ![]() |
5,926 + 687 = 6,613 | 827 | ... that the Maya city of Balamku in Mexico features an almost intact 16.8-metre (55 ft) long decorated frieze (pictured) first uncovered by looters? |
Sokol Eshelon | 6,540 | 818 | ... that the Russians are developing an airborne anti-satellite weapon called Sokol Eshelon? | |
Nero (yacht) | 6,314 | 789 | ... that a whole new shipbuilding facility had to be created to build the 90-metre (300 ft) luxury yacht Nero? | |
Strange Fruit (novel) | 6,283 | 785 | ... that the ban on mailing Lillian Smith's Strange Fruit within the United States was repealed upon a request from the First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt? | |
The Boogie Man Will Get You | 6,270 | 784 | ... that a publicity campaign for The Boogie Man Will Get You had to be abandoned because film critics preferred the antagonists in Disney films? | |
2016: Obama's America | 8,856 - (2,559 + 2,705)/2 = 6,224 | 803 | ... that 2016: Obama's America, the fourth-highest-grossing U.S. documentary of the past 30 years, was initially released in only one theater? | |
Moorish Gibraltar | 5,553 + 690 = 6,243 | 780 | ... that Moorish Gibraltar was known as the City of Victory and lasted for over 725 years, far longer than Spanish or British Gibraltar? | |
Ramnagar Fort | ![]() |
6,206 | 775 | ... that the museum within Ramnagar Fort (pictured) was at one time a Durbar Hall? |
Grain entrapment | 6,163 | 770 | ... that while rescuers freeing people trapped in grain run the risk of heat illness, the victim may suffer from hypothermia due to moisture in the grain? | |
Diego de Guevara | ![]() |
6,070 | 759 | ... that Diego de Guevara (pictured) is said to have thrown himself over the dead body of his master Charles the Bold to protect it on the battlefield? |
Virginia and Truckee Railway Motor Car 22 | ![]() |
4,673 + 1,349 = 6,022 | 777 | ... that after it was retired in 1945, Virginia and Truckee Railway Motor Car 22 (pictured) was a diner and office space until 1995? |
Ghost Ship of Northumberland Strait | 5,933 | 742 | ... that sightings of the Ghost Ship of Northumberland Strait are most common between September and November? | |
German Turfan expeditions | ![]() |
5,921 | 844 | ... that the finds of the four expeditions, packed and carted to Germany initially, were murals, other artifacts (pictured a fresco of Buddhist Monks) and about 40,000 pieces of texts? |
Volubilis | ![]() |
5,762 | 720 | ... that the ancient Roman city of Volubilis (Basilica pictured) in Morocco was excavated by thousands of German prisoners of war during World War I? |
Why Die for Danzig? | 5,024 + 651 = 5,675 | 709 | ... that the French author of the World War II anti-war slogan Why Die for Danzig?, Marcel Déat, later became a Nazi collaborator? | |
The Tower of Blue Horses | ![]() |
5,413 | 677 | ... that the inclusion of Franz Marc's Expressionist oil painting The Tower of Blue Horses (pictured) in the Degenerate Art exhibition in Munich in 1937 instigated protests from German war veterans? |
Hetty Blok | ![]() |
4,816 + 573 = 5,389 | 674 | ... that Dutch singer and actress Hetty Blok (pictured), best known as nurse Klivia on the TV show Ja zuster, nee zuster (1966–68), sang the theme song on television again in 2010, at age 90? |
Baal with Thunderbolt | 5,385 | 673 | ... that the second-millennium-BC stele of Baal with Thunderbolt shows the king of Ugarit receiving divine protection from the Semitic god of storm Baʿal? | |
Anodontia philippiana Anodontia alba |
4,481 + 2,016 = 6,497 | 812 | ... that the chalky buttercup and the buttercup lucine resemble each other but can be told apart by their scars? | |
Matrix mixer | ![]() |
4,680 + 637 = 5,317 | 665 | ... that a matrix mixer (example pictured) may be used during a concert to stream a different blend of sound to distant audiences? |
Red Onion State Prison | 4,616 + 632 = 5,248 | 656 | ... that Red Onion State Prison helped to triple the Black population of Wise County, Virginia? | |
Double Falcon | 5,241 | 655 | ... that the first serekh of king Double Falcon was discovered by a peasant planting a palm grove? | |
Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations | ![]() |
4,429 + 769 = 5,198 | 650 | ... that in the Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations (pictured), names of the Holocaust rescuers are engraved on Walls of Honor according to country? |
Martha Bruce, Countess of Elgin and Kincardine | ![]() |
5,152 | 644 | ... that King George III placed the "deeply-deplored" Princess Charlotte of Wales under the superintendence of the pious Martha Elgin (pictured)? |
Würzburger Stein | 5,126 | 641 | ... that a 1540 bottle of wine from Würzburger Stein may have been the oldest wine ever tasted and that an unopened bottle of the wine still exists? | |
Pro-Life (politician) | 4,093 + 1,031 = 5,124 | 641 | ... that Idaho politician Marvin Richardson had his name legally changed to Pro-Life? | |
Poultry feed | 5,026 | 628 | ... that chickens are fed with tiny rocks? |
December 2012
[edit]- Note: "Views / hour" = "DYK views" divided by the number of hours on the Main page (6, 8 or 12)
Article | Image | DYK views | Views / hour | DYK hook |
---|---|---|---|---|
Imperial German plans for the invasion of the United States | ![]() |
27,118 + 399 = 27,517 | 2,293 | ... that Kaiser Wilhelm II (pictured) ordered plans drawn up for Germany to invade two US cities: Boston and New York? |
Vincent Mroz | 20,846 + 2,264 = 23,110 | 2,889 | ... that United States Secret Service agent Vincent Mroz shot an attempted presidential assassin in the "biggest gunfight in Secret Service history"? | |
Ford assassination attempt in Sacramento | 14,111 + 5,860 = 19,971 | 2,496 | ... that Squeaky Fromme's pistol (pictured), used in the first assassination attempt on US President Ford, is on display at the Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan? | |
Battle of Sidi Bou Othman | ![]() |
17,348 + 1,893 = 19,241 | 2,405 | ... that in the Battle of Sidi Bou Othman, French Army Colonel Mangin (pictured) formed his 5,000 troops into a single large square with the artillery units placed at the center of the infantry formations? |
Momoka Ariyasu | ![]() |
16,924 | 1,410 | ... that though Japanese girl group Momoiro Clover Z member Momoka Ariyasu (pictured) claims to be stupid, other members say she is very studious, even studying backstage? |
Hermann Hogeback | 14,668 + 1,145 = 15,813 | 1,318 | ... that Hermann Hogeback's entire bomber crew was decorated with the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II, a unique distinction in the Luftwaffe? | |
HMS Minotaur (1906) | ![]() |
14,495 | 1,812 | ... the British armoured cruiser Minotaur (pictured) never fired her main or secondary armament during the Battle of Jutland in 1916? |
Riin Tamm | ![]() |
12,464 + 1,551 = 14,015 | 1,168 | ... that in 2011, geneticist Riin Tamm (pictured) was chosen as one of 26 scientists to travel around Estonia and take part in events at schools and academic institutions? |
The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing | ![]() |
12,787 | 1,429 | ... that in the video game The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing, monsters (one pictured) have taken over, and Abraham Van Helsing's son must fight them? |
Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center | ![]() |
12,565 - (97 + 200)/2 = 12,417 | 1,552 | ... that New York City's Department of Correction has used boats as prisons on at least five occasions including the Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center (pictured)? |
Monastery of the Holy Trinity, Meteora | ![]() |
11,850 | 988 | ... that the Monastery of the Holy Trinity, Meteora (pictured) in Greece was featured in the 1981 James Bond film, For Your Eyes Only? |
Azygocypridina lowryi | 9,953 + 1,470 = 11,423 | 1,428 | ... that baked beans have hairy eyes and iridescent antennae? | |
The 1975 | 10,608 | 884 | ... that The 1975 became popular because of Sex? | |
Giacomo Bove | ![]() |
9,083 + 964 = 10,047 | 1,256 | ... that Giacomo Bove (pictured) was icebound in the Arctic Ocean, shipwrecked off Tierra del Fuego and fever-stricken on the Congo River? |
Les Twins | ![]() |
(9,733 + 1,831) - (1,046 + 1,091)/2 = 10,495 | 875 | ... that according to WAD Magazine, identical twin brothers Larry and Laurent Bourgeois of the French dance duo Les Twins (pictured) started walking at five months old? |
Kharkhorin Rock | 9,868 | 822 | ... that Erdene Zuu Monastery in Mongolia has a 24-inch penis? | |
Kippinge Church | 8,249 + 617 = 8,866 | 739 | ... that three alleged miracles drew pilgrims to Kippinge Church (pictured)? | |
1953 British Mount Everest Expedition | ![]() |
7,913 + 849 = 8,762 | 730 | ... that news of the conquest of Everest by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay (pictured) came to the outside world by a runner bearing a coded message? |
William Jennens | 7,775 + 761 = 8,536 | 711 | ... that the fortune of England's richest commoner, William the Miser, was lost in lawyers' fees in 117 years of litigation over his estate? | |
Willie Eckstein | 8,483 | 1,060 | ... that Mr. Fingers was not allowed to go to war because he was under five feet tall? | |
Benstonite | ![]() |
8,477 + 730 = 9,207 | 767 | ... that the first specimens of benstonite (mineral pictured) were collected on New Year's Eve, 1954? |
USCGC Smilax (WLIC-315) | 8,401 | 700 | ... that the USCGC Smilax (WLIC-315), a 100-foot inland construction tender, is the current "Queen of the Fleet" of the United States Coast Guard? | |
Edda Göring | (7,308 + 1,060) - (190 + 179)/2 = 8,183 | 682 | ... that Edda Goering played in a fifty-metre-long replica of Frederick the Great's Sanssouci palace, built for her by the Luftwaffe in an orchard at Carinhall? | |
Camberley Obelisk | ![]() |
7,822 | 978 | ... that the 18th-century Camberley Obelisk (pictured) may have been built by John Norris to communicate by heliograph with Sir Francis Dashwood at West Wycombe church, about 20 miles (32 km) away? |
1950s American automobile culture | ![]() |
7,856 - (294 + 175)/2 = 7,622 | 953 | ... that the 1950s American automobile culture (tail fin pictured) led to the McDonald's double arch sign and suburbia? |
Ernst Hechler | 7,610 + 639 = 8,249 | 687 | ... that Ernst Hechler, a bomber pilot during World War II, was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross as a U-boat commander? | |
Dutton Horse Bridge | ![]() |
7,552 | 974 | ... that Dutton Horse Bridge (pictured) on the River Weaver in Cheshire is one of the earliest surviving laminated timber structures? |
Banksia dentata | ![]() |
6,500 + 792 = 7,292 | 912 | ... that local aborigines would squat over burning cones of Banksia dentata (pictured) to treat diarrhea? |
Vegar Eggen Hedenstad | ![]() |
6,274 + 998 = 7,272 | 909 | ... that at the age of 14, Norwegian footballer Vegar Eggen Hedenstad (pictured) became the youngest-ever senior player at Elverum Fotball? |
Mōretsu Uchū Kōkyōkyoku Dai 7 Gakushō "Mugen no Ai" | 7,087 | 914 | ... that Marty Friedman left Megadeth only to get mixed up with bodacious space pirates? | |
Promontory forts of Cornwall | 7,017 | 585 | ... that defence may not have been the primary function of Cornwall's cliff castles? | |
Goodman Beaver | 6,044 + 960 = 7,004 | 876 | ... that a 1961 comics satire involving Archie characters in a hedonistic Roman-style orgy provoked a lawsuit by Archie Comics that resulted in the parody's creators handing over copyright to the work? | |
Beaver Dam Railroad | ![]() |
6,960 | 870 | ... that a tunnel (pictured) constructed in 1901 by the Beaver Dam Railroad of Tennessee was originally too low for trains to pass through? |
Debden incinerator robberies | 6,325 + 598 = 6,923 | 577 | ... that an employee of the Bank of England's incinerator plant in Debden helped to steal more than £600,000 over four years by stuffing banknotes into her underwear? | |
Riki Ott | ![]() |
6,839 | 570 | ... that a few years after earning two degrees in marine toxicology, Riki Ott (pictured) became unexpectedly involved with the Exxon Valdez oil spill? |
Christmas pickle | 9,699 - (3,028 + 2,728)/2 = 6,821 | 568 | ... that despite the belief that the Christmas pickle tradition originated in Germany, it is generally unknown there? | |
A Kitten for Hitler | 6,799 | 567 | ... that director Ken Russell created the Christmas themed A Kitten for Hitler after being challenged by Melvyn Bragg to make a film Russell himself would want to ban? | |
María Isabella Cordero | 6,044 + 464 = 6,508 | 542 | ... that María Isabella Cordero, a former Mexican anchorwoman on Televisa, was killed in Mexico's most violent state in 2010? | |
Philippeioi | ![]() |
6,034 + 465 = 6,499 | 542 | ... that on some Celtic imitations of the Kingdom of Macedonia's gold philippeioi (pictured), the chariot on the reverse side was replaced by a single horse sporting a humanoid head? |
Jasmine Tookes | 6,449 - (137 + 260)/2 = 6,250 | 521 | ... that when Oprah Winfrey saw American model Jasmine Tookes perform on the runway at Lincoln Center, she extolled Tookes' "butter" soft skin and requested that Tookes "rub your face against mine"? | |
Philip Slier | 5,381 + 614 = 5,995 | 749 | ... that much like Anne Frank's diary, the letters of Philip Slier, discovered more than fifty years after his death, reveal the history of Nazi-controlled Netherlands through a personal perspective? | |
Patrick Omameh | ![]() |
5,312 + 659 = 5,971 | 746 | ... that Patrick Omameh (pictured) began his Michigan football career as the lowest-rated player of 24 in the incoming class of 2008 and finished it as a 2012 first-team All-Big Ten selection? |
Christmas sweater | ![]() |
6,152 - (229 + 106)/2 = 5,984 | 465 | ... that Christmas jumpers (example pictured) have become popular in the UK during the 2010s? |
Old Post Office (Albany, New York) | ![]() |
3,910 + 1,938 = 5,848 | 755 | ... that land-acquisition costs for the old post office (pictured) in Albany, New York, went so far over budget the building's architectural style had to be changed? |
Big 4 (sculpture) | 5,690 | 711 | ... that the Big 4 outside Channel 4's headquarters in London has been covered with umbrellas, dressed as a wheelchair paralympian, made to "breathe" and has had a snowman fly over it (pictured)? | |
Vishvarupa | ![]() |
5,681 | 710 | ... that Vishvarupa (pictured) should have as many arms as possible? |
Paul Thurmond | 5,079 + 537 = 5,616 | 702 | ... that Paul Thurmond, the youngest son of Strom Thurmond, was born when his father was 73 years old? | |
Ship Shoal Light | 5,589 | 699 | ... that the Ship Shoal Light's (pictured) cisterns had to be repaired when it was found that the paint was poisoning the keepers? | |
Notre Dame Cathedral (Phnom Penh) | 5,568 | 696 | ... that the Khmer Rouge destroyed Phnom Penh's Notre Dame Cathedral by tearing it down stone by stone? | |
Psilocybe allenii | ![]() |
3,433 + 2,116 = 5,549 | 555 | ... the type material of the recently described psychedelic mushroom Psilocybe allenii (pictured) was collected on the campus of the University of Washington? |
Zygmunt Ajdukiewicz | ![]() |
4,963 + 478 = 5,441 | 453 | ... that award-winning realist artist Zygmunt Ajdukiewicz (artwork pictured) illustrated the Imperial 24-volume encyclopedia initiated and sponsored by Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria? |
High cheekbones | 4,451 + 929 = 5,380 | 673 | ... that male features of high cheekbones and a strong jaw and chin are a sign of a high level of testosterone, and also an attractive physical trait? | |
Israel Keyes | 5,923 - (487 + 422)/2 = 5,468 | 456 | ... that Israel Keyes confessed to murder, rape, arson, and bank robbery in several states before committing suicide in his jail cell in Anchorage, Alaska? | |
Paul Thurmond | 5,079 + 537 = 5,616 | 468 | ... that Paul Thurmond, the youngest son of Strom Thurmond, was born when his father was 73 years old? | |
Tarsar Lake | ![]() |
5,371 | 448 | ... that Tarsar Lake (pictured) is separated from its twin sister in the Kashmir Valley by a mountain? |
John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford | 4,878 + 455 = 5,333 | 667 | ... that at the funeral of his uncle, from whom he inherited the earldom, John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford, received an axe brought into the church by a mounted horseman? | |
Sportsfriends | 5,303 | 442 | ... that the upcoming video game Johann Sebastian Joust has no graphics and does not even use a video screen? | |
Safari Club | 4,699 + 586 = 5,285 | 661 | ... that the Safari Club provided Soviet and American weapons to Somalia during the Ogaden War? | |
Clay Jam | 5,283 | 440 | ... that the graphics for the video game Clay Jam were produced in a garage using 44 pounds (20 kg) of clay and 400 toothpicks? | |
Teriivaetua | ![]() |
5,273 | 659 | ... that Princess Teriivaetua (pictured) was given precedence ahead of any children born to her uncle King Pōmare V and his part-English wife Queen Marau in order to secure a pure-Tahitian heir to the throne? |
ORCA (computer system) | 5,231 | 436 | ... that the "get out the vote" system used by Mitt Romney in the 2012 United States presidential election crashed repeatedly on election day, depriving his campaign of last-minute information? | |
Pete Newell (American football) | 4,857 + 339 = 5,196 | 433 | ... that Bo Schembechler praised Pete Newell for traveling to Iowa with the 1969 Michigan football team rather than to a large antiwar rally "with the damn hippies where he really wanted to be"? | |
Nojpetén | 3,765 + 1,421 = 5,186 | 563 | ... that the island city of Nojpetén was the capital of the last surviving Maya kingdom when the Spanish stormed it in 1697? | |
Anantashayana Vishnu | ![]() |
5,177 | 431 | ... that the 15.4-metre (51 ft) long Anantashayana Vishnu at Saranga (pictured) is the longest sculpture of a reclining Vishnu in India? |
Hurrian foundation pegs | ![]() |
5,149 | 644 | ... that the inscription on the stone tablet accompanying the Urkish lions (pictured) is the earliest known text written in the Hurrian language? |
Bangalore Fort | 4,505 + 633 = 5,138 | 642 | ... that the site for Bangalore fort was said to have been chosen because a hare was seen chasing a hunting dog there? | |
British military intervention in the Sierra Leone Civil War | 5,162 - (101 + 52)/2 = 5,085 | 424 | ... that, in preparation for British military intervention in the Sierra Leone Civil War, two CH-47 Chinooks conducted the longest self-deployment of helicopters in British history? | |
Elizabeth de Vere, Countess of Oxford | 5,013 | 418 | ... that Elizabeth de Vere, Countess of Oxford, was abducted by the half-brother of her intended bridegroom? |