Sylvia Shults's Blog, page 3

Today I Learned …

The 1975 movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail was shot on a tight budget, and filming frequently had to stop when the castle, a plywood cutout, kept falling over in the wind. The running joke of the knights riding invisible horses and clapping coconut halves together to provide the sound of the hooves came about because the Pythons couldn’t afford real horses. (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Mind Blown!)

Today I Learned …

UK street artist Banksy built a secret, remote-controlled shredder into the frame of his painting “Girl With Balloon” so that it self-destructed moments after it was sold at auction in 2018 for over $1.3 million. (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Mind Blown!)

Today I Learned …

Every May 19 since 1850, a basket of red roses has been sent to the Tower of London where Anne Boleyn was beheaded in 1536. Mystery surrounded the sender for 150 years until it was revealed to possibly be Anne’s descendants in Kent, England, who now have the surname Bullen. (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Escape the Ordinary)

Today I Learned …

In 1784, Chunosuke Matsuyama, a shipwrecked Japanese sailor, carved a message into thin peices of wood from a coconut tree, put the message into a bottle, and tossed it into the ocean in the hope that someone might find him on the Pacific island where he and his crew were stranded. The bottle eventually washed ashore 151 years later in 1938 in Hiraturemura — the village where Matsuyama was born. (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Mind Blown!)

Today I Learned …

As a schoolboy in Derbyshire, England, Roald Dahl, author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, was a taste tester for Cadbury’s chocolate. Each year, he and his schoolmates at Repton School would be sent a number of prospective new Cadbury products to try out. (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Mind Blown!)

Today I Learned …

The movie Lilo & Stitch features more Elvis Presley songs than any of Presley’s own films. (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Mind Blown!)

Today I Learned …

Busy bees need naps too! Some species sleep in their hives, but others will curl up in a flower or lock their mandibles around a stem to keep themselves from falling as they doze off. When they reach a deep sleep, their antennae droop, their legs relax, and they are hard to wake up. If you come across a snoozing bee, let her rest — she’s earned it! (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Mind Blown!)

Today I Learned …

When humans search for computer files, they use the same part of the brain that a dog uses when looking for a bone. (From Ripley;s Believe It Or Not: Mind Blown!)

Today I Learned …

Ohio is the only state in the US that doesn’t share a letter with the word “mackerel.”

Today I Learned …

The Manuscript Writing Cafe in Tokyo, Japan, is for the exclusive use of writers who are struggling to meet tight deadlines. Before being served, customers must tell reception the number of words they need to write and how much time they have. After that, a staff member checks on their progress every hour, and offers encouragement. (From Ripley’s Believe It Or Not: Level Up)