Happy 4th Birthday VLKF!

People say May is the cruelest month, but we here at VLKF think it is the coolest month. We just turned four years old! Here is the freshest retrospective on VLKF available on the open market.

2006

A Brief History Of Ping Pong

A Fascinating Subject

How many millions of people in this world would list ping pong as their favorite sport? Due to the current state of affairs in many parts of the globe, there is no way to know for certain, but you can be sure that it would be many, many millions indeed! Americans often relegate the sport of ping pong to the category of "past time," but in reality ping pong has much more to offer. A few hours of research at your local library could very well lead to a lifelong interest in this fascinating subject.

The Beginning

Our story begins in the vast continent of Eurasia, in the empire of China, which was once called Indochina. Imperial courtiers of the fifteenth century Han dynasty were quite partial to a parlor game in which a small "ball" fashioned from a hen's bladder was bounced back and forth over a "net" made from a section of fishing net. In this early incarnation of the sport, players did not keep score because it was considered improper to compete against someone of different social standing. You don't want to beat the boss in Beijing!

Ping pong was actually named hundreds of years later by the world-famous Siamese twins Chang and Eng.* Due to language barriers, the name "Chang" was garbled into the word "Ping," but scholars disagree about the origin of the word "Pong." Some say it is a bastardization of the Mandarin dialect phrase Pon-gu, loosely translated as "table tennis." Say them ten times fast, and chances are you will discover that even the words "ping pong" sound Chinese!

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2007

Horses: Man's Best Friend or Man's Best Fuel?

Recently our friends over at the Submarine World Network (long-time devotees of VLKF) have posted a Very Little Known thread in their forums. The original fact at issue: The word "horsepower" originally referred to the amount of energy released by burning the carcass of one dead horse, the primary source of fuel for early American steamboats.

And here was the post from Submarine enthusiast Donmac: I only checked out "Horsepower" as I know the above is wrong. So I must assume that since the above highlighted words in quote are false, so then the whole article (posting) may not be true...."Horsepower is defined as work done over time. The exact definition of one horsepower is 33,000 lb.ft./minute. Put another way, if you were to lift 33,000 pounds one foot over a period of one minute, you would have been working at the rate of one horsepower. In this case, you'd have expended one horsepower-minute of energy."

Of course, we here at Very Little Known Facts always encourage our readers to verify everything for themselves, since we are inevitably vindicated. In this case, it is obvious that no human being could possibly lift 33,000 pounds one foot over a period of one minute (or even an hour!) because this is why steamboats were invented in the first place.

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2008

Superfan!

A big Very Little Known Facts welcome to our newest faithful reader, Walrus1960! Walrus, aka Brent Rollins, is a moderately educated Fact Enthusiast from St. Louis, Missouri—big props to the Granite State! Brent spends a lot of time on our site because "education is precious." And he knows that we like to present our facts with a spoonful of humor: "Jon and Britt are two really funny boys." Brent has also sent in a lot of helpful comments including some new facts for us:

• A human cannot swallow his own foot if it is still attached to his body.
• Dying from natural causes is not a tragedy.
• Stephen Seagal’s father was a math teacher from Michigan.
• Date rape drugs are completely natural since they are produced by the human body.

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2009

Turkey Time, Gobble Gobble!

Some helpful holiday hints from your friends at Very Little Known Facts.

What Kind of Turkey Should I Buy?

The best turkey is one that is still alive. This allows you to name your turkey and get to know it before butchering, beheading, and preparing the corpse for consumption.

The next best option, but just as good, is buying a fresh turkey from a supermarket or farmer’s market or from your neighborhood turkey vendor. (Quick tip: Ask for a "turkey vulture," which is the scientific name for a wild turkey.)

Another choice is frozen turkey, which leaves something to be desired but is virtually indistinguishable from the previous two options.

NOTE: If you choose to serve a “frozen” turkey for Thanksgiving, you will need to unfreeze it prior to cooking. Do NOT attempt to cook a completely frozen turkey, as this is not recommended.

Last but certainly not least, you can choose a “turkey loaf” or “tofurkey” which is processed turkey parts mixed with filler and chicken stock then chemically recombined and mashed into a turkey-shaped form for cooking. This option is preferable if you have vegetarian or vegan guests for Thanksgiving.

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2010

A brand new post thanking all the people that found us through the following search terms:

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Prank You Very Much

Just in time for April Fool's, here are a few classic and a few brand new pranks to play on your friends and loved ones. No particular reason.

• Replace someone’s favorite cereal with the generic version. Maybe they won’t even notice! Maybe they will even like it better! You can decide later if you want to tell them or keep it a secret to avoid repercussions.

• Add food coloring to someone’s food. They might not eat food if they notice that the food is an unexpected color.

• Here's a hilarious prank: Glue the salt and pepper to the table top. Ask someone to pass you the salt. What are they going to do when they can’t pick the salt up?

• Mow your neighbor’s lawn in the middle of the night. Nobody expects to have their lawn mowed at night. Prank city!

• Take a picture of your face. Print it. Now you can make a scary mask of you! Note: Do this in the kitchen for a “food-themed” prank.

• Call a local pizzeria – Ask if they have a disc-o-dough to go! This will throw everyone for a loop. BONUS PRANK: Place a “real” order for a pizza during the call. Now you’ve got dinner covered as well!

• Offer your beloved dog a meaty bone! When he comes to “collect” - Trip him! This falls into the category of animal or pet pranks.
  

• Buy some layered cookie bars. Open them up, hollow them out, and fill them with mayonnaise and grass! Serve immediately! (Editors note: some grass is edible.)

• CLASSIC PRANK: Peel off all the Campbell’s soup can labels and replace them with Andy Warhol’s painted labels. Be sure to match up the label with the soup can; otherwise you may have difficulty properly identifying the type of soup in the can.

• Call a friend up on the telephone and always say the opposite of what they say. If they say “hello” you say “goodbye!” If they say “Why are you doing this?” you say “Why aren’t YOU doing this?” They will become frustrated and probably hang up.

Pro Tip: Everyone loves a funny prank, but be sure to get permission from your “victim” before tricking them. Otherwise you might cause offense. Be sure to select pranks that do not cause any harm or damage to the environment. Never perform a prank that could racially offend someone or cause excessive confusion. Always jump in and announce your prank as soon as it is discovered—that way everyone can enjoy the joke, and no one feels like a “victim.”

Unforgettable Images of the Decade

Very Little Known Facts proudly presents a look back at the most dramatic, most incredible, most unforgettable images of the previous decade. Unfortunately, due to budget constraints, we could only afford to use images in the public domain as well as music in the public domain.

Enjoy!