Home » InstaFacts

InstaFacts

Katie Holmes opted to act in "Mad Money" alongside Queen Latifah instead of reprising her role as Rachel in "The Dark Knight."

In 1997, a crew member on the USS Yorktown (CG-48) input 0 into a database field, leading the Remote Data Base Manager to attempt division by zero, causing all networked machinery, including the propulsion system, to cease operation.

A "Golden Arm" refers to a craps player who rolls the dice for over 60 minutes without losing (rolling a seven). Stanley Fujitake achieved this in 1989, rolling 118 times over 3 hours and 6 minutes without a seven, resulting in the casino losing over $1 million while he won $30,000. In 2009, a woman rolled 154 times over 4 hours and 18 minutes, setting the record.

Between 2003 and 2005, Dell sold over 11 million computers with defective capacitors, and documents revealed the company knew of their high failure rate. At one point, 1,000 computers delivered to the law firm defending Dell in a related lawsuit began failing.

In 1519, Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés scuttled all but one of his ships after arriving in Mexico to prevent his men from retreating. This decisive action compelled them to advance inland, leading to the Aztec Empire's downfall.

$In 2013, during a security audit, Verizon discovered one of its developers had outsourced his job to China for a fraction of his salary. He was consistently recognized as a star employee until his actions were uncovered.$

Paddy Mayne destroyed the most Axis planes during World War II, not as a fighter ace but as an SAS commando. Alongside David Stirling, the Special Air Service's (SAS) founder, Paddy led audacious raids against Axis forces, employing unconventional tactics like infiltrating enemy lines and destroying aircraft on the ground. Their strategic brilliance resulted in the destruction of over 400 aircraft within a year, with Paddy Mayne's personal tally more than doubling that of any Allied fighter ace in World War II.

The Puckle Gun, an early automatic firearm from the 18th century, was engineered to shoot round bullets at Christians and square bullets at Muslim Turks. Inventors believed that square bullets would cause more severe injuries than round ones.

A Disney enthusiast named Jon Alan Hale has experienced the Cars ride, Radiator Springs Racers, over 10,000 times at Disney California Adventure Park. On certain days, he rides it more than 20 times.

In 2000, Ines Ramirez Perez, a Mexican woman, successfully performed a C-section on herself after enduring 12 hours of continuous pain. Despite lacking medical training, she used a kitchen knife and consumed three glasses of hard liquor while her husband was at a bar. After an hour of self-surgery, she reached into her uterus to deliver her baby boy, then cut the umbilical cord with scissors and lost consciousness. Upon regaining consciousness, she bandaged her wound with clothing and sent one of her older sons to seek help. She and her baby boy survived and were eventually taken to a clinic.

Sources: 591, 592, 593, 594, 595, 596, 597, 598, 599, 600

InstaFacts

Latest Articles

50 Strange and Surprising Fossil Facts From Earth’s Past

30 Incredible True Stories From the Lives of Queens – Part 2

35 More Surprising Stories About Famous Kings – Part 2

40 Forgotten Disasters and Massacres From History

35 Historic Soviet Union Stories That Deserve to Be Remembered