In today's world, the internet has made all possible knowledge literally available at our fingertips. Today, virtually nothing is unknown or impossible. Furthermore, science and technology are turning the near-impossible into possible, so little surprises us. However, here we present 10 facts that sound implausible, but are actually true.
1. Martin Luther King and Anne Frank were born in the same year, but they represent two different eras of history because Anne Frank never grew up.
It may seem incredible at first glance, but Martin Luther King is only five months older than Anne Frank. Martin Luther King was born on January 15, 1929, and Anne Frank was born on June 12, 1929.
Anne Frank is known worldwide for her diary, in which she documented her life from 1942 to 1944, when the Germans occupied the Netherlands during World War II. In 1942, as the persecution of the Jewish population intensified, Anne and her family went into hiding. In 1944, they were arrested and sent to concentration camps, where Anne died. Anne Frank's diary was published posthumously. Following its publication, the little girl and her diary became a symbol depicting the horrific face of fascism.
Martin Luther King, Jr., is well known for his fight for human rights and equality for African Americans through peaceful protests. He became the most prominent leader of the American civil rights movement from the mid-1950s until his assassination in 1968. (1,2)
2. Australia literally lost a prime minister. Harold Holt went for a swim in 1967 and was never seen again.
On the afternoon of December 17, 1967, Australia's 17th Prime Minister, Harold Holt, arrived at Cheviot Beach in Victoria with four others. Holt decided to go for a swim, despite the high tide and strong swells, with visible currents and eddies. While others refrained from swimming, deeming the water unsafe, Holt continued swimming and eventually swam into deep water. The current carried him out to sea, and he soon disappeared from view.
Since Holt's companion could no longer see him, they immediately launched a search. Divers were called in, but strong undertows and currents obscured underwater visibility. Within an hour, four helicopters began scanning the scene. Around 200 personnel arrived at the scene, including rescuers from the Australian Army, Navy, Coast Guard, the Victorian Maritime Authority, and the Department of Aviation, but no trace of Prime Minister Harold Holt was found. Two days later, he was officially declared dead. (1,2)
3. Blood is formed in the bones.
Our blood consists of four main components: plasma, red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Plasma is the liquid portion of the blood that transports red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets are produced in the bone marrow, located in the bones, through a process called hematopoiesis.
In infants, hematopoiesis occurs in the center of all bones. However, as a person matures, hematopoiesis occurs only in the bones located around the pelvis, ribs, and sternum. (1,2)
4. Google tracks your location even if you turn off Location History.
Nowadays, every smartphone owner has used GPS navigation at least once. So what do we do when we don't need it? Sometimes we turn off geolocation, thinking that no one can track us anymore. But the truth is, if your phone runs Android, your every move is tracked and sent to Google.
Since 2017, Android phones have been tracking their users by collecting the addresses of nearby cell towers, even if the user has disabled location services. Furthermore, some Google apps store location data with a timestamp without asking the user's permission. (1,2,3)
5. More than 90% deaf children are born into families of hearing parents.
According to statistics from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), more than 90% deaf children have hearing parents.
Parents experience great distress when a deaf child is born into a world dominated by hearing people. It is widely reported that these parents often experience feelings of loss, stress, anger, and/or grief. Before the birth of a deaf child, most hearing parents have no experience interacting with deaf children. Therefore, when a deaf child is born, they must make important choices in areas such as language, education, identity, and technology. (1,2,3)