Results: This survey is about nothing in particular - trivia in other words.
Published on 08/10/2025
Some people know a little about a lot of things - generalists. Some people know a lot about a few things - specialists. My goal is to learn as much as I can about a lot of things and keep on learning, since life is more interesting as a generalist than a specialist. I never know when this knowledge may come in handy. I also try to dump knowledge that is of no value in order to maintain space for the new stuff. Here is some new stuff if you have room for it.
QUESTIONS
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Comments
1.
1.
My sister in Scotland finds it too hot at 26C 79F. I don't turn on my AC until it is 28C 82F. When we lived in Mexico our house was 44C 111F one night and we had no AC. It depends on your attitude and what you are used to. On a recent survey of the hottest places on record there were some surprises. I expected Africa to be hotter than it was. Here are three places not in Africa that were stunningly hot - so hot that you would never just get used to it. Which of them surprised you?
In 25th place is Lytton British Columbia Canada - 49.6C or 121F
27%
427 votes
In 11th place is Mexicali Mexico - 52C or 125F (twice as hot as my sister can handle)
14%
217 votes
In first place is the aptly named Death Valley in the USA - 56.7C or a toasty 135F.
15%
244 votes
None - I'm cool
24%
390 votes
Not Applicable
33%
529 votes
2.
2.
Another survey showed the average IQ of various animals including humans. https://youtu.be/2VUHdu_g8ok Cat lovers will be pleased to know the average cat is smarter (IQ 21) than the average dog (IQ 19). On the other hand an octopus is significantly more intelligent (IQ 73). Owls are actually more intelligent than almost all birds (IQ 9) - fascinating stuff for sure. This led me to check the IQs of some famous people. The average human IQ is 100 (base line). Here are some interesting high IQ celebs. Which is/are of interest? You can measure your own IQ at https://www.free-iqtest.net/
Mensa is the most well known high-IQ society in the world. It is open to people who score in the top 98 % of the IQ range which means a minimum IQ of 132.
21%
335 votes
Various reports say that actor Jodie Foster is very intelligent and at a Mensa level. I was surprised to find she just made it - her IQ is 132.
16%
256 votes
Lisa Kudrow of Friends fame (where she played the role of the somewhat ditsy Phoebe) - has a very high IQ of 154
20%
327 votes
Perhaps a male equivalent of Lisa Kudrow is Ashton Kutcher, who seems to be blessed with both looks and brains. He has an IQ of 160
18%
293 votes
I don't know how they discovered this but Cleopatra is estimated to have had an IQ of 180.
17%
274 votes
None
17%
269 votes
Not Applicable
35%
557 votes
- You would have to be dumb to run for president.
- do not know
- Thomas Jefferson
3.
3.
And now for something completely different. Some words sound rude even though they are not (officially). They can still get you into trouble however if used in the wrong place or situation. Which of the following words would you avoid using "just in case".
Masticate The act of chewing. Just think about it. You masticate in front of your mom. And grandmother. Horrifying, isn't it?
17%
278 votes
Bumfiddler. To bumfiddle means to pollute or spoil something, in particular by scribbling or drawing on a document to make it invalid.
19%
309 votes
The word "ballcock" may sound like something you'd find in a bawdy comedy sketch, but it's actually a plumbing term. A ballcock is a mechanism that controls the flow of water into a toilet tank. So, let's keep our minds out of the gutter and appreciate the wonders of modern plumbing.
20%
321 votes
The word "niggardly" means stingy or meager. Niggardly is completely unrelated to the infamous racial slur. Nevertheless in 1999, an assistant to the mayor of Washington DC was at the centre of a political correctness row after using the word 'niggardly' - even in context.
27%
427 votes
None
19%
302 votes
Not Applicable
34%
550 votes
4.
4.
Here are some facts about Martin Luther King (and wife Coretta) you may not know. Which do you find interesting?
Actress Julia Roberts, known for roles in Pretty Woman, Erin Brockovich, and Steel Magnolias, was born in Smyrna, Georgia, in 1967. When it came time for her parents to take her home from the hospital, they couldn't afford the hospital bill. That's when Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King — friends of the Roberts' — stepped in to help, covering the cost of the future actress's birth.
40%
634 votes
Martin Luther King Jr. was once the youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner. The Nobel Prize money Dr. King won in 1964 was donated to the Civil Rights Movement
24%
385 votes
As a college student, Coretta King was a babysitter for six-time Emmy winner John Lithgow.
21%
333 votes
By the 1960s, Betty and Walter Roberts had launched the Actors and Writers Workshop, a theater school in Atlanta near the Kings' home. With four young children and a passion for the arts, Coretta had been searching for a youth theater program, but struggled to find one that would accept Black students. The Robertses' school, stood out as the only integrated children's acting program in the area.
20%
326 votes
None
15%
243 votes
Not Applicable
32%
504 votes
COMMENTS