25 Of The Most Interesting Facts Shared On A Dedicated Subreddit

As Libba Bray once said, change happens because of one gesture. One person. One moment at a time. The Interesting to Read subreddit is full of examples of weird and wonderful facts that might be considered rather unconventional but are quite intriguing, nevertheless. Taking a different direction from the same old material we repetitively recycle, today, let’s investigate some of the most mysterious, novel and inspiring facts shared by this alternative community. 

#1 This 600-Year-Old Painting Is One Of The Most Mysterious In History

Image source: Top-Revenue5728 This 600-year-old painting is one of the most mysterious in history. That mirror at the back is just 3 inches wide — yet it reflects the entire room in immense detail. Look closer at it and you'll realize nothing is as it seems… Jan van Eyck's masterpiece is an ordinary portrait: Italian merchant Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife, Costanza.

#2 Bob Fletcher, A Man Who Took Care Of The Farms Of Three Japanese American Families While They Were Interned During World War 2

Image source: Cleverman72 By keeping their farms running and paying their taxes and mortgages, he ensured the families didn't lose everything. He was even shot at for supporting them.

#3 Zinaida Portnova, Known For Having Taken The Lives Of More Than 100 N**is By Poisoning Their Food At Just 16 Years Of Age

Image source: Cleverman72 She was captured by the Gestapo and while being interrogated, she disarmed the N**i detective and shot him in the head. In her attempt to escape, she ex**uted 2 more N**is.

#4 Dolly Parton Was Born In A One-Bedroom Cabin In Rural Tennessee. Her Dad Was A Sharecropper Who Couldn't Read

Image source: Cleverman72 As the family grew, the older children got more responsibilities and Parton the fourth of 12 children had to look after her younger siblings. Today, she spends her millions on those in need.

#5 Italian Diver Enzo Maiorca While Diving Into Siracusa Sea Felt Something Patting Him On The Back. He Turned Around And Saw A Dolphin, Which He Understood That He Did Not Want To Play But Express Something

Image source: Cleverman72 The dolphin dived and Enzo followed. At a depth of twelve meters trapped in a net there was another dolphin. After managing with his daughter to release it, as the two dolphins emerged they emitted an almost human cry (this is how Maiorca described it). Dolphins can be held under water for up to ten minutes then drowned. The trapped dolphin was a female who soon gave birth. The male surrounded them and standing in front of Enzo touched his cheek (like a kiss), a gesture of gratitude. Enzo finished his speech by saying:

′′ Until man learns to respect and communicate with the animal world, he will never be able to know his true role on this Earth. ′′

#6 In 1962, A 37-Year-Old Man From England Named Brendon Grimshaw Suddenly Quit His Job And Bought A Small Island In The Seychelles For About $10,000

Image source: Cleverman72 The island was called Moyenne and, at the time of purchase, had been abandoned for 50 years. Everyone thought the man was crazy. Brendon eventually moved to the island permanently as its sole inhabitant. While most people tend to buy islands for luxury, Brendon had a broader vision. He wanted to restore the island to its raw beauty, creating a natural paradise completely uncontaminated by man and tourism. For the next 40 years, Brendon lived alone on the island; he managed to plant 16,000 trees by hand, built 5 km of nature trails and attracted around 2,000 new birds to the island. Brendon had transformed a desert land into an island of incredible beauty, Moyenne was so beautiful that Brendon was offered 50 million dollars by a Saudi prince, but he turned it down. Since Brendon died in 2012, the island has been owned by the Moyenne Island Foundation and is now a national park available to all thanks to his efforts.

#7 A 67-Year-Old Woman Has Planted More Than 2 Million Trees In The Dessert In North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region In The Past 12 Years To Fulfill Her Son's Dying Wish

Image source: Cleverman72 Before he died, a Chinese student Yang told his mother that he wanted to return home from his studies in Japan and plant an entire forest. He was worried about the environmental problem of his country and wanted to change something there. Because they lived in a desert-dominated part of China that was not accessible by car, "Inner Mongolia" seemed to him the ideal ground for afforestation and the realization of his dream. Unfortunately, he soon died in a car accident. His mother Yi Jiefang gave herself the task of fulfilling her son’s wish, so for 20 years she continuously planted trees in the desert in the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia. Through planting trees, she wanted to plant the seeds of hope for those who have experienced the loss of a child. In order to afforest, she sold her house in Shanghai and some other material things, and her son's insurance policy also helped her buy a lot of seeds and accessories for work. She said that she could not take the money with her, but that the trees would still remain, and together with her husband, she founded an entire organization that aims to green China as much as possible.

#8 In 2018, The Parkland School Shooting Incident Happened. A 15 Year Old Named Anthony Borges Successfully Stopped The Shooter From Entering His Classroom By Using His Body To Keep The Door Shut

Image source: Cleverman72 He got shot 5 times, saved 20 classmates inside the room, and went on to make a full recovery.

#9 On Sept 5th 1942, United States Navy Messman Charles Jackson French Successfully Swam Through The Night For 6-8 Hours Pulling A Raft Of 15 Wounded Soldiers With A Rope Around His Waist In Shark Infested Waters

Image source: Cleverman72 French was the first black swimmer to receive the Navy medal of heroism in 1943.

#10 In 1995, A Pair Of Twins, Kyrie And Brielle Jackson, Was Born 12 Weeks Premature. Each Weighed Only About 2 Pounds. One Of Them Was Not Expected To Survive

Image source: Cleverman72 At three weeks old, one twin went into critical condition. Her heart rate was soaring. Her oxygen level was dropping quickly, and she was turning blue. The nurses tried everything, but nothing worked. They were about to lose her. Then one nurse, Gale Kasparian, decided to put the stronger twin next to her sister in the same incubator, a novel procedure that had never been done before at the time in the US. The standard practice at that time was to place twin babies in separate incubators to reduce the risk of infection. Once the baby twins were together, the baby snuggled up to Kyrie, the stronger twin. As soon as Kyrie put her arm around her sister, the vital signs, including breathing and heart rate of the weaker twin, instantly stabilized. They called this the rescuing hug. Without this rescuing hug, the weaker twin baby wouldn’t have survived. The hug that changed medicine in the US.

#11 Harriet Tubman, A Tiny Little Woman , Aged 90, Of Less Than 5 Feet Tall, This Brave Soul Rescued Seventy People From Slavery. In This Final Photograph Taken Of Tubman, She’s Frail, And In Near-Constant Pain

Image source: Cleverman72 When she was a young woman and still a s***e herself, her master had forced Harriet Tubman to help tie up a runaway s***e who had been recaptured. She flat-out refused, at great personal risk. When the man ran away once more, she stood in the doorway, holding on to the doorframe and refusing to move an inch… an overseer threw a heavy piece of metal at her head, which damaged her skull and brain. For her entire life, she suffered severe headaches and could barely sleep. And there she sits. Every bit the Queen she was. Her body is broken, mangled, aged. Her head in pain, tortured by never ending migrained. But she survived slavery. Helped many others survive it, too. And made it to old age in spite of it all.

#12 On September 16, 1976, World-Champion Finswimmer Shavarsh Karapetyan Was Finishing A 13-Mile Training Run In Armenia When He Suddenly Heard A Disturbing Sound. A Trolleybus Had Fallen Over A Dam Wall And Plunged Into Yerevan Lake. The 23-Year-Old Immediately Sprinted To The Scene

Image source: Cleverman72 The 23-year-old immediately sprinted to the scene, stripped down, and dove into the sewage-strewn water to save as many people as possible. Despite near-zero visibility, Karapetyan swam 15 feet down to reach the trolleybus only to discover there was no open window. So, he decided to kick the rear window out, lacerating his legs in the process. Over the next 20 minutes, Karapetyan managed to bring 37 people to the surface, 20 of whom survived. Another nine escaped on their own through the window he'd broken open. Karapetyan's heroism left him with permanently-scarred lungs after he developed pneumonia, and he spent the next three weeks in a hospital bed before he could walk again. But the following year, he participated in two final competitions — where he won a gold medal and broke his 11th world record — before retiring for good.

#13 This Midwife At Auschwitz Delivered 3,000 Babies In Unfathomable Conditions Stanislawa Leszczyńska Was Instructed To M**der Babies, But Refused

Image source: Cleverman72 Most of the babies died or were k****d, but the ones with blue eyes were taken away. Only about 30 of the newborns delivered by her survived Auschwitz. "In the Auschwitz camp, I also acted as a midwife, because many women in the arriving transports of prisoners were pregnant. I worked there day and night without a replacement, in the most terrible conditions. The maternity ward was generally infected, full of vermin, dirt, and infectious diseases. There was a lack of water, which I had to fetch myself, and bringing one bucket of water to wash the mother and the newborn took about twenty minutes." She is a candidate for sainthood in the Catholic church.

#14 Iqbal Masih, Sold Into Bonded Labor At Age Four, Worked Long Hours Weaving Carpets For Almost No Pay. After Escaping At Ten, He Helped Free 3,000 Children And Spoke Globally Against Child Labor. Tragically, He Was K****d At Age 12, But His Legacy Endures

Image source: Cleverman72

#15 Frank Sinatra Was A Fervent Anti-Racist And An Early Activist. He Refused To Stay At Hotels And Play At Clubs That Did Not Admit Black People

Image source: Cleverman72 His band would also provide equal pay and treatment for black musicians. It was through his relentless and tireless efforts that Las Vegas quickly became integrated. In an interview in 2016, Frank Sinatra, Jr. had this to say about his father: "In the days when Las Vegas began to become popular, the black performers could play in showrooms, but they couldn't stay in the hotel. And it was Frank Sinatra who went to the board of directors, who had rather shady pasts, and he said, 'Are you guys going to come into the twentieth century, or aren't you?'... Somebody said 'Well, we have white people, we have black people." Sinatra, the story goes, said to them, 'The money is green. How about that?' And they began to look at each other, and the wheels were turning, and because of Sammy (Davis), Las Vegas became integrated.

#16 In June Of 1988, Hartford, Connecticut, Police Officer Peter Getz Carried A Lifeless 5-Year-Old Girl To Safety From A Burning Apartment Building. Nearly 20 Years Later, The Retired Officer Watched Her Graduate College

Image source: Cleverman72

#17 In Columbia, During Slavery, African Women Would Observe Their Surroundings And Build Maps With Their Braids, Marking Roads And Escape Routes, Trails, Large Trees, Wooded Areas, Rivers And Mountains

Image source: Cleverman72 These hairstyles became escape route codes that helped the enslaved to flee. Cornrows were used during slavery to help slaves escape. Slaves used cornrows to transport and create maps to flee plantations. It is most documented in Colombia where Benkos Bioho, a king captured from Africa by the Portuguese who escaped slavery, built San Basillio de Palenque, a village in Northern Colombia around the 17th century.Bioho created his own language as well as an intelligence network and also came up with the idea to have women create maps and deliver messages through their cornrows.

#18 Doctors Gave 3-Year-Old Sky Savren-Mccormick A 10% Chance Of Survival After A Rare Cancer Diagnosis. Hayden Ryals, A 26-Year-Old Bone Marrow Donor, Helped Save Her Life. Sky Survived And Later Attended Hayden’s Wedding As A Flower Girl

Image source: Cleverman72

#19 In 2011, A Brazilian Fisherman Rescued An Oil-Covered Penguin And Nursed It Back To Health. Since Then, The Penguin Swims 5,000 Miles Each Year To Visit Him, Spending The Rest Of The Time Mating In Argentina

Image source: Time-Training-9404

#20 Grover Krantz Was An Anthropologist Who Donated His Body To The Smithsonian Museum To Show How Skeletons Can Be Educational Tools

Image source: Cleverman72 His only condition was that he wanted his beloved dog next to him even after death. The museum honored his request.

#21 George, Jack Russell Terrier Who Saved Five Kids From A Vicious Attack By Two Savage Dogs

Image source: xPookie_Pie

#22 Peter Mutabazi's Journey From A Tough Childhood In Uganda To Becoming A Devoted Foster Dad In USA Is Inspiring. After Adopting Tony A 13-Year-Old Abandoned At A Hospital, Peter Built A Loving Home And Now Advocates For Foster Children Everywhere Showing The World The Power Of Compassion

Image source: Cleverman72

#23 Qian Hongyan, Known As China's "Basketball Girl," Lost Her Legs In A Car Accident At Age 4. Due To Her Family's Financial Struggles, She Couldn't Get Prosthetics, So She Adapted And Thrived, Relying Solely On Her Own Strength To Navigate Life

Image source: Cleverman72 Her life is an inspiring story that will give you the strength to carry on through all your difficult days. Qian Hongyan has no legs. She lost them when she was 4 years old in a tragic accident when a speeding truck hit her and both of her legs had to be amputated. Her poor family could not provide her with prosthetic legs and so Qian learned to live and get by relying only on her own strength and with virtually no means. Qian was provided with a basketball cut in half to balance her weight. Her hands became her strength. The locals knew her as a basketball girl. After her photos went viral on the Internet, China Rehabilitation in Beijing offered Qian free artificial limbs. Qian joined a swimming club for the disabled. At first, everything was difficult for her, but she continued to train and learn and became a successful athlete. Qian wishes to compete in the Paralympics one day. Her success has turned her into a celebrity and she is a great inspiration for everyone around the world.

#24 When She Was Just 19 Years Old, Civil Rights Activist Joan Trumpauer Mulholland Was Sent To Death Row For Two Months — For Joining The Famous Freedom Rides Across The Jim Crow South

Image source: Cleverman72 In 1961, she and a group of Freedom Riders were arrested in Mississippi for "disturbing the peace" and held at a maximum security prison. There, Mulholland sat on death row before she was ultimately released. But despite the harrowing experience, she refused to abandon the civil rights movement. Months later, she became the first white student to enroll in the historically Black Tougaloo College. While there, she met Martin Luther King Jr. and participated in sit-ins at segregated diners, where she endured abuse from countless white supremacists and segregationists. Though Mulholland is now 79 years old, she has remained active in modern civil rights causes as much as she can. "I'm not marching anymore," she said. "My knees have been operated on too much. But I can make signs. I can offer to put people up in my house."

#25 Nicholas Bostic, A 25-Year-Old Pizza Delivery Man From Lafayette, Indiana, Ran Into A Burning House To Rescue 4 Children, Who Told Him There Is One More Inside. He Ran Back Inside Found The Six-Year-Old Girl, Jumped Out Of A Window And Carried Her To A Cop, Who Captured The Moment On His Bodycam

Image source: Cleverman72