Wiekes weetjes: 10 things you probably would have preferred not to know

Yeah, it's time for some grim info on Sunday. I love fun facts, but also the not-so-fun-facts like these. And I don't really have to be ashamed of it anymore, because a fascination for true crime is nowadays perfectly normal. So here I present to you: ten facts you probably would have preferred not to know, but now you do. You’re welcome.

1. As we speak, there are (according to research) between 25 and 50 serial killers roaming free in the United States.

2. Think you won't meet one? Think again. In one lifetime, we encounter an average of 36 murderers. 36!

3. Think you would never become that bad? Sorry, but again: think again. According to research, people are willing to kill someone after three days without food.

4. Pandemics come in waves, we know that now thanks to corona. But during the second wave of the Spanish flu, more people died than during the first. Oh Lord.

5. Eventually, you too will be forgotten. Unless, of course, you make a scientific discovery or become the new Michael Jackson or something like that, but that chance is pretty small. If you're just one of the plebs, you're remembered for an average of two generations. Because think about it: do you know who your grandfather's father was?

6. If the sun were to explode right now, we wouldn't find out until eight minutes and twenty seconds later. And even then, we couldn't do anything about it.

7. There are about 40 ‘supervolcanoes’ on our planet that, if they were to erupt, could claim about a billion lives each. But hey, how likely is that? Uh, we are currently 24,000 ‘overdue’ for such a supervolcano eruption (disclaimer: 24,000 years is still nothing in the bigger picture). How big is such a supervolcano? In Yellowstone National Park (United States), there is one that has a magma chamber that could fit all of Tokyo. Whuuut.

8. There are over 200 bodies on top of Mount Everest. They stay there because it's simply too dangerous to remove them. It does have a very cheerful name: Rainbow Valley. It's called that because of all the colorful jackets these deceased people are wearing. Grim.

9. Do you know the saying ‘like a headless chicken’? Mike the Headless Chicken was literally one, who managed to live for eighteen (!) months without a head. And yes, there is a Wikipedia page about this with photo.

10. There are two options: we are completely alone in the universe or we are not. Which do you find more frightening?