8 Facts You Probably Didn’t Know About Our Favorite Childhood Things

Some objects from our childhood still hold a special place in our adult hearts. It could be because of the memories that are attached to them or the sheer joy they gave us when we were younger. And now, we’re going to take a fresh look at these things from the past by learning something new about them.

1. The Super Soaker water gun was accidentally invented by a NASA scientist.

The idea for this toy came up while rocket scientist Dr. Lonnie Johnson was working on something else for NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). “I was experimenting with some nozzles that I machined, and I shot a stream of water across the bathroom and I thought, ’Geez, maybe I should put this hard science stuff aside and work on something fun like a water gun,” Johnson shared.

Apart from the Super Soaker, Johnson also invented the Nerf gun — or at least a variant of it — when he was a kid. Using a mop and a hollow bamboo tube as materials, Johnson created a toy that shot out chinaberries. “For the N-Strike Nerf product line, those (toys) were all based on my patents... Super Soaker, of course, that entire line started as a result of my invention.”

2. Play-Doh was originally created to be a cleaning tool.

This clay compound that kids use to mold stuff with was first manufactured in the 1930s by a soap company. Its original purpose was to take out coal residue from wallpaper. But when homes transitioned away from coal-based heating methods, the demand for the product waned.

Luckily, the inventor’s nephew heard about kids making art projects with putty material. In the late 1950s, the company made the shift and began selling it as a children’s toy.

3. Windows Solitaire was developed by an intern who was never paid for it.

One of the most popular desktop games of all time was written by an intern named Wes Cherry. “I wrote it for Windows 2.1 in my own time as an intern at Microsoft during the summer of 1988. I had played a similar solitaire game on the Mac instead of studying for finals at college and wanted a version for myself on Windows,” Cherry said.

A program manager saw his work and decided to include it in Windows 3.0. “It was made clear that they wouldn’t pay me other than supplying me with an IBM XT to fix some bugs during the school year — I was perfectly fine with it, and I am to this day.” Interestingly, by some poetic twist, Cherry is now into apples — the fruit, not the tech giant — and owns an apple cider company.

If you enjoyed playing Solitaire in your childhood, you might want to try Solitaire Social, a new game that allows you to play with your friends and compete in tournaments.

4. Minesweeper was created to help users learn how to use the mouse.

Minesweeper was a cool way to pass time back in the ’90s, but what we didn’t know was that the game was secretly teaching us an important skill — how to use the mouse.

Windows developers wanted computer users to strengthen speed and precision when using the mouse. And Minesweeper was the perfect way to practice left and right clicks and to get familiar with the drag-and-drop feature.

5. The slinky toy was discovered by accident.

Sometimes great things come from the most random moments. The iconic slinky toy was invented by a mechanical engineer named Richard James. He was designing a device for the Navy when he accidentally dropped the coil wires he was holding, and the wires tumbled end-over-end on the ground.

“The Slinky was something that he saw happen, and he thought it was cool. It wasn’t an obvious idea for a toy,” explained Monica Smith, the head of exhibitions at the Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation. “He kept an open mind and found a different use for it.”

6. Furbies were banned in some places for security reasons.

Furbies are electronic toys that have the ability to talk. They start speaking in “Furbish” but are programmed to use English words (or other languages) over time. It was their speaking ability that created the misconception that they could learn and repeat words that were being spoken around them.

As a precautionary measure, some government offices banned Furbies for security reasons. They feared that these toys could be used to spy and eavesdrop on confidential information. However, the company that makes Furbies claimed that their products have no ability to do any kind of recording.

7. The magnetic strip on cassette tapes has a life span of up to 30 years.

One nostalgic memory that ’90s kids fondly share is the experience of using pens to manually wind the magnetic strip of cassette tapes. These compact cassettes were one of the first technologies that allowed anyone to record tracks and audio by themselves — does the word “mixtape” ring any bells?

According to companies, magnetic tape products have a maximum life span of 30 years. And the National Media Laboratory (NML) said that the “physical lifetimes for digital magnetic tape are at least 10 to 20 years.” So if you still have your mixtapes from decades ago, you can give them a try and see if they still work today.

8. Lego is the largest (toy) tire manufacturer.

In 2011, The Lego Group snatched the Guinness World Record for the largest annual volume produced by a toy tire manufacturer. Since 2006, Lego has been producing an estimated 306 million rubber tires per year, all for their construction kit sets. In 2010, they manufactured 381 million tires — easily beating major brands like Goodyear, Bridgestone, and Michelin.

The official title has the word “toy” in it, but Guinness also clarified that Lego wheels fit the description of any standard tire and that even the rubber compound they use is somewhat similar to that of domestic cars.

According to experts, trivia is like exercise for our brains. So here are other articles that could help you learn more about the world and maybe even help you win during your next trivia game night. Click here, here, and here for curious facts about our environment. If you enjoy historical and human body trivia, click here and here.