SEE ALSO: 10 Animals That Surprisingly Benefit From Climate Change Contamination is one of the biggest obstacles in the recycling industry right now. If there are impurities or toxins on the original material—say lead paint from an aluminum spray can—they’ll usually make it through the recycling process and end up buried in the new product, which might turn out to be, say, a soda can. The worst part is that sometimes we don’t know when something’s contaminated—until it’s too late....

Back home, ordinary citizens rose to the occasion, their heroic sacrifices and labor on behalf of the Allied nations’ fighters helping their military men and women win the long, hard-fought war against the Axis powers. Without a doubt, the valiant, patriotic contributions of such workers as Land Girls, Lumber Jills, and Factory Girls helped the Allies to win the war. Unfortunately, there were also undesirable changes on—and to—the home front....

Slavic mythology has two key differences from the well-known Greek and Roman mythologies. First, many of the spirits are still part of common images and folktales among Slavic people. Secondly, the old Slavic pantheon of gods is not well documented, so scholars have attempted to recreate the information based on secondary documents. Still, the pantheon is fascinating and worth knowing. 10 Baba Yaga Among mythologies, Baba Yaga is unique to the Slavic people....

The ventriloquist in this picture is Jules Vernon. Here he is surrounded by a horrifying family of dummies. On Christmas day in 1920, Jules went completely blind in the middle of a show. But that didn’t stop him. But what did stop him was a speeding taxi that struck him down in 1937 killing him instantly at age 70. A number of the other photos here are also of Vernon....

The film “Psycho” was the first movie to show a toilet flushing – the scene caused an inpouring of complaints about indecency Pomegranates studded with cloves were used as the first attempt at making toilet air-freshner Hermann Goering refused to use regulation toilet paper – instead he bought soft white handkerchiefs in bulk and used them Over $100,000 US dollars was spent on a study to determine whether most people put their toilet paper on the holder with the flap in front or behind; the answer: three out of four people have the flap in the front...

Reagan’s legacy is mixed, with supporters pointing to a more efficient and prosperous economy and a peaceful end to the Cold War. Critics argue that his economic policies caused huge budget deficits, quadrupling the United States national debt and that the Iran-Contra affair lowered American credibility. There is no doubt, however, that Reagan was a great and inspirational public speaker. A people free to choose will always choose peace....

All other lists which failed to make the final three will begin appearing on the site after Christmas and will be marked as competition entries. All lists published (except 1st, 2nd, and 3rd prize) will be eligible for one of five copies of the Ultimate book of Top 10 Lists. The winners will be announced one week after Christmas. NOTE: this is a slight change from the original plan in which it was suggested that some of the losing entries might begin appearing before Christmas....

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We have moved all of our comments to Disqus – a very highly regarded commenting system that allows logins to Listverse from Facebook, Twitter, Google, Disqus and Listverse directly. Also, when you sign up with Disqus you can create your account with your twitter or Google login. At the moment all comments on Listverse from the past are unclaimed – but if you sign up with Disqus using the same email address as the one you have used to comment here in the past all of your old comments will be associated with your account!...

By 1983, he was assigned to Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico. While there, he had access to top-secret missile launch codes and warning systems information as part of a NATO program. He owned his own home in Albuquerque and lived alone. In July of that year, he was sent on a project in the Netherlands and ordered to return to base on August 1. He never reported back....

Not all conspiracy theories have such a powerful impact, though. Many times, conspiracy theories seemingly cross over into the realm of celebrity gossip and urban legends. Larger-than-life artists and personalities attract their own mystique, and rumors of cover-ups often follow. Of course, most of these stories have little if any truth to them and have been debunked repeatedly (or at least that’s what they want you to think), but that’s never enough to stop a good story....

SEE ALSO: 10 Strangely Specific Burial Requests Pre-Embalming At anytime, day or night, the funeral professional may be called upon to do his or her job. People have a tendency to die at the most inconvenient times, and a mortician cannot wait until later to retrieve a body. This means lots of getting up at 1 AM and having to work on holidays. When someone dies and once authorization has been granted by the family, doctor, and/or by the medical examiner, the embalmer is called to make the “removal” of the body....

The lines were created by the ancient Nazca people, whose civilization flourished from about 200 BC until their society mysteriously collapsed around 650 AD. Both the Nazca Lines, as well as the reason for the once great civilization who created them suddenly collapsing has been the subject of study, intense debated and speculation for many years. Originally discovered by Peruvian archaeologists Toribis Majia Xesspe in 1927, they weren’t actually studied until Paul Kosok rediscovered them in 1937....

These artifacts open unseen glimpses into expeditions and little-known military traditions. Even more enticing, they allow the living to meet incredible prehistoric guests. Newly revealed images can also show doomed men, the start of movements, or moments too graphic to have been displayed in the past. Of course, newly presented artifacts aren’t without their controversies. Just to make things interesting, some of the most precious finds are also the most disputed, with background stories that don’t always add up....

But there are many high-level sportspeople who simply do not end up looking like Muhammad Ali or Flo-Jo—some tippy-top-level sporting heroes and heroines just look…different. From an MMA bruiser who could strut her stuff on a catwalk in Paris to a Sumo wrestler who looked like he should be behind a desk at the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company (or if you live on the other side of the Atlantic, Wernham Hogg), these amazing guys and gals prove that you don’t need to look like a gym bunny to set the sporting world alight....

Top 10 Greatest Movies To Win Best Picture That’s usually true, but then there are those films that are almost universally beloved. Granted, there’s always someone who hated Citizen Kane, but there are millions more who loved it. This list breaks down ten different genres to highlight the greatest movie of each one presented in no particular order. Doubtless, many will agree and disagree, so sound off in the comments with your favorites....

10 Hypothetical Planets That Could Exist In Our Solar System 10 Kepler-78b The search for Earth-like planets is one scientists will likely always be working on. In 2013, two research teams identified a planet called Kepler-78b which is about the same size, density, and composition as Earth. It has a radius only 1.2 times that of Earth’s, and it is rocky. The only catch is that it is so unnaturally close to its star that its rocky composition has been entirely liquefied....

A frequent addition to $5.99 Kung Fu movie box sets, “Swordsman with an Umbrella” gives you exactly that: A swordsman out for revenge, who totes around a Japanese style umbrella. While this isn’t to strange in itself, the weirdness factor gets turned up when he uses this umbrella to fly Mary Poppins style, or throws it like a Frisbee at his enemies, accompanied by goofy cartoon sound effects. Keep in mind this movie is NOT a comedy, or at least not meant to be....

Punch-Drunk Love is a romantic comedy starring Adam Sandler. Hold on, hold on. It’s directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (Magnolia, There Will be Blood) and Sandler portrays his character as a realistic version of his Happy Gilmore self. Instead of the whole world being his playground and accepting of his reckless and selfless behavior he’s now a mentally-unstable man who’s desperately alone and afraid. We’ve seen Sandler act mean before this but never in such a spiteful and hurtful way....

Mute, efficient and deadly, Mr. Igoe leaves much (and occasionally nothing) to the imagination. What must his resume read like? The only reliable piece of info we get about him in the 1987 sci-fi comedy is that he has a prosthetic hand with a variety of attachments, that he apparently enjoys listening to rock & roll, and that he knows how to handle himself in gun-related situations. Played by Vernon Wells (as only Vernon Wells can play him), Mr....