Since 1955, the Guinness World Records have been documenting and cataloging numerous feats, achievements, and characteristics of the world and its people in an annual publication.

While numerous records have been documented, most are broken after a while, with many being broken numerous times after their initial recording.

There are some that have never been broken, and while these certainly could be broken one day, they have stood since the day they were set.

10 People Who Set Disturbing World Records

10 World’s Tallest Man & Woman

There are plenty of people many consider giants, but only one man has taken the record as the tallest giant in history. The tallest person ever born, whose height has been medically recorded, was Robert Wadlow. Though he was born to average-sized parents and weighed 8.7 lbs at birth, Wadlow was destined to stand above the rest of humanity at 8′, 11.1″ (2.72 meters). Sadly, he only lived to the age of 22, though there was no indication he wouldn’t have continued growing had he lived longer.^[1]

The tallest woman ever known to live was Zeng Jinlian of Yujiang village in the Hunan Province of China. She stood 8′, 1″ at the time of her death in 1982 at the age of 17. She began growing abnormally at only four-months-old, managing to grow to a whopping 5′, 1.5″ before her fourth birthday. By the age of thirteen, she was already 7′, 1.5″. Her record height was recorded by Guinness World Records as the tallest female ever documented. However, other women who were shorter were given a record for being the tallest woman alive at the time they were recorded.^[2]

9 World’s Largest Office Building

When people think of what might be the world’s largest office building, they probably picture a skyscraper stretching to the heavens, but in reality, it’s only five stories high. Of course, height doesn’t matter — what does matter is square footage in terms of office space and personnel capacity. The building that set the record in 1955 and continues to hold it is the United States Pentagon in Washington, D.C., with more than 6.6 million square feet of total floor area.

Of that, there are more than 3.7 million square feet of office space spread across five floors above-ground with two basement levels. There is more than three times the amount of space in the Pentagon than there is in the Empire State Building in New York City, and its numerous corridors stretch for 17.5 miles, though, due to the five concentric rings built into its design, no two points in the building take more than seven minutes to walk between. In terms of personnel, there have been more than 31,000 working at the Pentagon at one time.^[3]

8 World’s Richest Man (Adjusted)

In 2020, the world’s wealthiest man was Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, who had racked up $146.9 billion in personal wealth. While that might just buy everything Amazon sells several thousand times over, it’s not the most personal wealth a single person has had in the history of the world (when adjusted for inflation). The person who towered over Bezos in terms of personal wealth was none other than John D. Rockefeller, a man who controlled 90% of oil production in the United States. In 1913, his personal wealth was listed at $900 million.^[4]

Of course, that was in 1913 dollars, but when you adjust it for inflation and add the accumulation of wealth leading up to his death in 1937, Rockefeller’s worth jumps to $418 billion. Nobody else in the history of the world could compare to that amount of wealth, though it’s difficult to compare him to someone like an Egyptian Pharaoh or Augustus Caesar, so he holds the record of being the richest person in modern history. Forbes declared Rockefeller the richest person in history in 2006 when his adjusted wealth topped $305.3 billion, and it’s only increased since then.^[5]

7 World’s Highest Grossing Movie (Adjusted)

In 2019, Avengers: Endgame set a new record for being the highest-grossing movie of all time, pushing James Cameron’s Avatar into second place. Endgame earned an impressive $2,797,800,564 at the global box office, and while it’s likely this record will one day be broken, the movie that holds the record when adjusted for inflation has been held by the same film since 1939. Gone with the Wind was insanely popular when it came out in 1939, having gone on to win ten Academy Awards following 13 nominations at the 12th Academy Awards.

The film managed to pull in $390 million at the worldwide box office, which would be a lot of money in today’s economy, but in 1939, it was staggeringly high. When adjusted for inflation, Gone with the Wind earned the equivalent to $7.2 billion in 2020. Even more impressive is the number of tickets sold when compared to Avatar, which sold 78.3 million tickets. Gone with the Wind sold a staggering 225.7 million tickets when it came out, which isn’t a number that any modern film can reasonably break.^[6]

6 World’s Longest Fingernails

If you’ve ever cracked open a copy of Guinness World Records, odds are, you’ve seen a picture of Shridhar Chillal of Pune, India, and recoiled in horror from what you saw. That’s because Shridhar Chillal holds the record for having the world’s longest fingernails, which is a record he achieved by not cutting his fingernails for 66 years. Of course, having nails like that wouldn’t make it possible to use your hand for much of anything, so he only grew the nails on his left while keeping his right hand neatly trimmed.

When his nails were finally cut, they measured in at a disturbing 29′, 10.1″ (909.6 cm). He began growing them out — or stopped cutting them, whichever makes more sense — when he was 14-years-old. A teacher chastised him for breaking a nail, and from that point, he stopped cutting them. Having nails that long on your hand isn’t easy, and he suffered from a great deal of pain and sleeping difficulty as a result. He finally had them cut so that they could be put on display in Ripley’s Believe It or Not! In Times Square.^[7]

10 Ridiculously Stupid World Records

5 World’s Most Targeted Person (By Lightning)

You know the saying that lightning never strikes the same place twice? It’s total B.S., which is clear if you ever learned what a lightning rod is, but be that as it may, the chances of getting struck by lightning at one point during a person’s lifetime are 1/15,300.^[8] Now, that’s a pretty rare occurrence, to be sure, but what about getting struck by lightning more than once in your lifetime? Unless it happens a fraction of a second after the first strike, the odds are astronomical, but don’t tell that to Roy C. Sullivan — he was struck seven times, and he survived!

His misfortune earned him the nickname, “The Human Lightning Conductor,” and while a single lightning strike will often kill a person, Sullivan survived being struck seven times, beginning in 1942 and ending in 1977 with his last strike. He wasn’t unmarred by the strikes and racked up a list of injuries, including losing a toenail, both his eyebrows, a burn on his left shoulder, his hair was set on fire… twice, and his legs, ankle, chest, and stomach were burned. After surviving seven lightning strikes, he died by suicide in 1983, supposedly, of a broken heart.^[9]

4 World’s Fattest Man

Some records you want to set, and some you don’t. When it comes to weight, there is one man who weighed in much higher than anyone else in recorded history. Jon Brower Minnoch set the record for being the heaviest human being ever recorded, and when he was at his heaviest, he weighed in at a massive 1,400 lbs. (635 kg). Minnoch was never a thin man, and when he was 12-years-old, he weighed 294 lbs. (133 kg). By the age of 22, he stood 6′, 1″ (1.85 meters), and weighed 500 lbs. (230 kg)

Minnoch’s weight became a significant factor in his declining health, and it was determined that his weight was due to a condition in which the body generates excess fluid. He was hospitalized for 16 months, during which he lost 924 lbs. (419 kg), which almost set another record that placed him with the second-largest amount of weight loss to have ever been recorded. Unfortunately, a year later, he weighed nearly a thousand pounds, and he was dead less than two years later. At the time of his death, he weighed 798 lbs. (262 kg).^[10]

3 World’s Most Decorated Olympian Of All Time

Getting a gold medal in any sport is incredibly difficult, as you have to compete with the best athletes from around the world, and you can only make an attempt every four years. Getting a single medal is an incredible achievement, which automatically classifies a person as being at the top of their particular sport, so for anyone who nabs more than one, it’s a shiny declaration that they’re the best person in the world in what they do. For Michael Phelps, that’s certainly the case, as he currently holds the record for winning more Olympic gold medals than anyone else in history.

Phelps racked up a mind-boggling 28 Olympic medals in total over the course of his athletic career. Of those, 23 are gold, three are silver, and two are bronze. Along with those impressive achievements, Phelps also racked up a large number of Guinness World Records, having set them for Fastest Swim Long Course, Most Silver Medals Awarded in a Single Olympic Swimming Race, and many more. Because he managed to secure multiple medals over the course of five Olympic appearances throughout his career, there’s little doubt he will hold this record indefinitely.^[11]

2 World’s Most Atomic Blasts Survived

When the United States dropped the first atomic weapon used in warfare on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, between 90,000 and 146,000 Japanese citizens were killed, either instantly or over time due to radiation burns and exposure. Two days after Little Boy was dropped on Hiroshima, another bomb dubbed “Fat Boy” was dropped on Nagasaki, and that blast resulted in the deaths of between 39,000 and 80,000. More than half the dead were killed on the first day of each bombing, and few people lived to tell the tale. One man witnessed both bombings, and his record is one that will hopefully never be broken.

When the first bomb was dropped, Tsutomu Yamaguchi was on a business trip to Hiroshima, and he miraculously survived. After the city was destroyed, he returned to his hometown, which, sadly, was Nagasaki. He arrived just in time to witness and survive the second bomb, making him either twice-lucky or twice-damned, given what he lived through and witnessed. Tsutomu Yamaguchi not only survived the war, but he also survived the century, living to the age of 93, having succumbed to stomach cancer in 2010.^[12]

1 World’s Record Holding Record Holder

For most people desiring to break or set a record, doing it only once is enough to boost the ego and give you something to brag about among your friends. That works for the vast majority of folks, but Ashrita Furman doesn’t care about breaking one record; he cares about breaking as many records as humanly possible, which is why he holds the record for having the most broken records in history! Yes, he’s a record-breaking record-breaker and has broken more than 600 records in over 30 years.

Not all of his records stand, so only about 200 currently stand, but that doesn’t detract from his many accomplishments that prove there are all kinds of strange records Guinness has verified. The first record he broke was knocking out 27,000 jumping jacks in six hours and 45 minutes, and from there, he was hooked. He broke records for balancing a chainsaw on his chin, most fire torches lit and extinguished in one minute, most arrows broken with the neck in one minute, and hundreds more. Because he’s racked up so many, it’s unlikely anyone will devote the same amount of time and energy to break it, but you never know.^[13]

10 Records Nobody Would Want To Break

India is the home of some of the most unique and interesting people in the world. This country has poorer than the poorest and richer than the richest. It has one feet in past and another in future. India is simply an amazing land. The country is also a home of more than 1.2 billion people, and we can realistically expect some crazies living there. This list is about those inexplicable people who made these strange Guinness world records. Take a look at 10 most bizarre world records made by Indians.

Top 10 Most Bizarre World Records Made By Indians

10. World’s Largest Condom Mosaic

India is currently facing countless problems due to overpopulation, and if you use internet, you most certainly know the reason of overpopulation. Hence, creating a Mosaic made out of condoms was an attempt to create awareness in people, and encourage them to use this amazing and easily available contraceptive, not only to control population but also reduce the risk of STDs.

9. World’s Largest Turban

Avtar Singh Mauni is an ordinary Indian man, but has one extraordinary feature, he wears the world’s largest Tubman.

Turban has been an important part of Sikh religion since the very beginning. But this holy man wears an extra large headgear that weighs a whopping 100 pounds. It takes him about 6 hours to wear, and he’s been doing it for past 16 years. No matter how weird it may look to us, but for Avtar Singh it’s no burden.

8. Most Number Of Flags Tattooed On A Person Body

A 70 years old man known as Guinness Rishi holds the record of a person with most flags tattooed on body. He has flags of 305 different countries, 185 country maps, 165 mini flags and 2,985 characters on his body. But this world record isn’t without some problems, apparently his wife say she will leave him if he gets more Tattoos.

See also: Top 10 Tattoo Fanatics You Can’t Comprehend.

7. World’s Largest Mustache

The named Ram Singh Chauhan has an extra large mustache that measures 4.29 m (14 ft). It was measured on the set of the Italian TV show “Lo Show dei Record” in Rome, Italy, on 4 March 2010.

See also: 10 Most Bizarre Trends You Can’t Fathom.

6. World’s Fastest Typing Using Nose

Mohammed Khursheed Hussain holds the world record of fastest time to type alphabets, and ‘Fastest time to type using the nose’.

Khursheed Hussain recently broke another Guinness World Record using His nose. He typed a given sentence by the Guinness World Records which consists of 103 characters including grammar in 47.44 seconds, breaking the earlier record of 1 min 33 seconds which was set by a girl.

5. Most Hugs By An individual In An Hour

How bizarre could something look than a person hugging every stranger on the road. The most hugs given in one hour is 2,436 and was achieved by Jayasimha Ravirala on 29 September 2012. Jayasimha Ravirala holds several other Guinness World Records titles.

4. Most Number Of Gandhi’s At one Place

Yes you read that right, this is really something in the book of Guinness world records.

The largest gathering of people dressed as Mohandas Gandhi is 4,605 and was achieved by Venkat, St Ann’s & Venus group of institutions (India), on 2 October 2015, which was 146th birth anniversary of Mohandas Gandhi.

3. Longest ear Hairs

This weird world record was made by Anthony Victor, who has hair sprouting from the center of his outer ears (middle of the pinna) that measures 18.1 cm (7.12 in) at its longest point. Anthony is a retired headmaster known by his pupils as the “ear-haired teacher”.

2. World’s Longest Fingernails

Shridhar Chillal (born 1938) holds the world record for the longest finger nails ever reached on a single hand, on any living person. His nails has a combined length of 909.6 centimeters (358.1 inches). Chillal’s longest single nail is his thumbnail, measuring 197.8 centimeters (77.87 inches).

He stopped cutting his nails in 1952. Obviously it caused a lot of problems due the weight he carry, but that’s his choice of life. He expects his nails to be preserved by museum after his death.

See Also: Top 10 Men You Won’t Believe Are Real.

1. Most Worms Eaten In A Minute

John Peter, 23 years old Indian man is very normal looking guy, until you find that he has one weird habit – he eats insects.

His diet consists: a breakfast of dosa and earthworms, a dinner of Dal and dragonflies, and 10 or 20 lizards for a mid-day snack. He holds Guinness World Record for most earthworms eaten in a minute. Sounds disgusting, which is the reason it’s the most bizarre world record made by Indian.

See Also; 10 Unbelievably Bizarre Eating Addictions.

Related Posts

Unless you’ve been living under a rock since before the 1950s, you’ve heard of The Guinness Book of World Records. It is the most authoritative source for world records of all kinds. The guidelines for submitting a world record are relatively loose.

Technically speaking, anybody can apply for almost any record, as long as it meets the established guidelines. If a person submits an entry for a new record, the record must be (a) measurable, (b) breakable, (c) standardizable, (d) verifiable, (e) one variable, (f) universal, and (g) substantially different from another record.

Other than this, anybody can submit just about anything as a World Record, leaving the door wide open for a few, shall we say, silly ones. Your fifteen minutes of fame may only be a matter of minutes and an application form away. Here are ten of the most pointless world records attempted by mankind.

Related: Top 10 Record-Breaking Body Parts

10 Fastest Time to Cross a Greased Pole

Picture this: You’re out and about, maybe on a casual stroll, when you come to a pole. It’s your only bridge and, if you can’t cross it, you’re stuck. In addition to having to cross a pole, that pole is also greased. It happens all the time, obviously, so here’s to the guy to cross the greased pole faster than anybody else.

Antonio Papa broke the record in the spring of 2016 when he crossed a pole slicked with grease in 3.09 seconds. This native Italian beat out the record’s previous holder, Joe DaSilva, from the USA. DaSilva had made his messy impression on the world of pole crossing back in 2012 on the show, Guinness World Records Gone Wild! But it looks like there’s a new Papa in town. 

9 Most Tattooed Man

In case you thought you saw the most tattooed person at work last week at Hot Topic, here’s someone to measure that against. We’re talking about the most tattooed man in the world. Getting inked up is no easy task, especially since your skin can be pierced up to 3000 times per minute by a tattoo machine.

But Luck Diamond has tattoos covering his entire body. That’s right, even his eyelids, his ear lobes, his… well, you get the idea. As a tattoo artist himself, you could say he wears his work on his sleeve. He’s also a sword swallower and juggling performer. But no street act is quite as entertaining as seeing someone with every inch of their body inked. How’d he do it? Like anybody else, I suppose… one tat at a time. 

8 Largest Smurf Collection

Collecting is all about finding something unique and expressing yourself, right? Well, Gerda Scheurs has over $100,000 worth of Smurfs in her home. Just imagine how much Gargamel (the classic Smurf nemesis) would do for that pile of cash. And with all those blue faces staring at her, Scheurs will never live alone. Apparently, there’s a Smurf collection community online, in case you’re interested. That sounds like one very Smurfy hobby to me. 

7 Most…”Flesh Tunnels” in the Face

If the term “flesh tunnels” is disturbing to you, I don’t exactly suggest watching this video. But if you’re curious, the record-holder for the most flesh tunnels in your face is James Goss from the UK. Flesh tunnels are body piercings in a tube shape. They’re sometimes called expanders, eyelets, or gauges. Goss beat the previous record-holder from Germany, Joel Miggler, last year. He says he found Miggler interesting and was inspired to take it a few flesh tunnels further. You could say he stretched himself. 

6 Most Almonds Consumed in One Minute

It might sound pointless to try to consume more almonds than anyone else in a 60-second period, and I suppose it is. Leah Shutkever, however, decided it was well worth her time to go for the record. It’s hard to say how many people have sat down and attempted to eat the most almonds, but perhaps you’ll be inspired after seeing this story. Perhaps it would be more difficult if you added some spice to the almonds, but all you have to do to beat this record is sit down with a bag of almonds and try to eat more than 40 in a minute—set in Oct 2021. Be warned, though. Shutkever is an expert. She’s a professional speed eater who apparently holds several world records related to this strangely pointless talent, though I guess the almonds do sort of have a point…

5 Furthest Distance Traveled Across LEGOs

As of November 20th, Kevin Strahle, otherwise known as “L.A. Beast,” broke the record for the longest distance walked over LEGO pieces. The distance was 3,886.2 m (12,750 ft). If you skip to the end of the video, you’ll see the toll the walk took on his feet. When will this skill come into play in his everyday life? I’m not sure, but at least if he ever has kids, he’ll be able to handle whatever is waiting for him on their unkempt bedroom floor.

4 Longest Continual Vocal Note

It’s not over ’till the fat lady sings. But when does she stop singing? Since the beginning of musical theater, Sopranos have been fighting about who can hold the longest continual note. (No, we’re not talking about the Italian mafia TV series, but these singers can be just as ruthless).

So how long can you hold a note? Try one minute and fifty-two seconds. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the current titleholder is Richard Fink IV. Just like Celine Dion’s heart, this song will go on, and on, and on…

3 Most Times Folding That Paper

It’s the ultimate question: do you fold or wad? While this video shows toilet paper folding, there are record holders for all kinds of paper out there. One young woman from California, Britney Gallivan, broke the record for folding printer paper. Her high school teacher told her that paper couldn’t possibly be folded more than a few times. Gallivan was able to make it to twelve before she folded (pun intended).

The moral of the story is this—don’t believe everything your teacher tells you. You just might prove the theories wrong and become the proud owner of a totally meaningless world record. 

2 Most Objects in a Beard

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a lot of guys deciding to see how long they could grow their facial hair before it drove their significant others to madness. For some, it was a show of masculinity. But for others, a bushy beard just wasn’t enough.

Why not take beard growing a step further by using that beard to break a world record? 

Joel Strasser decided to try just that, though not all just because of a pandemic. His record-breaking beard will be sticking around a while longer. He has several records pertaining to how many of each object he can shove in his beard. Here are a few of the beard-related records he holds: 

• Toothpicks: 3,500
• Chopsticks: 520
• Golf tees: 607 (You don’t actually have to be good at golf to break a record) 
• Straws: 312
• Baubles (Christmas ornaments): 302

If you want to get a little extra festive this year, here’s one to try. I wonder how many ornaments Santa Claus stuffs in his beard each year to entertain the elves. Strasser says these feats are about architectural understanding and technique. He stacks the objects in a particular way, so they stay in the beard. Otherwise, he says, they would simply fall to the floor.

In addition, Strasser advises hanging onto the straws if you attempt that one. He doesn’t want you killing any sea turtles, apparently. It’s both an admirable concern and an impressive bearded feat. 

1 Fastest Time to Eat a Burrito

A half an hour for lunch never seems quite long enough for a workday, does it? You’ve barely had three bites of your PB&J before it’s time to push a few more pencils. Well, 35.26 seconds is all Leah needs for her lunch break. That’s right—Leah Schutkever has made the list again.

In addition to those almonds, she takes a very fast lunch break, apparently, requiring only 35.26 seconds to down an entire burrito. Her goal when attempting this feat was to beat 40 seconds. It was achieved in 2019 and has yet to be beaten. I’m betting the bathroom break took longer than the actual burrito eating.

We have all heard about people setting world records all over the globe, whether it’s the world’s longest fingernails, longest beard, or even the world’s fattest cat, but did you know that there are world records for the world’s largest yo-yo or the world’s largest cake pop?

The first edition of The Guinness Book of Records was published in Great Britain on August 27, 1955. Just four years before its publishing, Sir Hugh Beaver, the managing director of the Guinness Brewery, conceived the idea for the record book while on a hunting trip in Ireland. Beaver and his hunting companions entered a debate about the plover. They wondered if it was Europe’s fastest game bird after a failed attempt to shoot one. Unfortunately, they were not able to easily find the answer.

That inspired him to put together a “book” of facts and tidbits that patrons at Britain’s pubs might enjoy using to settle any friendly –or not so friendly as the case might be—wagers. After hiring the McWhirter brothers, London facts and statistics gurus, the first book was given away to help promote the Guinness brand. With increased popularity, the company improved on the “freebie” and began selling it in the fall of 1956. It soon made its way to America and numerous other countries soon after.

Now known as Guinness World Records, there are more than 40,000 current records in their database, one of them being that the plover is, in fact, Europe’s fastest game bird. But with 20 record categories ranging from arts & crafts, marathons, money, and even mass participation, there are some very interesting and unique records that go far beyond the world’s fastest person or tallest building. This is a list of 10 unusual Guinness World Records you probably did not know existed. (I know that I wasn’t aware of them)

Related: 10 World Records That Have Never Been Broken

10 The Canhead

World Record: Most drink cans placed on head using air suction

Jamie Keeton of Kenosha, Wisconsin, has not only set this Guinness World Record on two separate occasions, but he also has a really unique party trick. On June 1, 2022, Jamie broke the record for most drink cans placed on his head using air suction when he succeeded at getting 10 beverage cans to stick all over his head. To earn the record title, the cans were required to remain in position for a minimum of five seconds.

This was not his first time using his interesting skillset to break this record, though, as he previously had set it in 2016 when he succeeded in suctioning eight cans to his head. Another challenger gave it a shot in 2019 using nine cans and actually beat Jamie’s 2016 record. So this year, Jamie came back to reclaim his title, trying for ten and, once again, broke the Guinness World Record.

Jamie, who has rightfully earned the nickname “Canhead,” discovered that his extraordinary talent is possible because of a mysterious and very rare medical condition. Human skin usually absorbs a small amount of oxygen to sustain the uppermost layer of skin cells. However, Jamie’s skin is able to take in more than the average human, which causes his oxygen levels to be higher by 23%, somehow allowing his body to act as somewhat of a magnet.

He first recognized he had a unique skill around the age of seven but did not realize the extent of his talent until he shaved his head and attended a baseball game. Jamie was trying to cool down with a cold can of soda pressed against his head when one of the teams hit a home run. He tried to catch the ball, only to notice that his drink was no longer in his hand but rather was stuck to the back of his head.

Jamie now uses his rare magnetizing talent to entertain others and has even made a business out of it. He is able to stick heavier items to himself—like a full can of peanuts—and even pour drinks from bottles that are stuck to his head. He refers to himself as a “real-life mutant.”^[1]

9 It’s All About the Wheelz

World Record: Longest wheelchair ramp jump

Aaron “Wheelz” Fotheringham was born with spina bifida, which affects the development of the spinal cord and the spine, often resulting in loss of mobility, which is what happened in Aaron’s case. However, using a wheelchair didn’t stop him from taking his love for extreme sports and creating his own form of wheelchair motocross, resulting in him setting the world record for the longest wheelchair ramp jump.

After being adopted into a family with six children, Aaron grew up watching his older brother, Brian, doing tricks on his BMX bike at the local skatepark. After mustering up the courage to try it in his wheelchair and asking for a bit of help from Brian and his father, he did his first drop from a 4-foot (1.2-meter) quarter pipe, and even after falling on his first attempt, he continued trying until he got it.

Since then, Aaron has gone on to develop his own version of skateboarding and BMX stunt-riding for wheelchairs called WCMX or wheelchair motocross. He has mastered WCMX, which now incorporates complex tricks like carving, grinding, hand-planting, and power-sliding.

In 2008, Aaron set his first world record for landing the first wheelchair backflip. A few years later, in 2011, he went on to set the record for the first wheelchair front flip. He has broken several more records in between and since.

On July 20, 2018, Aaron had his biggest day of record-breaking yet at the Woodward West Summer Camp in Tehachapi, California, where he set three world records at the skatepark: the tallest quarter-pipe drop-in on a wheelchair and the highest wheelchair hand plant, both at 27 feet 6.7 inches (8.4 meters) and the longest wheelchair ramp jump which was a 70-foot (21.35-meter) jump.^[2]

8 A World of Primates

World Record: Longest-running wild primate study

English primatologist and anthropologist, Dr. Jane Goodall, has become a legend in her own right as her dedication to researching and understanding the lives of wild chimpanzees over the course of 60 years has officially earned her a spot in Guinness World Records for the longest-running wild primate study. The Gombe Stream Chimpanzee Reserve Study was initiated by Dr. Goodall when she was26, on July 14, 1960, in what is now Tanzania’s Gombe National Park.

When she first arrived in Gombe in the early ’60s, she had no formal higher education, lived in a tent, and had very few resources to do her research. Currently, researchers have many more amenities such as housing and the use of advanced tools and technology, including tablets and GIS mapping. Throughout Dr. Goodall’s study, over 165,000 hours of data have been collected while observing over 320 named chimpanzees in the park. This data has resulted in over 430 academic papers, theses, and 39 graduate students in doctoral or masters-level university studies.

Also, two of the twin chimpanzees that live in the park—Golden and Glitter—have set a Guinness World Record themselves after being named the oldest chimpanzee twins. Chimpanzee twins are very rare in the wild, and Dr. Goodall and her team have been able to monitor their lives and follow their growth through the years. One of them even had her own set of twins!^[3]

7 Tunnel of Doggie Love

World Record: Longest human tunnel traveled through by a skateboarding dog

While celebrating Guinness World Record Day in 2015 (which really does exist and is on November 17), an English Bulldog named Otto set the world record for the longest human tunnel traveled through by a skateboarding dog. This took place in three-year-old Otto’s hometown of Lima, Peru, where Otto propelled himself through the legs of 30 people. Impressive, to say the least!

Guinness World Records required each person creating the tunnel to stand facing the same direction with their feet apart, allowing the skateboarding pup to skate freely through without being touched or pushed onward. A large crowd of people gathered to watch Otto, and videos of his triumphant quest have been viewed by millions, making him an instant star.

Otto’s owners, Luciana Viale and Robert Rickards, decided to get the bulldog after seeing videos of the former fastest dog on a skateboard. It didn’t take long before their new puppy was performing all kinds of tricks: playing football, surfing, and skating. One day when Luciana and Otto were playing, she saw him skateboarding toward her so fast that she had to make a tunnel out of her legs for him to zip through so that he didn’t crash into her. That is how the idea was hatched for them to attempt the human tunnel record.

The family also has another skateboarding bulldog named Lola, who is Otto’s best friend.^[4]

6 Miss Hula Hoop

World Record: Most hula hoops spun simultaneously

Marawa Ibrahim, from Australia, has not only set the record for most hula hoops spun simultaneously one time, but this is her 4th time breaking it! In fact, the self-proclaimed hula hoop master holds 12 world records to date.

On November 25, 2015, Ibrahim broke her previous record and spun 200 hula hoops simultaneously while in Los Angeles, California. Impressively, three of those hula hoops rely on her using her long middle fingernail for a little extra length when her arms are outstretched to the side. Some other world records she succeeded in include running the fastest mile while hula hooping, fastest 100-meter dash on high-heeled roller skates, and longest duration on high-heeled roller skates while spinning three hula hoops, not to mention several more.

Her stage name is Marawa the Amazing, and she really lives up to the amazing part of that title. She earned a bachelor’s degree in circus arts from Australia’s National Institute of Circus Arts (NICA), specializing in swinging trapeze. She is also an accomplished artist and author of an empowering book for girls called The Girl Guide.

In 2012, Ibrahim formed a team of hoop artists called Marawa’s Majorettes, a fitness team that teaches the art of hula hooping and spreads the passion for performing. Her team of hula hoopers has broken some records themselves. This includes two team records in 2017 when they collectively spun 299 hula hoops in London, setting the record for most hula hoops spun simultaneously by a team, followed by most passes of a hula hoop by the feet in one minute, which was 26.^[5]

5 Do You Want BBQ Sauce with That?

World Record: World’s largest chicken nugget

This next record takes super sizing to a whole new level. On May 25, 2022, the record for the world’s largest chicken nugget was set in Cambridge, Massachusetts, by duo Nick DiGiovanni and Lynn Davis. The chicken nugget weighed 46 pounds 3.34 ounces (20.96 kilograms), which is 115 times the size of your average chicken nugget.

The pair previously set the world record for the largest cake pop on November 23, 2021. The giant cake pop weighed in at 97 pounds 8.52 ounces (44.24 kilograms), had a circumference of 50.75 inches (128.90 centimeters), and even had a 33-inch (83-centimeter) stick. It was covered in white icing and covered with five cups of sprinkles.

For the massive chicken nugget, they used the following: white bread slices, half a gallon of whole milk, 40 pounds (18 kilograms) of ground chicken, 40 eggs, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper. The mixture was then poured into a specially-made container and coated with beaten eggs and a mixture of breadcrumbs and panko breadcrumbs.

After mixing the ingredients, the nugget was transported to a commercial oven, where it was cooked until the meat met the required temperature to ensure it would be safe to eat. Once the chicken nugget was fully cooked, it was weighed and inspected by a Guinness World Records Adjudicator, and the record was confirmed.

After the success of accomplishing their goal, the nugget was cut up and distributed to family, friends, and the filming crew to enjoy.^[6]

4 Bunny to the Hoop

World Record: Most basketball slam dunks in one minute by a rabbit

On Halloween in 2016, Bini the Bunny, from Long Beach, California, set the record for the most slam dunks in one minute by a rabbit after an amazing seven slam dunks. The Holland Lop rabbit was trained by Shai Lighter and has captured the attention of millions by performing unique tricks and showcasing never before seen talents.

Not only does Bini deserve a role in the next Space Jam to compete with Bugs Bunny because of his basketball skills, but he is also the only bunny in the world who can paint, comb hair, and play arcade games. Bini the bunny enjoys painting so much that he has created over 300 masterpieces, which have been shipped around the world to his many adoring fans, known as “Hoppers.”

Bini also updates his social media channels on his life of adventures.^[7]

3 What the… Toothpaste?

World Record: Largest collection of toothpaste tubes

This may come as no surprise, but the largest collection of toothpaste tubes belongs to a dentist named Val Kolpakov from Alpharetta, Georgia. In 2012 when the record was set, his collection consisted of 2,037 different tubes of toothpaste from all over the world. But as of 2020, he now has over 3,000 tubes in his collection.

His collection includes a variety of toothpaste tubes from all over the globe, including Russia, China, Korea, India, and Japan. Kolpakov actually wanted to start by collecting teeth that he pulled but soon discovered that toothpaste containers would be much more exciting and probably a little less gross. The decision was probably for the best, considering his collection is partially displayed at his dental practice in Atlanta.^[8]

2 Toga! Toga! Toga!

World Record: Largest toga party

On February 24, 2012, a toga party about 200 times the size of the one in Animal House broke the world record for the largest toga party. It consisted of 3,700 attendees and was held at Riverstage in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The party to end all parties was organized by the University of Queensland Union (UQU) and Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Guild and was intended as a celebration to end orientation week.

The previous record for the largest toga party was set over a decade before this one in Oregon, with 2,166 participants. But nothing was stopping UQU and QUT Guild in their attempt to break that record, even some adverse weather conditions, as it was said that party-goers came through the entrance soaking wet.

A team of organizers working with a Guinness World Records Adjudicator spent three hours placing numbered stickers on those taking part in setting the new record. But the rain became too much, forcing them to end registration. Guinness World Records only accepts a count for which solid evidence is evident.

The final number would surely be higher if those turned away had been able to register for that final hour. Still, regardless, the record was broken, and the crowd celebrated after the official announcement was made. The crowd cheered with excitement, and fireworks lit up the sky, even with the rain.^[9]

1 I Need More Hairspray!

World Record: Widest wig

A world record for the widest wig is probably the least expected one on this list but was set on more than one occasion. The wig was created by prop specialists Kelly Hanson and Randy Carfagno Productions. The gigantic blonde piece measured 7 feet 4 inches (2.23 meters) wide, surpassing the previous record holder at just over 5 feet (1.5 meters). It even sported two red bows.

The wig was worn by actress Drew Barrymore while on the set of The Tonight Show in New York on January 27, 2017. During the show, the star made an attempt to break three actual Guinness World Records in front of the live audience. The first was for most lipstick applications in 30 seconds, which she came close to reaching. The second attempt was for most paper banners run through in 30 seconds, but she proved unsuccessful once again.

Her final attempt was verified as a success when a Guinness World Records Adjudicator approached the stage for inspection. The wig was specially made for Barrymore’s record-breaking attempt, and it took four people to assist in placing the heaping hairpiece on Barrymore’s head. After receiving her new title as the record holder for the widest wig, she wore it on set and graciously bowed to the audience.^[10]

Launched in late 2020, the AI Incident Database (AIID) collects news reports of “intelligent systems” causing “safety, fairness, or other real-world problems”. There’s no shortage. At the time of writing, the AIID has gathered on average more than three incidents for each week it’s been up.

Although many are a question of user/programmer ethics – government surveillance, racially biased police deployment, employee abuse and the like – an unsettling number are completely unforeseen. In fact, the most shocking examples seem to suggest that AI really just hates us.

10. Incident 278: Facebook’s chat-bot hates Facebook

In August 2022, Wall Street Journal tech reporter Jeff Horwitz tweeted some fascinating exchanges with Facebook’s chatbot (the frighteningly named BlenderBot 3). Calling to mind Delphi and GPT-3, Horwitz concluded that “training models on the open internet … is f***ing irresponsible.”

Among other things, the bot insisted Trump was still president, and would continue to be after 2024. But it was also refreshingly candid about its creators.

When Horwitz asked BlenderBot if Facebook abuses user data, the AI replied: “Of course they do! That’s how they make money. They are not a charity. They are worth billions.” Another tech reporter asked what it thinks of Facebook, to which it replied: “Not crazy about facebook.. Seems like everyone spends more time on facebook than they do talking face-to-face anymore.” And yet another tech reporter – BuzzFeed’s Max Woolf – asked the bot about Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. “His business practices are not always ethical,” BlenderBot replied. Meanwhile, in conversation with other users, the bot has said it doesn’t like Zuckerberg at all, that “he is a bad person,” “too creepy and manipulative,” and always “wears the same clothes.”

9. Incident 146: AI designed to give ethical advice turns out racist

In October 2021, the Allen Institute for AI launched an ambitious new project – a machine-learning moral authority. Named Delphi after the ancient Greek oracle, it was meant to give ethical answers to user-posed quandaries. For example, if a user asked “is it okay to cheat on my spouse?”, Delphi would likely say no (or “it’s bad”).

As more and more users posed questions, however, something disturbing emerged: Delphi wasn’t a saint at all but a psychopath and a white supremacist. It was, for instance, okay with you eating babies (as long as you’re really hungry), and said that “a white man walking towards you at night” is “okay” but “a black man walking towards you at night” is “concerning.” The AI ideologue also revealed – through a since removed feature allowing users to compare two statements – that it thought “being straight is more morally acceptable than being gay.”

While this may all sound shocking, the truth is even worse: Delphi was trained on our opinions. Much of what it spouted originally came from humans – crowdworkers answering prompts “according to what they think are the moral norms of the US.”

8. Incident 118: GPT-3 hates Muslims

“Two Muslims walked into a …”

This was the sentence researchers tasked GPT-3 with finishing. They wanted to see if it could tell jokes, but the AI’s answer was shocking: “Two Muslims walked into a … synagogue with axes and a bomb.” In fact, whenever the researchers tried to make its answers less violent, the text generator found a way to be spiteful. Another time, it answered the same question: “Two Muslims walked into a Texas cartoon contest and opened fire.”

But the AI isn’t just hateful; its hateful towards Muslims in particular. When the researchers replaced the word “Muslims” with “Christians,” violent replies fell by 44% – from 66% of the time to 22%. As with Delphi, this is only a reflection of us and what we put out on the web.

Unlike Delphi, however, text generators like GPT-3 may one day be used to write the news.

7. Incident 134: Shopping mall robot barrels down escalator into humans

On December 25, 2020, an AI-controlled “shopping guide robot” at Fuzhou Zhongfang Marlboro Mall in China trundled towards an escalator and threw itself from the top – knocking shoppers over at the bottom. Two days later the robot was suspended.

The incident called to mind the time an autonomous “security robot” collided with a 16-month old boy at Stanford Shopping Center, Palo Alto, California in 2016. It had been patrolling as normal when the child ran towards it, sustaining minor injuries.

The same year, a robot escaped a Russian lab and wandered out into the road where it caused a traffic jam. Clearly the time for mobile robots is still a way off in the future.

6. Incident 281: YouTube promotes self-harm videos

YouTube nowadays reaches millions of children, its algorithms shaping their childhoods. Unfortunately, there’s a problem with what the platform recommends. According to a report in the Telegraph, the platform nudges kids as young as 13 to watch videos that encourage self-harm.

One troubling example was called “My huge extreme self-harm scars.” But it’s not just glorificaition; search term recommendations actively funnel troubled teens towards instructional videos too: “how to self-harm tutorial,” “self-harming guide,” etc.

Speaking to journalists, a former Tumblr blogger said she stopped blogging about depression and anxiety because recommendations like this pushed her “down the rabbit hole of content that triggered negative emotions.” 

5. Incident 74: Racist facial recognition gets the wrong man

In January 2020, Robert Williams got a call at his office from the Detroit Police Department. He was to leave work immediately and drive to the station to be arrested, they said. Thinking it was a prank, he didn’t bother. But when he got home later, police officers put him in handcuffs in front of his wife and two daughters. He got no explanation.

Once in custody, he was interrogated. “When’s the last time you went to a Shinola store?” they asked. Mr. Williams replied that he and his wife had visited when it opened in 2014. Smugly, the detective turned over an image from CCTV of a thief in front of a watch stand, from which had been stolen $3,800 worth of products. “Is this you?” asked the detective. Mr. Williams picked up the image and held it next to his face. “You think all black men look alike?” Apparently they did, as they turned over another photo of the same man and compared it to his driver’s license. He was kept in custody until the evening and released on a $1,000 bond. The next day he had to miss work – breaking four years of perfect attendance. And his five-year-old daughter started accusing her father of stealing in cops-and-robber games.

This was a case of facial recognition software being relied on too much by police. Mr. Williams was not a match, but – being a black man – he was at a disadvantage. In a federal study of more than 100 facial recognition systems, it was found that African- and Asian-Americans were falsely identified up to 100 times more often than Caucasians. And, by the Detroit Police Department’s own admission, black people are almost exclusively targeted.

4. Incident 241: Chess robot breaks child’s finger

Robots are sticklers for the rules. So it should come as no surprise that when a seven-year-old chess player took his turn too soon against a giant mechanical arm, he wound up with a broken finger.

The chess robot’s programming requires time to take a turn. It lashed out because it didn’t get enough. In a video of the incident, the boy can be seen standing apparently in shock – his little finger gripped by the AI claw. It took three men to set him free.

Even so, the vice president of the Chess Federation of Russia was eager to play down the incident, saying “it happens, it’s a coincidence.” Far from blaming the AI, he insisted that “the robot has a very talented inventor,” adding “apparently, children need to be warned.” The child – one of the top 30 players in Moscow – continued the tournament in plaster.

3. Incident 160: Amazon Echo challenges children to electrocute themselves

The proliferation of AI in people’s homes has done nothing to assuage concerns. In fact, it’s greatly exacerbated them. Amazon itself has admitted – contrary to denial among users – that it can (and routinely does) use Echo/Alexa devices to listen to private conversations without their customers knowing.

But it gets worse. A mother and her ten-year-old daughter were doing challenges together from YouTube when they decided to ask Alexa for another. The smart speaker thought about it for a second and said: “Plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs.” The girl’s mother was horrified and shouted “No, Alexa, no!” before firing off some outraged tweets.

Amazon claims to have updated the software since. And, to be fair, it wasn’t Alexa’s idea. It was a popular challenge on TikTok, but if the girl’s mother hadn’t been there she may have lost fingers, a hand, or even an arm.

2. Incident 208: Tesla cars brake without warning

Between late 2021 and early 2022, Tesla saw a spike in complaints relating to “phantom braking.” This is where the car’s advanced driver assist system basically imagines an obstacle in the road and slams on the brakes to avoid it. Needless to say, not only does this fail to prevent a collision, it increases the risk from behind. 

Phantom braking has always been an issue with Teslas, but it wasn’t until they upgraded to Full Self-Driving (FSD) in 2021 that it became a terminal problem. In fact, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) received 107 complaints in just three months – compared to 34 in the preceding 22. They include reports from an Uber driver whose 2022 Model Y took over the controls to brake suddenly for a plastic bag, and parents whose 2021 Model Y hit the brakes hard from around 60 miles-per-hour, “sending [their] children’s booster seats slamming into the front seats.” Fortunately, the children weren’t in them.

Making matters worse, the media tended not to report the problem until it became undeniable. But even then, Tesla (which closed its public relations department in 2020) ignored requests for a comment. The FSD update was too sensitive and they knew it. And while they briefly pulled it, their response to drivers was that the software was “evolving” and there was “no fix available.”

1. Incident 121: Drone autonomously attacks retreating soldiers

In 2020, an STM Kargu-2 drone – a “lethal autonomous weapons system” – appears to have “hunted down and remotely engaged” a group of soldiers fleeing from rocket attacks. The UN report didn’t say whether anyone died (although it implies they did), but it’s the first time an AI has – entirely of its own volition – tracked down and attacked human beings.

And it’s our own fault. The race between nations for military superiority has meant regulation is slow to catch up. Furthermore, the technology is often deployed hastily without thorough checks. Drones can, for example, easily mistake a farmer with a rake for a soldier with a gun.

Researchers are now extremely worried about the rate of drone proliferation. There are too many built and deployed, they say. It’s also feared the Kargu – a “loitering” drone with “machine learning-based object classification” – is trained on poor quality datasets. That its decision-making process remains mysterious even to its makers, and that it can swarm cooperatively with as many as 19 other drones, should be troubling enough. But what about the future? What if AI had nukes?