Wikipedia talk:Unusual articles/Archive 4

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Normal article, odd title

I suggest including People's Liberation Army Navy Air Force for the name alone; it's the aerial branch of the navy of China's military, which is referred to as the People's Liberation Army. <eleland/talkedits> 23:53, 8 December 2007 (UTC)

I'd go for this. More than that boring cameltoe article... --MacRusgail (talk) 21:45, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

Not unusual as a game; a bit more unusual that people are playing a game from 1920's sci-fi. kwami (talk) 04:57, 15 December 2007 (UTC)

This article deals with Nazi experiments on prisoners and Holocaust victims and the persistent legends of wide-spread production. I don't think it's appropriate for WP:UA, especially with the lighthearted description "One way to keep clean." -- Mwalcoff (talk) 16:06, 15 December 2007 (UTC)

Agreed. WP:UA is meant to be a bit light hearted. Robert Brockway (talk) 21:24, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

Kmart and Wal-Mart have long been rival discount stores. New Harbour Mall is the only mall in the U.S. to feature both stores. But does that make it unusual enough for inclusion? Ten Pound Hammer and his otters • (Broken clamshellsOtter chirps) 04:39, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

I'm afraid not. It's an unusual fact, but the mall itself is not unusual. It would have to be underwater or something to qualify. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 05:46, 21 December 2007 (UTC)
Now that would be interesting. I do know of some malls that were underwater for a while (i.e., they got flooded out)... Ten Pound Hammer and his otters • (Broken clamshellsOtter chirps) 05:54, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

Not sure if its unusual enough. Check it out. kawaputratorque 11:42, 27 December 2007 (UTC)

I think it's unusual enough, particularly with the name "teapot cult" and the photo. --Orlady (talk) 14:18, 27 December 2007 (UTC)
Cool. But i dont really know how to do a brief interesting write-up on this on the main page. Maybe someone can help? Or maybe i'll cook something up.. kawaputratorque 18:53, 2 January 2008 (UTC)
Yes, I reckon it is. Featured in Fortean Times on a number of occasions. --MacRusgail (talk) 21:46, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

I propose we add Cameltoe to this page. When I first saw the Cameltoe entry my first thought was "Now there's something you won't find in Britannica". I'm also interested in what people think the correct section should be. Robert Brockway (talk) 21:23, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

I propose we don't. It's an unencyclopedic article about front wedgies. --MacRusgail (talk) 21:44, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

Somebody Please Add the MONIAC Computer!

I'm not good at formatting so I don't want to mess the page up. It's a machine that used water reservoirs to predict changes in the economy of the UK based on things like taxes and education spending, amongst others, with the flow dictated by economic principles. Thank you! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 129.100.192.181 (talk) 22:16, 22 January 2008 (UTC)

Done. --Rodhullandemu (Talk) 22:22, 22 January 2008 (UTC)

Dede

Dede (Indonesian) is a guy who looks a whole hell of a lot like a tree. The article really needs a picture, because it's absolutely shocking. Check out this, for example. --69.142.108.40 (talk) 01:14, 29 January 2008 (UTC)

A picture would help and the article might well fit here. YouTube, we don't normally link to because of copyright issues. Can you help us with one, free of copyright? --Rodhullandemu (Talk) 01:16, 29 January 2008 (UTC)

I fail to see the point why this is here. It's an ancient philosophical paradox with nothing or very little humour in it. --Kangaxx (talk) 00:40, 2 February 2008 (UTC)

I tend to agree. It's not that "off the wall", so I've deleted it. --Rodhullandemu (Talk) 02:20, 2 February 2008 (UTC)
I'm all for keeping it here. I've heard this riddle many a time, but it's one of the more bizarre questions of theology. --MacRusgail (talk) 03:18, 2 February 2008 (UTC)
Humor has nothing to do with it -- this is for unusual articles, not inhrently funny ones. But if Britannica has it (and it's not too surprising, all things considered), it should be left off, yes. ♫ Melodia Chaconne ♫ (talk) 03:25, 2 February 2008 (UTC)
I was thinking if we let in here bizarre questions of theology, where do we draw the line? In my experience, most questions of theology have a bizarre angle, but this one isn't that bizarre. --Rodhullandemu (Talk) 03:31, 2 February 2008 (UTC)
Oh no, I agree. It seems like a pretty 'normal' philisophical question, all things considered. But before someone mentioned about the soap thing because "it's horrific", a comment which doesn't make much sense in the context of if something is /unusual/. I let it go because I didn't feel like arguing, but it's odd that people keep thinking this page is for inhrently funny stuff. It's not. It's just that most are (but not all -- Joyce Hatto isn't, for instance, to pick a random one I know about). ♫ Melodia Chaconne ♫ (talk) 04:53, 2 February 2008 (UTC)

I didn't add this to the list because it's tagged as possible non-notable, but this fellow does seem to qualify as unusual-- a persistent third-party US presidential candidate who wants to abolish paper money and institute an Ancient Roman-like government based on his neopagan views. 69.109.59.250 (talk) 20:39, 29 February 2008 (UTC)

April Fools' mainpage featured article

Articles meeting the featured article criteria and passing WP:FAC in time can be considered for the April Fools' mainpage, as discussed at Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2008-03-03/Dispatches. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 22:26, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Cheese Rolling

Could this be fit in anywhere? Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake

80.229.16.243 (talk) 12:04, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

I think this might be unusual enough to put under pop culture maybe? Who couldn't use more cheese? --Hourick (talk) 18:51, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Roundabout Dogs

Here's another one as well. Do we think this could go somewhere?

Roundabout dog

80.229.16.243 (talk) 22:10, 15 April 2008 (UTC)

I think it's funny. If you want to put it in, go ahead. Pippin the Mercury (talk) 19:32, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

ok, pardon me for messing up this page because i'm computer illiterate-however, there is a great wiki page of a song called "Lick my Ass" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. I think that should be posted in this article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.206.11.77 (talk) 13:42, 28 May 2008 (UTC)

You're forgiven; next time please click the "new section" button at the top. —Tamfang (talk) 21:33, 28 May 2008 (UTC)


I removed Tromboon from the list, I suspect it's inclusion was a hoax as it's a pretty common instrument, anyway yeah the articles gone now Deathawk (talk) 23:54, 11 June 2008 (UTC)

Nope, it's still there, and it's not a hoax, nor a common instrument. Perhaps read the article to see what it actually is? ♫ Melodia Chaconne ♫ (talk) 00:18, 12 June 2008 (UTC)

Formatting problems, and...

Hi. Some of the images overlap the text in the page, and some text is cut off completely in my browser (IE), can this be fixed? Also, this isn't an article, why is there a Wikiproject template? Also, I've added Get a life to the list, is that okay? Thanks. ~AH1(TCU) 18:21, 26 June 2008 (UTC)

Hi. I have also added Stainless steel soap and an image to the article. Thanks. ~AH1(TCU) 17:23, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

Interesting name, or is it not weird enough? Quanyails (talk) 01:22, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

It's me, just from another computer. Found this interesting page.

One red paperclip

I can see it now: "A man's trading journey turns a paperclip into a house." 60.55.120.100 (talk) 07:02, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

Proposed addition

Nothing screams "only on the internet" like Sexuality in Star Trek. SDY (talk) 04:32, 10 July 2008 (UTC)

Bot-article

I found an unusual article; howerver, the scope of this list seems to be articles whose subjects are unusual, wheras the article in question is notable because it every edit (including the creating edit) was made by bots. Where would be the best place for it? bahamut0013 01:31, 1 August 2008 (UTC)

Suggested addition Category:Nothing

I think this is a rather unusual subject for a category, not to mention that it sounds self-negating(because there's actually something in there). 68.123.238.140 (talk) 00:08, 18 August 2008 (UTC)

Prince Octopus Dzanie

Fantastically named individual. Article is scarce, but still.Juggertrout (talk) 20:36, 7 September 2008 (UTC)

Where is the article? —Tamfang (talk) 18:54, 11 September 2008 (UTC)
Prince Octopus Dzanie Juggertrout (talk) 19:03, 11 September 2008 (UTC)

Anarcho-primitivism

What exactly is so strange or unusual about this? 24.3.14.157 (talk) 08:51, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

I agree. I think that you would find it any political encyclopaedia. Juggertrout (talk) 16:00, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Quite a lot, for a start, you'd be most of the way to mad if you wanted to believe in it.--MacRusgail (talk) 17:23, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Same goes for most orthodox political positions, imho. —Tamfang (talk) 04:54, 16 September 2008 (UTC)
MacRusgail, no one would advocate fascism, anarchy, or the stultifying form of Puritanism the Pilgrims practiced to be put on here. We'd have to add just about every extreme political/religious/philosophy if we allow this. Anarcho-primitivism was a state of humanity for thousands of years, so may I suggest adding the Pre-Cambrian era and Iron Age as well? At least anarcho-primitivists aren't likely to be using computers, so we don't have to see tens of millions of complaints that we're "devaluing" their beliefs! 24.3.14.157 (talk) 08:29, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

Redirects

I've noticed that Muggle Quidditch and Gnome sightings in Argentina are both redirects to sections of less-unusual articles(there are probably other examples). Should we remove these? 68.123.238.140 (talk) 20:40, 20 September 2008 (UTC)

Yeah. If they aren't full articles in and of themselves (and they most likely used to be, but were merged), then take em off. ♫ Melodia Chaconne ♫ (talk) 20:52, 20 September 2008 (UTC)

It's silly, and definitely not something you'd find in a normal encyclopedia. Why not? -- 67.184.171.30 (talk) 15:43, 28 September 2008 (UTC)

I removed this article from the list. Although it's interesting, it is only a cancelled TV program and not unusal. 69.40.242.173 (talk) 23:56, 17 October 2008 (UTC)

Unusual, but..

I find the template {{Black days}} unusual in the sense used here, and funny. But it's not an article, so... Punkmorten (talk) 15:01, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

There's a section for unusual categories at the bottom, I'll add it 71.31.152.106 (talk) 15:25, 1 November 2008 (UTC)
Just noticed that it was a template, so I'm putting it in the numbers and dates section for now. 71.31.152.106 (talk) 15:31, 1 November 2008 (UTC)

Possibly worth adding? J Milburn (talk) 23:58, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Be Bold! bibliomaniac15 01:00, 28 October 2008 (UTC)

Saw this on the front page's DYK section last night and thought that it would have already been here. It isn't (but No Name, Colorado and No Place in England are). 4.245.185.102 (talk) 02:56, 30 November 2008 (UTC)

I added it. (Something that I forgot to do when I wrote the article.) Thanks for the suggestion! --Orlady (talk) 05:03, 30 November 2008 (UTC)

Here's a good one. :) OlEnglish (talk) 19:10, 7 December 2008 (UTC)

Also, That that is is that that is not is not is that it it is.

I'm wondering... what subcategory should I put Geocaching in, if I should put that topic in?Quanyails (talk) 03:20, 14 December 2008 (UTC)

What makes this topic unusual? Don'tKnowItAtAll (talk) 15:59, 15 December 2008 (UTC)

It is rather odd to hunt around the earth for a small trinket of minor value using a GPS, hmm? Of course, that's just my opinion. Quanyails (talk) 13:59, 19 December 2008 (UTC)

Where could Stendhal syndrome be placed? I don’t see a section on medicine. --S.dedalus (talk) 21:39, 25 December 2008 (UTC)

Under Science, along with all the other weird syndromes. Or maybe Arts, as it deals with having a fascination with art. OlEnglish (talk) 03:29, 26 December 2008 (UTC)

This could be included in the Language section but I'm not sure if it's suitable for this list, and I don't know what to write as a comment/caption. I do find it unusual that there's an article devoted to this. OlEnglish (talk) 00:04, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Place names

Hate to bring up this old can of worms, but shouldn't we take all of these place names and put them into a separate article? -- Mwalcoff (talk) 02:45, 30 December 2008 (UTC)

Done. See Wikipedia:Unusual place names. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 00:18, 9 January 2009 (UTC)

Culling the herd

I'm going to go through this page section by section and pull out entries I don't think should be on it. Unless I hear any objections, I'll delete the entries. First, places.

Mwalcoff (talk) 00:43, 9 January 2009 (UTC)

Do I detect some underlying philosophical disagreement about what this page is for? I wouldn't miss Aerica or Helengrad, but I reckon the rest do belong here (though perhaps not all to the same degree!). If the UFO-Memorial is NN then see if you can get that article deleted. —Tamfang (talk) 02:14, 9 January 2009 (UTC)
I think a UA article should be truly unusual and also interesting and substantial. Like Jewish Autonomous Oblast and David Hahn. All of the articles on my list fail one of those three criteria. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 00:38, 15 January 2009 (UTC)
The description at the top of the page says that articles in the list should be "a bit odd, whimsical, or something you would not expect to find in Encyclopædia Britannica." On that basis, I would say that UFO-Memorial Ängelholm probably qualifies on all counts, whereas the Jewish Autonomous Oblast has a much weaker claim to "unusual" status (I'm quite sure Britannica has an article on it). —Ilmari Karonen (talk) 09:11, 15 January 2009 (UTC)
Jewish Autonomous Oblast should probably go into Wikipedia:Unusual place names. ♫ Melodia Chaconne ♫ (talk) 17:06, 15 January 2009 (UTC)
It doesn't have an unusual name. kwami (talk) 18:36, 15 January 2009 (UTC)

OK, so we'll keep the UFO memorial. What about the other ones, like The Wedge? -- Mwalcoff (talk) 00:33, 16 January 2009 (UTC)

Micronations

I propose that micronations get their own subsection... --MacRusgail (talk) 19:11, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

From Gang Bing article re self-castration...

I found this so silly that initially I thought it was a hoax because of the closeness of the name to Gang bang...

At this point political intrigue within the walls of the Forbidden City forced Gang Bing to make a drastic choice. The Emperor possessed a large harem of concubines; sexual contact with a concubine by anyone other than the emperor was a severe offense. Fearing that rivals within the palace may accuse him of sexual improprieties with one of the seventy three imperial concubines,[2] Gang Bing decided to execute a plan of terrible self-infliction the night before the emperor left for his trip:[1][2] he severed his own penis and testicles with a knife.[2] The general then placed his severed organs into a bag under the saddle of the emperor’s horse.[3] As predicted, when Yongle returned from his hunt one of the emperor’s ministers reported that Gang Bing had had inappropriate relations within the royal harem.[1] When accused of misconduct Gang Bing instructed that the emperor's saddle be retrieved and requested that the emperor reach inside the bag under the saddle. Inside the emperor found Gang Bing’s shriveled, blackened genitalia. Deeply impressed, Yongle elevated Gang Bing to the rank of chief eunuch, a politically powerful position within the palace;[1][2] gave him numerous gifts; and proclaimed him holy.[2]

If someone can think of an appropriate caption they should include this one in the list. OlEnglish (talk) 02:23, 31 January 2009 (UTC)

The pole-dancing, horny cow (sorry)

Sorry about the headline, but I just wanted to know if that caption underneath our favorite heifer could be expanded, or would it be too long if I did that. I seem to have kickstarted the caption expansion, and I think I've thought of something else funny to put in there. Draconiator (talk) 07:07, 3 February 2009 (UTC)

This one maybe could be put in the Music section

heheh. From Sofa King. Read this out loud 5 times quickly:

EYE HAM SOFA KING WEE TODD DID?

-- OlEnglish (Talk) 22:49, 17 February 2009 (UTC)

Yeah but the topic of the article isn't unusual. If the phrase gets its own page, it might be worth putting here, otherwise not. ♫ Melodia Chaconne ♫ (talk) 23:19, 17 February 2009 (UTC)
It did at one point, but didn't last too long. -- OlEnglish (Talk) 02:06, 18 February 2009 (UTC)

I don't know if it qualifies for this list but it's pretty silly, made me chuckle. -- OlEnglish (Talk) 20:31, 20 March 2009 (UTC)

Francis E. Dec

I'd like to add something along these lines, in long or short form:

Francis E. Dec
A conspiracy theorist who mass-mailed to the medias outlandish tracts about a "Worldwide Mad Deadly Communist Gangster Computer God" remote-controlling mankind, he has become a cult "kook" for the involuntary humor or poetry of his rants.
Francis E. Dec
A conspiracy theorist who mailed to the medias outlandish tracts about a "Gangster Computer God" controlling mankind, he has become a cult "kook" for his rants.

(The article is rather large, for a quick primer you can also start with 9 weird-but-true factoids in a box at my user page, they were all designed for "Did You Know"). I suppose it should go inside the "Art and literature" section"?  The Little Blue Frog (ribbit) 17:07, 29 March 2009 (UTC)

Added.  The Little Blue Frog (ribbit) 19:29, 2 April 2009 (UTC)

GNG13

The 'article' is about a human gene, but if you follow this link you'll find that it seems suitable for this page. Kausill (talk) 02:05, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

The citations are several times longer than the main text; is that the unusual feature? If not: huh? —Tamfang (talk) 05:33, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Banksy

Does anybody else think it's time for him to be removed? He's hardly as much of an esoteric, "mysterious" phenomenon as he likely was when put on this list. Besides, this would merit putting a lot of forms and partakers of guerrilla art on the list, yes? He might be the most well-known, but then again, Dadaism is a really strange concept too, but to my knowledge, it's not on the list, with good reason. 66.224.3.237 (talk) 15:36, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Social impact of thong underwear (New Addition) Methinks so.

This unusual article project is my new obsession, I love it. Just came across the page Social impact of thong underwear and felt that it might have a place in here. It's a pretty well written article and very wikified. Thongs are not unusual but writing a whole, serious article about their societal impact is strange to me. Let me know whoever patrols this site and I would also like to offer my assistance in collaborating on the project. Cheers, Dough007 (talk) 04:43, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Rationale for adding "Rapunzel syndrome"

I have added a link to the article on Rapunzel syndrome as I think it merits inclusion on this list for its highly unusual nature, and the fact that it has nevertheless been researched and detailed in numerous medical books, journals, articles, and other publications, some of which are listed in the Wikipedia article. And, as a side-note, the condition, unlike most other "syndromes," is covered in only two other languages' Wikipedias--those in German and Finnish--which points even further to just how unusual it really is.
68.174.102.95 (talk) 20:56, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Added Russenorsk, the shocking Russo-Norwegian hybrid

I determined that Russenorsk ought to be included as probably the most unusual example of a language that emerged from the intersection of two very different cultures at a crucial geographical hot-spot, namely the Kola Peninsula. The fact that it last about 150 years, and consisted of only a recorded 400 words, and that it grammatically blended both source-languages so evenly, are all reasons that make it stand out from so many other pidgin languages that have existed in the world.
Furthermore, I also saw that, despite this being a "Language" section, there are actually no natural, human languages themselves listed there, and this one is certainly unusual, as far as natural, human languages are concerned.
68.174.102.95 (talk) 09:54, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

It's a one-citizen nation. Would this qualify for the list? -- OlEnglish (Talk) 04:55, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Suggestion. (I'm too wimpy to be bold.)

7h3 0N3 7h3 \/4Nl)4L5 Pl-l34R ( t / c) 04:44, 13 June 2009 (UTC)

Also, Can't sleep, clown will eat me redirects to a section (wimpy).
7h3 0N3 7h3 \/4Nl)4L5 Pl-l34R ( t / c) 21:22, 1 July 2009 (UTC)
Yes, I'll put it up.--MacRusgail (talk) 16:16, 25 July 2009 (UTC)

Does it belong here? Vimescarrot (talk) 09:37, 25 July 2009 (UTC)

Yes, and partly because of its bizarre name.--MacRusgail (talk) 16:17, 25 July 2009 (UTC)