You learn an obscure fact, and then, almost immediately, it comes up again in a different context. That phenomenon has a name — two names, actually. The term “Baader-Meinhof phenomenon” was coined by a reader of the St. Paul Pioneer Press in the 1990s after hearing the Baader-Meinhof Group (a West German militant political organization) mentioned in two unrelated instances in the same week. The more scientific-sounding “frequency illusion” refers to the fact that once you become aware of something, you notice it more often, which makes it seem to arise more frequently.
Which band from the original Woodstock lineup released the album “Deja Vu” in 1970?
A) Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
B) Grateful Dead
C) Jefferson Airplane
D) Santana
Previous answer: Thomas Edison produced a talking doll, but it wasn’t a success. Kids thought its scratchy voice was scary.
TRIVIA FANS: Leslie Elman is the author of “Weird But True: 200 Astounding, Outrageous and Totally Off the Wall Facts.” Contact her at [email protected]
