The Internet can get bogged down with trolls and people generally acting like total assholes to each other in comment sections and on social media.
But there’s hope out there, I tell ya!
Sometimes, people take to one online forum or another to have their questions answered and total strangers come through in the clutch!
I love it when a plan comes together and people are nice to each other!
Here are 13 good examples of what I’m talking about with the explanations from folks on Reddit.
1. What could it be?
” AV1 is a personal avatar for children suffering from long-term illness, helping them to continue their education and maintain the normality of daily life despite no longer being able to access mainstream education.”
What is this thing in my classroom? Makes subtle fan-like sounds and changes colour on top
byu/Potetbror inwhatisthisthing
2. At the hospital.
“These are emergency showers. An affected person (chemical spills, laboratory mishaps, etc) will pull the level on the top and tepid water (OSHA defined between 60F and 100F) will douse the affected from the shower head (above) and boot sprayer (below).
The duration of these showers is required to be 15 full minutes at approximately 20 PSI.”
What are these for in an outdoor area of a hospital?
byu/chashaoballs inwhatisthisthing
3. What’s hiding down there?
“So water doesn’t stay on the bottom if you put the mug in the dishwasher and stops wet mugs suctioning themselves to coasters.”
Ikea Coffee mug, what is the thing at the bottom?
byu/HR_92 inwhatisthisthing
4. A mystery from the past.
“A practice gravestone scrap. Someone who carved gravestones would practice engraving lettering and drawings on this broken piece of stone.”
My mom and dad were doing some landscaping in the backyard and found this weird slate with writing etched into it. The months are spelled out and the year states 1827 but that’s all the information here. I can send more pics in PM. Also, this was located in Southern Missouri. Thank you in advance!
byu/AppleTangoMike inwhatisthisthing
5. Here’s a clue…
“Fabulous antique early Victorian chatelaine aide memoir from mid 1800s. Made of sheets of bone, it would have hung on a lady’s chatalaine chain or been kept securely in her pocket and she would have used it to make note and appointments for the week to come.
It has 6 pages for the days Monday to Saturday, of course a lady would never have made appointments on a Sunday”
Thin slabs of ivory with days of the week on the top found in my closet.
byu/mickbruh inwhatisthisthing
6. Never seen something like this before.
“Settling pond for erosion control and improving the downstream water for happier fish.”
Water flows from a culvert beneath a trail into this circular pool, then continues on into the woods. What’s the pool’s purpose?
byu/yourlocalpizzajoint inwhatisthisthing
7. They keep reappearing.
“Termite poop.”
Grainy-like things? They appear inside and on my closet, and reappear whenever I clean them. What are these?
byu/wowiie inwhatisthisthing
8. Could it be the Russians?!?!
“It is a wave-powered desalinator that is owned by Oneka Technologies, a firm in Quebec. It takes seawater and turns it into fresh water. It is powered by the motion of the waves.”
Washed up on a beach in Florida.
byu/New_Fry inwhatisthisthing
9. A total nightmare.
“Hag moth caterpillar with fuzzy “false arms” on its back to make it look like a dead leaf. (We’re looking at the belly).”
Weird squirming living Lovecraftian nightmare on our lawn chair this morning
byu/pbjburger inwhatisthisthing
10. The mini harpoon.
“Patient had been tased. It’s a taser dart.”
Mini harpoon thing found when changing bedding in a hospital room.
byu/feickuss inwhatisthisthing
11. What’s it used for?
“It’s an anti-theft device for pocket watches.”
When you pull the ring on this, four little pins come out. What is it used for?
byu/johnsinternetsales inwhatisthisthing
12. A UFO perhaps?
“There was recently a Chinese Long March 3B rocket launch that failed, and the rocket and its payload was seen reentering the atmosphere near Guam.”
Found on Guam in shallow water. 3-meter diameter disk. Top looks like polyester in a honeycomb shape that is fiber glassed to flimsy aluminum disk. I’m stumped on this one. Never seen anything like it.
byu/genopsyism inwhatisthisthing
13. Weird swirly things…
“Checked the tax records… It is or was an alligator farm.”
What are these swirly things? Found on Google Maps – located in Cogdell, Georgia, USA.
by inwhatisthisthing
Hey, the Internet is pretty useful, after all!
Now we want to hear from you.
Have you ever had any experiences like this, where people online helped you figure out a problem?
If so, please tell us about it in the comments!
