Many things can call for a double-check, be it something unusual we thought we saw at the store (until we glanced at it again and realized it was nothing out of the ordinary) or something unexpected we noticed while browsing on the computer. No matter the scenario, such situations typically make us stop in our tracks for a second and go “wait, what?!”
Plenty of situations evoking such a reaction are shared on the subreddit titled exactly that. Boasting more than 14,000 members, the ‘Wait What’ community is dedicated to all sorts of unexpected turns of events and humorous stories, some of which you can find in the list below; so scroll down to view them and see for yourself how a joke can stop you dead in your tracks.
This post may include affiliate links.
Vaccines Exposed
I don't think this was the experience Laurence was expecting.
Hmmmm
Yta And Need More Socks
While typically accompanying something rather shocking, wait, what moments can actually benefit a person, as surprising information is believed to enhance one’s memory, consequently helping them learn.
According to Scientific American, novelty within a familiar context allows a person to store a certain event in their memory more easily, thanks to the brain part known as the ‘novelty detector’.
Located in the temporal lobe of the cerebral cortex, for those well familiar with what’s happening inside our heads, the said ‘novelty detector’ is the hippocampus—one of the most significant brain regions in regards to discovering, processing, and storing sensory information.
The reason why the hippocampus is called the ‘novelty detector’ is because it is activated more by new stimuli than by something one is already familiar with.
Shaming Is Bad, No Matter Who It's Directed To
👁️👃 👁️ What
Scientific American continued to explain that the hippocampus compares new information with already stored knowledge, and if the information doesn’t match—meaning that there’s something new and likely surprising—it releases a pulse of dopamine into one’s system.
After traveling through different parts of the brain, it connects to the hippocampus again and triggers release of more dopamine, creating a feedback mechanism known as the hippocampal-SN/VTA loop, which can help people memorize and learn things more easily.
Wait A Dang Minute
Everyone Would Use Shapeshifting In Their Own Ways I Guess
Okay I love this, would totally choose the last option .. freak the c**p out of that old a-hole
Wait What
The Duolingo owl has always creeped me out. There is something wrong with that bird!
Our memory—and consequently, our ability to learn—are not the only aspects that tend to be affected by unexpected wait, what moments. In a Ted Talk back in 2019, a psychologist and professor emeritus at Southern Oregon University, as well as an expert in life-changing events, Dr. Michael A. Rousell, PhD, suggested that surprises can change our beliefs, too.
That's Just How I Am
Plot Twist!
At Least He's Having Fun
Professor Rousell started his Ted Talk with an example; he asked the audience to imagine themselves standing in traffic, when they see the car next to them start to hover all of a sudden. “You’d be surprised,” he said, adding that in such an instance, one’s eyes might open wide and their jaw might drop; they are likely to experience a burst of dopamine and instantly stop what they were thinking or doing.
“And then you instantly form a new belief—cars can hover,” the expert continued, and pointed out that people don’t form such a belief intentionally; it happens to them and there’s nothing they can do to undo it.
Oh
I Would’ve Stared Back And Lost The Contest
Amputation???
Dr. Rousell pointed out that as surprising as hovering cars are, they might make for interesting dinner conversation, but not much more. However, surprises in regards to the beliefs a person holds about themselves can be defining and formative in their life, which means they can be used strategically to intentionally enrich someone else’s life.
One way to do it, according to the professor, is to trigger surprise by suggesting that something one considers a weakness is actually an asset: astonishing someone in such a way hijacks their attention and forces the person on the receiving end to try to make sense of the information, and consequently form a positive belief about themselves.
Well
Well, if it makes OP happy, that's the important thing, I guess.
I Can Only Imagine What It Looked Like For Them
Haha Oh That Too
While the surprising pictures on this list might not make people change their personal beliefs for the better, online content in general can lift up their spirits or positively influence their well-being.
Studies suggest that as long as people are mindful about it, routine social media use—logging in to respond to content shared by others, for instance—is positively linked with one’s social well-being, positive mental health, and self-rated health.
Missing The “Eez”
Arrrrrrr Matey
Already Included
A survey carried out by Sky Media found that around one third of people—in Britain, at least—turn to social media for their daily dose of positivity, spending roughly two hours a day seeking it. According to the survey’s results, animal content tends to leave them smiling the most, followed by posts depicting random acts of kindness.
This Happened To Me The Other Day
Awww. Look At That Sad Panda…
Wait Hold Up!
If it’s smile-inducing animal content that appeals to you the most, you might want to move on to Bored Panda’s animal category next, but if you enjoy the somewhat bizarre and surprising content, like the images on this list, continue to browsing these weird and surprising things people just had to share or these dark humor comics with surprising twists next.
Um Hold On
This Ones Kinda On U
Really Bro?
Wait A Minute
Look Once Again
Wait What!!!
Choo Choo I'm A Train Now
That's Not How You Do It
Subscriber Stonk
Have A Nice Day
Now Serving... Fried... Just Fried
The Whole Onion In This Advertisement Has The Peel On It, In The Slicer
Wait What-
But I Want Front Legs!
He Is Right Though
But How?!?!
Ayo Wait What?
There's always a rumour, but it has never happened. You know why? Because janitors. There is no way they'd agree to clean it, and if they're unionized? Fuggedaboutit. Has never happened, will never happen.
Ah, I remember this. Republicans were OUTRAGED over a joke they were incapable of understanding, and then began to campaign on it, going on various news and social media outlets about how the left is destroying society, etc. Ended up making them look even more unhinged and stupid - if that's even possible. 🤣
Didn't one of the states recently ban furries from going to school and say that animal control would be called on them?
Load More Replies...Wasn't that the answer to a reaction a politician had about a satire article?
Pretty much. One of the talking heads heard about furries for the first time, and it was like a telephone game where their conclusions just kept getting weirder. Then it combined with the trans bathroom issues into this weird "my cousin once knew a guy who knew a guy" kind of thing. I wonder what the 2024 one will be.
Load More Replies...Some schools in the US do have kitty litter + litterboxes in the classrooms - they're part of the "active shooter" kits that that dystopian nightmare country puts in schools.
Not just in the USA. Here in the UK I saw some right-wing newspaper claiming a private school was doing it.
Load More Replies...Yeah, my reaction to the pic was a lot stronger than to the headline. Stock photographers are so freaky.
Load More Replies...This is something that has been shouted by the alt right repeatedly as a way to dehumanize trans people. It's actually not funny at all, it's another horrible tactic they use to try to take away trans rights.
This happened in my town, the amount of stupid "educated" rich people that stood up at the City Council and thought this was true...
Actually heard the story behind this on Things Fell Apart (brilliant podcast with Ron Jonson). Kids were questioning why there was a bucket in the classroom with cat litter in and couldn't guess. The teacher had to explain that it was in case of an active shooter and them being stuck in the classroom long enough to need to go. Somehow that already got changed to it being a litter tray in the classroom for kids that identify as cats, and the teacher was like 'really??? teenagers at such an awkward age where they avoid anything with the possible hint of a risk of embarrassment, are going to happily use a litter tray in front of the entire class?' People want to believe all manner of nonsense, huh.
According to NPR, the real story is a bucket full of litter on the off chance some disgruntled kid opens up again. The bucket was in classrooms in the Columbine high school.
Can you elaborate? It's hard to understand what it is you said.
Load More Replies...Uh, when I change out my cats’ litter boxes entirely, I dump the old litter, wash the boxes, dry them, and then pour in a bag of new litter. It’s just clay granules at that point and perfectly safe to touch. I don’t touch litter after my cats have used their boxes, but there’s nothing disgusting about touching the clean, new litter itself.
Load More Replies...The right wing nuts looking for a conspiracy will believe anything.
There are schools that used to include litter in their lockdown kits. It came with a bucket that had a toilet seat and also a tarp. So that kids had an alternative to soiling/wetting themselves during a long lockdown. The strategy for an active shooter situation has changed to run, fight, hide in that order - so schools are probably not using that type of kit anymore. The fact the anti-education basterds turned it into this nonsense while still not doing anything to deal with active shooters says a lot about them. Also of the 8 lockdowns I've been through as a teacher. 2 were caused by strangers (an armed robber and recently released pedophile trying to get access to those who survived him he was stopped) 6 were caused by DV incidents spilling onto campus with the abuser trying or threatening to come on campus and kill their family members and/or staff that helped them. 0 were students.
What about other furries besides cats? Dogs don't use litterboxes.
This is where Republicans have led America. When people have to deny that something this absurd ever happened, because they've convinced themselves with zero evidence that something that outrages them, totally happened, simply to be outraged.
there was a litter box in one of the schools near me (im not in Michigan)
Wtf is wrong with parents that would let their kid identify as a fury?
I am American. I am confused by the willingness to believe utter nonsense.
Load More Replies...Not Grandma
Fanfic authors are unhinged. I was reading a fanfic and in the notes the author said they developed depression which magically went away. They went to forensics camp and got the highest in their class in some exam and then got cast as Zazu from the Lion King musical at their school. They got a girlfriend also during the whole thing
Wait A Second…
My mam has brown hair, my dad black hair. I've got a ginger sister, a blonde sister, a black haired, and I've got brown. Ain't no mucking about, it's because genetics is a blender. My mam's mam is ginger, my mam's dad is Brown. My dad was abandoned so we don't know about his parents, but when we tracked down his siblings they were all blonde.
How Did This Happen
Corona Free
Skill Issue
Get Roasted
Hmmm...interesting
From reddit: Not BS. But they only receive a degree if they're in the burning building. Some of them will get first degree, some will get second degree, and some will get third degree....we are talking about burns right? Because obviously you're not going to get a PHD or even pass the class.
Wait... What?!
Wait A Sec
Oh, Ummm
Im Sorry What Do You Mean First Time
He’s Built Different
New Olympics Category?
Wait What?!
The Sum Of Nine Plus Ten
I Know What I Said
Ok These Nuggets Are Really Good
That's Not Very Helpful
Look At It Properly
It's a mirror I think and the legs belong to the woman in black? I think that's what's happening
Does It Mean That If Somebody Somehow Separates 50000 Humans On Elements He/She Will Get 1g Of Pure Gold?
Country Roads
Does The 666 Likes Explain That His Brother Is Dead?
As I recall, this was related to these irresponsible and dangerous play-your-own-chiropractor videos.
Stolen From R/Tinder
An uncensored profanity, oh my goodness *clutches pearls and falls into a swoon*
My Favorite Fruit Was Bananas
Well That's Different
I'm not sure it does, but I'll have to wait until Mr Auntriarch comes in from the shed
Sonic Is Now Hacking Your Computer He Has All Your Anime Girl Files
My Discord Group Chat Turned...sideways?
I Was Never There, Seek Help
I Don’t Really Know
Guys... I've Broken Science
Hmmm
Classic Dad Move
Hmm, Thanks?
This post was the most incomprehensable thing I've ever wasted my time reading.
This post was the most incomprehensable thing I've ever wasted my time reading.