How Fact Button works

Why you never see a repeat

The first time you open the site, your browser picks a random seed and uses it to shuffle all 17,500 fact numbers into a private order. It keeps your seed and your place in that order in its local storage. The button simply shows the next fact in your order.

As a safety net, the browser also keeps a compact record of every fact it has shown you, so a shared link to a fact you have already seen never causes a repeat later.

What this means in practice

• Closing the tab, restarting your phone or coming back next year keeps your place.
• A different browser, a private window or another device has its own shuffle.
• Clearing cookies and site data for this site starts you over.
• If you reach the very end of all 17,500 facts, the site tells you and offers a fresh shuffle.

Privacy

Your seed and place never leave your browser. We do not know which facts you have seen. See the privacy policy for advertising details.