- [Narrator] You don't have to be a genius to have a great idea. And, occasionally, some
ideas that work amazingly are, well, pretty dumb. Taking the phrase "If it works, it works" to the highest degree, let's
check out some Dumb Ideas that against all odds actually Work. (upbeat music)
(rubber band vibrating) Number 20, coffee pot dogs. All of human history has
been leading up to this, the bright idea to boil
hotdogs in a coffee pot. Given that most coffee
pots rest on a hot plate, it actually works, albeit slowly. After a half-hour wait, you'll
be ready to load your buns, even if all your other heat
appliances are out of action. Just remember to wash
the pot out afterwards. Coffee and hot dogs are both great, but that's not a flavor combo
anyone needs in their life. Number 19, unhealthy cure? Many people assume
getting healthy involves cutting out the fatty foods. But, for a number of surprising reasons, that could be totally wrong. And one particular case, a diet of cheese, butter and other fatty delights might have saved a boy's life. It all comes down to a little
thing called 'ketosis'. This is a bodily process that
occurs when carbohydrates are cut out of the diet, so
the body begins to burn fats instead of glucose. This can be a super-effective
way to lose weight, but a 6-year-old boy's life was changed in an even bigger way when
he took on a ketogenic diet. Charlie Smith, from Surrey, England, used to suffer 300 dangerous
epileptic fits a day. Despite a cocktail of prescribed drugs, nothing seemed to help. Desperate for a solution, under the guidance of their doctor, Charlie's family turned to a high-fat diet containing cheese, mayonnaise and full-fat butter by the spoonful. Miraculously, Charlie's
debilitating seizures came to a stop. No one's really sure why this
diet seems to help epileptics, but starving the brain of
energy in the form of glucose may be what makes seizures less likely. Either way, it works, and thanks to this somewhat strange idea, many epileptics are able
to live a normal life. Number 18, pasta matches. Ever been left with burnt
fingertips after trying to light a candle-wick that's sunken beyond reach? This solution is not the most obvious, but works like a charm. Simply grab a piece of dry
spaghetti, and light the end. Being a high-carb
substance, it burns easily, and can turn into an extended match to reach even the deepest candle holes. Best served al dente. Number 17, easy fix. Dumb mistakes sometimes
require dumb solutions. Case in point, Reddit
user Richard-Hindquarters, who punched a hole in the
wall of his apartment. Not wanting to incur a
fine from their landlord, his significant other stepped up to finally put her art degree to some use. Using her expertise to
match the color and texture of the rest of the wall,
she fixed the hole with, a single piece of paper. Their landlord never found out. I just feel bad for the next guy who tries to put a poster up and brings the whole thing
down with a thumbtack. Number 16, festive efficiency. Anyone who celebrates Christmas knows the struggle of decorating a tree. To save time on this
arguably annoying tradition, cover the whole thing in plastic
wrap, decorations included, before you stuff it away for another year. That way, everything's already in place, and you can get right down
to watching Kevin McCallister sadistically abuse Joe Pesci,
as is Christmas tradition. Number 15, Navy Seals. Of all the technology the US
military has at its disposal, it might surprise you to know
that the aquatic relatives of dogs, rank among the reserves. It's true. Navy researchers are currently researching how to apply the undetectable, highly-sensitive
motion-sensing capabilities of seal whiskers to
underwater reconnaissance. Seal whiskers are capable
of detecting the slightest disturbances in water from vast distances. By studying these
principles and applying them to naval seacraft, undetectable,
efficient new methods of locating enemy submarines
could become a reality. But that's not the only use
that oceanic dog-like creatures have been given in the military. In the last couple of decades,
sea lions have been trained up as a secret weapon
against explosive mines and underwater saboteurs. Navy-trained sea lions patrol
harbors around the world, using their diving skills and
acute hearing and eyesight to scout out potential threats. They can even attach clamps
to mines and intruding divers, effectively hand-cuffing
unauthorized intruders to nearby buoys before swimming away. So, don't go committing
any international crimes while out on the waves! Number 14, walk-in winter. Sick of feeling too hot in
the snowboard supplies store? Step inside, the T-Max
Below Zero Winter Simulator! This machine is a semi-ridiculous,
semi-genius concept that allows you to test
out winter clothing without having to leave the store. Decked out with internal
fans and a freezer system, the walk-in machine
allows you to experience the windchill of the
mountains to make sure that new winter jacket is just right. Number 13, urine luck. When a janitor at Reddit
user Thudly's workplace grew sick of workers making a real splash in the men's toilets,
they decided to stick little red stickers in the toilets. Why? He figured, by giving the
peeing men something to aim at, they'd be less likely to miss. This is actually a psychological tactic occasionally employed
by urinal manufacturers, who place their logo
in just the right spot to minimize splashback
when the users inevitably take aim and fire. For the janitor, the idea worked a charm, and the pee-pee problemo stopped. Number 12, speed peeler. What mundane task isn't made
better with power tools? Call it dumb if you wish, but
shoving a drill into an apple, or other peel-able produce,
and giving it a whirl against a peeler works wonders. It turns a boring chore
into a real spectacle, and you'll be finished in
a fraction of the time. I promise, you'll barely even
look like a crazy person. Barely. Number 11, anti-squirrel slinkys. A bird-feeder is a great way to attract all kinds of avian pals to your garden. But, all too often, squirrels come along, outmuscling your intended recipients. Luckily, there's a hilarious
way to keep squirrels away from your bird feed. Just attach a slinky around
the pole from the top. This'll make an ascent almost
impossible for squirrels, saving the feed for the birds
and guaranteeing any onlookers a hearty chuckle. Number 10, spoiled food. For some, tables are
too boring to eat off. Instead, by combining flashy
cars with dining on-the-go, some people have taken
to using car spoilers as dinner trays. It brings a whole new
meaning to 'meals on wheels.' If you try this, make sure the car is off, and the breaks are on before tucking in, or it'll be bye-bye burrito. Number 9, DIY zoom lens. Sure, you might look a
little foolish doing this, but did you know you
can hold your phone lens up to a pair of binoculars to snap pics at a great distance? A company called Snapzoom have
even cashed in on this idea, allowing you to mount your
phone directly and securely onto a pair of binoculars. Perfect for when you end up
with bad seats at a game, or when you're convinced FBI
officials are watching you from that big black van
parked outside your house. Number 8, crime doesn't pay. In 2007, in Richmond, California, the Office of Neighborhood
Safety was set up with a simple, yet unusual aim of paying
people not to kill each other. And guess what? It worked. The idea was to provide those at risk of being pulled into gang violence with social-service referrals,
life-skills training, job-seeking support and cash stipends to get them on their feet. Staffed largely by ex-convicts, the scheme proved to be
overwhelmingly successful. Before the scheme was initiated, Richmond had one of the highest
murder rates in the USA, more than 11 times that of New York City. By 2014, the murder rate had
dropped an unbelievable 77%. The success of this model has
led other violence-stricken communities and sociologists to take heed of the obvious impact
and begin trying to adapt the system for wider use. By giving at-risk individuals
an opportunity to begin, and continue, a better
life of lawful work, the change can be extremely profound. So many are deprived of this, which makes a descent into
crime almost an inevitability. But with this almost
ridiculously simple solution, change is proven to be possible. Number 7, bagel care. With the age of music CDs behind us, it's about time we found some other uses for the countless CD stack
holders scattered in drawers and attics around our homes. Little did we know, the ultimate purpose was already under our noses,
dusted in a light sprinkling of sesame seeds and
filled with cream cheese. I'm talking about bagels folks, and there's never been a better way to keep yours protected
on-the-go, than with a CD holder. For all that bagels have done for us, it's really the least we can do for them. Number 6, bun away the baldness. For centuries, men have
been desperately searching for new and inventive ways to
hide their receding hairlines from the rest of the world. No, Jim, that's not fooling anybody. Thankfully, man-buns, or topknots, became slightly more
acceptable in the last decade, and with that came an
inventive way for balding men to deceive onlookers. Combining man-buns and
comb-overs into what some, meaning me, have called a 'bun-over'. It's surprisingly effective,
but once you get down to your final three-or-so hairs, I wouldn't recommend it. Number 5, an unlikely medicine. Now, before I get into this one, let me make something clear,
cigarettes are not a medicine. They're endlessly more
likely to give you illnesses than cure them, despite what
early-20th-century adverts would have you believe. That being said, in the early 2000s, researchers discovered
that smoking cigarettes can significantly reduce
the risk and symptoms of a relatively-common bowel disease called ulcerative colitis. It may have something to
do with how cigarettes reduce inflammation in
the colon, but as yet, there's very little certainty. Regardless, smoking was
found to be so effective, that for 1/5 of the
participants in one study, no other treatment was necessary. Then again, smoking hugely
increases the risk and severity of another bowel ailment, Crohn's disease. So, probably best to stick to
what your doctor prescribes. And if he prescribes
cigarettes, get a new doctor. Number 4, cable tied. If you don't mind your
phone's charging cable looking like a plastic
knockoff of a sunflower, you can keep it working for longer by adding a few trimmed cable ties. These reduce the amount
the internal wiring bends while charging, keeping it from fraying and eventually breaking. Worth the slightly ugly
appearance if you ask me. Number 3, whiskey business. In 2012, a New Zealand
man suddenly went blind while at a party. After being rushed to hospital,
the doctors figured out the vodka he'd been drinking had reacted with his diabetes medication, giving him formaldehyde
poisoning and blinding him. Talk about black-out drunk! Luckily, there was a treatment,
but it required ethanol, something the hospital had run out of. That's when things got weird. On the doctor's
suggestion, a junior doctor rushed to the local store
and returned with something with equally-useful contents,
a bottle of whiskey. They dripped the whiskey through a tube into the man's stomach, and 5 days later, he could see again. Liquor giveth, liquor taketh away. Number 2, key to success. Ever been stuck without the coin needed to unlock these types of
supermarket grocery carts? Well, in the process of
angrily jamming other stuff from their pockets into the
hole, someone figured out a round-headed key will
do the job just as well. Just make sure you can get it back out, shopping carts do not make good key-rings. Number 1, raining rodents. In recent years, the West
Pacific island of Guam has had a lot of trouble
with an invasive species of brown tree snake. There are so many of these reptiles, putting other native
animal species in danger, that the US Department of
Agriculture has had to step in, and get creative with its solutions. The most elaborate of
all have been a series of death-from-above missions,
but not the kind you'd expect. These missions involved
dropping hundreds of dead mice, strapped into parachute-like
devices to get them stuck in the canopy where the snakes reside. The mice are pumped full of
concentrated acetaminophen, a painkiller for humans,
which results in coma and eventual death for snakes. The snakes eat the
poisoned parachute mice, and then snakes die. The bizarre population control attempt has enjoyed some success, and the efforts continue to this day. Forget raining cats and dogs,
in Guam, it's raining mice. Which of these seemingly-dumb
ideas surprised you with how much sense it actually made? Do you have any ideas of
your own that shouldn't work yet, somehow, do? Let me know in the comments section below, and thanks for watching!
