The fighter-pilot lubricant that doubled as a laxative

A closer look

Aviation pioneers unknowingly created the absolute worst workplace environment. The powerful rotary engines in early fighter planes required a thick lubricant, and standard oil just violently washed away with the fuel. They used pure castor oil instead, which constantly sprayed back violently into the faces of the pilots. Since castor oil is a famously powerful laxative, early combat pilots were simultaneously fighting enemy fighters and severe gastrointestinal distress.