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It’s the holiday season, and we understand that your brain might already be on vacation mode, pandas. But it’s still a great time to learn some fun facts!

Below, you’ll find a new batch of interesting information that’s recently been shared in the Today I Learned subreddit. From how long it takes to make a jellybean to which university has banned rock music, you’re sure to find something on this list that you’ve never heard before. So enjoy scrolling through, and don't forget to upvote the facts you’ll be sure to remember the next time you need to strike up a conversation at a party!

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#1

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL Van Gogh's sister in law was behind Van Gogh’s posthumous success and fame, She dedicated her life to spreading his art and legacy after his death, She preserved and published his letters, organized and exhibited his paintings, wrote and translated articles and books about him.

Algrinder , Woodbury Report

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Pyla
Pyla
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Say her name, Bored Panda, say her name! Johanna Gezina van Gogh-Bonger

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#2

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL the "ALS Icebucket Challenge" actually raised enough money to create treatments for the disease (that work). It wasn't just a social media trend that went nowhere.

atx705 , Chris Rand Report

Final score:
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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I took part. It was summer and I live in the high desert so it was more refreshing than a hardship

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#3

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL in 1943, a US bomber over Germany was hit by explosive ordnance directly in the fuel tanks 11 times, but none exploded. After the shells were cut open, all were found to have no explosives in them, and one contained a note in Czech saying "This is all we can do for you now".

GaarenFinlay , U.S. Air Force Report

Final score:
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Sonja
Sonja
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Schindler's workers did similar things too. Schindler had several munition factories and his jewish workers which he got from the camps for forced labour sabotaged the munition to help the enemy win. He knew about it and did nothing. He made excuses for them against the party and constantly asked for more workers, blaming lack of workers for the bad quality of the munition. That way, he saved thousands of people from the concentration camps.

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#4

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that monkeys in Ethiopia have managed to "domesticate" wild wolves by helping them hunt small rodents. The wolves now coexist with (even baby!) monkeys without ever attacking them, instead going for smaller, harder-to-catch prey!

legallybluee , Charles J. Sharp Report

Final score:
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Amber_Moon
Amber_Moon
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This sounds sweet and heart warming but it's not gonna be good when the monkeys decide to revolt and people are getting attacked by monkeys riding on wolves.

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#5

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL an orangutan named Fu Manchu figured out how to escape his enclosure at a zoo by picking the lock on a door. He did it repeatedly for weeks as zoo staff was stumped about how and tried every measure to prevent it only to finally catch Fu Manchu in the act using a piece of wire he kept hidden.

f_GOD , David Arvidsson Report

Final score:
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#6

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL: In about six weeks a transplanted liver section will grow into a normal-sized, fully functioning liver in a recipient, while the donor’s remaining liver will regenerate to replace the transplanted section.

theotherbogart , Henry Vandyke Carter Report

Final score:
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#7

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL in 2019, basketball player DJ Cooper was suspended for two years after using his girlfriend's urine to attempt to cheat a drug test. The test "discovered" that he was pregnant.

A-dab , Daxipedia Report

Final score:
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Artsy Bookworm
Artsy Bookworm
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm imagining the shock of the person who got the test results back 🤣

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#8

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that the Nike logo was designed for 35$ but the company gifted the designer stock that is now worth millions because she held it all without selling.

TearRepresentative56 , Raysonho Report

Final score:
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Tee Rat
Tee Rat
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

She was still a design student at the time and a former professor asked for her help. She was actually gifted the stock some time later by Nike after the logo's success, and was also given a diamond ring with the Nike swoosh.

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#9

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL - Rammstein once played a concert in Hamburg, Germany and the physics department of the local university picked it up on their seismograph. They did not register the sound, but literally the shaking ground.

ThePainCrafter , Jonas Rogowski Report

Final score:
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#10

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL after getting LASIK surgery, Horace Grant continued to wear his signature goggles without the prescription in order to remain a positive influence so kids who needed glasses would think it's cool.

Lakefargo , The Eloquent Peasant Report

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#11

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL There was a study in Africa that showed that cows with large eye painted on their butts would not be attacked by ambush predators.

Octopusnautical , Kim Hansen Report

Final score:
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Mamza Paulse
Mamza Paulse
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I listend to a podcast about this. it scares ambush predators

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#12

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL a New Zealand woman was detained in Kazakhstan because they did not believe New Zealand was a real country. When they asked her to show the country on a map, their map did not include New Zealand.

MrJigglyBrown , Jan Janssonius Report

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Dragon mama
Dragon mama
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A common failure in the map world, to the point that there are online communities that collect and share them with each other. I have a few examples somewhere in this dusty old camera roll....

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#13

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL - One of the 8 Hawaiian islands, Ni’ihau, is known as The Forbidden Island. It’s privately owned, you can’t visit without an invitation, there were 84 residents in the 2020 census, and they live primitively, like their ancestors.

NotAnAlreadyTakenID , Polihale Report

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David Paterson
David Paterson
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I think I saw a documentary segment on this. Not so much "primitively", more like subsistence farming. If it was the same island.

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#14

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL: There are virtually zero commercial planes that fly over Tibet, one of the reasons being that in the event of depressurization/engine failure, planes cannot descend to 10,000 feet because the Tibetan Plateau has an average elevation of 14,370 feet.

greenappletree , Nasa Report

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rayceeyarayceeya avatar
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa)
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa)
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Same issue flying north to south over the Rockies or the Andes. No flights there either.

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#15

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL The Hollywood sign was rebuilt after a successful campaign in 1978 by Alice Cooper. He was one of 9 donators to replace each letter. He bought the first "O" in memory of Groucho Marx.

_DragonBlade_ , Thomas Wolf Report

Final score:
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#16

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL tennis balls used to be black and white, but changed to yellow for TV viewers thanks to David Attenborough's suggestion.

Aninterestingstorm , Roland Garros Report

Final score:
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Ace
Ace
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To clarify - David Attenborough was the "controller" of BBC2 at the time, when it was the first European TV station broadcasting in colour. The early cameras weren't great and yellow showed up a lot better than the dull white of previous balls. For more about the great man, read https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/nine-astonishing-ways-david-attenborough-shaped-your-world/z4k2kmn

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#17

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL the largest air force in the world is the US Air Force. The second largest air force in the world is the US Navy.

Chaganis , Bobbi Zapka Report

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tom459 avatar
DeShotz
DeShotz
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Technically, the US Army has more aircraft than the US Navy.

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MontanaMariner
MontanaMariner
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

For it's first 30-40 years, the Air Force was a sector of the Army. It was literally called the Army Air Force.

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Laughing Orc (he / him / orc)
Laughing Orc (he / him / orc)
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Okay but why does that aircraft look like a beluga whale?

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David Paterson
David Paterson
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11 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's a good question. It's unmanned so doesn't need a cockpit. The nose is big to carry a big warhead. And the miniature jet engine that powers is doesn't have to be as long as the whole craft. The wings are long and straight because it's well subsonic in flight. Overall it's as adaption of the German Doodlebug - Buzz Bomb - V-1 of the second world war. You can see the similarities.

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Kevin Hickey
Kevin Hickey
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This factoid will cheer me up while I'm paying $10,000 for an ambulance ride.

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DE Ray
DE Ray
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The US Army operates more ships and boats than all but 4 navies worldwide.

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CatLady
CatLady
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So glad I live in a country that spends tax dollars on citizens instead of war toys.

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LauraDragonWench
LauraDragonWench
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm not sure why this is a surprising or even unknown fact: we spend, like, $.95 of every dollar on our (thoroughly over bloated) military power. (And I'm estimating the amount, but I know it's a s**t-ton that could be spent on literally any other facet of our infrastructure, from education to healthcare and beyond.)

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JessieJ&LilyLovebug
JessieJ&LilyLovebug
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Another factoid: China is claiming it has the largest Navy, however, they include their Coast Guard fleet within their Navy. The U.S.A. does not, its Coast Guard is its own separate fleet and force.

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David
David
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That drone looks like someone strapped a jet on the back of a whale

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Gregg Bender
Gregg Bender
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Badly designed meme. I think they meant "fixed wing" air force.

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net0 avatar
Margaret Weaver
Margaret Weaver
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Astonishment zero. Funneling the enter output of a continent coerced into operating as one nation, ALL into military spending, results in exactly what you'd expect : crumbling infrastructure, healthcare from the bronze age, rampant racism and social disorder, and a wildly excessive military.

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Cybele Spanjaard
Cybele Spanjaard
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

yes my BIL was a pilot in the navy who flew helicopters in Viet Nam and was granted a position as Commander ..but there was no ship available at the time so he became a top US economist a nd advisory with Merrill Lynch in its good times.

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Ted Rader
Ted Rader
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Out of the world's ten most powerful air forces, the US has four

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Doodles1983
Doodles1983
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That plane looks like the Alien Queen! Cue, Ms. Sigourney Weaver!

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Marie Dahme
Marie Dahme
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Nope. Gotcha ! I knew this one completely. Thank you Papa Bear 🐻. 3rd.... United States Marine Corps

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okpkpkp
okpkpkp
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The US Army has more boats than the US Navy. Or so I was told.

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Rostit. .
Rostit. .
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wish we'd use some of them to stomp down some of these dictator types who need a swift punch in the face.

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Andrew Keir
Andrew Keir
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes, let's start a few wars with everyone we don't like. What could possibly go wrong?

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#18

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL Abercrombie & Fitch’s "Appearance/Look Policy" required staff to buy the company’s clothes. After losing a lawsuit, they agreed "not to force workers to buy its clothes" and to reimburse former employees for purchases made during the period cited.

laterdude , Urizzato Report

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MrPractical
MrPractical
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If the company wants staff to show off their clothes, they should provide them.

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#19

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that following the success of the 90s hit film, "the Bodyguard", Kevin Costner contacted his longtime friend, Princess Diana, to star in a sequel. She agreed. The first draft arrived the day before her death in 1997. Following her passing, the film was scrapped.

LawBobLawLoblaw , Warner Bros Report

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#20

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL: While many animals run faster than humans, the strength and positioning of our butts (gluteal muscles) gave humans the endurance to keep running and chasing prey when other animals had to stop.

theotherbogart , Användare:Chrizz Report

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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Related: many herbivores will only run a relatively short distance before they stop and attempt to hide.

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#21

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL: Many choking deaths happen in bathrooms. It turns out that people who start choking often feel embarrassed and rush to the bathroom for privacy, only to end up dying alone, often next to a toilet.

Girls_Of_San_Diego , O'Dea Report

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EP
EP
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is alarming… I did just that the last time I was coughing bc I was choking on food going down the wrong pipe. Everyone was staring af me coughing so hard so I ran into the bathroom out of embarrassment. I could still breathe so it’s not exactly the same. But I can definitely see how this is true considering I felt like I had to remove myself due to the stares!!

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#22

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL frankincense and myrrh are the dried sap of trees, also known as resin.

Thisisace , 2.5 Report

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David Paterson
David Paterson
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The original test is Zoroastrian in origin and is described in detail by Marco Polo. A baby is offered gold, frankincense and myrrh. If they choose Gold then they're going to be a king. If they choose Frankincense then they're going to be a priest. If they choose Myrrh then they're going to be a doctor. A good fortune telling gig. Obviously, the gifts are not left with the baby. In other news, Frankincense in that time came from a tree that grew in Oman and Yemen. I have used a middle eastern toothpaste flavoured with Myrrh rather than peppermint. I do not recommend it.

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#23

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL when Greece won its independence in 1822, Athens was reduced to a small village of 4,000 inhabitants that had faded into irrelevance over centuries. It was selected as the capital for historical and sentimental reasons. The city is now the largest in Greece with over 3 million inhabitants

Kooker321 , Alexander Popkov Report

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#24

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL America had over 50,000 pay toilets in 1970 but by 1980, there were almost none. Four teenagers formed the Committee to End Pay Toilets in America. Chicago became the first major American city to ban pay toilets altogether in March of 1973.

laterdude , Simon Law Report

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Li’l E.
Li’l E.
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I would prefer to have pay toilets in my (American) city. Instead we have no public toilets at all, which is worse.

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#25

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that the "seductive nature" of the Green M&M is a reference to an urban legend during the 1970s that green M&Ms were aphrodisiacs.

Slygirl997 , VY_Cannabis_Majoris Report

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David
David
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

yeah, green ones make you horny was a joke when I was in HS. I don't know anyone who actually believed it, just a fun joke and all.

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#26

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL about 'The Campaign for North Africa' - a board game published in 1978 that is estimated to take 62 days to play. The game includes 1,600 counters and the level of detail is such that Italian troops require additional water supplies in order to boil pasta.

dakp15 , SPI Report

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#27

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIl that citizens of Monaco are banned from gambling or working at casinos. The famed Monte Carlo Casino is strictly for foreigners only.

nickburrows8398 , Matthew Hartley Report

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#28

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that the Milky Way Galaxy is being pulled toward a mysterious area in space called "The Great Attractor" at about 6000km/s. Whatever it is, we can't see it from Earth because it's obscured the hub of our galaxy.

BrickHerder , ESA/Hubble Space Telescope Report

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JB
JB
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You better update your will, because we've only got six billion years or so!

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#29

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL the director of Captain Phillips didn't allow Tom Hanks and Actors playing somali pirates to meet before filming the movie, so that the pirates can terroize Tom and his crew and create a realistic tension and hostility between them.

Algrinder , Sony Pictures Report

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#30

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL Emperor Justinian II (685-695 and 705-711) was overthrown in a rebellion and had his nose cut off to prevent him from ever ruling again. However, he managed to return to power in 705 with a prosthetic gold nose and took his revenge on those who had deposed him.

HallandBurner , Marvelfannumber1 Report

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Mark
Mark
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What are the chances that his nose is buried in a Japanese nose tomb?

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#31

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL the longest prison sentence ever given was 141,078 years, given to a Thai woman in 1989. She was released 4 years later.

rain-is-wet , Ori Report

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Passerby
Passerby
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Look up Chamoy Thipyaso if you are curious. She defrauded more than 10,000 people, and she got sentence for each case of fraud, that's why the sentence was so long. She actually received just 20 years of prison though, because that is the maximum sentence allowed by the law. She ended up serving even less than that though.

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#32

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that the Soviet spacecraft Luna 1 was intended to be the first craft to land on the moon. It missed the moon by nearly 6000km and ended up becoming the first spacecraft to enter orbit around the sun between the orbits of Earth and Mars.

EssexGuyUpNorth , Alexander Mokletsov Report

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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The actual body count of the Soviet Space Program is still not known

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#33

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL It would take 18 months to walk the great wall of China.

Herenowthenagain , Severin.stalder Report

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#34

TIL Liechtenstein has been accidentally attacked or invaded by Switzerland 5 times since 1968. In 1968, chairs were broken by artillery. In 1976 soldiers were offered drinks by the locals. In 1985 a forest fire was started. Switzerland apologised or compensated for the damage each time.

BezugssystemCH1903 Report

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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Lichtenstein is one of the quartet of tiny countries along with Andorra, Luxembourg and Vatican City

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#35

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that Thomas Cornell was convicted and sent to the gallows for the 1673 murder of his mother, due in part to "spectral evidence" presented by his uncle, who said her ghost paid him a visit and told him that Thomas did it.

licecrispies , John Cornell Report

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#36

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL Prior to 1970 most Pistachios were dyed red!

capacochella , Sarah Chai Report

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Don Adams
Don Adams
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

IIRC, the pistachios were grown and harvested in the Middle East, and due to the transit time involved, a spotty mold would appear on the shells. the red dye was for covering up the spots. Once the nuts started to be grown domestically, the dye wss no longer needed.

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#37

TIL in the last years of his life, J.R.R Tolkien, a devout catholic, resisted the liturgical changes implemented after the Second Vatican Council, especially the use of English for the liturgy. He continued to make the responses in Latin, loudly, ignoring the rest of the congregation.

gullydon Report

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WonderWoman
WonderWoman
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Having liturgy in your own language lets you understand the passages and meanings of what is being preached rather than the word of the priest who brings his own agenda to the people.

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#38

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that despite being commonly ranked as one of the worst Christmas films ever made, the 1985 film “Santa Claus: The Movie” is immensely popular in the UK. One of the film actors, John Lithgow, said in 2019 that he wishes he had a nickel for every Englishman who’s told him it's their favorite film.

waitingforthesun92 , Sony Pictures Report

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#39

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that in a survey of 500 law firm workers, over 50% confirmed that legal TV shows had influenced their career choice & 57% of those felt that the TV series that impacted them was a "realistic depiction of a legal career." 30% identified Suits as their show, 22% said Law and Order.

tyrion2024 , NBC Report

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113points
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Lotekguy
Lotekguy
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't want to ever meet a lawyer whose practice made Suits seem most realistic. That's some major assholery for one's livelihood.

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#40

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL - The severed head of Mata Hari was embalmed and kept in the Museum of Anatomy in Paris. In 2000, archivists discovered that it had disappeared.

MyHamburgerLovesMe , anon Report

Final score:
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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Keeping the heads of famous criminals is nothing odd. The skeleton of Burke of the famous Burke and Hare murders is still on display at Surgeon's Hall at the University of Edinburgh, the Alma Mater of Dr. Know who bought the murdered corpses

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#41

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that The Simpsons episode where they go to Japan is banned in Japan.

1MillionSpacebucks , 20th Century Fox Television Report

Final score:
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Luis Hernandez Dauajare
Luis Hernandez Dauajare
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11 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's because the episode depicts Homer disrespecting the Emperor. Japan has Lèse-majesté laws. The Emperor cannot be mocked or disrespected in any capacity in public media. While no longer a criminal offense, the figure of the Emperor is venerated in Japan.

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#42

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that although it's commonly believed that we can feel stares, studies on the Psychic Staring Effect have repeatedly produced results no better than random chance.

PM_ME_PARR0TS , Jeremy Johnson Report

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#43

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL America was almost named “Amerige” meaning “Land of Amerigo”, but was changed to the feminine form America, following the naming convention of Asia and Europe.

Visual_Bluejay9781 , anon Report

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#44

TIL: To stop cannibalism among poultry in the 1940s thought to be due to natural instinct, "Anti-Pix" sunglasses were developed to prevent birds from seeing "raw flesh or blood" due to their rose color. They worked!

AnExtremelySadPigeon Report

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Sonja
Sonja
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To think they could have simply given them more space...

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#45

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL Japan has several "Nose Tombs" which contain tens of thousands of severed noses from Korea.

FalconPUNNCH , KENPEI Report

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Daniel Atkins
Daniel Atkins
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Look up The Rape of Nanking and it will tell you how horrible the Japanese were during WW II to the Koreans and the Chinese. The bad thing is they didn’t acknowledge what they did even to this day.

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#46

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL while filming the scene in 1983’s “A Christmas Story” where Ralphie is dressed as a sheriff, a prop man gave actor Peter Billingsley real Red Man chewing tobacco. Peter, who was 12, didn’t know the difference and ingested it. Production then had to be shut down until Billingsley recovered.

waitingforthesun92 , Warner Bros Report

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Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My!
Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My!
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Poor Ralphie! Seriously, what the heck? That's like giving a twelve year old cigarettes!

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#47

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that Mao Zedong gave out a box of mangoes gifted to him by Pakistan. A cult formed in China for the unfamiliar fruit. Replicas were made and publicly displayed. One man said that the fruit didn't look like anything special, and was shamefully paraded around his town and then publicly executed.

gucciavenger , Daderot Report

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#48

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL director Michel Gondry found Jim Carrey's emotional state after a breakup "so beautiful, so broken" that he asked him to stay that way for one year to fit his character in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

MotleyHatch , Universal Pictures Report

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#49

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL it's not possible to watch every film ever nominated for Best Picture. Only 2/3 of 1928's The Patriot still exists, and the only complete prints of 1931's East Lynne and 1934's The White Parade are in the UCLA film archive

NeverEnoughMuppets , Paramount Pictures Report

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VonBlade
VonBlade
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

After the Universal fire, I bet there is tons of stuff lost to the mists of time.

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#50

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that for several years Mick Jagger believed he was the father of Liv Tyler.

Working-Skill510 , Raph_PH Report

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Multa Nocte
Multa Nocte
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wikipedia: "From 1972 to 1979, Buell lived with rock musician Todd Rundgren. In 1976, Buell became pregnant from a brief relationship with Steven Tyler. She gave birth on July 1, 1977, naming the daughter Liv Rundgren and claiming that Todd Rundgren was the biological father because Tyler was in the middle of his well-documented drug excesses. Liv told People Magazine in 1992 that "Todd's my spiritual father. I love him". By then Rundgren and Buell had ended their romantic relationship but Rundgren nevertheless signed the birth certificate and acted as a father figure to Liv, including paying for her education."

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#51

TIL scientists for the first time in "significant detail" captured footage of orcas hunting & killing great white sharks via first-time ever aerial footage of the behavior in South Africa. Researchers recorded 11 shark deaths by orcas. Evidence also suggested the hunting was becoming more common.

tyrion2024 Report

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#52

TIL in 2005 baseball player John Mcdonald was traded from the Toronto Blue Jays to the Detroit Tigers for a 'player to be named later'. In 2006 John Mcdonald was traded back to the Toronto Blue Jays as the 'Player to be named later'. Essentially meaning John McDonald was traded for himself.

Broccoli_Glory Report

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Phoenix
Phoenix
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We don't want him, you take him! We don't want him either, take him back!

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#53

TIL about Derinkuyu (modern day Turkey), a 3000 year old underground city that once housed up to 20000 people and their livestock.

Genevieves_bitch Report

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32points
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#54

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) Today I learned that while working a movie theater in Arizona, Bill Hader got fired for spoiling the ending of Titanic.

petetheheat475 , Gage Skidmore Report

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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You mean "the boat sinks?" I remember some youngsters complaining about that particular story element on their way out of the theater

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#55

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL that only 1 in 10 American adults are eating enough fruits and vegetables.

Stauce52 , Mark Stebnicki Report

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BravePanda
BravePanda
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Interesting. I eat a lot of fruit and veggies but can't afford to eat this many. Seeing this statistic, which is factual, I realized that I couldn't be in the 10%. I'm not. "The federal fruit and vegetable recommendations vary by age and sex: Adult women need at least 1½ cups of fruit and 2½ cups of vegetables each day Adult men need at least 2 cups of fruit and 3½ cups of vegetables each day."

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#56

TIL that over five years after 9/11, mail was still occasionally being sent to the WTC’s ZIP code of 10048, mostly from businesses that hadn’t yet updated their bulk mailing lists.

cjfullinfaw07 Report

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#57

TIL: King Felipe VI of Spain is Europe's poorest monarch after he decided to reveal the full extent of his finances being worth 2.57 million euros. He owns no property or land and his wealth comes from jewels and antiques. In comparison, his wealth was 5% of Queen Elizabeth at the time.

Flares117 Report

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Pittsburgh rare
Pittsburgh rare
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yeah, well. They get around 7 million euros a year and a lot of their expenses are paid separately by the state (security comes from the ministry of interior affairs, palaces are being maintained by the ministry of culture, and so on...). Not to mention that Felipe's father has a fortune of unknown origin. So l'd say that after only ten years as king that's a good amount of savings in a country with structural unemployment and poverty problems. They won't find me pitying them.

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#58

TIL that in August 2019 the city council of Bielefeld, Germany offered €1 million to anyone who could prove that their city did not exist.

ralphbernardo Report

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#59

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL an American general was sent home in disgrace for revealing the secret D-day invasion date at a party.

mankls3 , MIckStephenson Report

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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Related: an American officer was dismissed from the ETO by Eisenhower for calling an allied officer a "stuck up British SOB" the object that so offended Eisenhower was not SOB but the use of British as a pejorative.. Ike would brook no national based dissention in the allied forces. Obvious if you remember that he kept Montgomery around to keep the peace

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#60

TIL A Banyan tree in northwestern Pakistan, which was put in chains by a drunk British army officer after he placed it “under arrest” during the region’s oppressive colonial period, continues to bear the weight of its metal bearings despite a lapse of around 120 years.

firsthumanbeingthing Report

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Jefferson Selvy
Jefferson Selvy
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Good example of why rebelling against the English is a good idea

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#61

TIL Sonia Orwell, second wife of George Orwell, died penniless in December 1980, having spent a fortune trying to protect Orwell's name.

toonslayy Report

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#62

TIL Kentucky Fried Chicken ran out of chicken in the UK. KFC started to shut down locations in response to their missing ingredient, meaning that by February 18, 2018 only 266 of the 870 restaurants in the UK and Ireland were open.

laterdude Report

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OdetteB
OdetteB
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11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Actually, KFC changed their supplier. Unfortunately, the supplier they chose to replace the original didn't have the infrastructure to cope with demand, so restaurants had to close. KFC eventually realised they had made a massive mistake and reinstated the original supplier and business as normal resumed. I know this because a very good friend works for the original supplier. Nothing to do with Brexit.

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#63

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL we still don't know what disease killed more than half the Native Americans in 1500.

eisterman , Bernardino de Sahagún Report

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#64

TIL there used to be a period after the New York Times logo for over a hundred years. They calculated they could save $600 in ink if they dropped it.

mankls3 Report

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down quark
down quark
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

$600 a year? A day? Can we normalize providing units of time when needed more often?

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#65

TIL that since the construction of the oval office in 1909, a total of six different desks have been used by 20 Presidents. 8 Presidents used the Resolute desk, 6 used the Theodore Roosevelt Desk, 2 used the Hoover Desk, 2 used the Wilson Desk, 1 used the C&O desk and 1 used the Johnson desk.

dakp15 Report

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#66

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL Only 28 books sold more than 500,000 copies in the US in 2022. Eight of them were by romance novelist Colleen Hoover.

rustyyryan , onix Report

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#67

50 Intriguing “Today I Learned” Facts That You Probably Didn’t Learn In School (New Facts) TIL in 1965, Air India airlines commissioned Salvador Dali to design an ashtray for the airlines. Dali requested an elephant as fees so the airline flew a two year old elephant from Bangalore to Geneva. After Dali lost interest, the elephant was taken to the Barcelona Zoo in 1971.

trifletruffles , Roger Higgins Report

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#68

TIL, when securing the movie rights for ''The Polar Express'' (1985), one stipulation was that the resulting movie could not be animated. To preserve his vision, Robert Zemeckis opted for motion capture technology during the film's production.

Movie_Advance_101 Report

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#69

TIL cherries are dried with helicopters

Bigboogle_official Report

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Passerby
Passerby
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To elaborate, they don't use helicopters to make dried fruit like raisins. They use helicopters to dry fruit still on the tree, because rain can make the skin crack, which make cherries unsellable. Kinda like drying your clothes by turning on a huge fan at them.

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#70

TIL The Neo Geo is the most expensive home video game console ever made, selling for $650 in 1990. That's $1,566.59 today. It was originally supposed to be a rental console but was sold for retail due to high demand.

Biscuits25 Report

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