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As one version of the proverb says, "Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back." Seeking out answers and explanations is human nature. And now, being curious is easier than ever, thanks to the Internet. Whether by chance or intentionally (there are about 99,000 Google searches every second), we run into new information every day. But not all of it is exciting or worth sharing.
If you're on the lookout for already filtered interesting facts, the "Today I Learned" (TIL) subreddit is here for you. For years, this has been one of the biggest subreddits, and over 26.5M curious people have joined the community by now. The members of this group are doing us a community service by sharing the coolest tidbits of information that they run into. Ancient history, immortal animals, or current affairs that are flying under the radar, this group is as surprising as it is educational, and we love it.
Our curious pandas gathered another list of fascinating facts that I'm sure will broaden your horizons. And if you have anything that you think more people should learn about, please don't hesitate to share it in the comments. Be sure to upvote your favorite facts, and if after reading this you're eager for even more, you can find our previous articles here, here, and here!
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#1
TIL Andre Agassi won 10 of 11 matches after seeing a "tick" in Boris Becker's serve. Agassi could predict where Becker was serving based on whether Becker stuck his tongue out in the middle of his lip or to the left corner of his lip. Agassi told Becker over a pint of beer - after they retired.
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#2
TIL composer Andre Tchaikovsky requested his skull be donated to the Royal Shakespeare Company for use in theatrical performances. In 2008, David Tennant used the skull in Hamlet.
#3
TIL Actor Kevin Bacon pays off DJ’s when he attends weddings so that they won’t play “Footloose.”
#4
TIL that the longest running lab experiment is the Pitch Drop experiment. It demonstrates how tar is the most viscous liquid being 100 billion times more viscous than water. Only 9 drops have fallen in the 95 years since it began in 1927.
#5
TIL that one of the rarest Yu-Gi-Oh cards in existence is Tyler the Great Warrior. It was created by Tyler Gressle, a boy that had a rare form of liver cancer. He got to create his own card through Make-A-Wish Foundation and they printed one card just for him. He made a full recovery.
#6
TIL after a seizure left him paralyzed except for his left eyelid, Jean-Dominique Bauby (1952-1997) wrote the bestselling book "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" by blinking to select each letter as an assistant recited the alphabet to him.
#7
TIL in 1822 a stork arrived in Germany with an arrow through its neck. The wood was from central Africa, over 3000 miles away. This convinced zoologists that birds migrated in the winter, and disproved other theories such as underwater hibernation, or transformation into other animals (like mice).
#8
TIL Tomatoes are native to the Americas, so there was no such thing as tomato sauce in Italy until at least the 16th century.
Greta Kolding 2 years ago
Knowledge is to know that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is to refrain from putting it in the fruit salad.
#9
TIL an Iowa Supermarket employee went missing in 2009 while at work, only to have his decomposed body discovered in a gap between a freezer and a wall 10 years later in 2019.
#10
TIL that photographer Carol Highsmith donated tens of thousands of her photos to the Library of Congress, making them free for public use. Getty Images later claimed copyright on many of these photos, then accused her of copyright infringement by using one of her own photos on her own site.
#11
TIL sleep helps clean our brain. Or in the words of the journal Science, “Observations showed that when mice sleep, channels between neurons in their brains expand, allowing cerebrospinal fluid to flush out detritus, such as proteins that in human beings are associated with Alzheimer’s disease.”
#12
TIL in response to infamously high suicide rates at Mapo Bridge in Seoul, South Korea, the bridge was adorned with suicide prevention messages and uplifting photos. These measures weren't enacted by the government, however, instead the entire project was financed by Samsung's life insurance division.
Green Tree 2 years ago
Samsung is about 1/5th of South Korea’s total economy and essentially runs the country
#13
TIL Lobsters don’t die of old age due to an enzyme called ‘telomerase’ that increases the number of divisions their cells can make, allowing them to repair their bodies and live extraordinarily long lives.
#14
TIL there is a mall in the capital of the country Moldova called Malldova.
#15
TIL: In Australia there are 'Firehawks', which are birds that intentionally set forest fires as a hunting technique
#16
TIL In 1965, an excavation team discovered the Sword of Goujian in a tomb in Hubei, China. Encased in a nearly air-tight wooden box next to a skeleton. The sword is over 2500 years old but was in perfect condition, test affirmed that the blade could easily cut a stack of twenty pieces of paper.
#17
TIL Playing too much tetris can result in the "Tetris effect" where after playing a lot of Tetris you see tetris pieces falling when you close your eyes.
Vinchenski 2 years ago
I actually had this once but with that Candy Crush game when it first came out. I got that addicted, I was sitting in a meeting at work one day and distinctly recall seeing a candy crush level in my head and trying to work it out. I missed a good 5 minutes of the meeting until I snapped myself out of it. Never played it again. That freaked me out.
#18
TIL the true story of Moby Dick. A whale sunk a crew’s main ship - leaving 3 sailboats. They’d live if they sailed to a nearby island. Out of fear from (false) stories of cannibalism, they tried going back to the mainland. In tragic irony, they got lost at sea and had to resort to cannibalism.
Scott 2 years ago
The part that always got me about it is the island they were closest to but chose to avoid due to fear of cannibalism were the Marquesas, which are now seen as tropical paradises. Also, I'm related to George Pollard, the captain of the Essex, as well as Owen Coffin, who was Pollard's cousin and eaten by the survivors. There's an amazing book about it called "In the Heart of the Sea."
Nathaniel 2 years ago (edited)
Cannibalism was relatively common amongst shipwreck survivors. Also women and children first is a quite recent concept, it used to be all about having someone survive, who was most likely to survive at sea? The sailors who were mainly men.
Piggy Tee 2 years ago
Fishermen were fisherMEN for a reason and explorers were always men. Not only was it very frowned upon by society to have a female on board, it also could be very risky for both sexes (living in close quarters etc.). But I've read about some other occasions where they had to resort to cannibalism and they tried to keep the woman alive as long as possible. I think it is some kind of weird instinct that men should protect women. Very much so in the whole society back then. Say that a man was rescued from the island and there was evidence that he ate a woman? He would have been stoned.
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Pizzagirl 91 2 years ago
By chance, I watched a documentary about whaling back then: older sperm whales' skin turns whiter with the years. Whales in those times didn't get to grow old if they didn't outsmart whalers. So some whales actually learned to treat whaling ships like encroaching rivals, ramming their sides - which can be very "deadly" for wooden ships, if hit in the "right" spot. And the more successful they were at that, the longer they lived, so the "whitest" sperm whales were actually often a danger to whaler boats. And I'm totally "on board" with that.
Phill 2 years ago
Watch the film “heart of the ocean” it’s the true events that inspired the writing of Moby Dorris. Great for a Friday night film
Ann M Clinkscales 2 years ago
Figures...is that where the story that men don't ask for directions started???
bill marsano 2 years ago
I think you're talking about the story of the whaleship Essex. There's a movie on Netflix. Also at least one book. Worth a look.
Camila Esteban Guerrero 2 years ago
Mocha D**k, after the chilean island of Mocha. They called it that because it was often seen near that island.
Brian Droste 2 years ago
There was a movie made about this event a few years ago. Don't remember the title. Seen it.
#19
TIL that the first person ever diagnosed with autism is still alive
#20
TIL when snowflakes hit water they create a screeching sound too high for humans (but not some sea animals) to hear. When a flake hits the water, an air bubble is released that oscillates in the 50-200 khz range well above a human's range. Snow hitting water can increase underwater sound by 30 db.
#21
TIL the average gas pump handle is almost 12,000 times dirtier than the average public toilet seat.
#22
TIL: Traditionally Japanese do not eat salmon sushi and it was invented in the 80's by the Norwegians to to try to sell more of their over abundance of Salmon.
#23
TIL Hong Kong digs up the dead after 6 years for cremation due to lack of space.
#24
TIL like "R.I.P." many ancient Romans had "NFFNSNC", non fui, fui, non sum, non curo, inscribed on their graves meaning “I was not; I was; I am not; I do not care”. A epicurist philosophy.
Jrog 2 years ago
R.I.P does NOT stand, as many believe, as "Rest in Peace". It stands for "Requiescat in pace", that is Latin for rest in peace. Due to the coincidence of the first letters being the same in English and Latin, many people think the acronym stems from the English phrase, while it actually dates back to a dozen centuries before the creation of English language.
#25
TIL The inventor of the television was a 15 year old farm boy who got the idea for scanning an image in rows from the back and forth motion of plowing a field.
#26
TIL that Over 50 percent of the world's population relies on rice for 80 percent of it's food requirements.
#27
TIL In the UK, the distinction between an actor and an extra is defined by agreements between the actors trade unions and the various commercial production bodies. These state that once a performer says 13 or more words in any scene, they must become a contracted actor in that production.
#28
TIL of Viktor Belenko, the Soviet pilot who defected with the MiG-25 (most advanced Soviet interceptor of its time), who initially assumed that his CIA handlers were keeping him in an elaborate tourist trap made to impress foreigners because he couldn't comprehend the sheer abundance he was seeing.
HARRY KOPPERS 2 years ago
one thing that convinced him to defect was that the US had a Communist party (touted in the USSR press) but the USSR didn't allow a Democratic party.
#29
TIL Velcro is actually a brand name, and they launched campaigns to get people to stop saying "Velcro". The correct term is actually "hook and loop".
#30
TIL that the common LED light was awarded a Nobel Prize. The 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano, and Shuji Nakamura for the invention of efficient blue light-emitting diodes which has enabled bright and energy-saving white light sources
#31
TIL that alcohol consumption in the U.S. was almost 300% higher in the 1800s, and that whiskey at the time was cheaper than beer, coffee or milk.
Colin Matthews 2 years ago
Its largely because many of the others weren't as common as today, and water wasnt always reliably clean
#32
TIL Very little of Franz Kafka's works were published during his lifetime and he burned 90% of his work. Works like The Trial and The Castle were saved when the executor of Kafka's will ignored Kafka's request to have his remaining works destroyed.
#33
TIL A $250,000 diamond placed on the nose of an F1 car was lost in a crash in the 2004 Monaco GP. It's still missing today.
#34
TIL the Wright Brothers were perpetual bachelors, and that Orville Wright disowned their sister Katherine after she married and had a family of her own, feeling he had been "betrayed".
#35
TIL that turkeys can sometimes reproduce asexually, forming near-clones of themselves.
What do you think ?
Upstaged75 2 years ago
TIL that my father wrote the original patent for Mucinex. He just casually mentioned it at dinner. How did I not know this before? You'd think he'd bring it up more often. He's a modest guy so I guess he didn't think it was a big deal. He's written thousands of patents so it was just another day at the office for him. (He's retired now but he was a patent attorney.)
Nykky 2 years ago
Freaking thank your dad for me. That stuff is such great medicine.
Load More Replies...
Amanda Skrabal 2 years ago
My name is Amanda and I am sure there is no need to explain why my nickname is Panda. I wanted to just share that almost all of the Board Panda articles that my husband or I come across get shard with each other. We use it as a great way to bond after 12 years of marriage and 4 children. I love to feed my brain with all kinds of information but these are my favorites. Some are simple but others make you think. I also love how involved people get and share extra information about topics to help explain. I hope, just like my marriage, that Board Panda is here to stay.
Leo Domitrix 2 years ago
I'm kinda wondering in what school some of these *would* be taught (e.g., guy stuck between freezer and wall at his job). Not exactly vital to learning how to think, tho' it's a great practical example of "Why We Don't Mess With Physics".
Junior Farrell 2 years ago
Most of math learned i think is overly complicated and will have 0 use in the future, but we still learn it. I would rather have a class about a guy getting stuck behind a freezer that will have no practical use in the future than math.
Load More Replies...
Diane Aguilar 2 years ago
TIL that Charles Schulz of "Peanuts" fame was born in Minneapolis, a city I've recently moved to, at an address within two miles of the address I moved to. I saw the address and immediately recognized where it was. IDK why this surprised me but before my move here I kinda lumped the entire Midwest together and figured Schulz was from somewhere "up *there*" (I'm a native of a state in the U.S. southwest) but had no idea he was born somewhere so close to my new home.
Julia Wolfe 2 years ago
I met a guy at thanksgiving dinner who invented viva paper towels, which apparently use a different way to manage thickness of the towel?? Still not sure what he meant.
Diane Aguilar 2 years ago
OMG Viva paper towels are literally the best! You buy a two-roll pack of them and they last you a good three months at least. Their paper towels tend to be thicker (and softer) than any other paper towels on the market, so you end up using much less than you normally would and it is such a versatile product as well, since its softness means you can use them as facial tissues if necessary, and I have.
Load More Replies... Junior Farrell 2 years ago (edited)
TIL (not really today, it was a while back) that the bomb on Hiroshima detonated before it hit ground making it more devastating and (not from an early detonation) that there are "shadows" of people on the concrete that died from the bomb.
Michelle H 2 years ago
Read these and many more facts on the app they originated from Trivia Buff
Kevin J. Henning 2 years ago
TIL that none of this stuff really makes much difference in anyone's life anyway.
Upstaged75 2 years ago
TIL that my father wrote the original patent for Mucinex. He just casually mentioned it at dinner. How did I not know this before? You'd think he'd bring it up more often. He's a modest guy so I guess he didn't think it was a big deal. He's written thousands of patents so it was just another day at the office for him. (He's retired now but he was a patent attorney.)
Nykky 2 years ago
Freaking thank your dad for me. That stuff is such great medicine.
Load More Replies... Amanda Skrabal 2 years ago
My name is Amanda and I am sure there is no need to explain why my nickname is Panda. I wanted to just share that almost all of the Board Panda articles that my husband or I come across get shard with each other. We use it as a great way to bond after 12 years of marriage and 4 children. I love to feed my brain with all kinds of information but these are my favorites. Some are simple but others make you think. I also love how involved people get and share extra information about topics to help explain. I hope, just like my marriage, that Board Panda is here to stay.
Leo Domitrix 2 years ago
I'm kinda wondering in what school some of these *would* be taught (e.g., guy stuck between freezer and wall at his job). Not exactly vital to learning how to think, tho' it's a great practical example of "Why We Don't Mess With Physics".
Junior Farrell 2 years ago
Most of math learned i think is overly complicated and will have 0 use in the future, but we still learn it. I would rather have a class about a guy getting stuck behind a freezer that will have no practical use in the future than math.
Load More Replies... Diane Aguilar 2 years ago
TIL that Charles Schulz of "Peanuts" fame was born in Minneapolis, a city I've recently moved to, at an address within two miles of the address I moved to. I saw the address and immediately recognized where it was. IDK why this surprised me but before my move here I kinda lumped the entire Midwest together and figured Schulz was from somewhere "up *there*" (I'm a native of a state in the U.S. southwest) but had no idea he was born somewhere so close to my new home.
Julia Wolfe 2 years ago
I met a guy at thanksgiving dinner who invented viva paper towels, which apparently use a different way to manage thickness of the towel?? Still not sure what he meant.
Diane Aguilar 2 years ago
OMG Viva paper towels are literally the best! You buy a two-roll pack of them and they last you a good three months at least. Their paper towels tend to be thicker (and softer) than any other paper towels on the market, so you end up using much less than you normally would and it is such a versatile product as well, since its softness means you can use them as facial tissues if necessary, and I have.
Load More Replies... Junior Farrell 2 years ago (edited)
TIL (not really today, it was a while back) that the bomb on Hiroshima detonated before it hit ground making it more devastating and (not from an early detonation) that there are "shadows" of people on the concrete that died from the bomb.
Michelle H 2 years ago
Read these and many more facts on the app they originated from Trivia Buff
Kevin J. Henning 2 years ago
TIL that none of this stuff really makes much difference in anyone's life anyway.
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