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You deserve to do something nice for yourselves today, pandas. That might include taking a long, hot bath, doing some relaxing yoga or even exercising your brain by learning something new. And if you don’t have time for a bath or a yoga mat on hand at the moment, why not take ten minutes to pick up some fascinating, fun facts?

We’ve taken another trip to one of our favorite places on the internet, the Today I Learned subreddit, to find out some information that you probably didn’t learn in school but you might still want to know! So enjoy finding out more about history, animals and even our own species, and be sure to upvote the facts that you won’t ever forget!

#1

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL about a cat named Room 8 that lived in a public school for 16 years. During his time their he would disappear during the summer and return, like clockwork on the first day of school. He became so well known that poems and songs were sung about him.

Houndguy , John Malmin / Los Angeles Times Report

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PeeledPotato
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In 1968, in a teary farewell, students at Elysian Heights Elementary School bade goodbye to their beloved furry feline friend -- named Room 8, for the room he entered by an open window in 1952. A fixture at the school for 16 years, the celebrity gray-and-white alley cat had posed for countless pictures, including one that was emblazoned on school T-shirts. Room 8, the unofficial school mascot, became the subject of a school mural; a sculpture and several poems etched into the sidewalk in front of the school; a TV documentary called "Big Cats, Little Cats"; and a 1966 illustrated children's book called "Room 8," written by the school principal, Beverly Mason, and teacher Virginia Finley. Royalties from book and T-shirt sales went to the library fund, and a trust fund was set up in Room 8's name at the Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital. Students who once decorated his newly dug grave with handpicked flowers have returned to the pet cemetery over the years to say their "hellos."

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#2

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL elderly pedestrians in Singapore get more time to cross the road at traffic lights. By taping their concession card on the crosswalk button, the green man stays lit for up to 13 seconds longer.

griefofwant , lta Report

#3

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL Ubisoft offered to share their detailed 3D model of Notre Dame from Assassin's Creed: Unity, some 5,000 hours of research, with the French government reconstruction effort after the fire in 2019.

Funk5oulBrother , artstation Report

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Donkeywheel
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They offered but it was declined, for a good reason : Notre Dame had already been scanned multiple times by specialists who have much more detailed and technical models of the cathedral. It’s a good gesture by Ubisoft but not really useful.

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#4

TIL the Kootenai Indian Tribe of Idaho and Montana harvests millions of dollars of sturgeon caviar a year, but put all the eggs back in the rivers. They are desperately try to save the shrinking white sturgeon population which they believe are “sacred messengers.”

triviafrenzy Report

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#5

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL : about the game "Foldit", a puzzle game about protein folding. In 2011, its gamers helped decipher a protein of a HIV-like virus, solving a scientific problem that went unsolved for 15 years in as little as 10 days.

12a357sdf , Animation Research Labs, University of Washington Report

#6

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL Highway hypnosis, also known as white line fever, is an altered mental state in which a person can drive a car, truck, or other automobile great distances, responding to external events in the expected, safe, and correct manner with no recollection of having consciously done so.

gullydon , Derek Jensen Report

#7

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that sharks don’t make sounds. Across 400-500 species, no one has ever found an organ even capable of producing sound.

Jangles2000 , GEORGE DESIPRIS Report

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censorshipsucks
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

so they do not make that noise...? der-dunt.... der-dunt.... der-dunt.der-dunt.der-dunt..?

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#8

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that just before Laika went into space, one of the scientists using her for testing brought her home to play with his children. Knowing that she would not survive her journey.

Alaskan_Tsar , Goszei Report

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Amity_Calamity
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Aww poor pup! They shouldn't have sent her in space, she died 5-7 hours after take off. She died alone and scared :(

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#9

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL in 2001, Mattel made a vibrating Harry Potter broomstick that led to many questionable Amazon user reviews. They discontinued the toy after adult stores in Times Square started selling them for twice their original retail price.

SappyGilmore , time Report

#10

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL when Captain Francesco Schettino was asked why he abandoned the sinking Costa Concordia cruise ship in 2012 while the ship’s passengers were either dying or trying to escape, his excuse was that he accidentally fell into a lifeboat. He received 16 years in prison for his role in the incident.

waitingforthesun92 , Jean-Philippe Boulet Report

#11

TIL It has been scientifically proven that stroking a cat can lower one's blood pressure.

Opening-Cap5703 Report

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les
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

but only with consent of the cat, otherwise it can raise your blood pressure when it does it flying accupuncture spinning ball of sharpness trick

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#12

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that three years after winning gold at the 2004 Olympics, wrestler Rulon Gardner and two friends’ plane crashed into Lake Powell Utah. The three men swam an hour to the shore through 44F (7C) degree water to the shore and waited all night without shelter for rescue. All three men survived.

HasSomeSelfEsteem , U.S. Army Report

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Wax0nWax0ff
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Meanwhile I’m shivering out of my skin because I’m drinking a milkshake with the fan on

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#13

TIL that there is a type of octopus, an argonaut, where the male fills its sex organ with sperm, then rips it off and presents it to a female.

mckinneym Report

#14

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL about the "Tanganyika-Laughter Epidemic". A student in 1962 in Tanzania started laughing in a school in Kashasha. The laughter quickly spread to hundreds of people, causing schools to close for months. Researchers believe it was caused by stress, social tensions. No official explanation was given.

UnlimitedDuck , John Report

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Ali H M Salehuddin
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Apparently these are pretty common. Documented cases from middle ages upto to the latest one that happened in Brazil this year (2023) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mass_hysteria_cases

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#15

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that, on 16 November, 1949, students in Ghent (Belgium) stormed the medieval castle, lowered the portcullis and threw fruit from the walls at the police to protest a new tax on beer. The event is still commemorated yearly by the city as the greatest student prank in its history.

EliteTusken , brookstonbeerbulletin Report

#16

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that when Johannes Rebmann, the first European to see Mount Kilimanjaro, published his discovery in 1849, it was dismissed as a malaria-induced hallucination because it was believed that snow at this latitude was impossible. It took 12 more years for scholars to accept the mountain's existence.

ShabtaiBenOron , Johannes Rebmann Report

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#17

TIL that not only are the mountains on Saturns moon Titan named after mountains and ranges from works J.R.R. Tolkien, but the plains are named after locations from the Dune Universe.

Jay-Zee1231 Report

#18

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL the Black Death contributed greatly to the rise of the British Pub and pub culture. Thanks to the plague, scarcity of labor greatly improved the standard of living for peasants, who in turn spent their extra money on beer.

TheMadhopper , COURTESY OF YE OLDE FIGHTING COCKS Report

#19

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL. MSG isn’t bad for you and it’s bad reputation stemmed from what’s called the Chinese Restaurant Syndrome.

Oztravels , Ragesoss Report

#20

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL: about Nebraska's "safe haven" law that didn't have an age limit to drop off unwanted babies. A wave of children, many teenagers with behavioral issues, were dropped off. It has since been amended.

LaUNCHandSmASH , cottonbro studio Report

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Burnt Bagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That’s both sad and funny and is a pathetic commentary on many levels of our world!

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#21

TIL only a slim majority of Americans realize Puerto Ricans are American citizens.

mankls3 Report

#22

TIL that when the Bible was first translated into Finnish, there was no word for lion since nobody had ever seen one. The translator instead used the word “jalopeura” which means “noble deer”.

Fellowshipbook Report

#23

TIL elephants are capable of recognizing themselves in a mirror, which is a sign of self-awareness. Elephants were shown a mirror and their reactions were observed. They went through a series of behaviors, including touching their own bodies and inspecting their mouths.

skumati99 Report

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Terran
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Many animals pass the mirror test. One of them is my cat! It's notoriously difficult to mirror test cats because they don't care for our scientific endeavours and often just ignore the mirror altogether. About a year ago I was doing some stuff in the kitchen and one of my cats accompanied me. He got a bit too annoying, so stuck a sticky paper to his back. Once he realised I put something on his back and that something wasn't easily coming off, no matter what he tried, he jumped to the open kitchen window and stared into the glass of the window which currently had the kitchen wall behind it, so he could see what was on his back. To do this he needs to know, that he can see himself when staring into a mirror and for this he needs to be aware of himself. I was a very proud cat dad that day

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#24

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL birth rates in the U.S. have dropped more than 20% since 2007.

SAT0725 , Victoria Rain Report

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#25

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that when Zlatan Ibrahimovic signed for MLS club LA Galaxy, LeBron James sent him one of his Lakers jerseys as a "welcome to LA" gift. Zlatan's response was to sign it and send it back.

JimPalamo , Ibra_official Report

#26

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL of "Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome" where the body doesn't respond to testosterone so they have the genetic makeup of a man while showing the physical traits of a woman.

bigbananaNo , Ksaviano Report

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Lou Cam
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have a relative with this. She's very petite and feminine and only found out when periods didn't start in teen years. Sadly this was in the 60's and she wasn't treated very well by doctors and her parents who made her feel like a freak. Years of mental illness followed as a result. Very sad.

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#27

TIL that there are at least 5 species of shark living in the Thames estuary (which runs through London), and that one of those species is venomous.

HawthorneUK Report

#28

TIL that out of 400-500 species of shark, the Sand Tiger Shark is the only one known to fart.

d0ggzilla Report

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#29

TIL that the morning after the Titanic sank, a man on a nearby vessel who was unaware of the sinking photographed an iceberg with a red streak he suspected to be paint from a ship. For years the law firm for White Star Line, the Titanic’s owner, had the original displayed in their office.

JosiahWillardPibbs Report

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ValdaDeDieu
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So he was unaware of the sinking of the ship - yet suspected it to be paint from the ship that sank?

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Sawdust
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

After the collision, we all focus on what happened to the Titanic; no one ever asks what happened to the iceberg.

Jason Romine
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It would've been an unremarkable dark brown or gray streak in the picture, since color photography didn't exist in 1912. In fact, scholars aren't universally convinced that the guy actually got a picture of the right iceberg. The "streak" isn't sufficient evidence to prove it.

G R
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The photo is here, but you can't see the red paint. https://edition.cnn.com/2015/10/17/europe/titanic-iceberg-picture-photo/index.html

Aldo Maggiori
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The photograph was taken by the chief steward of Prinz Adalbert if you are curious

Glittery Panda
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wait what was the red streak? Could enough blood have shown up?

Jrog
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Paint. Ship have red paint below the waterline because traditionally they were painted with a paint containing copper (that is bio-toxic to algae and parasites) and minium (that protects against rust). That paint was orange-reddish. Today's protective paints would be dull grey, but pigments are added to make them red as a tradition.

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#30

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL: In 1880, the average ages of consent in the US were set at 10 or 12 years old in most states, with the exception of Delaware where it was 7.

SilentWalrus92 , David Dibert Report

#31

TIL that the crew of the sinking Daniel J. Morrell believed they were moments from being rescued, only to discover in horror that the lights were from the stern section of their own severed ship, still under power and barreling towards them.

NeoPossum Report

#32

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL during its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times.

volossaveroniki , AVRAM GRAICER Report

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#33

TIL Domino's Pizza was unsuccessful in its attempt to expand into Italy, they failed to win over the local Italians as they preferred their local pizzerias.

continentalatlas Report

#34

TIL that the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in the continental US occurred in New Madrid, MO, in 1812. It was so violent that the shaking was felt in New York, made church bells ring in South Carolina, and made part of the Mississippi River run backwards.

JosiahWillardPibbs Report

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STress
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Less known, but way more destructive, was the 1886 Charleston earthquake. Leaving 60 dead, and felt from Boston to Chicago to New Orleans and Cuba to Bermuda, it was one of the most destructive quakes in history of the East Coast.

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#35

TIL that in 2002 members of a simulated Mars mission in Utah uncovered an actual dinosaur fossil when on a mock spacewalk.

Emble12 Report

#36

TIL that Sweden has 267,570 islands, the most of any country in the world.

Livebeam Report

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Burnt Bagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And it’s part of Scandinavia, which in my mind proves itself as amongst the most functional governments in the world! Dare we call it “socialism?!” God forbid! (Looking entirely at you, USA).

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#37

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL: Castrati were singers who were castrated before puberty to develop a unique voice for singing. They were primarily in church choirs and operas. Italian operas without one would be doomed to fail. The Pope tried to ban them in 1748, but failed as it would drastically reduce church attendance.

Flares117 , Unknown Report

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Back in St. Olaf
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"Better to castrate little boys than let women sing in church!" - Vatican logic. The regressive and backwards thinking of the Catholic Church is nothing if not consistent.

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#38

TIL Brontosaurus is a valid dinosaur again. As of 2015 it is no longer considered to be the same species as Apatosaurus.

Practical_Clerk9034 Report

#39

TIL that lower class Germans are stereotyped as giving their children names that sound exotic in German, such as “Kevin.” Prejudice against people with such names is strong enough that the term “Kevinism” was coined to describe it.

UralIveGotTonight Report

#40

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL in 2012 in Cebu, Philippines, after a 6.9 earthquake struck the city, someone shouted while finding their daughter whose name is "Chona Mae". This was misheard as "Tsunami" and eventually caused a mass panic.

PotatoCatPi , sugbo Report

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#41

TIL that despite living under Jim Crow, Percy Julian was a doctor who pioneered the drug industry. After he developed the chemical synthesis of hormones like testosterone & progesterone, he became the first African American chemist inducted into the National Academy of Sciences.

Jjinkss Report

#42

TIL The baby Sacajawea carried for 2000 miles was Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. He was delivered by Meriwether Lewis, raised by William Clark, lived in a German castle for six years, spoke four languages, was a military scout, fur tapper and gold miner. He’s buried in an Oregon ghost town.

triviafrenzy Report

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Tim
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wish now to be forever known by my bar buddies and history as a "fur tapper".

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#43

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL white rice is just brown rice with its outer layer milled off.

PyooAnon , Guilhem Vellut Report

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Pamela24
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I mean...sure, what else would it be? Do people not know anything about the food they consume?

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#44

TIL while writing the 1971 song "Ain't No Sunshine", Bill Withers had originally intended to write more lyrics instead of repeating the phrase "I know" 26 times, but then followed the advice of the other musicians to leave it that way. Withers said: "When they said to leave it like that, I left it."

waitingforthesun92 Report

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#45

TIL that there's a secret letter from Queen Elizabeth II locked in a Vault, and it can’t be opened till 2085.

TheMrMorbid Report

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censorshipsucks
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"We would like to inform the world that David Icke is correct and we are in fact lizards."

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#46

TIL that Dr. John Gueriguian, a medical reviewer at the FDA, warned about the toxic effects of Rezulin, but after the company developing the drug complained, he was removed and his review was deleted by FDA. Rezulin ended up killing dozens of people and resulted in hundreds of liver toxicities.

NOAEL_MABEL Report

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Caroline Nagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It was probably cheaper to let people die than remove the product from the market.

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#47

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL Humans are a tropical species. Human evolution has produced bodies that were meant to live in hot and humid conditions. Our species is in its infancy as far as cold weather evolution is concerned, and physiologically speaking, our bodies are not supposed to be able to survive there.

Parks714 , Julian Jagtenberg Report

#48

TIL Graduate student Jocelyn Bell Burnell and her supervisor, Antony Hewish, built a radio telescope to observe quasars in 1967. Their discovery won the 1974 Nobel Prize – for Hewish. 50 years later, Burnell was awarded $3 Million in the Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics.

einstein_bern Report

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Caroline Nagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Too many women who worked in a STEM-field in the 19th and 20th century have been deprived of their well-deserved recognition.

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#49

TIL the song ‘I’ll Be missing You’ by Puff Daddy was a huge success spending 11 weeks at number one. Puff Daddy did not secure rights to the song so Sting sued and owns 100% of the royalties until 2053.

Po1sonator Report

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LK
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It is not accurate to say Puff Daddy 'did not secure rights to the song'. The song is based on sampling from 'Every breath you take' by The Police. Puff Daddy is not ask for, nor receive permission, and therefore he was in violation of copyright law.

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#50

TIL that many animals spend much of their time doing nothing, even those we think of as particularly busy. "If you look at a colony of ants, or bees, or any social insect really, maybe a little bit less than half of them are just standing around doing what looks like nothing."

Pschobbert Report

#51

TIL that about 15% of all Tyrannosaurus rex fossil specimens show signs of having been infected with or killed by trichomoniasis, a parasitic infection in the jaw that leaves visible holes in the bone. Modern-day birds, such as falcons and hawks, can suffer from similar trichomoniasis infections.

Obversa Report

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Black Cat
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

More proof that birds came from dinosaurs, but can anyone answer my question, were dinosaurs warm or cold blooded?

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#52

TIL in 2018, the 120-resident village of Acquetico in Italy installed speed cameras after being fed up with people speeding through it. In next 2 weeks, it recorded 58,500 speeding infractions.

AkagisWhiteComet Report

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STress
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And now, they own the whole region of Liguria. Keep speeding, folks!

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#53

TIL the last surviving former slave in the US, Peter Mills died in 1972, aged 110 after being involved in a pedestrian accident.

Boydasaurus10 Report

#54

TIL the FAA predicted that if kids under 2 years old were required to have their own seats on planes, at least 60 kids would die in car accidents for every kid saved because families that couldn't afford extra plane tickets would drive instead.

RollingNightSky Report

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Sue User
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Just goes to show fatality rates are very different between planes and cars. I am afraid of flying is a common phobia, afraid of driving is not.

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#55

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL After water, concrete is the most widely used substance on Earth. If the cement industry were a country, it would be the third largest carbon dioxide emitter in the world with up to 2.8bn tonnes, surpassed only by China and the US. [2018 numbers]

MickeyMouseRapedMe , Michael Schanbacher Report

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Black Cat
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wouldn't sand be the most widely used substance after water? Its in concrete but also plastics, glass etc.

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#56

TIL that there were 26 Children and 36 Spouses of Spanish-American War veterans still receiving VA benefits or pensions as of 2021. The war happened nearly 125 years ago.

HawkeyeTen Report

#57

TIL James Earl Jones and Carrie Fisher never met until they made cameo appearances in an episode of The Big Bang Theory.

Psykpatient Report

#58

TIL people who work at U.S. nuclear power plants are exposed to less radiation than what is given off by the granite walls inside the U.S. Capitol Building.

DanielAlman Report

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

This is completely true. I knew an operator of a UK nuclear power plant who accidentally took his radiation tag home with him one weekend, and left on the windowsill. On arrival back at work the tag was completely black indicating a large dose of radiation. The radiation had come from the granite on which his house was built.

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#59

TIL of Fordite, also known as Detroit agate or Motor City agate, is old automotive paint which has hardened sufficiently to be cut and polished. It is used to make jewelry.

slow_work_day Report

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#60

TIL almost 100 years before railroads, England’s Bridgewater Canal made it so one horse could pull 30 tons of coal, dropping the fuel price in half. It was so successful that it created a 1770’s “canal mania” starting the Industrial Revolution.

triviafrenzy Report

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Chewie Baron
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I used to live near the Bridgewater Canal. It does go through some really beautiful parts of Greater Manchester. The water is also completely orange because of all the iron that fell into the water.

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#61

TIL The largest blackout in history left over 620 million people without power in 2012. Despite affecting 9% of the world's population, the blackout was entirely within the country of India.

ChronosBlitz Report

#62

TIL it is a federal crime, punishable by up to $100,000 and a year in prison, for most people in the U.S. to possess any part of a bald or golden eagle, even just a shed feather found on the ground.

Faderkaderk Report

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Caroline Nagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Only Native Americans are allowed to have such feathers in their possession. The law allows Native Americans to wear, use, inherit, or even give feathers to other Native Americans, they can't give the feathers to non-Native Americans.

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#63

TIL that the commonly believed myth of the 'end-point' of mental maturity at age 25 is outdated. Recent studies show prefrontal cortex maturation extends well past 30.

BobRobot77 Report

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CHRIS DOMRES
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And recent research has found external stressors can physically change an adult brain and those changes can be passed down to the children.

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#64

TIL John Stith Pemberton was a Confederate officer who became addicted to morphine after receiving a saber wound. Pemberton made a series of concoctions attempting to cure his addiction. Pemberton's experiments with coca and kola resulted in Pemberton's French Wine Coca and later Coca-Cola.

jamescookenotthatone Report

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Kel_how
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And he created it in my hometown of Columbus, Georgia. Our historic district actually has his house and original workshop/pharmacy. While on a field trip in elementary school, one of my classmates asked if the bottles in the workshop were original (as in, did they have cocaine in them). The answer is no, by the way.

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#65

TIL that a Phillies fan credits the Phillies' dollar dog nights for saving his life, as he ate too many hot dogs and went to the hospital for a stomachache, where they found out he had blood cancer.

Reverotti Report

#66

TIL of Nakahama Manjirō, a 14-year-old fisherman who was shipwrecked on an island with four friends. They were rescued by an American whaleship, who took them to Honolulu, where his friends stayed. Manjirō continued on to Massachusetts and become the first Japanese person to land on mainland USA.

InmostJoy Report

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#67

TIL that the Woolworth Company (aka Woolworth's) did not go out of business but rather just changed their name to that of their most profitable division: Foot Locker.

JosiahWillardPibbs Report

#68

TIL that graying is a sign of active hair growth. Gray hair is also both thicker and faster growing than pigmented hair.

EntertainmentNo2044 Report

#69

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that Johnny Cash was such a devout Christian, that in 1990, he recorded himself reading the entire New Testament Bible (NKJ Version). The entire recording has a running time of more than 19 hours.

waitingforthesun92 , waitingforthesun92 Report

#70

TIL of Lafayette, "The Hero of Two Worlds", at 18 as a French Marquis he defied the King and sailed to America to fight in the Revolutionary War, he then left and served in the French Revolution. Once, when captured, Napoleon himself secured his release. He is buried under soil from Bunker Hill.

TipProfessional6057 Report

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gerard julien
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"He was buried next to his wife at the Picpus Cemetery, Paris under soil from Bunker Hill, which his son Georges Washington sprinkled upon him."

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#71

TIL Byzantine emperor Basil II "the Bulgar Slayer" after the battle of Kleidion divided 15,000 war prisoners into groups of 100 men, blinded 99 men in each group and left one man in each with one eye so that he could lead the others home.

AtypicalAnomaly1222 Report

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David Hale
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sometimes, the replies about Trump and how terrible the U.S. is are completely unnecessary and off topic. This has no comnection to Trump. And, if it's so terrible to live in the U.S., go somewhere else.

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#72

TIL about Zone Rouge, an uninhabitable area of land in France 1,200 square km large that in 1918 was deemed too damaged by lead, mercury, chlorine and arsenic shells from WW1 to be repopulated. At the current rate of recovery, it will take 700 years to make the whole area safe.

dakp15 Report

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

From Wikipedia, "Restrictions within the Zone Rouge still exist today, although the control areas have been greatly reduced." The 300 to 700 years is the time estimated to rid the entire area of unexploded ordnance.

#73

TIL that Jack White of the White Stripes originally wanted to save the guitar riff used in "Seven Nation Army" for if he got the chance to make a James Bond theme song. 5 years after the song was released, he wrote the theme for the 2008 Bond film Quantum of Solace.

Whatisthisuseragain Report

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Chewie Baron
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I quite like the song he did with Alicia Keys, ‘Another Way To Die’. Definitely a pairing you’d never expect to duet together. Which was the reason why he asked her to do it.

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#74

TIL from 1976 to 1989 an unknown taping noise was audible worldwide on commercial and civilian communications (tv broadcast, commercial aviation, SW radio). The source was the Duga radar "The Russian Woodpecker" a huge over-the-horizon radar used by the Soviets as a missile detection system.

alphaxenox Report

#75

TIL Time magazine was the first to introduce the name "World War II"

AthenOwl Report

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#76

TIL About 70 percent of the material for the original Human Genome Project came from some dude in Buffalo, NY.

spleenboggler Report

#77

TIL many navies around the world through history have a ritual to "celebrate" crossing the equator as an initiation for those doing it for the first time.

DariusMDeV Report

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STress
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Not only navies, but also merchant fleets. It's a tradition as old as the awareness of the equator itself.

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#78

TIL that Black Widow spiders are often hunted down and killed by their Brown Widow cousins when in the same territory.

TheMadhopper Report

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

If Australian experience with black and brown versions of the closely related Australian red-back spider are any guide, the brown spiders can be just as deadly as their black counterparts.

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#79

TIL that estrogen from birth control pills is sometimes excreted in human waste, which can end up in municipal wastewater, and eventually the environment. Some species of male fish are becoming 'feminized' as a result.

PAsystemO Report

#80

TIL The U.S. Forcibly Detained Native Alaskans During World War II. 881 Aleuts were forcibly relocated and interned in unsanitary camps in southeast Alaska, nobody was allowed to bring more than one suitcase of possessions. Troops then set fire to the villages to prevent its use by the Japanese.

CraftyFoxeYT Report

#81

TIL one bad apple in a bunch will release ethylene, ruining all the other apples.

MyPhilosophersStoned Report

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#82

TIL Robert Oppenheimer(born in 1904) didn't read newspapers and didn't keep up with the news at all until the 1930's. A native new yorker, he wasn't informed of the 1929 wall street crash until a friend told him, 6 months after the fact.

Ainsley-Sorsby Report

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

This makes me wonder if his failure to understand the state of the world contributed to his role as father of the atomic bomb.

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#83

TIL Disney is said to spend $10.68 billion every single year to keep their parks open and functional. If you were to split that evenly, each park would cost roughly $3.25 million per day to stay open.

on_aragon Report

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LuckyL
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Now I would really like to know how much each park makes through tickets each day.

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#84

TIL The Magna Carta was annulled by Pope Innocent III and reinstated multiple times by different English Kings. While perceived as a constitution the Magna Carta was limited to 25 Barons and the King, and the document has been almost entirely repealed or replaced with new laws over the centuries.

jamescookenotthatone Report

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Kirsten Kerkhof
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As it should be. It worked (kinda) for the early 1200s, but of course it was changed over time. But it was good for its time, and it was a start.

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#85

TIL: About Saburō Kurusu, a Japanese diplomat to the United States during the Pearl Harbor attack. He was unaware of the attack and was on his way to the Secretary of State to deliver a reply to the previous diplomatic communications.

isweardefnotalexjone Report

#86

TIL The life expectancy in Cambodia dropped to 14 years in 1978.

Kichupac Report

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Burnt Bagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My favorite country to visit. Been there twice. Friendliest people on the planet!

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#87

TIL Singer, the sewing machine manufacturer, also made military aircraft navigation and targeting equipment, plus 1911A1 handguns.

LoveOfSpreadsheets Report

#88

TIL that Magnus Carlsen intentionally plays non-book "inaccuracies" during opening (moves he knows aren't the best), in order to force the game into a non-book position, so his opponents will have to think for themselves instead of going by memorized opening theory

FifaConCarne Report

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

He does? Good on him. According to chess master David Levy this is the best way to beat a chess computer, as it takes the computer out of its pre-recorded game strategies to force the computer to have to fight for every advantage.

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#89

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL Boogers contain salivary mucins, which forms a barrier on your teeth from bacteria that can cause cavities.

MeltingMango420 , arek Studzinski Report

#90

TIL The main reason why so many English football/soccer clubs use the word ´United´in their name; to signify a union of two teams that were in close proximity, making them a stronger team.

awakenedlife01 Report

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Aileen Grist
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was told by my dad - freemason - that a lot of the 'United' teams were started by Freemasons, Also United = Catholic and City = Protestant

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#91

TIL that after a Dr Seuss cartoon featured a Flit insecticide sprayer, he landed an endorsement deal with the company for 17 years, which allowed Seuss and his family to get through The Great Depression.

VengefulMight Report

#92

TIL the Walt Disney Company neither owns nor operates Tokyo Disneyland.

500owls Report

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Kira Okah
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The only non-American park that they do own is Disneyland Paris. So they don't own the ones in Hong Kong or China either .

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#93

TIL that as of 2023 Canadian government health guidelines now define drinking more than 2 alcoholic beverages per week as "moderate risk" drinking and more than 6 per week as "increasingly high risk" drinking.

JosiahWillardPibbs Report

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#94

TIL during the Vietnam War, the U.S. conducted Operation Popeye which involved a "cloud-seeding" mission to stimulate clouds in Vietnam and extend the monsoon season. It was later declassified in 1974, and the United States' involvement in this operation became public knowledge.

insecurePoultry259 Report

#95

TIL that, according to the CDC, the job fields with the highest s*icide rate per 100,000 people for men is Construction and Extraction (53.2) while for women it’s Art, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media (15.6)

violetdragons Report

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Agfox
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In Australia, Veterinarians are almost four times more likely to d*e by su*icide compared to the rate for the general population. It equates to a de*th every 12 weeks - it's a terrible & sad statistic

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#96

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL that Andy Warhol was secretly a devout Byzantine Catholic, who attended church almost daily. At one point, he financed his nephew’s studies for priesthood, and was also responsible for at least one religious conversion. Warhol’s brother described him as “really religious”.

waitingforthesun92 , Bernard Gotfryd Report

#97

TIL that the New York City Subway has the most stops of any metro system in the world.

short59 Report

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#98

TIL Male cigarette smokers have significantly higher levels of total and free testosterone compared with men who never smoked.

Parks714 Report

#99

TIL about Jack Parsons, rocket scientist and occultist, friend of Aliester Crowley and L Ron Hubbard, who founded the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and died in an explosion.

sancho___panza Report

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Burnt Bagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My dad was the Deputy Director of Management at JPL. I went to high school on the same street. Lots of rumors about that place.

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#100

TIL Germany sold 22 Mig-29 to Poland in 2003 for just 22 €.

Perception-Practical Report

#101

TIL that the Equator line doesn't cross Equatorial Guinea.

rdfporcazzo Report

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Chewie Baron
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In a similar vein, the actor Gary Oldman, is actually younger than the musician Gary Numan.

#102

TIL that there is one McDonald's in the continental US that still serves fried apple pies.

gsarc10 Report

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Kira Okah
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Are they not usually in the US? TIL, they are definitely fried in the UK, at least they were when I worked in McDs.

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#103

People Are Sharing Uncommon Facts On ‘Today I Learned’, Here Are 40 Of The Most Interesting (New Pics) TIL Beyoncé earned $24 million for a one-hour concert in Dubai.

ahm713 , Jen Keys Report

#104

TIL about the "First Browser War", which took place from 1995-2001, and ended with the up-and-coming Internet Explorer eliminating Netscape Navigator as a rival. By 2001, Internet Explorer had attained a peak of 96% Web Browser Usage Share.

jdward01 Report

#105

TIL that the curveball was invented by a baseball player named Candy Cummings. He was also the first player ever to pitch two complete games in one day and later invented a device to safely couple railroad cars together.

JosiahWillardPibbs Report

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Caroline Nagel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

His real names were William Arthur Cummings, 'Candy was a 19th century nickname for a man who was the best at his craft. ne century later it sounds like a p**n name lol.

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#106

TIL the French bulldog is now the top purebred dog of USA. Beating the labrador retriever that held the title for 31 years.

randomsryan Report

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Noproblem
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It’s hard to have any respect for someone who would go out and buy themselves a Frenchie. Generations of over-breeding & inbreeding mean most of these poor pups can’t even be birthed naturally. Then comes a likely (shortened) lifetime of myriad issues like breathing problems, skin infections, eye infections, ear infections, spinal deformities, and heart disease. This is not news. The fact that some people still have no problem buying one of these dogs — sentencing it essentially to a lifetime of suffering, because they’re “cute” — and then have the absolute nerve to call themselves dog lovers? Well, it just baffles me.

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#107

TIL a liquor store in Oklahoma City installed a machine gun tower on the roof of the store after being bombed by the mafia multiple times.

VapeThisBro Report

#108

TIL Beyond Good and Evil 2 has broken the record for longest game development time, at almost 16 years.

HobgoblinKhanate1 Report

#109

TIL, about Poundbury, a town that was built according to the Principles of King Charles III. It started construction in 1993 and is currently 80% built. 4,600 people currently live there.

Smart_Cycle588 Report

#110

TIL the search and discovery of the Titanic was only allowed as to cover for searching for 2 US nuclear submarines that sunk in the 60s.

Arb0k Report

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Donkeywheel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Completely incorrect. And we wonder why the search would have to be allowed in the first place. It’s in the middle of the Atlantic.

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#111

TIL that while the quantity of stars on the US flag is determined by an act of congress, the size and position of the starts are determined by executive order and can be set unilaterally by the president.

ThatsALotOfOranges Report

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censorshipsucks
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was under the impression each star was a state, so e.g. if Puerto Rico gets statehood then you have to add a star.

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