TIL of anchorites, medieval Christian ascetics who were walled into a cell ("anchorhold") attached to a church for their entire adult lives. Through small windows, they received sustenance, dispose... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL the co-founder of Encyclopædia Britannica was a 4'6" tall Scot with crooked legs and an enormous nose that he would sometimes augment with a papier-mache version. He deliberately rode the talle... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL that the BBC had no archival policy until 1978, and many of its old broadcasts were only aired live. A number of BBC broadcasts are lost, including a show featuring a then-unknown Bob Dylan; 97... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL the design of the guillotine was intended to make capital punishment more reliable and less painful in accordance with new Enlightenment ideas of human rights. (en.wikipedia.org)