TIL there wasn't a year 0 (www.timeanddate.com)
Year AD 1 directly followed year 1 BC, without the year count ever reaching zero.
TIL that the words "lesbian" and "sapphic" both come from this legendary woman named Sappho who lived on the island of Lesbos (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL bee suits are customarily white because by wearing white, a beekeeper can approach and open the hive without the bees becoming defensive and attacking as bees dislike dark coloured animals. (www.manukavet.com)
Have you ever wondered why beekeepers wear white? Is it to see when a bee lands on them, to stay cool when its hot or is it a fashion trend that has stuck?The answer is simple and evolutionary. In ord
TIL of Dead Internet Theory that asserts the Internet now consists almost entirely of bot activity and automatically generated content (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL: The Greek intellectual Hypatia was accused of witchcraft in March 415 CE where a mob seized her from her carriage, dragged her into a church, carved out her eyes and her living flesh with oyst... (lithub.com)
In the early fifth century, a time when the increasingly powerful Catholic Church clashed with the remainders of the pagan world, Hypatia of Alexandria was a renowned pagan mathematician, scientist…
TIL of Matilda Gage, the Women's suffragist who defied the US government. She is relatively unknown compared to other revolutionaries because she was too progressive for her time. (www.bbc.com)
TIL that in the 1980s, Tom Fogerty, rhythm guitarist for Creedence Clearwater Revival, underwent back surgery, and was given a blood transfusion that was not screened for HIV causing him to become ... (www.grunge.com)
It was reported that Fogerty’s tuberculosis was a complication from the AIDS virus, which he acquired from a tainted blood transfusion during back surgery.
TIL that when Robert de Niro was in the process of receiving Italian citizenship, he faced opposition from the Italian American group Sons of Italy, who claimed that De Niro had damaged the public ... (www.theguardian.com)
An influential Italian-American organisation has appealed to Silvio Berlusconi, asking the prime minister to cancel Italy’s plan to award De Niro honorary citizenship.
TIL that because of the amount of time it saves, the washing machine has been called "the greatest invention of the industrial revolution.” Others have considered it a key driver of women’s liberat... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL A disgruntled Chinese man, who was recently single, organized for every odd numbered seat to be bought for the premiere screening of a romance movie on Valentine's Day, forcing couples to sit o... (www.today.com)
Chinese couples looking for a relaxed Valentine’s Day evening at the movies will find their hopes thwarted at one cinema in Shanghai. A group of dateless singles pre-bought every odd-numbered seat for v-day premiere screenings of “Beijing Love Story” at a movie theater in the city’s popular Xintiandi shopping complex,...
TIL the real reason Steve left Blues' Clues was because he was suffering from depression (variety.com)
After years of death rumors and depression, original ‘Blue’s Clues’ host Steve Burns is opening up about his return to the franchise.
TIL married people who undergo gastric bypass surgery and lose significant weight are twice as likely to get divorced. (www.upmc.com)
A new Pitt study shows that adults who get weight-loss surgery are more than twice as likely to get married or divorced in the next five years
TIL most Americans belived Indians ate live snakes and monkey brains after watching Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom (www.mashed.com)
TIL A man was awarded $7 million in damages after he developed a lung condition from eating two bags of popcorn every day and inhaling the steam from the bag (www.cbsnews.com)
Man had eaten two bags of microwave popcorn daily for 10 years
TIL that a TV show called “This Is Your Life” invited Kiyoshi Tanimoto, a Japanese minister and atomic bomb survivor from Hiroshima. The show also featured a surprise guest, Robert Lewis, copilot o... (electricliterature.com)
by Mike Meginnis A 1950s television show did the unthinkable: surprise a victim of the Hiroshima bombing by introducing him to one of the bombers on live TV. Running from 1952 to 1961, This is Your Life was an emotionally intense experiment in early reality TV. Subjects were lured to the studio under false pretenses, then host...
TIL that, unless it contains alcohol, kosher food is generally halal. However, halal food is not generally kosher; halal allows shellfish, camels, rabbits, and the mixing of meat and dairy, all of ... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL that Japanese Sumo wrestlers life expectancy is between 60-65 years old or about 20 years less than the typical Japanese male. (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL that a day on earth used to be just 19 hours long (www.popularmechanics.com)
I wish a day had more 24 hours
TIL that approximately 70% of the world’s vegetarians live in India. (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL That Canada had its own version of Jim Crow laws that required many black children to attend segregated schools, separated blood transfusions by race, and allowed private business owners to ref... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL Sam Kinison and Roseanne Barr were the inspiration for two leading roles on TV's "Married...With Children" and both turned it down (www.vulture.com)
While Married with Children hasn’t aged as well as some of the sitcoms that were its contemporaries, the show’s influence is vast. Married with Children changed the way American families were portrayed in TV sitcoms, taking a drastic departure […]
TIL how trash is disposed of in modern large submarines. Trash is deposited into a Trash Disposal Unit (TDU) which collects and compacts it into a galvanized steel can. A ball valve is opened allow... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL that Jack Nicholson grew up believing his biological mother was his sister, and his biological grandmother was his mother. He found out the truth at 37 years old - when both of them had passed ... (www.instyle.com)
Jack Nicholson realized his mother June was actually his sister when a ‘Time’ magazine researcher contacted him during the fact-checking process ahead of a profile timed to the release of 1974’s ‘Chinatown.’ His sister, June, was actually his mother, and his mother, Ethel May, was actually his grandmother.
TIL of Kevin Budden, who caught a deadly taipan by hand and hitchhiked to town still holding the snake. He lost his grip and was bitten, but bagged the snake and made the driver promise to get it t... (en.wikipedia.org)
TIL about Wu-Tang Clan's 'Once Upon a Time in Shaolin,' an album so exclusive, only one copy was ever produced. (en.wikipedia.org)
There are no circulating copies of the album online and it cannot be commercially exploited until 2103, but it can be played at listening parties....
