Today I Learned (TIL)

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/StealAllTheInternets on 2025-03-05 22:00:23.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/opto16 on 2025-03-05 20:52:51.

Original Title: TIL in 1864 near Platte Valley, Nebraska where George Martin and his two sons were attacked by Sioux warriors near their homestead. As the boys fled on horseback, a single arrow pierced both pinning them together and causing them to fall; though presumed dead they survived to tell the story.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/SteO153 on 2025-03-05 20:34:23.

Original Title: TIL about the Blue Men of the Minch, mythological creatures from Scotland. They live in the sea and can speak. When a group approaches a ship, their chief says two lines of poetry to the ship's captain. If the captain fails to finish the poem, the Blue Men will try to capsize the ship

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Jvan747 on 2025-03-05 19:19:12.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/EXC_BREAKPOINT on 2025-03-05 18:47:56.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Zorkeldschorken on 2025-03-05 18:00:36.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Venomous_Raptor on 2025-03-05 17:41:34.

Original Title: TIL Master Sergeant Roy Benavidez was awarded the Medal of Honor for his valorous actions in Vietnam. Despite being hit by grenade, shot several times, and stabbed, for a total of 37 major wounds, Sergeant Benavidez managed to rescue 12 of his fellow soldiers.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/merulacarnifex on 2025-03-05 16:56:05.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/DEEP_HURTING on 2025-03-05 16:44:33.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/wsaadede on 2025-03-05 15:14:41.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Status-Reindeer-5491 on 2025-03-05 14:32:51.

Original Title: TIL that using biodegradable plastic bags doesn't mean they can be discarded anywhere. They require specific conditions to decompose properly. Incorrect methods include throwing them in regular trash or leaving them out in nature.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Ainsley-Sorsby on 2025-03-05 14:11:15.

Original Title: TIL In 1599, Beatrice Cenci and her siblings killed their wealthy father who was sexually and physically abusive. The people of Rome overwhelmingly supported Beatrice, but she and her siblings faced a brutal public execution. Her 12 year old brother was forced to watch and then sent to the galleys

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Cogitotoro on 2025-03-05 13:14:53.

Original Title: TIL that in the Pirahã language, speakers must use a suffix that indicates the source of their information: hearsay, circumstantial evidence, personal observation, etc. They cannot be ambiguous about the evidentiality of their utterances.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/yooolka on 2025-03-05 12:34:09.

Original Title: TIL that during World War II, the Allies found out that the Germans were using the Leaning Tower of Pisa as a lookout point. A U.S. Army Sergeant who was sent to check for German troops was struck by the tower's beauty and chose not to call for an artillery attack on it.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/suddenly-scrooge on 2025-03-05 11:04:34.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/WarwickReider on 2025-03-05 10:45:02.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/LocksmithPurple4321 on 2025-03-05 08:59:34.

Original Title: TIL that when Dan Shechtman discovered quasiperiodic crystals in 1982, he got mocked and shamed. Nobel prize winner Linus Pauling spoke of the discovery, saying "There is no such thing as quasicrystals, only quasi-scientists." In 2011 Shechtman won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Giff95 on 2025-03-05 06:44:13.

Original Title: TIL Pierce Brosnan's final performance as James Bond was not in a movie, but rather in the 2004 video game "James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing," which also saw Willem Dafoe lend his voice and likeness to the villain Nikolai Diavolo.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/bourbonwhiske on 2025-03-05 05:02:14.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/slhamlet on 2025-03-05 04:12:45.

Original Title: TIL the art of surfing was first brought to California by Hawaiian prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole and his brothers, who taught Santa Cruz locals how to surf in 1885. He later brought surfing to England in 1890.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/TriviaDuchess on 2025-03-05 03:39:10.

Original Title: TIL Clint Eastwood attended Oakland Technical High School, where drama teachers encouraged him to be in school plays, but he wasn’t interested in acting. According to Eastwood, all he wanted was “fast cars and easy women.” He took several auto mechanic courses and fixed several cars.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Bergdorf0221 on 2025-03-05 03:16:06.

Original Title: TIL Francisco Macías Nguema, the former dictator of Equatorial Guinea, had to be executed by a foreign firing squad after he was removed in a coup because his own troops were convinced he would return as a ghost and take revenge on them if they shot him.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Electrical-Pickle927 on 2025-03-05 03:15:36.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/PaleontologistRude74 on 2025-03-05 03:08:02.

Original Title: TIL Apocalypse Now began script prep in the late 1960s. In 1976, four months into filming, Coppola still hadn’t finished the script and kept delaying Brando’s access to it. He wrote to Brando, asking him to join on set to collaborate on a slow rewrite. Brando and Coppola spent 10 days reshaping it.

The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Electrical-Pickle927 on 2025-03-05 02:42:34.