Today I Learned (TIL)

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You learn something new every day; what did you learn today? Submit interesting and specific facts about something that you just found out here.

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176
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TIL a medieval chess piece orginally bought for £5 in 1964, then kept in a drawer for decades, sold for £735K in 2019. It was discovered the warder (equivalent to a rook) is one of the five major ... (www.bbc.com)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/tyrion2024 on 2025-03-07 15:41:18.

Original Title: TIL a medieval chess piece orginally bought for £5 in 1964, then kept in a drawer for decades, sold for £735K in 2019. It was discovered the warder (equivalent to a rook) is one of the five major pieces (1 knight, 4 warders) missing from the 1831 Lewis chessman hoard of four 12th century chess sets.

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TIL that there are three neighboring countries in South America that have the respective official languages english, dutch and french. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Nearby-Cattle-7599 on 2025-03-07 14:37:55.
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TIL that the Aztecs, who lived on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, would consume a particular type of fly as a staple high protein food source. The water fly, called ahuautle, was eaten in... (www.bbc.com)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Tall_Ant9568 on 2025-03-07 13:50:07.

Original Title: TIL that the Aztecs, who lived on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, would consume a particular type of fly as a staple high protein food source. The water fly, called ahuautle, was eaten in tortillas, toasted, and mashed into baked cakes.

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TIL in 2003 £4 million of stolen artwork from the Whitworth Art Gallery (by Picasso, Gauguin & Van Gogh) was recovered in a cardboard tube next to a public toilet after an anonymous tip-off. A... (www.theguardian.com)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/tyrion2024 on 2025-03-07 13:32:27.

Original Title: TIL in 2003 £4 million of stolen artwork from the Whitworth Art Gallery (by Picasso, Gauguin & Van Gogh) was recovered in a cardboard tube next to a public toilet after an anonymous tip-off. Also in the tube was a note that read "the intention was not to steal. only to highlight the woeful security"

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TIL of the 2002 Tampa Cessna 172 crash, where a 15 year old boy crashed a light aircraft into the Bank of America building. Notes left behind by Charles J Bishop praised Osama bin laden and the 9/... (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/BringbackDreamBars on 2025-03-07 13:13:57.

Original Title: TIL of the 2002 Tampa Cessna 172 crash, where a 15 year old boy crashed a light aircraft into the Bank of America building. Notes left behind by Charles J Bishop praised Osama bin laden and the 9/11 attacks, also voicing support for Al Qaeda. His mother later blamed his medication for the attacks.

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TIL Magdalen College in Oxford is pronounced 'maudlin' because that's how Mary Magdalene was said in the 1400s, and the art style depicting Mary as sad and sorrowful is the roof of the word 'maudlin' (museumofoxford.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/danabrey on 2025-03-07 13:07:21.
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TIL that the photo prank of putting two fingers up behind someone's head originally began as an insult. Once called the "Cuckhold's Horns", it initially meant to suggest that their partner was unf... (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/theTeaEnjoyer on 2025-03-07 12:46:01.

Original Title: TIL that the photo prank of putting two fingers up behind someone's head originally began as an insult. Once called the "Cuckhold's Horns", it initially meant to suggest that their partner was unfaithful.

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TIL Polygamy was legal in Thailand until October 1, 1935, when the law classified wives into three categories based on how they got married. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/charmer143 on 2025-03-07 10:58:47.
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TIL about Couvade Syndrome or Sympathetic Pregnancy. A condition wherein expecting Fathers begin to exhibit symptoms and behaviors of their pregnant partners. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/ginger_guy on 2025-03-07 10:38:10.
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TIL of conservation-induced extinction. In efforts to save critically endangered animals, multiple other species have gone extinct. Common practice in conservation programs of birds and mammals is... (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/WavesAndSaves on 2025-03-07 06:00:18.

Original Title: TIL of conservation-induced extinction. In efforts to save critically endangered animals, multiple other species have gone extinct. Common practice in conservation programs of birds and mammals is to remove all parasites, driving certain species of parasite unique to these animals to extinction.

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TIL I learned that Marvin Gaye was killed by his father on April 1st, 1984 due to a dispute over a misplaced insurance policy letter. His death was thought to be a rumor due to it being April Fool... (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Arstotzkanmoose on 2025-03-07 03:16:49.

Original Title: TIL I learned that Marvin Gaye was killed by his father on April 1st, 1984 due to a dispute over a misplaced insurance policy letter. His death was thought to be a rumor due to it being April Fool's and was initially dismissed by friends and fans. It was one day before his 45th birthday.

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TIL that claw machines are believed to have originated in the United States in the 1890s, when they were made to resemble the machines that built the Panama Canal. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/JeezOhKay on 2025-03-07 02:07:46.
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TIL that the US and Ireland never recognized the Soviet annexation of the Baltic states and allowed the pre-ww2 diplomats to continue to operate (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/museum_lifestyle on 2025-03-06 20:34:27.
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TIL that during the American Civil War, Gen. Robert E. Lee misjudged Northern sentiment by relying on Copperhead newspapers, an anti-war faction opposing Lincoln. This led to strategic mistakes an... (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/gonejahman on 2025-03-07 04:45:11.

Original Title: TIL that during the American Civil War, Gen. Robert E. Lee misjudged Northern sentiment by relying on Copperhead newspapers, an anti-war faction opposing Lincoln. This led to strategic mistakes and his defeat at Gettysburg.

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TIL: Hoovervilles were shantytowns built by the homeless during the Great Depression. They were named after President Herbert Hoover, who was in office when the Depression began. (www.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/SigmaFr--d on 2025-03-07 03:43:33.
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TIL Alexander the Great’s troops marched an estimated 22,000 miles (35,000 km) while conquering from Greece to Egypt to India. That’s almost the circumference of Earth (24,000 miles). (digfir-published.macmillanusa.com)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/nosrettap25 on 2025-03-07 03:32:39.
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TIL that actor Tom Arnold’s sister got married at age 14, with her mother’s permission, to a 23-year old. She later went on to run one of the largest meth operations in the Midwest until her arre... (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/ICanStopTheRain on 2025-03-07 02:35:14.

Original Title: TIL that actor Tom Arnold’s sister got married at age 14, with her mother’s permission, to a 23-year old. She later went on to run one of the largest meth operations in the Midwest until her arrest in 1989.

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TIL If our Sun was of the size of a red blood cell, the Milky Way would be as big as the continental United States (scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/cambeiu on 2025-03-07 02:01:50.
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TIL about the H. L. Hunley, a submarine built in 1863 that belonged to the Confederate States of America. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/InflationEmergency78 on 2025-03-07 01:23:52.
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TIL coconut water (the liquid inside a young coconut) has been used as a substitute for human blood plasma in emergency situations. It’s far from ideal but it can work. (www.abc.net.au)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/CatPooedInMyShoe on 2025-03-07 00:44:19.
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TIL that back in 1916 you could buy a home through Sears for as little as $600. (clevelandhistorical.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/WhoaTeejaay on 2025-03-07 00:33:22.
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TIL in 1834, an American physician named John Cook Bennett published an article claiming that tomato ketchup helped with stomach disorders, including diarrhea. He even released "ketchup pills," wh... (www.cookist.com)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/AzureMeadowBreeze on 2025-03-07 00:18:54.

Original Title: TIL in 1834, an American physician named John Cook Bennett published an article claiming that tomato ketchup helped with stomach disorders, including diarrhea. He even released "ketchup pills," which were marketed as medicine.

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TIL Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain is the only song credited to all 5 members because it was created from combinations of several previously rejected materials. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Curious_Knowbody on 2025-03-06 23:00:58.
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TIL that fighter pilots sometimes hallucinate from G-forces, seeing things like glowing lights or tunnels that don’t exist. (www.faa.gov)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Capital-Gain-9744 on 2025-03-06 22:45:17.
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TIL Christopher Lee's mother was an Italian Countess. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted 2 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster
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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Ill_Definition8074 on 2025-03-06 22:22:46.
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