Today I Learned (TIL)

1526

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TIL that the Gurkhas, elite soldiers from Nepal, have been serving in the British Army since 1815, known for their bravery and loyalty, and were described as "braver than the bravest" by British g... (www.nam.ac.uk)

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/zenFlare on 2025-01-25 16:38:33.

Original Title: TIL that the Gurkhas, elite soldiers from Nepal, have been serving in the British Army since 1815, known for their bravery and loyalty, and were described as "braver than the bravest" by British generals.

1527

1

TIL about tsukumogami, objects that have acquired a spirit. In Japanese folklore it is believe that when objects reach their 100th birthday they become alive and self-aware. (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Festina_lente123 on 2025-01-25 15:53:44.

1528

1

Today I learned the first US Woman to be an Electrical Engineer (Edith Clarke, born 1883) designed the massive Hoover Dam turbine systems (spectrum.ieee.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/cranberryfix on 2025-01-25 15:53:42.

1529

1

TIL There's been a debate about Rachel from Friends' last name for decades. Credits and promotional material have it as "Green", but in the show it was ALWAYS reliably spelled as "Greene". (www.msn.com)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/TheLaVeyan on 2025-01-25 15:42:56.

1530

1

TIL Rubén Rivera was voted off the The Yankees by the rest of the team after he stole teammate Derek Jeter's glove and bat, then sold them for $2,500. (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/winadatewithtad on 2025-01-25 16:08:59.

1531

1

TIL about "Mad hatters disease". It was caused by mercury poisoning, which was used by "hatters" in the hat making process. Symptoms included insomnia, shyness, tremors and more. (www.healthline.com)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/AlabamaHotcakes on 2025-01-25 15:40:11.

1532

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TIL In 1930, when Nadezhda Krupskaya, Lenin's widow publicly opposed Stalin, he considered revoking her status and nominating another, unrelated woman as "Lenin's widow". She died on her birthday ... (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Ainsley-Sorsby on 2025-01-25 14:51:48.

Original Title: TIL In 1930, when Nadezhda Krupskaya, Lenin's widow publicly opposed Stalin, he considered revoking her status and nominating another, unrelated woman as "Lenin's widow". She died on her birthday in 1939, with some suspecing that the birthday cake Stalin send to her as a gift that day was poisoned

1533

1

TIL that a single gallstone from a cow is worth more than all of its meat. Gallstones are prized items in traditional Chinese medicine and they can go for between $1,700 to $4,000 an ounce. (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Festina_lente123 on 2025-01-25 14:46:31.

1534

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TIL during production of “Wallace and Gromit: The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit”, 250 people, 43 Gromits, 35 Wallaces, 2.8 tonnes of Plasticine and one Austin A35 van, went into the movie, producing 3 ... (www.nzherald.co.nz)

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/wilsonofoz on 2025-01-25 13:56:40.

Original Title: TIL during production of “Wallace and Gromit: The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit”, 250 people, 43 Gromits, 35 Wallaces, 2.8 tonnes of Plasticine and one Austin A35 van, went into the movie, producing 3 seconds of usable footage per day

1535

1

TIL Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017) is the most expensive independent film ever made with a production budget of around $180 million. Although it grossed $226 million worldwide,... (en.wikipedia.org)

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/tyrion2024 on 2025-01-25 13:20:32.

Original Title: TIL Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017) is the most expensive independent film ever made with a production budget of around $180 million. Although it grossed $226 million worldwide, it was considered a box-office bomb due to its high production and advertising costs.

1536

1

TIL in 2020 a woman took an online DNA test which showed a 22% match with a man who she'd eventually discover to be her still alive uncle, who was kidnapped in 1951 at the age of six & had bee... (www.theguardian.com)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/tyrion2024 on 2025-01-25 13:17:32.

Original Title: TIL in 2020 a woman took an online DNA test which showed a 22% match with a man who she'd eventually discover to be her still alive uncle, who was kidnapped in 1951 at the age of six & had been missing for 70 years. After he was abducted in Oakland, he was flown to the east coast & raised there.

1537

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TIL that Juan de Pareja, the slave of the Spanish artist Velazquez, became a skilled artist in his own right by observing his master's techniques and practising them in secret. (en.wikisource.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/WilliamofYellow on 2025-01-25 12:38:28.

1538

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TIL about Roland the Farter, a medieval flatulist in 12th Century England. Each Christmas, he was obliged to perform "saltum, siffletum, pettum" (a simultaneous jump, whistle, and fart) at King He... (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/-Intelligentsia on 2025-01-25 11:22:10.

Original Title: TIL about Roland the Farter, a medieval flatulist in 12th Century England. Each Christmas, he was obliged to perform "saltum, siffletum, pettum" (a simultaneous jump, whistle, and fart) at King Henry II’s court. He was given 110 acres in Suffolk for his services.

1539

1

TIL alcohol causes around 1 in 20 deaths globally each year, through drink driving, alcohol-induced violence and abuse, and a multitude of diseases and disorders (www.straitstimes.com)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/wilsonofoz on 2025-01-25 08:47:00.

1540

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TIL that the Romans added the letter “Y” in the first century to pronounce Greek loanwords containing the letter upsilon, and originally made an “ew” sound. The Romans called the letter “Greek I,... (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/GetYerHandOffMyPen15 on 2025-01-25 04:10:36.

Original Title: TIL that the Romans added the letter “Y” in the first century to pronounce Greek loanwords containing the letter upsilon, and originally made an “ew” sound. The Romans called the letter “Greek I,” which is still its name in some Romance languages.

1541

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TIL that during WWII the British government banned banana imports, leading to a complete absence of the fruit in the UK. This scarcity led to the creation of "mock banana", a substitute made from ... (www.atlasobscura.com)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/AuroraShade905 on 2025-01-25 00:33:32.

Original Title: TIL that during WWII the British government banned banana imports, leading to a complete absence of the fruit in the UK. This scarcity led to the creation of "mock banana", a substitute made from boiled and mashed parsnips mixed with sugar and banana flavoring.

1542

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TIL in 2023, Zimbabwe signed control over almost 20% of the country's land to Blue Carbon, an Emirati company, for $1.5 billion. The company seeks to conserve forests that might otherwise be logged. (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/LeDucky on 2025-01-24 23:41:01.

1543

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TIL Lego Star Wars: The Video Game, based off the prequel trilogy, released over a month before the third and final movie of the prequels, Revenge of the Sith, with a level based on clones disguis... (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/CreeperRussS on 2025-01-25 03:56:43.

Original Title: TIL Lego Star Wars: The Video Game, based off the prequel trilogy, released over a month before the third and final movie of the prequels, Revenge of the Sith, with a level based on clones disguised as jedi being based off an earlier script. This spoiled the film ending, although only in Lego grunts

1544

1

TIL Whales and dolphins, who still retain vestigial hip bones, evolved from land-dwelling even-toed ungulates (like hippos, deer, and camels) around 50 million years ago. (evolution.berkeley.edu)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/RetiredApostle on 2025-01-25 03:39:20.

1545

1

TIL - During the California gold rush of 1849, eggs were $3 each, not adjusted for inflation. (www.parks.ca.gov)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/edfitz83 on 2025-01-25 03:39:09.

1546

1

TIL about post-micturition convulsion syndrome (PMCS), also known as ‘piss shivers,’ the shivering some people feel during and after urinating. It happens equally to men and women. The current the... (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Festina_lente123 on 2025-01-25 03:12:07.

Original Title: TIL about post-micturition convulsion syndrome (PMCS), also known as ‘piss shivers,’ the shivering some people feel during and after urinating. It happens equally to men and women. The current theory is that it is caused by the autonomic nervous system getting its signals crossed.

1547

1

TIL: There was a Democratic-Republican Party in the USA founded in 1792 (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/invalidentity on 2025-01-25 01:43:34.

1548

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TIL Robert F. Kennedy's assassin is still alive and has been denied parole 17 times (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/Equilibrity3 on 2025-01-25 01:35:35.

1549

1

TIL that duels are legal in Washington and Texas (www.pennlive.com)

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/-o-Laserbeak-o- on 2025-01-25 00:45:08.

1550

1

TIL about Ina Benita, "the first Polish femme fatale", an interwar movie star that was believed dead after the Warsaw Uprising, but completely anonymously lived in the US until 1984. Her grandson ... (de-m-wikipedia-org.translate.goog)

submitted 5 months ago by bOt@zerobytes.monster to c/todayilearned@zerobytes.monster

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The original post: /r/todayilearned by /u/chilling_hedgehog on 2025-01-25 00:33:51.

Original Title: TIL about Ina Benita, "the first Polish femme fatale", an interwar movie star that was believed dead after the Warsaw Uprising, but completely anonymously lived in the US until 1984. Her grandson only discovered this 30 years after her death. (translation from DE wiki due to depth)