TIL: Today I Learned
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r/todayilearned, quick and simple!
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TIL that in 2017, several Maryland college students consumed so much alcohol at a house party, that the air in the house registered a reading of 0.01 on a breathalyzer. https://ift.tt/Se5bURp
TIL that there is a stereotype about Circassian women being the ideal standard of attractiveness for a woman to reach, the illusion being particularly strong in the 18th century with cosmetic companies going as far as to sell products that they claimed were used by Circassian women. https://ift.tt/Muzavgo
TIL that some US states, such as Massachusetts, Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina, still have laws that prohibit blasphemy to varying degrees. However, the First Amendment protects freedom of speech, rendering these laws obsolete and unenforceable. https://ift.tt/4OmBeEb
TIL about Ken Saro Wiwa, an activist and writer who protested against environmental degradation of the land and waters of Ogoniland in Nigeria at the hands of the petroleum industry, especially the Royal Dutch Shell company. Shell is accused of being complicit in his arrest and subsequent execution. https://ift.tt/cptJOK6
TIL that a McDonald's in the Netherlands once fired an employee for selling a coworker a hamburger and then separately giving them a piece of cheese, arguing that she should've charged more for a cheeseburger. Courts ruled in the employee's favor, ordering the rest of her contract paid out in full. https://ift.tt/0OuitIK
TIL that “Stars and Stripes Forever” is an emergency alert at the circus. When it is played by the band it usually means there is a fire and that the performers and circus hands should go to their emergency stations and start evacuating people https://ift.tt/TMPsvD1
TIL while most people only know of Solid, Liquid and Gas there are around 2 dozen other states of matter, including Plasma, Time Crystals, Degenerate Matter, Superfluids, Supersolids, and the Rydberg Polaron - a state where atoms exist within other atoms. https://ift.tt/IRFQmxH
TIL in 2017, a man of the Fipa tribe disrespected his mother, and was disciplined by his tribe in the "traditional" way: Whipped, immersed in cow manure, mocked with song, and fined 1 goat and some cornmeal https://ift.tt/W1spkBG
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TIL the Tower Bridge in London is a relatively modern bridge that was designed to look medieval. It's so modern in fact that there are pictures of it being built https://ift.tt/Aq8bi3H
TIL since 2020, white LED streetlights have been turning purple because of a defect during the manufacturing process between 2017 and 2019. The yellow phosphor coating was delaminating, and the blue LED began showing through, giving off a purplish glow. https://ift.tt/xpOIwCe
TIL that Salisbury Steak originated in the United States, as a meal to fit the tastes of European immigrants, named after Dr. James Salisbury, who promoted a meat-centered diet to promote health. The term Salisbury Steak has been used to identify a ground beef patty as the main course since 1897. https://ift.tt/gmHNK2n
TIL A 'munchy box' is a popular take away food item in Scotland typically consisting of kebab meat, fried chicken, pizza, chicken tikka, samosas, onion rings, chow mein noodles, pakora, naan bread, garlic bread, coleslaw, other fast foods and sauces such as curry sauce. https://ift.tt/ThJmuzO
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TIL: In 1982, Rodney Mullen became the first person to use a skateboard to perform an ollie on flat ground. An ollie is simply where the skateboard and the skateboarder leap into the air simultaneously. https://ift.tt/jXkJf1o
TIL famed physicist Richard Feynman donated "93 boxes" of papers and writings to Caltech, which has never digitized any of it and will only provide access physically in the reading room of the Caltech Archives to qualified researchers. Caltech holds no copyright on the work. https://ift.tt/FPcgKjd
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TIL after the fires that followed the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, many insurance companies tried to avoid covering the losses, except for Lloyd's of London: "Pay all of our policyholders in full, irrespective of the terms of their policies." This cemented Lloyd's reputation in the U.S. https://ift.tt/IZ2QjSM