Article created by: Rugilė Žemaitytė
The world is full of fascinating tidbits just waiting to be discovered, and it's never too late to learn something new. Therefore, websites like Reddit's 'Today I Learned' (TIL) community provide an endless source of mind-blowing facts you may not have come across before.
For instance, did you know that Channel 5 was the only major UK television channel that did not broadcast Queen Elizabeth II's funeral, opting to air The Emoji Movie instead? Or perhaps you have heard that Snoop Dogg was excommunicated by the Rastafari Council following his attempt to rebrand as Rastafarian "Snoop Lion"? These examples, along with many more facts from 'Today I Learned', serve as a reminder that knowledge never stands still, and we can always learn more about the world around us.
TIL: Tracy Chapman sued Nicki Minaj for copyright infringement. According to the complaint, Chapman repeatedly refused to give Minaj permission to sample one of her songs, but Minaj did it anyway. Minaj settled and agreed to pay Chapman $450K.
TIL: One in four American cowboys were black.
TIL The Arabian Oryx became extinct in the wild by the early 1970s, but was saved in zoos and private reserves, and was reintroduced into the wild starting in 1980. In 2011, it was the first animal to revert to vulnerable status on the IUCN Red List after previously being listed as extinct
TIL The aardwolf knows not to destory its food sources. Aardwolves eat part of a termite mound, leaves it, and return a few months later when the colony has rebuilt so it can have another meal. An aardwolf keeps track of mounds it attacked and can eat 250,000 termites in a single night.
TIL of "The Paradox of Choice." Research indicates that when we are given too many options to choose from, we tend to end up less satisfied than if we had fewer options to choose from. Increased choice leads to higher expectations, followed by regret and self-blame.
TIL - Walter Orthmann, a 100 year old, set the Guinness World Record for working at the same company for 84 years and nine days.
TIL Margaret Knight (1838-1914) invented a machine to mass produce flat-bottomed paper bags and, after winning a lawsuit against a fraudster who copied her design, the patent was issued in 1871. Her first invention was when she was 12 years old (and began working in a factory). She had 87 patents.
TIL During pregnancy, if the mother suffers organ damage, the baby in the womb sends stem cells to repair the damaged organ.
TIL The Spanish Inquisition would write to you, giving 30 days notice before arriving and these were read out during Sunday Mass. Although these edicts were eventually phased out, you originally always expected the Spanish Inquisition.
TIL of Khalid bin Mohsen Shaari, a Saudi who was the heaviest man alive at 1,340 lb. When Saudi King Abdullah heard of this, Khalid was ordered to a medical center in Riyadh. In about four years, Khalid would weigh 150 lb.
TIL a special law in the UK was created to ensure that the Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital will forever be able to collect royalties from stage performances, audiobooks, book releases, etc. of Peter Pan in the UK. This is the only work with an 'exception' to copyright laws.
TIL in 1996, a 21-year-old man burst into a New Zealand radio station, took the manager hostage and demanded that Kermit the Frog's rendition of Rainbow Connection be played.
TIL hippos have a reflex mechanism that allows them to pop up, take a breath, and go back down without waking up so they can sleep underwater.
TIL about the “Old Man of the Lake,” a 30-foot tall, 450 year old tree stump, most likely a hemlock, that has been bobbing vertically in Oregon's Crater Lake since at least 1896. Moving freely, it can be virtually anywhere on the lake, so boat captains commonly communicate its position for safety.
TIL Anne Frank wrote four dirty jokes in her diary, which she later papered over so they weren’t discovered by researchers until 2018.
TIL The first person clinically diagnosed with Autism is still alive. Donald Grey Triplett who is 89 years old.
TIL that same-sex behavior has been recorded in more than 1000 species in animal kingdom ranging from beetles to penguins. This was earlier often seen as an example of Darwin's paradox as these behaviors are non-reproductive and don't contribute to the advancement of species in the traditional sense.
TIL that Channel 5 was the only major UK television channel not to broadcast Queen Elizabeth II's funeral - they aired The Emoji Movie instead.
TIL - The miscarriage rate is higher than people perceive. On average 12.5% of women who know they are pregnant have a miscarriage within the first 23 weeks of pregnancy.
TIL that Hawaii was a sovereign self-governing kingdom all the way up until 1893, totally unassociated with the U.S., until a coup d'état that year by 13 businessmen and 162 U.S. troops, with the openly stated goal of annexing the islands. (They succeeded.)
TIL As a child, Walt Disney's mom convinced his dad, Elias, to buy him a set of colored pencils and some drawing paper. Elias did not approve, believing the boy should spend time engaged in hard, manual labor. Even after Walt became famous, Elias never considered animation a real job.
TIL that a woman named Jo Cameron has a rare genetic mutation that makes her unable to feel pain or anxiety. Despite numerous injuries throughout her life, Jo has never needed painkillers.
TIL that the Philippines is 1 out 2 countries in the world that still doesn't allow divorce. It also has the 10th highest number of child brides globally, with 100,000 women married before their 15th birthday.
TIL Simeon Stylites lived on top of columns for 37 years. Simeon did this as a form of asceticism because when he lived in a cave people kept making pilgrimages to him and asking him religious questions. Ultimately his column life drew in even bigger crowds who would climb ladders to talk to him.
TIL the eunuchs of the last Chinese emperor wore their severed testicles and penises in jars around their necks when working.
TIL in 2019 a Brazilian drug trafficker serving a 73 yr sentence tried to escape from prison by disguising himself as his teenage daughter who was visiting. His plan was to leave her behind in his place but his nervousness as he approached the exit tipped off the guards.He hung himself 3 days later.
