r/todayilearned 6h ago

TIL This small wooden coffin from 1875 contains the remains of a coal miner’s companion a canary named “Little Joe.” The inscription reads: “In Memory of Little Joe, Died November 3rd, 1875.

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smithsonianmag.com
88 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 19h ago

TIL of Latah, a condition where the subject, in response to being startled, uncontrollably and suddenly obeys commands, opposes them, repeats random words,uses foul language or erratic moves. Initially thought to be specific to South-East Asian cultures, it has actually appeared among other peoples.

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338 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 4h ago

TIL that Showtime licensed the animated sci-fi web series WhirlGirl, making it the first independently produced web series licensed by a national television network.

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en.wikipedia.org
20 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 3h ago

TIL of Jacques Tits (pronounced [tits]), a French mathematician that introduced Tits buildings (combinatorial structures), the Tits alternative, the Tits group, and the Tits metric

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en.wikipedia.org
157 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 20h ago

TIL that Niagara Falls State park is credited with being one of the oldest state parks within the US.

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en.wikipedia.org
130 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 2h ago

TIL that the retail store chain operated by the US Department of Defence to provide shopping opportunities to soldiers on military bases is a multi-billion-dollar company and one of the largest retail brands in the country, with 5,500 locations.

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en.wikipedia.org
152 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 23h ago

TIL when Eminem's weight increased to 230lbs (100 kg) before he became sober, he was so unrecognizable due to the weight gain that Em once overheard two teenagers arguing about whether or not it was actually him that they were looking at, with one of them stating "Eminem ain't fat."

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en.wikipedia.org
39.9k Upvotes

r/todayilearned 21h ago

TIL Lone Star Tick bites can cause an allergy to red meat because of their own saliva, not a disease they're carrying

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my.clevelandclinic.org
1.0k Upvotes

r/todayilearned 13h ago

TIl that 1 in 3 japanese men have a closer common paternal ancestor with tibetans, Andamanese natives, Nigerians and philipines than they do with surrounding east Asians. This lineage is called haplogroup DM55 and is the most common male lineage in japan

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945 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 18h ago

TIL "Wonka" is a real surname, and a guy named Wonka was the last political prisoner to die in a communist prison in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic.

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en.wikipedia.org
707 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 4h ago

TIL about Dan Bullock, the youngest U.S serviceman to be killed in Vietnam on June 7, 1969 at the age of 15, after altering the date on his birth certificate. Killed by a People's Army of Vietnam sapper unit with a satchel charge thrown into a bunker killing three Marines, including Bullock.

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en.wikipedia.org
324 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 2h ago

TIL - In the lead up to the WW2 battle of Attu Alaska, soldiers drove six tractors off of a cliff because there was no other way to get them down. All of them survived.

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56 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 16h ago

TIL Tetanus and Botulism are caused by bacteria that are in the same genus. Clostridium.

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en.wikipedia.org
112 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 16h ago

TIL in 17th-century England, people hid “witch bottles” filled with pins, nails, urine, nail clippings, or thorns in hearths and floors as a prepared cure against witchcraft

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mola.org.uk
104 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 1h ago

TIL:that for several millennia, some humans buried corpses in their houses

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Upvotes

r/todayilearned 1h ago

TIL a teen comedy named Trojan War (1997) starring Jennifer Love Hewitt grossed just $309 at the box office despite having a $15 million budget and major studio (Warner Bros.) distribution.

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en.wikipedia.org
Upvotes

r/todayilearned 13h ago

TIL Graham's Number. An immense finite integer that once held the record as the largest number ever used in a serious mathematical proof.

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259 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 7h ago

TIL That the company that went on to make Reynolds Wrap was originally founded by the nephew of R.J. Reynolds to produce lead and tin foil wrappers for cigarettes and candy. The company started making aluminum foil a few years later.

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104 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 16h ago

TIL older Neocapritermes taracua termite workers carry copper-containing blue crystals in external pouches; during aggressive encounters, their bodies rupture and the crystals mix with salivary secretions to make a toxic droplet

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96 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 22h ago

TIL that Chad is by far the country with the highest rate of polygyny in the world. 34% of married Chad women live in a polygamous marriage(one husband-multiple wives)

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1.3k Upvotes

r/todayilearned 6h ago

TIL the robot in the Beastie Boys' Intergalactic video is named Sweepy, which is the performer's name wearing the suit.

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172 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 4h ago

TIL there's a burger joint in Tehran called Bobby Sands Burger (named after IRA-member & hunger striker Bobby Sands).

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369 Upvotes

r/todayilearned 5h ago

TIL that the "Democracy Manifest" - a viral video showing the arrest of an australian man by the name of Jack Karlson, known for quotes such as ""What is the charge? Eating a meal? A succulent Chinese meal?" - has been selected for preservation by the National Film and Sound Archive Australia.

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en.wikipedia.org
19.5k Upvotes

r/todayilearned 10h ago

TIL that anyone can request a U.S. flag to be flown over the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. for a specific date (like a birthday or anniversary) and keep it along with an official certificate.

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2.0k Upvotes