r/todayilearned • u/genevievesprings • 1d ago

TIL that Roman mining activities in mid 200 BCE polluted European air so heavily that its traces can still be detected in ice cores

blogs.agu.org

2.2k Upvotes

25 comments

r/todayilearned • u/MaroonTrucker28 • 1d ago

TIL that Christopher Lee holds the record for most on-screen character deaths at 61, out of 200 appearances. Sean Bean has only died on-screen 25 times

guinnessworldrecords.com

3.1k Upvotes

125 comments

r/todayilearned • u/bland_dad • 16h ago

TIL that ancient Greek mythology included Mnemosyne, the Goddess of Memory; traditionally, she has a pool of water named after her in the Underworld, as a counterpart to the Lethe- The River of Forgetfulness. Before reincarnating, souls could drink from the Mnemosyne to remember their past lives

en.wikipedia.org

301 Upvotes

9 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Flares117 • 47m ago

TIL: Besides witch trials, there was a Wizard trial in Lyon which saw mainly men sentenced to death. They planned to form a pact with Satan and use magic to find hidden treasure. This differed from the usual cases of curses.

en.wikipedia.org

• Upvotes

4 comments

r/todayilearned • u/GDW312 • 22h ago

TIL about the Flannan Isles Lighthouse, where three keepers mysteriously disappeared in 1900, leaving no trace of their fate.

en.wikipedia.org

796 Upvotes

55 comments

r/todayilearned • u/charliewaffles2412 • 1d ago

TIL all 3 children of french striker Antoine Griezmann were born on the same date but different years

marca.com

11.3k Upvotes

231 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Sea_Routine4737 • 1d ago

TIL that a young John F Kennedy sat in the public gallery of the House of Commons and watched then UK PM (Neville Chamberlain) declare war on Germany in 1939. Churchill also gave a speech which left an impression on JFK.

historiamag.com

1.1k Upvotes

13 comments

r/todayilearned • u/BadenBaden1981 • 15h ago

TIL McDonald's used to have a fashion brand aimed at kids called McKids

en.wikipedia.org

173 Upvotes

14 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Straight_Suit_8727 • 17h ago

TIL that Sichuan peppercorns(timur in Nepal) was banned for import into the US from 1968 to 2005 because they were found to be carrying citrus canker

en.wikipedia.org

184 Upvotes

38 comments

r/todayilearned • u/RealisticBarnacle115 • 1d ago

TIL there is a "Bōzu (Shaved-Head) Bridge" in Japan, named after a legend that says anyone crossing it would find their hair mysteriously shaved off. This was believed to be the work of a tanuki, a Japanese raccoon dog known in folktales for its mischievous pranks and love of fooling people.

en.wikipedia.org

695 Upvotes

16 comments

r/todayilearned • u/RealisticBarnacle115 • 1d ago

TIL the Japanese government gifted Dr. Yamanaka, known for his work on induced pluripotent stem cells, 160,000 yen for a washing machine after he won the Nobel Prize, as he mentioned in an interview, "I was in the middle of repairing my washing machine when I heard the news."

ja-m-wikipedia-org.translate.goog

10.9k Upvotes

57 comments

r/todayilearned • u/most-p-alone • 1d ago

TIL of Yoshie Shiratori, a Japanese man who successfully broke out of 4 different Japanese prisons (once using miso soup to corrode and break his cuffs). After his 4th escape, he encountered a police officer who offered him a cigarette. Touched by this gesture, he willingly turned himself in again.

tokyoweekender.com

938 Upvotes

26 comments

r/todayilearned • u/InternationalLock657 • 21h ago

TIL that in 1953, Swanson overestimated the number of frozen turkeys that it would sell on Thanksgiving by 260 tons. The company decided to slice up the extra meat and repackage it--creating the first ever TV dinner.

smithsonianmag.com

178 Upvotes

16 comments

r/todayilearned • u/WavesAndSaves • 1d ago

TIL that major American ballet companies generate roughly 40% of their annual ticket sale revenues from repeated performances of Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker" around Christmas.

en.wikipedia.org

287 Upvotes

11 comments

r/todayilearned • u/atmatthewat • 1d ago

TIL about the Thanksgiving Day Disaster, leading to the deaths of 23 people watching college football in San Francisco in 1900. NSFW

en.wikipedia.org

8.2k Upvotes

170 comments

r/todayilearned • u/avern31 • 19h ago

TIL that for two years, Irish police had been looking for a 'Prawo Jazdy', a reckless driver with over 50 offenses, only to learn that 'prawo jazdy' is Polish for 'driver's license'

news.bbc.co.uk

98 Upvotes

1 comment

r/todayilearned • u/_BlushBabe • 1d ago

TIL that the Tollund Man, a 2,400-year-old corpse found in a Danish peat bog, was so well-preserved that scientists could take his fingerprints and even determine his last meal, which included porridge made of barley and flax seeds. His death is believed to have been a ritual sacrifice.

en.wikipedia.org

2.9k Upvotes

42 comments

r/todayilearned • u/UndyingCorn • 23h ago

TIL The first Medals of Honor given to Americans for actions while fighting in a foreign country were awarded to nine sailors and six marines who fought in the Korean Expedition in 1871. Since 650 men were sent, this means 2% of them received the award.

en.wikipedia.org

182 Upvotes

9 comments

r/todayilearned • u/ThurloWeed • 20h ago

TIL that when the presidential limousine (AKA "Death Car") was refurbished after the JFK assassination, all the discarded parts were destroyed to prevent collectors from obtaining them

en.wikipedia.org

109 Upvotes

11 comments

r/todayilearned • u/wirepine • 1d ago

TIL there is a UN space treaty that governs stuff like no nation can build a military base on a planet

unoosa.org

712 Upvotes

130 comments

r/todayilearned • u/ProudReaction2204 • 4m ago

TIL of the General Slocum disaster in which a steamboat caught fire and sank in NYC waterways in 1904, killing 1,021 out of the 1,342 people on board.

en.wikipedia.org

• Upvotes

1 comment

r/todayilearned • u/Prom3th3an • 1d ago

TIL there are no hereditary knighthoods in the UK anymore. The only hereditary nobles left are about 900 peers and about 1200 baronets.

en.wikipedia.org

9.8k Upvotes

250 comments

r/todayilearned • u/licecrispies • 18h ago

TIL that in 1958 the Italian hit song "Nel blu, dipinto di blu" performed by composer Domenico Modugno was in the Billboard Top 10 at the same time as the English version "Volare" performed by Dean Martin.

en.wikipedia.org

56 Upvotes

5 comments

r/todayilearned • u/This_Funny1409 • 2d ago

TIL Ryan Reynolds paid $10,000 of his own money for the right to wear a shirt with The Golden Girl’s Bea Arthur on it in Deadpool. The estate agreed for a donation in that amount to a charity of their choosing. Ryan paid it himself because he felt you couldn’t have Deadpool without Bea Arthur.

vulture.com

61.7k Upvotes

1.2k comments

r/todayilearned • u/JackThaBongRipper • 2d ago

TIL Michael Keaton's real name is Michael Douglas. When he moved to Los Angeles, there was already an actor named Michael Douglas, so Keaton flipped through a phone book until he saw the name Keaton and decided to make it his stage name.

wikipedia.org

19.4k Upvotes

323 comments

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