Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 22:49

TIL that Billie Austin Bryant spent the shortest amount of time as an FBI Most Wanted fugitive. After escaping prison and robbing a bank, Bryant murdered 2 FBI agents, earning him a spot on the Most Wanted list. He was found hiding in a neighbour's attic only 2 hours later. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 20:49

TIL After water, concrete is the most widely used substance on the planet [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 17:49

TIL midnight screenings of movies have become increasingly rare since the 2012 Aurora shooting at a midnight premiere of “The Dark Knight Rises.” [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 16:49

TIL that during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Saddam’s forces never launched a single Scud at U.S. troops—thanks to swift coordination between U.S. intel, surveillance, and airpower that took out the launchers first. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 14:49

TIL that in 2020, a teenage boy was playing video games with an online friend when he began having a seizure. Despite being over 5,000 miles away, his friend managed to alert the emergency services in his area, saving his life. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 07:49

TIL: astronauts eat steak and eggs the morning of a launch because it makes them feel full longer and generates minimal poop (and not just out of a tradition started by test pilots who liked that meal). [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 05:49

TIL that although the Gregorian Calendar is built around the fact that Jesus' birth was in 1 AD (AD stands for "Anno Domini" or "in the year of the Lord"), most historians agree that Jesus was actually born between 4 BC and 6 BC. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 03:49

TIL There was a naked man living in the crawl space of a 93 year old woman’s house for up to 6 months. He was discovered after the family kept hearing weird noises. He refused to come out for hours so the police finally had to use tear gas to get the man out from under the house. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 02:49

TIL In 1965, Jordan and Saudi Arabia peacefully swapped land, resulting in Jordan gaining 19 more kilometers of coastline and Saudi Arabia gaining more desert. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 00:49

TIL the word “hello” first appeared in writing in 1826, and was not used as a greeting until 1877, when it became the default when answering a phone call [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 22:49

TIL that there are multiple 3d-printers (including one for metal) on the International Space Station to reduce the need for resupply. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 20:49

TIL 12-14% of people are thought to have borderline intellectual function, somewhere between disabled and average. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 18:49

TIL: Saudia Flight 163 safely landed after a fire broke out onboard shortly after takeoff. But despite the successful landing, all 301 passengers and crew perished. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 14:49

TIL Executive Orders do not immediately become law; they are more of a written directive or statement and are not necessarily binding [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 13:49

TIL The SunChips compostable bag, introduced in 2010, was known for being exceptionally loud, reaching 95 decibels, which is comparable to a motorcycle or a subway train. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 21:49

TIL American politician R. Budd Dwyer committed suicide on live TV, shooting himself at a press conference on January 22nd 1987 the day before he was due to be sentenced, after being found guilty on 11 counts of conspiracy, mail fraud, perjury, and interstate transportation in aid of racketeering [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 19:49

TIL Boeing once filled an airplane with potatoes to test its in-flight Wi-Fi because potatoes mimic the way humans absorb and reflect wireless signals. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 17:49

TIL that Samoa is the country with the highest obesity rate in the world. More than 81% of the adults in the nation are obese [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 15:49

TIL in 2013 McDonald's gave Charles Ramsey free food for a year after he helped rescue 3 women, who had been held hostage for years, while carrying a "half-eaten Big Mac." In addition, 14 local Ohio restaurants also gave Ramsey free burgers for life. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 12:49

TIL about Veronica Seider, born with vision 20 times better than most, allowing her to identify people from over a mile (1.6 km) distance. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 06:49

TIL Japanese Unit 731 did human experimentation on Chinese victims [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 04:49

TIL that ravens in the wild play with wolf puppies. In the wholesome way, not the 'play with your food' way. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 03:49

TIL There have been 19 U.S. service members to receive two Medals of Honor, and five of them received the Medal of Honor for the same action. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

28 June 2025 01:49

TIL that when an illiterate lottery winner named Abraham Shakespeare (!) mysteriously vanished, amateur web sleuths lured the woman eventually convicted of Shakespeare’s murder into their true crime forum. Link to that forum thread in the comments [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 23:49

TIL that when the representative from Canada signed the the Japanese Instrument of Surrender which ended the second World War, he signed in the spot assigned to France, causing the three countries behind Canada to have to sign in the wrong spot as well [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 21:49

TIL of Richard Jordan, who successfully appealed three death sentences, accepted a plea deal for life without parole, and then successfully appealed that deal, which resulted in him being re-sentenced to death. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 19:49

TIL a 2024 study found that on average a single cigarette takes about 20 minutes off a person’s life. This figure nearly doubles an estimate from a 2000 study of roughly 11 minutes per cigarette and means that a typical pack of 20 cigarettes can shorten a person’s life by nearly 7 hours. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 17:49

TIL that there is a sport called underwater ice hockey, where players, positioned upside down beneath the ice sheet, play with a large floating puck that glides along its underside. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 14:49

TIL that Norway, after gaining independence from Sweden in 1905, offered the throne to Prince Carl of Denmark - but he refused to accept unless the people voted for a monarchy over a republic. 79% said yes, and he became King Haakon VII, the only known king ever to be elected by popular vote. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

27 June 2025 12:49

TIL in Germany, drivers stuck in traffic on the Autobahn must leave an emergency lane in the middle of the road at all times. (Also Austria & Switzerland). [Source]