Today I Learned 🎓

06 July 2025 02:49

TIL Kate Bush's first tour was in 1979 to promote her first two albums, then she didn't tour again until 2014. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 22:49

TIL dogs began to diverge from wolves when random genetic mutations gave some wolves the ability to much more effectively digest starches and fats, causing them to follow nomadic humans and eat the leftovers of the food they ate [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 21:49

TIL June Huh dropped out of high school & then took 6 years to earn his B.S. Though a professor had sparked an interest in mathematics, he was accepted into only 1 PhD program due to his undergraduate experience. However at age 39, he was awarded the Fields Medal "the highest honor in mathematics". [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 19:49

TIL an analysis found that 69% of the individuals on Forbes' 2011 list of the 400 richest Americans started their own business, whereas, only 40% of those on the 1982 list had done the same. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 17:49

TIL Napoleon was once attacked by a horde of bunnies during a hunting event: the tame rabbits were released all at once and charged him en masse, mistaking it for feeding time [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 15:49

TIL that France's second-largest airport, Nice Côte d'Azur, had to close a runway for 5 hours due to a snail invasion. Heavy rains drove hundreds of thousands of snails onto the tarmac, covering it in slime and forcing a massive cleanup operation. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 14:49

TIL that in Romania, witches are officially recognized as professionals and have to pay taxes like everyone else. Since 2011, they’re required to register their services, issue receipts, and contribute to health and pension funds. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 12:49

TIL that in 1955, Dodge had a special custom package on their custom Royal Lancer to appeal to women buyers. The LA Femme was a two tone punk over white body and had such accessories as a matching purse and lipstick [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 10:49

TIL When Kentucky Fried Chicken first entered the Chinese market in the 1980s, its slogan "It's finger lickin' good!" was mistranslated as "Eat your fingers off." The error was later corrected. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 06:49

TIL that a Greek man living in Canada who specialized in Chinese food invented the Hawaiian pizza [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 05:49

TIL about the Goiânia Accident. A piece of radioactive material was stolen from a hospital in Brazil leading to four deaths, and 112,000 possible exposures. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 01:49

TIL After Mario Puzo won an Oscar for writing the screenplay for The Godfather, having had no prior experience writing screenplays, he bought a book on screenwriting. The book's instruction was basically "Study The Godfather" [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

04 July 2025 23:49

TIL Paul Rudd, who made an appearance on the final episode of Friends, saw the entire cast was crying, and to lighten the mood, went up to a sobbing Jennifer Aniston and said, “We did it, huh? What a ride.” She did not find it funny. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

04 July 2025 20:49

TIL that Geoff Peterson, the animatronic human skeleton who served as the sidekick on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, was designed and built by MythBusters' Grant Imahara. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

04 July 2025 18:49

TIL that the Tata family, one of India's most prominent business dynasties and the founders of the Tata Group, are Zoroastrians. An ancient Persian religion with fewer than 100,000 adherents worldwide. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

06 July 2025 01:49

TIL that a 98% effectiveness rate for a condom means that out of 100 couples using, 2 will get pregnant in a year and not that they fail 2 out of 100 times being used. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 21:49

TIL a study followed thousands of people, both with & without OCD, from 1973-2020 & found that those with OCD died at an earlier average age than those without it by 9 years (69 v 78). People with OCD were 230% more likely to die earlier from unnatual causes & nearly 5x more likely to die by suicide [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 20:49

TIL composer Alex North was initially hired to write the score for 2001: A Space Odyssey, but director Stanley Kubrick ultimately decided to use pre-existing classical pieces instead. North wasn't aware his score had been tossed aside until he attended the film's premiere. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 18:49

TIL during conflicts between dominant males, low-ranking male chimpanzees will frequently switch sides opportunistically [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 16:49

TIL The 1977 exploitation horror film Last House on Dead End Street had a budget of $3,000. However only $800 was actually spent on making the film; the remaining $2,200 was instead used to purchase drugs. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 14:49

TIL Keiko Fukuda, a Japanese-American martial artist, was the highest-ranked female judoka in history. She became the first woman to hold the rank of 9th dan and is also the first and, so far, only woman to have been promoted to 10th dan in judo. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 13:49

TIL the founder of McDonald's Japan, Den Fujita, stated "if we eat McDonald's hamburgers and potatoes for a thousand years we will become taller, our skin become white, and our hair blonde" as part of his strategy to sell McDonald's in Japan. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 10:49

TIL the McDonalds character Grimace was originally introduced as an antagonist known as "Evil Grimace" and had two pairs of arms which were used to steal milkshakes and Cokes. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 08:49

TIL Japan is the only country in the world that legally requires married couples to share the same family name [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 06:49

TIL about a congential disorder in humans where the walls of the bladder, vagina, and anus fuse together, creating a cloaca [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 02:49

TIL that David Attenborough has more letters after his name than in it. His full title is Sir David Attenborough OM GSMG CH CVO CBE FRS FSA FRSA FZS FRSGS FRSB. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

05 July 2025 00:49

TIL that the company Hoover in 1992 offered 2 free flights to customers if they bought products for at least a 100 dollars. The flights were worth 600 dollars each and Hoover underestimated the customers fervour to obtain them and tried to go back on their offer and caused public outrage. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

04 July 2025 22:49

TIL that in 2008 humans sent a message to the planet Gilese 581c. It will arrive in 2029. If life on the planet responds, we would first hear back from them in 2050. [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

04 July 2025 18:49

TIL in Dec 1943, the B-24 Leon Crane was copiloting experienced engine failure & crashed into an Alaskan mountaintop. He was the only survivor of the 5 crew after he managed to bail in time. He then survived 84 days in the wilderness starting with only some matches, a Boy Scout knife & his parachute [Source]

Today I Learned 🎓

04 July 2025 17:49

TIL an American cyclist covered 4,707 km (2,925 mi) to create the 'world's largest GPS drawing by bicycle' in memory of her dog, Slinky. Kristy Bellmer started the 2-month journey on Slinky's birthday. Beginning & ending in Amsterdam, she went through Belgium, France, Switzerland, Germany & Czechia. [Source]