-
TodayILearned now in Telegram! More channels: @reddit2telegram_bot Chat for ideas: https://telegram.me/r_channels
TIL that the background check for positions in the White House asks if you have ever been "suspected" of breaking the law
https://omb.report/icr/202107-0704-012/doc/113466001.pdf
https://redd.it/1g7dkpc
@r_til
TIL Since Adolf Hitler renounced his Austrian citizenship in 1925, he was stateless for about seven years until he got his German citizenship in 1932. The delay was due to several attempts to get him a government job that would have granted him citizenship falling through.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naturalization_of_Adolf_Hitler
https://redd.it/1g7bh1g
@r_til
TIL that on May 26, 2022, the last convicted Salem witch was officially exonerated, 329 years after she had been found guilty, after pressure from schoolchildren who discovered the anomaly which had excluded Elizabeth Johnson Jr's name from the Massachusetts legislature act exonerating all others.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_witch_trials
https://redd.it/1g6pg9e
@r_til
TIL that the top secret SOG operators in the Vietnam war had trouble hiding their boot prints on Viet Cong trails, even trying special boots with bare footprint soles. They eventually collected 20,000 pairs of used boots from US combat hospitals and air dropped them to the NVA and Viet Cong.
https://spycraft101.com/leave-no-trace-disguising-footprints-in-the-jungles-of-southeast-asia/#google_vignette
https://redd.it/1g6hrdt
@r_til
TIL that the Confederacy bordered a Habsburg Mexican empire controlled by France
https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/general-grant-and-the-fight-to-remove-emperor-maximilian-from-mexico.htm
https://redd.it/1g6jx0h
@r_til
TIL Zelda Fitzgerald used to ridicule F. Scott Fitzgerald about his penis size so much that he made Ernest Hemingway take a look at it in a public bathroom. Hemingway told him his dick was normal.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zelda_Fitzgerald#Meeting_Ernest_Hemingway
https://redd.it/1g6ix5x
@r_til
TIL that Hyochang Park in South Korea was originally used as a royal cemetery. Under Japanese rule, the cemetery was turned into a golf course, leaving the graves directly in the line of play. The park now contains a museum dedicated to Kim Koo, a leader in the independence movement against Japan.
https://wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyochang_Park
https://redd.it/1g5tu7d
@r_til
TIL Men at Work's "Down Under" uses the melody of the nursery rhyme "Kookaburra" and the band got sued for it
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-07-06/kookaburra-gets-last-laugh-in-men-at-work-case/893668
https://redd.it/1g5jxok
@r_til
TIL on the island of Papua New Guinea, there are a number of species of green lizards that have green bones, green hearts, green tongues, and green blood.
https://reptilesmagazine.com/new-guinea-lizards-have-lime-green-blood-and-toxic-bile/
https://redd.it/1g5v7r8
@r_til
TIL in Japan, some restaurants and attractions are charging higher prices for foreign tourists compared to locals to manage the increased demand without overburdening the locals
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/japan-restaurants-tourist-prices-intl-hnk/index.html
https://redd.it/1g62coz
@r_til
TIL it takes more than 60 days to climb mount everest.
https://www.marveladventure.com/blog/how-long-does-it-take-to-climb-mount-everest
https://redd.it/1g4soqg
@r_til
TIL about boredom room, an employee exit management strategy whereby employees are transferred to another department where they are assigned meaningless work until they become disheartened and resign. This strategy is commonly used in countries that have strong labor laws, such as France and Japan.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banishment_room
https://redd.it/1g4q4rc
@r_til
TIL Strapped for cash, the Shah of Persia once agreed to sell effectively his country's entire infrastructure to Paul Reuter(founder of Reuter's). Deemed "the most complete surrender of the entire industrial resources of a kingdom ever", it was rejected by the british, who found it too excessive
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuter_concession
https://redd.it/1g5a9bh
@r_til
TIL about the Ghost Camaro, a 1979 Chevrolet Camaro driven in combat by Danish Special Forces officer Helge Meyer during the Bosnian War. The black Ghost Camaro was stealthily driven at night to deliver humanitarian supplies to civilians, going where white U.N. supply vehicles couldn’t safely go.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/automotive-history/armored-camaro-kept-civilians-alive-in-war-torn-bosnia/
https://redd.it/1g59vjf
@r_til
TIL Maryland's state motto is in Italian. Fatti maschii, parole femine. It literally translates as "Deeds are males, words are females", but the official translation is "Manly deeds, womanly words." In 2017, the State legislature established it to mean "Strong deeds, gentle words."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seal_of_Maryland
https://redd.it/1g5b2ix
@r_til
TIL Called "the benevolent" due to his well intentioned nature, Ferdinand I of Austria, son of the last holy roman emperor, had to step down due to suffering as many as 20 epileptic seizures per day. When he tried to have sex, he had 5 seizures
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_I_of_Austria
https://redd.it/1g7bnbe
@r_til
TIL that under the Invention Secrecy Act, the U.S. government can prevent certain patent applications from being disclosed if they deem the invention a threat to national security. Inventors can be prohibited from sharing or profiting from their own creations without even knowing why.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invention_Secrecy_Act
https://redd.it/1g6vddr
@r_til
TIL that british climber Alan Hinkes had to be air rescued from Nanga Parbat in 1997 when flour from a burnt chapati (a type of flatbread) got up his nose, making him sneeze so violently that he prolapsed a disc. He waited 10 days in agony before being rescued and is since known as the "chapati man"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Hinkes
https://redd.it/1g6kuia
@r_til
TIL In 1998, business mogul Bill Daniels donated his private mansion, called Cableland, to be used as the official residence of the mayor of Denver. It has never been used in this role.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cableland
https://redd.it/1g6pwuq
@r_til
TIL that in 1976, 3 men kidnapped a bus full of schoolchildren with the goal of ransoming them back for 5 million dollars. They tried to place the ransom call, but the line was busy, and they ended up falling asleep. By the time they woke up, the children had freed themselves and made it to safety.
https://wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Chowchilla_kidnapping
https://redd.it/1g6rwn9
@r_til
TIL on the rare occasions that it fills completely, Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre is the largest lake in Australia, covering an area of up to 9,500 km2 (3667 sq mi)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Eyre
https://redd.it/1g5n5ub
@r_til
TIL that Saltwater Swimming Pools aren't very salty and that there is a widespread misconception that they do not use chlorine. In fact, saltwater pool water is only mildly salty (barely taste-able) and has similar chlorine levels as a regular chlorinated pool.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_water_chlorination
https://redd.it/1g60gv0
@r_til
TIL in 1982 a BA 747 lost all four engines and had its windscreen sandblasted after flying through an Indonesian volcanic eruption. The pilot landed, at night and with limited visuals, and commented afterwards that it was "a bit like negotiating one's way up a badger's arse."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Airways_Flight_009
https://redd.it/1g5zxum
@r_til
TIL: Joachim Peiper, started in Hitler's Youth then became leader of the SS where he encouraged war crimes. After the war he remained a nazi, helped suppress war data, and worked at Porsche as a manager for years due to Ferry Porsch being his friend. He then taught car salesman at Volkswagen.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joachim_Peiper
https://redd.it/1g5zrjd
@r_til
TIL Humans reach negative buoyancy at depths of about 50ft/15m where they begin to sink instead of float. Freedivers utilize this by "freefalling", where they stop swimming and allow gravity to pull them deeper.
https://www.deeperblue.com/guide-to-freefalling-in-freediving/
https://redd.it/1g5zjlz
@r_til
TIL that Frank Abagnale, the real-life inspiration for Catch Me If You Can, fabricated most of his infamous conman exploits, and much of his story was a hoax.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Abagnale#Veracity_of_claims
https://redd.it/1g4q3zk
@r_til
TIL in 1926 Harry Houdini argued in congress for four days trying to convince them to pass his bill, House Resolution 8989, that would outlaw fortune-telling in the District of Columbia. The arguments nearly got physical and police were called several times.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/in-1926-houdini-spent-4-days-shaming-congress-for-being-in-thrall-to-fortunetellers
https://redd.it/1g53mz6
@r_til
TIL - Napoleons great grand niece helped Sigmund Freud escape from the Nazis in Vienna. Pincess Marie Bonaparte knew Sigmund because she had previously consulted him for her failure to have orgasms during missionary position intercourse.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Bonaparte#Freud
https://redd.it/1g5bjnc
@r_til
TIL about the Robertson family who tried to sail around the world in 1970s. They were shipwrecked in the Pacific Ocean after orcas bashed their boat yet the family survived for 38 days on a dinghy before being rescued.
https://nmmc.co.uk/2022/05/the-50th-anniversary-of-the-robertson-family-rescue/
https://redd.it/1g52ko8
@r_til
TIL Outback Steakhouse was inspired by the popularity of the movie "Crocodile Dundee" and the founders, who have never been to Australia, decided to harness the rugged and carefree vibe of Australian culture into their Aussie-themed restaurant
https://www.delish.com/food-news/a47700/facts-about-outback-steakhouse/
https://redd.it/1g56usg
@r_til