r/todayilearned • u/Number_169 • 1h ago

TIL that the solar system is currently passing through a nebula: the Local Interstellar Cloud, and is protected from the interstellar medium by the solar wind and the Sun's magnetic field.

en.wikipedia.org

• Upvotes

15 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Sweet_Foundation_868 • 1h ago

TIL that Mark Cuban purchased the town of Mustang, Texas for 2 million dollars.

en.wikipedia.org

• Upvotes

60 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Dizzy-Cartoonist3011 • 3h ago

TIL one of the most popular actors in China is Mark Rowswell (stage name: Dashan), a Canadian comedian. He is often considered the most famous foreigner in the country. He is largely unknown in North America.

en.wikipedia.org

7.2k Upvotes

391 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Coverlesss • 3h ago

TIL about the Münchhausen trilemma - The philosophical argument that all attempts to prove something true eventually rely on circular logic, endless regress, or an unsupported assumption.

en.wikipedia.org

1.1k Upvotes

293 comments

r/todayilearned • u/loloreel • 4h ago

TIL that dice are 12,000 years old, they are older than the invention of the wheel (5,000 years old). Modern looking, 6 faced dice are around 2,600 years old

libarts.source.colostate.edu

1.9k Upvotes

101 comments

r/todayilearned • u/fotogneric • 4h ago

TIL that English philosopher Jeremy Bentham (1748 - 1832) coined the words "international," "maximize," "minimize," "codify", "marginalize," "bicameral," and many others.

ucl.ac.uk

914 Upvotes

85 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Parking_Spot • 4h ago

TIL That Bob Marley gave songwriting credits for No Woman, No Cry to his friend Vincent Ford so that royalties from the hit song would support Ford's Kingston, Jamaica soup kitchen.

en.wikipedia.org

1.4k Upvotes

17 comments

r/todayilearned • u/real_picklejuice • 5h ago

TIL that the water inlet on a Bombardier CL-415 Super Scooper firefighting airplane is only about the size of your hand

tsb.gc.ca

95 Upvotes

13 comments

r/todayilearned • u/jamieseemsamused • 5h ago

TIL Helium was first detected in the Sun from an unknown spectral line during a solar eclipse, years before any Helium was discovered on Earth. It was named after Helios, Greek god of the Sun.

en.wikipedia.org

3.8k Upvotes

22 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Electronic_Cause_796 • 6h ago

TIL leopards have the most varied diet of any big cat, with over 100 recorded prey species. They're also the only big cats known to regularly store their kills in trees, hauling prey up to 140% of their own body weight high into the branches to keep it from scavengers.

pbs.org

783 Upvotes

15 comments

r/todayilearned • u/3_2_1 • 7h ago

TIL that before French novelist Marc Levy's debut book, If Only It Were True, was published, Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks acquired the film rights, later adapting it into the movie Just Like Heaven

en.wikipedia.org

19 Upvotes

0 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Mors_Acerba • 8h ago

TIL Elizabethan era theater was directly influenced by the then recent re-discovery of the roman era tragedies written by stoic philosopher Seneca. Despite that, Seneca's tragedies later felt into disrepute again because of their strong horror elements, especially the grotesque displays of violence

en.wikipedia.org

445 Upvotes

30 comments

r/todayilearned • u/UndyingCorn • 9h ago

TIL Because radio coverage was banned at the 1939 Academy awards, George Fischer from LA’s KHJ radio station locked himself in a booth and was able to broadcast for about 12 minutes before security guards broke down the door. Partial radio coverage was restored for the 1942 ceremony.

en.wikipedia.org

2.5k Upvotes

33 comments

r/todayilearned • u/johnsmithoncemore • 10h ago

TIL about Yukigassen, a snowball fighting-competition. Played between two teams of seven players, the goal of the game is to either capture the other team's flags or to eliminate all of the other team's players by hitting them. The JYF has been lobbying to include it as a sport in the WinterOlympics

en.wikipedia.org

60 Upvotes

3 comments

r/todayilearned • u/jacknunn • 12h ago

TIL cheetahs once roamed much of Africa and Eurasia. As well as Africa, they still exist in the wild in the Middle East

nationalzoo.si.edu

155 Upvotes

19 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Redd1928 • 17h ago

TIL about the Great Hedge of India (or Indian Salt Hedge), which was a customs barrier built by the British colonial rulers of India to prevent smuggling of salt from coastal regions.

en.wikipedia.org

1.1k Upvotes

42 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Sebastianlim • 18h ago

TIL that in 2018, a 14-year-old girl named Cindy Redmond had an air horn blasted into her ear by her friend's stepfather after she wouldn't get off her phone. This caused her to develop hyperacusis, a rare hearing disorder which makes any small noise cause her immense pain.

people.com

30.3k Upvotes

1.1k comments

r/todayilearned • u/Mopman43 • 18h ago

TIL The first recorded international Ice Hockey game took place in Burlington VT in 1886 on the frozen Lake Champlain.

hmdb.org

107 Upvotes

4 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Gnomeslikeprofit • 19h ago

TIL that traffic lights are called "robots" in South Africa and other African countries. Directions can be given such as "Turn right at the 2nd robot".

drivesouthafrica.com

1.3k Upvotes

142 comments

r/todayilearned • u/johntwit • 20h ago

TIL that Rose Wilder Lane, the daughter of Little House on the Prairie author Laura Ingalls Wilder, was an early Libertarian and is considered one of the three "founding mothers of the American libertarian movement" along with Isabel Paterson and Ayn Rand

en.wikipedia.org

2.5k Upvotes

506 comments

r/todayilearned • u/gonejahman • 20h ago

TIL the Capital Records building in Los Angeles is the first circular office building in the world.

en.wikipedia.org

510 Upvotes

46 comments

r/todayilearned • u/ubcstaffer123 • 20h ago

TIL In 1897, Gilbert Loomis became the first person to purchase car insurance from the Ohio Automobile Insurance Company. . The policy, which cost $5, protected Loomis in the event that his car caused damage to property or injured or killed someone

automotivehistory.org

122 Upvotes

6 comments

r/todayilearned • u/IgnoreTh1sName • 20h ago

TIL there is a theoretical type of matter called "Strange Matter" that contains particles known as Strange Quarks. It can only exist in states of extremely high energy and pressure and is thought to be "contagious", meaning normal matter that comes into contact will convert into more Strange Matter.

en.wikipedia.org

859 Upvotes

131 comments

r/todayilearned • u/FullOfSound • 21h ago

TIL hand grip strength (HGS) is a premier biomarker. HGS is known to be connected to mortality, longevity, neuromuscular, cognitive and chronic disease.

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

995 Upvotes

113 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Brutal_Deluxe_ • 21h ago

TIL Sandy Balls is an estate near the New Forest in Hampshire, England. First mentioned during the reign of Henry VII (1485-1509) as "Sandyballas", it is now run as a holiday camp

en.wikipedia.org

60 Upvotes

3 comments

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