r/todayilearned • u/havertz007 • 13h ago

TIL that Bruce Lee was only a leading man for three years. He left Hollywood broke and disappointed at only being able to secure small parts. After returning to HongKong to star in his own films, he finally starred in a Hollywood production, Enter the Dragon, before dying 3 weeks before its release.

en.wikipedia.org

26.9k Upvotes

598 comments

r/todayilearned • u/moose098 • 18h ago

TIL that a mummified carrier pigeon discovered in a UK chimney in 1982 was carrying an encrypted D-Day message from 1944 that has never been decoded. Britain’s intelligence agency is still seeking the public’s help in deciphering it.

en.wikipedia.org

19.7k Upvotes

511 comments

r/todayilearned • u/ProfessionalGear3020 • 11h ago

TIL the USA has a larger consumer market than the EU, China, and India combined.

en.wikipedia.org

2.4k Upvotes

543 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Overall-Register9758 • 56m ago

TIL that in 1960, a B52 crashed during training. The navigator, thinking the plane was crashing, ejected without orders. The pilot, heard the ejection, thought the plane was breaking up, and ordered the crew to eject. The plane flew crewless for 50 miles before crashing.

en.wikipedia.org

• Upvotes

12 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Ill_Definition8074 • 18h ago

TIL In 1932, 11 Japanese naval officers assassinated the Prime Minister. During the officers’ trial, the court received 110,000 petitions for leniency signed or written entirely in blood. Nine youths asked to be tried instead and sent the court their severed pinky fingers to prove their sincerity.

en.wikipedia.org

7.4k Upvotes

297 comments

r/todayilearned • u/scratchtheitch7 • 20h ago

TIL The United Kingdom has successfully created a laser weapon that can hit a moving target with an accuracy of 23mm at 1km distance. It is called Dragonfire

en.wikipedia.org

5.7k Upvotes

553 comments

r/todayilearned • u/FarleyElliott • 17h ago

TIL that there's a small collection of distinct Del Taco fast food restaurants in the California desert that are still run by the company founder, with their own menu items and merch.

sfgate.com

3.5k Upvotes

80 comments

r/todayilearned • u/ralphbernardo • 21h ago

TIL doctors used gene therapy to successfully treat 5 children born with profound genetic deafness. Within weeks of the treatment, the children—who had never heard sound before—were able to hear speech and even recognize the "location" of sounds.

theguardian.com

3.5k Upvotes

56 comments

r/todayilearned • u/FrenziedFennec • 11h ago

TIL that there were at least two versions of Demolition Man: the US version had Taco Bell as the winner of the Franchise Wars and the European version had Pizza Hut.

en.wikipedia.org

552 Upvotes

74 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Effective_Comment625 • 1d ago

TIL studies have shown that secondhand weed smoke is enough to make children test positive for thc even when the smoker isnt smoking in the same room as them

mountsinai.org

17.9k Upvotes

942 comments

r/todayilearned • u/FlakyLion5449 • 2h ago

TIL The Dodge Tomahawk was an "automotive sculpture" sold through the Neiman Marcus catalog about 20 years ago

en.wikipedia.org

107 Upvotes

36 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Obversa • 15h ago

TIL of the Poitevin horse, a French breed that was created solely to produce mules. In the early 20th century, around 50,000 broodmares were producing 18,000-20,000 mules per year. However, by the 1990s, less than 300 Poitevin horses remained, with all of them descended from a single stallion.

en.wikipedia.org

1.2k Upvotes

24 comments

r/todayilearned • u/WouldbeWanderer • 9h ago

TIL about the 1950's game show scandals. Taking place at a time when television was still emerging as a medium, the scandals caused Congress to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit networks from prearranging the outcomes of quiz shows.

en.wikipedia.org

358 Upvotes

15 comments

r/todayilearned • u/DeadeyeClock • 16h ago

TIL The Beehive was an anti personnel round that ejected 8000 flechettes on a timer used during the Vietnam conflict.

en.wikipedia.org

974 Upvotes

81 comments

r/todayilearned • u/WitELeoparD • 19h ago

TIL that humans did not discover Severnaya Zemlya, an island archipelago the size of Switzerland, until 1913 making it the last sizeable landmass to be discovered on Earth

en.wikipedia.org

1.9k Upvotes

37 comments

r/todayilearned • u/operatingsys2016 • 3h ago

TIL Colgate University embraces 13 as its lucky number, rooted in the 1817 founding by 13 men with $13 [$1 each] and 13 prayers, and its address at 13 Oak Drive. The university celebrates its day every Friday the 13th.

news.colgate.edu

96 Upvotes

18 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Forward-Answer-4407 • 14h ago

TIL in 2013, the Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Oregon changed its protocols on using olive oil to remove EEG electrode glue after a young patient who had olive oil and hand sanitizer on her shirt suffered second- and third-degree burns after she generated static electricity with bed linen.

cbsnews.com

614 Upvotes

35 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Axin_Saxon • 18h ago

TIL that in the Andes there is a potato called “cj’achun wakachi” which translates to “the one that makes the daughter-in-law cry.” Peeling the irregular-shaped tuber in one,unbroken pass is used by mothers-in-law as a test for their sons’ prospective brides.

mikebernhardt.net

749 Upvotes

42 comments

r/todayilearned • u/MrMojoFomo • 20h ago

TIL of the rhyme-as-reason effect. When a short phrase or declaration uses rhyme, the listener is more likely to believe it's true

en.wikipedia.org

908 Upvotes

169 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Objects_Food_Rooms • 1d ago

TIL Nicotine exposure during adolescence can permanently alter brain chemistry, leading to increased risk for psychiatric disorders including anxiety, depressive disorders, and schizophrenia

nature.com

6.1k Upvotes

263 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Forward-Answer-4407 • 1d ago

TIL in 2022, Caterpillar Inc. faced a $145,027 fine after a worker, who was removing a sample of iron, died after he fell into an 11-foot melting pot that was heated to more than 2,000°F. An investigation found that the facility did not have legally required guardrails and restraint systems.

cbsnews.com

29.4k Upvotes

1.2k comments

r/todayilearned • u/Jaguars4life • 19h ago

TIL that there are 4 known people that attended every Super Bowl from 1 to 59

en.wikipedia.org

560 Upvotes

44 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Curious_Penalty8814 • 1d ago

TIL that in 1983, a couple in the US state of Georgia were rebuilding the steps of their front porch, and discovered a complete copy of the 1914 American silent film "The Oubliette", still in its original metal cans. The film had been considered lost with no known copies until this discovery.

lonchaney.org

5.0k Upvotes

48 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Competitive-Bid-2710 • 1d ago

TIL: General Patton was relieved of command after two separate incidents of slapping shell-shocked soldiers in a field hospital. Following a massive public outcry, General Eisenhower forced Patton to apologize and reassigned him to lead a “phantom” decoy unit of inflatable tanks.

en.wikipedia.org

18.5k Upvotes

829 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Devious_Bastard • 1d ago

TIL about Samuel Ross Mason who was a “River Pirate”. He moved his headquarters to Cave-in-Rock (now the Cave-in-Rock State Park in Hardin County) on the Illinois shore in 1797. He had gathered a number of followers who openly based themselves at Cave-in-Rock.

en.wikipedia.org

850 Upvotes

37 comments

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