kJbk1 TIL that scientists sequencing ancient Siberian permafrost found microbial genomes from layers 26,000 - 120,000 years old, and some were so intact that they appear to come from bacteria still alive and slowly repairing their DNA while frozen.
Eg7rX TIL that the green circle, blue square, and black diamond rating scale used in skiing was actually designed by Disney for use at their never-built ski lodge
Y7bxr TIL your eyes don't see a full rectangle like a camera. Our vision is basically an oval
BgY8D TIL ABC used to be part of NBC (then part of RCA), known as the Blue Network, until NBC was forced to split it off into its own independent network.
rNb6x TIL about the 'Jaipur Foot' an ultra low-cost prosthetic limb (~1% the cost of Western designs). The charity (BMVSS) leading this mission has distributed 697,990 units free of charge globally. It is adapted for rural use - no shoes needed, ankle flexibility, suited for agricultural work etc.
NXJZN TIL Córdoba, one of the largest and most prosperous cities in the world in AD 1000, had about the same population then as it does today (~400,000 vs 324,000)
l7b5r TIL Stove Top Stuffing became available in stores in 1972, and its success was largely due to the patented size of the breadcrumbs, which allowed them to rehydrate quickly
8eO9V TIL infamous investor Michael Burry has an MD degree and has an active licence in the state of California. He also lost his eye to cancer at the age of 2 and wears a prosthetic eye.
P1DQG TIL there is a new handmade marketplace co-op where everything is actually handmade
epbPb TIL that if you play the 1978 Atlanta Rhythm Section song ""imaginary Lover" at 45rpm instead of 33rpm, it sounds exactly like Stevie Nicks. In fact, Nicks found out about this and presented it as her own demo to her Fleetwood Mac bandmate Christine McVie as a joke, and McVie believed it.
VBbQZ TIL that elephant birds laid the largest eggs of any animal ever—including all dinosaurs. They went extinct in Madagascar around 1,000 years ago
X0bZQ TIL Shrek was originally supposed to be voiced by Chris Farley but when he died, Mike Myers replaced him.