TIL in 2009 a UK and French nuclear ballistic submarines collided with each other as neither of them knew the other sub was nearby. They were submerged and running silent but were moving slowly enough that though the ships were damaged, there were no injuries nor radioactive releases.
TIL In the 20th century India lost more than 95% of its vulture population. The deaths are due to a medication for cows that is poisonous to the birds. The loss of vultures had increased the spread of disease and vermin populations. Also Parsi sky burials have had to be cancelled.
TIL On 19 November 2020, Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, was awarded Harvard University's 2020 Gleitsman International Activist Award, which comes with a prize of US$150,000. She has passed the prize money to New Zealanders studying at the university.
TIL that Joyce Gilchrist, a forensic chemist who falsified results in high profile cases, worked on 23 death sentence cases, 12 of whom were executed, was never charged with any crime
TIL that in early Japan, when the head of a household died his house was burned; before the founding of Kyoto, whenever an emperor died his entire capital city was burned as a rite of purification.