› added 9 years ago

118

TIL Quaker Oats was not founded by, nor has it ever had anything to do, with real Quakers.

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via reddit.com

VnMZ TIL that Joseph Colombo, who started the Italian-American Civil Rights League to protest the depiction of Italians as Mafia in entertainment, was the head of the Colombo Crime Family.
OG5e1 TIL that the ornate wooden detailing on houses is referred to as ‘gingerbread’
wLkmP TIL of Little Merrit, an 8 year old boy who died in 1865. A few days before he died, he told his dad he was afraid to be buried in a dark tomb. His parents honored his wish and put a window in his tomb.
1amYD TIL Many believe the reason periodical cicadas emerge in broods at 13 or 17 year intervals (both prime numbers), it reduces the risk of predators or competitors syncing their life cycles
LkaAr TIL People used to believe that malaria was caused by bad air ("mal aria"). When Spanish Conquistadors founded a city in modern-day Argentina they unknowingly did so beyond the breeding range of mosquitoes, the disease's vector. It became the first malaria-free port, so they named it Buenos Aires.