› added 4 years ago

96

TIL that, for centuries, proponents of English language spelling reform have pushed for changes to make learning English easier, with some changes successful (error, member, music, fantasy), and some unsuccessful (hav, giv, hed, frend).

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4koZa TIL Roberto Benigni's Pinocchio (2002) was the most expensive film in Italian history and a big success in Italy but bombed in the US with 0% on Rotten Tomatoes
kLy1 TIL that Mongols under the rule of Genghis Khan pulled the bowstrings of their bows back with their thumb instead of using a “Mediterranean draw” with three fingers, so to protect their thumbs, the Mongols invented a “thumb ring”
78ZM TIL The total weight of all the ants on Earth is about the same as the weight of all the humans on earth.
YpwL7 TIL that J.R.R. Tolkien wrote and illustrated letters from Father Christmas to his kids every year from 1920 to 1943
DQ4PD TIL Women used to dominate the beer industry but were forced out during the reformation as men spread rumors about them using witchcraft. Many brewed in secret in the woods after laws were passed prohibiting them from brewing. Much of the iconography of witches comes from this period.