› added 7 years ago

250

TIL of the horseshoe theory, in which the far right and the far left in fact closely resemble one another (tendency to support authoritarian governments, etc), such that the political continuum resembles a horseshoe rather than a linear line.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

1aPMd TIL the phrase "in the limelight" which refers to being the focus of attention comes from a 19th century device. Calcium oxide known as quicklime is heated in an intensely hot flame until it glows brightly. First as a surveying tool, it allowed for more accurate measurements.
78Or7 TIL At one point in the 1980s, China had an estimated 400,000 Esperanto speakers, and the language was taught at a number of universities. Now there is only one Chinese college Esperanto program left
Z89jD TIL When Terry Pratchett was knighted, he forged his own sword out of meteorite and 81kg of ore that he dug up and smelted using a makeshift kiln. Finished with silver and stored in a secret location, he said: It annoys me that knights aren't allowed to carry their swords. That would be knife crime.
9wBLQ TIL Jared Leto gifted a rat to his co-star Margot Robbie while filming Suicide Squad, naming it Rat Rat. Her landlord didn't allow it so Rat Rat was given to co-star Jai Courtney and then a costumer on the movie until it was given to Guillermo Del Toro's daughters
E1WAx TIL the "horned sign" is an ancient hand gesture meant to either ward off, or curse someone with, the "evil eye", or malocchio in Italian. Ronnie James Dio re-popularized the gesture as the "sign of the horns" when he joined Black Sabbath in 1979, having originally learned it from his grandmother.