› added 10 months ago

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TIL fruit flies (drosophila melanogaster) share 60% of human DNA, making them perfect for research that has led to vital strides in the treatment of cancer, autism, and diabetes. Six Nobel prizes have been awarded for research involving fruit flies.

Read more theguardian.com

via reddit.com

5VJbk TIL That there's a movie none of us will live to see. Set to be released in 2115, the film "100 years" was written by John Malcovich and directed by Robert Rodriguez back in 2015.
w0rW TIL that Liam Neeson turned down the role of James Bond because his wife-to-be said she wouldn’t marry him if he took it
epVVn TIL the Calusa built fish holding pens 7x larger than an NBA basketball court in what is now Florida, requiring understanding of daily and seasonal tides, hydrology and fish biology in 1300 CE to cope with sea level changes
VMnn0 TIL The difference between "Jr." and "II" is that "Jr." JR is to be used when the child is going to have the same name as his father, whereas "II" should be used when the child would be taking the name of a family member other than his father.
lRrN TIL that during WWII American soldiers in the Pacific theatre would use the word ‘lollapalooza’ to challenge unidentified persons, on the premise that Japanese people often pronounce the letter L as R