Post * 5Y1Xk — Curious Curator

› added 5 years ago

76

TIL that before Miguel de Cervantes wrote part one of Don Quixote at the age of 58, he lived in exile in Italy, fought in the battle of Lepanto where he lost the use of his left hand, was captured and ransomed by pirates, excommunicated by the church and was imprisoned for accounting irregularities.

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JyEl TIL that when researchers offered kids broccoli or a chocolate bar, four out of five picked the chocolate but when an Elmo sticker was placed on the broccoli, fifty percent chose the broccoli.

wL0LE Today i learned about Great Zimbabwe, largest settlement ruins in sub-saharan Arica which also tradet with Arab-Indian states. When european colonists saw it, they claimed it was too complex to be of african origins, and ordered historians to dispute the evidence of its african history.

e0YGb TIL that the chief baker on the Titanic, Charles Joughin, drank an entire bottle of whiskey as the ship sank and spent 3 hours in the -2°c waters before he was rescued alive

oRN1r TIL that breast cancer used to be known as "Nun's disease" due to the higher prevalence amongst nuns, who were at increased risk due to their celibate lifestyle. An association between reproductive history and cancer risk wasn't proven for about 250 years after it was associated with nuns.

J1n71 TIL that the Edwards aquifer in Texas is one of the most biodiverse subterranean systems in the world. Several species are only found in that area, with a species of blind catfish (curiously the only species in the genus Satan) coming out of wells 610m deep.