› added 10 years ago

101

TIL an island, located between Australia and New Caledonia, was charted on maps for over a century until a crew of scientists sailed to the location and found it didn’t exist.

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4kNga TIL a 19th century self-help movement called “Ralstonism” (named after author Everett Ralston) convinced the Purina Mills folks to rename their company Ralston-Purina. The name “Everett Ralston” was a pseudonym and the man never existed.
KYMaG TIL: Douglas MacArthur wanted to use atomic bombs to contain China and ultimately win the Korean War.
Z8WYY TIL that astronauts swallow their toothpaste after brushing, as spitting is not possible because of its weightlessness.
7r4Z7 TIL the most powerful volcanic eruption in the last 7,000 years, on the Indonesian island of Lombok, led to a global mini-ice age that contributed to the disappearance of the Greenland Vikings
AwXg TIL the fizzy sensation on your tongue from carbonated drinks is not caused by the tiny bubbles popping; the fizz is our actual taste of carbon dioxide.