› added 12 years ago

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TIL that Teller of ‘Penn & Teller’ has no first name, on official documents such as his driver’s license his given name is listed as NFN, meaning “no first name”

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via reddit.com

0woyL TIL a Princeton University undergraduate designed an atomic bomb for his term paper. When American nuclear scientists said it would work, the FBI confiscated his paper and classified it. Few months later he was contacted by French and Pakistani officials who offered to buy his design. He got an "A".
vW77 TIL when sliced bread was invented it was described as the best thing since wrapped bread
DjGV TIL that when American soldiers came to the house of Richard Strauss in 1945, the famous German composer identified himself: “I am Richard Strauss, the composer of Rosenkavalier and Salome.” One of the soldiers was a musician, and placed a sign at the home so others would not bother him.
x6bG0 TIL that the coco de mer, a palm tree species found in the Seychelles archipelago, was believed in legend to have sex on stormy nights, due to the male trees' catkins looking like penises and females' fruits looking like butts. The legend states those who see the trees screwing will go blind.
E710 TIL that Sigourney Weaver’s real name is Susan and she chose the name “Sigourney” from a character mentioned in “The Great Gatsby”