› added 9 years ago

64

TIL that in addition to being fluent in English, Greek, Latin, French, Italian and Spanish, Thomas Jefferson also studied Arabic, Gaelic and Welsh, and remains the most multilingual President of the United States.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

Eg1K7 TIL that until the 16th century, sharks were called "sea dogs", the word "shark" most likely comes from the Dutch schurk, meaning "scoundrel", from which "loan shark" derives. In other words, sharks are probably named after loan sharks and not the other way around.
QVKa TIL that artist Piero Manzoni created Artists’ Shit, 90 tin cans containing 30 grams of feces, as a mockery to the art world, then sold them for $37 dollars each. They’re now worth upwards of $100000 each.
oB8eR TIL: Rome's colossal statue of Leonardo da Vinci has a secret compartment that went undiscovered for over 45 years. Sculpture-restoration workers found documents inside.
QJ9wa TIL After Germany's surrender in WWI, and the subsequent limitations on their aircraft industry, Anthony Fokker moved his factory to West Virginia.
VMrRp TIL: Tourists at Yala National Park on Sri Lanka's SouthWest coast who fell victim to the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami were unable to spot any wildlife on safari because the animals had sensed the tremor vibrations 4 days earlier and fled to higher ground