› added 1 year ago

291

TIL The Earth Is Running Out of Sand, Spurring a Cutthroat Black Market

Read more popularmechanics.com

via reddit.com

0dkXv TIL of the Aztec “Curse of One Rabbit”, where the first year (One Rabbit) of the 52 year calendar cycle was associated with famine and catastrophe. Incredibly, one study suggested a “real climatic origin”, with 10 of the 13 years having a famine, including one of the worst in world prehistory.
9wxw6 TIL that during the production of Superman(1978), Gene Hackman was reluctant to shave his moustache, only acquiescing when Richard Donner promised to do the same. After getting it shaved, Hackman went to Donner to fulfil his end of the bargain. Donner responded by tearing off his fake moustache.
m1Xpp TIL the bull shark, an aggressive species which can grow up to 13 feet long, has been found as far inland as Alton, Illinois, upstream from St. Louis, Missouri.
WMD4 TIL An average tree is made up of 99% dead cells, only around 1% is alive at any time, consisting of the leaves, root tips, and phloem a thin layer of under bark that acts as a food delivery system.
b60M9 TIL: That a fetus can absorb its twin in the womb and it's known as "vanishing twin syndrome"