› added 12 years ago

221

TIL until the 1700s, all geishas were men.

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nlw7 TIL that sunflowers do not track the sun. They always face (approximately) east.
R79kl TIL that availability of potatoes played an important role in spurring economic growth in the 18th & 19th centuries. The introduction of the potato explains the 25–26% of the increase in old world population and 27–34% of the increase in urbanization between 1700 - 1900.
6DL8 TIL that a German lieutenant, Friedrich Lengfeld, was killed by a land mine while attempting to rescue a wounded American soldier during the Battle of Hürtgen Forest in WWII. The Americans erected a monument in his honor; the only American monument placed in any German military cemetery.
oBRro TIL that when spun and dropped a large distance, a ball will glide.
v1okL TIL that black holes 'sing' at a frequency similar to a B flat, but located 57 octaves below middle C.