› added 4 years ago

588

TIL Early microscopes made of wood and cardboard, often adorned with polished fish skin, became increasingly popular in the mid-17th century and was used by the English natural philosopher Robert Hooke to provide regular demonstrations for the new Royal Society

Read more britannica.com

via reddit.com

OGAva TIL that John Byrne said that he “unconsciously lifted” the story of the X-Men comic “Days of Future Past” from the plot of the 1972 Doctor Who serial “Day of the Daleks”.
j6BDj TIL Romans wiped their butts with a sea sponge on a stick that they kept in a bucket of salt water or vinegar.
Z8G1R TIL When Mt. St. Helens erupted, it blew and pushed tens of thousands of trees into the surrounding lake. The trees are still there burnt and floating to this day, creating a carpet of dead trees.
Mele0 TIL about Tom Sachs. An autistic NYC-based sculptor who, when needing money, would use his art tools and scraps to make crude improvised firearms in his studio to sell in the NYPD Buyback programs for up to $300 apiece.
Ybev TIL that a father and son were matched against each other in the National Scrabble Championship. The father won by playing “DEFEATED” as his last word.