› added 9 years ago

16952

TIL there is a “white man” café in Tokyo, where Japanese ladies ring a bell to summon tuxedo-wearing caucasians who respond with “yes, princess?” and serve them cake

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XEGoR TIL the "piano" means "soft" in Italian. The instrument's name is actually short for "pianoforte" (soft-loud) which is short for “gravicembalo col piano e forte” (harpsichord with soft and loud). Calling it "piano" defeats the purpose of its original name that meant to depict its dynamic sound.
9YwjB TIL that in the 1950's, the Muslim Egyptians laughed at the idea of imposing the hijab to women.
QJPOk TIL Kate Winslet keeps her Oscar in the bathroom so her guests can hold it and make acceptance speeches in the mirror without feeling self conscious
6dwQ TIL The idea of carrots improving eyesight was RAF propaganda to hide from the Nazis the fact they had new radar technology
yV81v Today I learned that during the renovation of the USA Library of Congress in the 1990s, it was discovered that the metallic ornamentation of the ceiling, once thought to be silver leaf, is actually aluminum leaf. When the building was constructed in the 1890s, aluminum was more precious than silver.