› added 5 years ago

211

TIL the naming system for unearthed dinosaur fossils didn't start until 1758, and that the first named bone was called "Scrotum humanum" -- because it was originally believed to be the ball sack of an ancient giant man

Read more bbc.com

via reddit.com

D1dbe TIL that for his book 11/22/63 Stephen King conducted considerable research and extensively studied various conspiracy theories regarding the JFK assassination. He ultimately dismissed them and came to the conclusion that Oswald acted alone
nePPb TIL that the Titanic was a part of 3 large ships called Olympic Class by a company called White Star, looking forward to compete with what at the moment we’re the largest vessels in the world. 2 out of the 3 sunk in less than 1 year (with the Titanic as everyone knows, sinking in the first travel)
4Zww TIL that none of the paintings Bob Ross painted on air were spontaneous. He would refer to a painting he created earlier that was hidden off camera.
ADg97 TIL Issac Newton and Robert Hooke were bitter rivals, and Newton’s famous quote “If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants” was most likely a passive-aggressive attack on Hooke, who stood significantly shorter than Newton.
7rvNZ TIL Elvis Costello is banned from appearing on SNL after refusing to play “Less Than Zero” at Lorne Michaels’ request. He saw it pointless to play a song about UK politics over here. He played a few bars, then kicked into “Radio, Radio,” which was a criticism of corporate-controlled broadcasting.