› added 1 month ago

10

TIL that the Tetrahymena thermophila, a single-celled ciliated unicellular eukaryote, has 7 different sexes. Any two different sexes can mate and produce offspring, and the sex of the offspring can be any of the 7 different types. This allows for 21 different mating combinations.

Read more nature.com

via reddit.com

xvrk TIL that between 50-100 Americans currently use a plutonium-powered pacemaker. They are to be returned to Los Alamos upon the owner’s death.
kOey1 TIL that the term scapegoat comes from an old Jewish ritual where they would put all the sins of the townspeople onto a goat and then banish that goat from town sending the burden of their sins with it.
kOVwB TIL fear of the unknown is the driving force behind many anxiety disorders
l7neN TIL that not all spiders that spin webs make them sticky. One of many strategies includes spinning a fine silky lattice that entangles their prey instead.
M71Q7 TIL that the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology conducted an "autopsy" of the failed Friendster social network to determine the causes of its collapse