› added 11 years ago

81

TIL that according to the Democracy Index (created by a business within the Economist Group), only 25 countries are full democracies. 53 are flawed democracies, 36 are hybrids and 53 are authoritarian.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

wL40P TIL That "French onion dip" was originally called California dip since it was invented by an unknown cook in Los Angeles in 1954 where the recipe was originally published in the newspaper. The name "French onion dip" began to be used in the 1960s, and became more popular in the 1990s.
X070R TIL that in World War I Germany published warnings in American newspapers that they may attack the Lusitania
XEKl8 TIL MyPillow has been sued for making claims that the company’s pillows could treat and cure multiple diseases, including multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy.
wLRrE TIL Dave Thomas, the founder of Wendy's, was adopted when he was just 6 weeks old. His adoptive mother died when he was 5, and he was abused by his adoptive father. Hoping he could find better matches for other children in the future, he founded the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption in 1992.
7rMDX TIL that the London Underground is so hot because the clay through which the tunnels are dug has spend decades heating up and is now insulating the tunnels. It was originally thought that the tube would remain cooler than the streets above.