› added 13 years ago

3753

TIL that carrots aren’t actually good for your eyes… it’s just a myth that the British government fabricated during WWII. They wanted to keep their newly developed radar system secret from the Germans and had to find some way to explain how they were suddenly shooting down a lot more planes.

Read more science.howstuffworks.com

via reddit.com

Dovp TIL when Vera Menchick competed in an international chess tournament, Albert Becker ridiculed her entry by proposing that any player she defeated should be granted membership of the “Vera Menchik Club”. He became the first member of that club, and she the first female chess world champion.
dDv7B TIL Russell Crowe once hired Nick Cave to write a sequel to Gladiator. The script involved Maximus waking up in the afterlife and being tasked by the Gods to track down and defeat the Greek god of volcanoes. He also time travels to the present day and an emperor's giraffe gets struck by lightning.
VMJkm TIL that Keelhauling was considered one of the worst forms of punishment in naval history. The victims were dragged along the keel of the ship and died frequently because the barnacles on the hull of the ship cut open their body which was incredibly painful.
Z5gQ TIL that Mel Blanc, voice actor for Porky Pig, from Bugs Bunny, has “That’s all folks!” on his gravestone.
EgEy0 TIL that Saint Nicholas (the saint who helped shape Christmas into what it is today) is featured in a tale in which he raises the dead after encountering an evil innkeeper who chopped up three small boys and pickled them in a large barrel