› added 12 years ago

223

TIL thousands of historic maps are available for download by the Library of Congress.

Read more memory.loc.gov

via reddit.com

oLRA TIL that 20th President James A. Garfield was ambidextrous and was versed in both Greek and Latin. He would sometimes entertain his friends by having them ask him questions and then writing the answers simultaneously in Latin in Greek using both hands.
XErME TIL The Aral Sea, formerly the fourth largest lake in the world, has been drying up since the 1960's due to poor water management practices, so much so that the eastern basin is now called the Aralkum Desert, full of ghostly relics of rusting ships and decaying docks.
78a5p TIL that Dimethylmercury will penetrate latex, butyl or neoprene gloves in about 15 seconds and you’ll likely die if you get a drop on your gloved hand.
epgEn TIL In 1989, Pastor Jack Hyles told a church member to start living in his basement alone and pray against all the sin he saw around him, while secretly having an affair with the man's wife upstairs. When the member complained, Hyles built him a backyard bedroom, and the situation lasted 12 years.
R7oWQ TIL Alex Trebek sleeps naked. In 2011, a burglar broke into his hotel room where Trebek and his wife were sleeping. Alex put on a pair of underwear and chased the burglar before he tore his Achilles tendon during the chase.