› added 9 years ago

92

TIL the iconic image of the Grand Staircase of the Titanic is actually that of the Olympic because no pictures were ever taken of the one on the Titanic.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

887X TIL that the word “nickname” is just a screwed up version of “ekename,” which means “additional name.” People confused “an ekename” enough that it became “a nickname.”
aEEN TIL of Piper Bill Millin who played the bagpipes as British Commandos landed at Sword Beach on D Day. He was told by captured German snipers later on that he was spared because they thought he was crazy.
16WB4 TIL that artificial banana flavoring isn't based on a species of banana that got wiped out, but instead uses Isoamyl acetate to replicate the flavor, which is only part of what gives bananas their distinctive taste.
e0ygk TIL that researchers at the University of Michigan have discovered another job for introverts: grammar police.
1aNLD TIL a sanitary inventor named Thomas Crapper improved the U-bend pipe, and patented the floating ballcock to prevent indoor toilets from exploding.