› added 6 years ago

314

TIL that Deleting a certain gene in mice can make them smarter by unlocking a mysterious region of the brain considered to be relatively inflexible. Scientists at Emory University have named this gene associated with memory and learning the "Homer Simpson gene"

vPQN4 TIL A lake in northwest Montana has been known to emit strange, sci-fi-like sounds during the spring thaw. This phenomenon, caused by the expansion and contraction of the ice due to temperature fluctuations, creates vibrations that travel through the ice and produce a unique and echoing sound.
mKZO TIL that after Wernher von Braun’s first V2 rocket was used in combat, he was quoted as saying “the rocket worked perfectly, except for landing on the wrong planet”.
lxB5 TIL the inventor of the television would not let his own children watch TV. He once said to his son “There’s nothing on it worthwhile, and we’re not going to watch it in this household, and I don’t want it in your intellectual diet.” - Philo T Farnsworth
K9Ow TIL - A human fetus would have to undergo a gestation period of 18 to 21 months to be born at a neurological and cognitive development stage comparable to that of a chimpanzee newborn.
9XMD TIL: In 2016, a little girl named Anaya Ellick beat 50 other kids from around the country in a national handwriting competition. What makes this accomplishment impressive is that Anaya was born without hands and taugh herself how to write with her forearms.