› added 6 years ago

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TIL that generally speaking, a Dane speaking Danish can understand and be understood by Norwegians speaking Norwegian, and Swedes speaking Swedish. This is because the languages of Scandinavia are considered "mutually intelligible".

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xVBx5 TIL Harvard invented the college interview and evaluation of extracurricular activities to weed out Jews in the selection process.
l7PmV TIL that there is partially completed Tube station under Hampstead Heath, which was abandoned after its American backer was blocked from purchasing land to build a residential area which would provide passengers to use the station
Oolve TIL "pH" stands for "potential of hydrogen" - the more hydrogen ions in a liquid, the more alkaline it is
Z8bnQ TIL that when choosing the name for a Chinese baby, families often follow a "generation name" to pick one of the characters in the name. Such poem is written in advance, and can predetermine the names of thirty-two or more generations, such that after hundreds of years the names spell out the poem.
8eeGa TIL of the term Euphemism Treadmill: As words turn into a pejorative they get replaced by other words that turn into a pejorative