› added 7 years ago

607

TIL Phantom traffic jams (queues of traffic not caused by vehicle collisions or roadworks) are the result of a single driver braking suddenly, causing each successive car to break to a greater degree, creating a wave of stopped or slowed traffic.

Read more vox.com

via reddit.com

9y4X TIL China has been producing fake chicken eggs since the 90s. The production cost is less than half of a real egg. They are made from a mixture of resin, starch, coagulant and pigments, while algae gives them proper viscosity. The shell is made from paraffin wax, gypsum powder, and calcium carbonate
XwR8 TIL: Spain Cheated in the 2000 Summer Paralympics, 10 of the 12 players on their roster “were encouraged to pretend to be stupid” and had no mental disability.
npbb TIL that former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko was deliberately poisoned, which became apparent as his complexion seemed to age decades over the course of months.
8aj7b TIL that when people in the UK talk about eating “baked beans on toast”, they’re not referring to the US-style baked beans that consist of a brown sugar base. They have a completely different style of baked beans with a tomato base.
rEV0 TIL that 21% of the Forbes 400 list (of richest people) inherited all of their wealth, while 40% had inheritances in the millions. Also, 17% have family members also on the list