› added 3 months ago

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TIL that in pre-Roman Sardinia, whenever elderly people were no longer able to support themselves, they were given a neurotoxic plant called "Sardonic Herb" and then dropped from a high rock or beaten to death. The term "sardonic grin" comes from the facial expression they had after their death.

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e0mB5 TIL that Nicolas Cage once outbid Leonardo DiCaprio for a 70 million year old dinosaur skull paying $276,000 for it. After later finding out that the skull was stolen he agreed to return it to the Mongolian authorities.
YoGZ TIL that the oldest razor-like object has been dated to 18,000 B.C. and people have shaved since prehistoric times.
v1xOj TIL that 7'4" (2.24m) Boban Marjanović, is currently the tallest player in the NBA. His father is 5'9" (1.75m) and his mother is 5'6" (1.68m).
aw4kb TIL bats and dolphins evolved echolocation in the same way (down to the molécular level). An analysis revealed that 200 genes had independently changed in the same ways. This is an extreme example of convergent evolution.
jNKyE TIL because regular air is toxic at high pressures, deep sea divers live on a mix of helium and oxygen, meaning they live and speak with a squeaky helium voice for around a month while working.