› added 4 years ago

70

TIL in the 18th century "Donkey" became preferable to "Ass" for the name of said animal, however, it is completely unknown where the word "Donkey" originated from.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

1XEr TIL that the “rules of the food game in America are organized in such a way that if you are eating on a budget, the most rational economic strategy is to eat badly — and get fat. Adam Drewnowski found that a dollar could buy 1,200 calories of cookies or potato chips but only 250 calories of carrots.
xOjB TIL that the film version of “Fahrenheit 451” has spoken opening credits in keeping with the film’s story of a world without reading matter.
pYBvQ TIL that Jean-Bédel Bokassa declared himself emperor of Central Africa with a ludicrous coronation ceremony in 1977 that cost nearly $20M ($90M today), almost bankrupting the country
KO9BR TIL In 1940, Princess Juliana of The Netherlands was evacuated to Ottawa Canada. When her child Margaret was born, Canada declared her rooms at the Hospital as extraterritorial so the baby would have Dutch nationality. As thanks, Princess Juliana has given Ottawa 10,000 tulip bulbs every year since.
b6M4E TIL that Tea clipper Cutty Sark is named after a character of the poem: Tam O’Shanter by Robert Burns. Where the witch, Nannie wears a cutty sark (short nightgown).