› added 3 years ago

63

TIL the blue planet used to be purple. 250 million years ago, the oceans lost all their oxygen and one of the only things to survive was a purple alga/bacteria which would have given the seas an irridescent violet hue. Geologists have found remnants of this purple bacteria embedded in ancient rock.

Read more astrobio.net

via reddit.com

Vl1G TIL In the Gulf War, 9 M1 Abrams Tanks destroyed 28 T-Series Iraqi Tanks, 16 Iraqi personal carriers and 39 Iraqi trucks in under 23 minutes.
wlx7 TIL that Betty White holds the world record for the Longest TV Career for a Female Entertainer (75+ years).
GAgJg TIL Sugar does not cause hyperactivity in children. This myth is based on a single 1978 study; no subsequent study has shown a relationship.
nJQr TIL that Nestle actively supports child trafficking and child slavery in Africa to obtain cocoa. Several organizations have been trying to end Nestle’s involvement, and in 2005 Nestle signed an ILO agreement to stop supporting child labor. 10 years later, Nestle hasn’t stopped.
R7nXw TIL Chimpanzees have got all the cognitive abilities necessary for the human-only practice of cooking. They understand that cooking is a process - that food is transformed into a tastier form; they don’t do it in the wild because they’ve never learned to manage fire.