› added 12 years ago

151

TIL a person infected with toxoplasmosis is more than twice as likely to be in a car accident—attributed to the parasite’s tendency to reduce reaction time—and has a higher than normal risk of schizophrenia and suicide

Read more news.nationalgeographic.com

via reddit.com

vPZ1K TIL that French composer and organist Jehan Alain joined the French Army in WWII, serving as a despatch rider. He was conducting reconnaissance by motorbike when he encountered German infantry. Refusing to surrender, he killed 16 enemies before being gunned down.
GYngg TIL While recording "The Show Must Go On", Brian May doubted that Freddie Mercury would be able to sing the highly demanding vocals due to Freddie's declining health. To May's surprise, Freddie downed a vodka, said "I'll fucking do it, darling!" and then, in May's words, he "went in and killed it".
jw7p TIL scientists are excavating the ruins of a major civilization which predates both the pyramids and Stonehenge by over 7,000 years. In 15 years they have uncovered only about 5% of the site.
69MDW TIL that at 15, Kara Robinson was kidnapped and assaulted by a serial killer for 18 hours. She managed to escape after manipulating him to feel at ease. She later helped police to capture him because she had memorized details of her surroundings.
m5WP TIL: The first item sold on ebay was a broken laser pointer, and when asked in an email by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar if he was aware that the laser pointer was broken, the buyer replied that “I’m a collector of broken laser pointers.”