› added 2 years ago

84

TIL Douglas fir trees aren't firs

Read more beatlyzer.com

via beatlyzer.com

mxkyY TIL that “valet” is properly pronounced “vallit”, with a hard t. While it is a French word, and French words often have silent t’s like “ballet”, it was snobbery that led to its current mispronunciation.
D1GyV TIL about Fitzwilliam Notebook, which was a diary kept by Isaac Newton when he was 19 or 20 years old. It contained a list of Newton's 57 deeds that he considered sins. The list included entries like 'making pies on Sunday night', 'calling Dorothy Rose a jade' etc.
JyOv TIL that Pyrrhus of Epirus lost so many men in his victories against Rome that he claimed, “If we are victorious in one more battle with the Romans, we shall be utterly ruined.“ This coined the term pyrrhic victory.
XEnkk TIL that Bobby Fischer, who won the World Chess Championship in 1972, became reclusive and erratic. 1992, he re-emerged, playing in Yugoslavia, which led to a conflict with the US government and a warrant for his arrest was issued. Eventually, he was granted asylum in Iceland, where he died in 2008
gM0v7 TIL that “Tonto” the name of the Lone Ranger’s Indian sidekick, means “fool” in Spanish.