› added 11 years ago

428

TIL Switzerland and Finland have proportional fines. [Millionaire gets $300,000 speeding ticket]

Read more theguardian.com

via reddit.com

Z8XRa TIL that in the 1700s, pineapples were expensive, so rich American colonists would rent a pineapple and carry it around parties to show off their wealth.
QND0e Today I Learned Saint Nicholas became associated with secret gift-giving to children because it's said he secretly gave a poor family money during the night. The father could not afford a dowry so his three daughters were destined to never marry and become sex workers without St. Nick's help.
oxZA TIL Nevada is the most magnetic state (highest percent of adults born in another state) and Texas is the stickiest state (highest percent of adults born in the state that still live there). New York is the least magnetic and Alaska is the least sticky.
b9r17 TIL there’s a single word for spirits/angels/deities whose job is to escort the dead to the afterlife. “Psychopomp”
Wj4 TIL there is an ingredient used to make microwave popcorn “butter flavouring” called diacetyl that if inhaled can cause a dangerous condition known as “Popcorn Lung.”