› added 4 years ago

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TIL the Coronation Chair used by English & British monarchs, since 1308, for their coronation ceremonies has graffiti on due to Westminster schoolboys and visitors carving their names on it during the 18th & 19th centuries. One tourist carving reads "P. Abbott slept in this chair 5-6 July 1800".

Read more westminster-abbey.org

via reddit.com

N7rbN TIL Helium was first discovered in 1868 on the SUN. Astronomers at the time noticed a certain wavelength in sunlight which could not be produced by any known element at the time. It was thought that the gas was only present on the sun, thus was named after the Greek god Helios.
1aWpd TIL in 1938 when Neville Chamberlain returned from visiting Hitler promising "peace for our time", the crowd of 5,000 supporters at the airport were eclipsed by 15,000 protestors in the streets in London, but wasn't reported on due to Chamberlain's manipulation of the BBC.
R0al TIL that, according to the Solomon Curve, drivers traveling 5 mph (8 km/h) above the average speed of traffic are statistically the least likely to be involved in a crash while crash risk increases dramatically when traveling below the average speed.
LkOr TIL When bears hibernate, they do not suffer from muscle degeneration. Understanding this fully could lead to better healthcare for coma victims.
yQmkV TIL not only does the Aztec word that became avocado mean “testicle” (because it grows in pairs), but the fruit was apparently adapted for megafauna like mammoths and giant sloths who would eat it and poop out its unusually large seed in distant locations.