› added 7 years ago

157

TIL that Merlin the Wizard was possibly based on the legend of a real person, Myrddin Wyllt, a bard who went crazy watching the defeat and slaughter of his Celtic King Gwenddoleu and his army, and spent the rest of his life in the forest living among animals as a madman.

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via ift.tt

1alj4 TIL about the heroism of Teddy Sheean, of the Australian navy. During WW2, his ship was torpedoed, and Japanese planes shot at survivors in the sea. Sheean strapped himself to an antiaircraft gun on the sinking ship and fired at the planes, downing at least one. He was still firing as he drowned.
daLQ TIL that antifreeze is made artificially bitter because the original sweet taste makes it perfect for murdering/poisoning people
6Evkl TIL that contrary to his modern day image as a ruthless tyrant, infamous pirate Blackbeard actually spurned violence, preferring to rely on intimidation tactics, and never harmed or murdered anyone he held captive.
oO4r TIL The first modern Olympic medalist was kicked from Harvard because he went to the Olympics after a denied leave of absence
GEn1 TIL that the trickle-down-economics Republicans support, also called “horse-and-sparrow theory”, is in German also named “Pferdeäpfel-Theorie”. A “Pferdeapfel” is literally horseshit.