› added 1 year ago

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TIL that Taser is an acronym for "Tom Swift and his Electric Rifle". Jack Cover, the inventor of the Taser, was inspired by a young adult novel published in 1911 that features the namesake character and weapon.

Read more theguardian.com

via reddit.com

R5v8 TIL that a person’s willpower is directly linked to their glucose levels. So people quitting smoking, when you get a craving just have some jelly beans instead.
N1kJ TIL that people tend to significantly overestimate how noticeable their embarrassing behaviors are to others, due to a cognitive bias known as the Spotlight Effect.
PNDE TIL the Lifeline pendants, from the “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” commercials, had to be redesigned after they killed several people.
E1Ek7 TIL Singing 'My Way' by Frank Sinatra is banned in Karaoke Bars in the Philippines because people have been murdered while singing it. It is unknown why.
wL8LP TIL of cryptomnesia - when you forget something and then remember it as if it's an original thought. This can cause unintentional plagiarism or convince you that you've got a brilliant new idea, only to be disappointed when it's already been done.